The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that proceeds from Canadian equity issuance in the first three months of 2018 were down 40 per cent compared with the same time in 2017, according to quarterly tallies from Thomson Reuters. A triple-bylined item led by Alexandra Posadzki says that unusually, none of the banks were credited with raising more than $1-billion in the quarter. Despite the surge in independent investment bank activity, TD Securities was the top underwriter of stock sales, followed by Canaccord Genuity and Credit Suisse. Sante Corona, head of equity capital markets at TD Securities, blamed the decline on the energy sector, "which was a big part of last year's market." Shopify had the largest issuance of the quarter with a deal valued at $835-million. Peter Miller, head of Canadian equity capital markets at BMO Nesbitt Burns, blames a lack of supply for the low level of new issue activity. "Corporate Canada seems to be sitting on their hands," he said. "Balance sheets are strong, we just don't see corporate issuers being particularly motivated to raise equity." Mr. Miller says he has a positive outlook for corporate earnings and the global economy, trade talks notwithstanding.