April just ended and it wasn’t good for investors. In fact, U.S. stocks are off to their worst four-month start since 1939. And the carnage has continued into the opening weeks of May. As of this writing, the S&P 500 is deep in correction territory, which is defined as a 10% drop (but less than […]
Category Archives: Blog
The TSX, Canada’s main stock index, has been the envy of the North American markets with commodities and financial helping propel it to record levels. Those sectors have helped the TSX advance eight percent year-over-year. Over the same period of time, however, the tech-heavy Nasdaq is down 11% and the S&P 500 has slipped 1.5%. […]
Soaring inflation and how it will undermine global economic growth is capturing all the headlines right now. After years of stability, inflation was down during the pandemic, with rates cratering to record lows in 2020 on concerns about COVID-19. Inflation started to climb significantly higher in 2021 on the heels of supply chain issues, strong […]
Stocks ended 2021 at record levels but 2022 has been a different story with U.S. stocks down more than eight percent since the start of January. Canadian stocks on the other hand, which are being juiced by strong commodity prices, are up more than three percent in 2022 and continue to trade near record levels. […]
The Bank of Canada raised its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points, or 0.5%, and said it expects Canada’s red-hot inflation will remain elevated for the rest of the year. Canada’s central bank also said it would stop buying government bonds on April 25, which is referred to as quantitative tightening (QT). The Bank […]
Stocks have fallen from their record levels at the end of 2021 with the S&P 500 flirting with correction territory, which is defined as a 10% drop (but less than 20%) from its most recent peak. The Nasdaq meanwhile is nearing a Bear market, which is when the market falls by more than 20% from […]
COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the Canadian and global economies. In February 2020, prior to the COVID-19 economic shutdown, the unemployment rate was 5.6%. Just three months later, the jobless rate hit a record high 13.7%. Since then, as the economy has reopened, Canada’s unemployment rate has steadily fallen. In fact, Canada’s jobless rate plunged to 5.5% in […]
The TSX, Canada’s main stock index is the leading North American Index right now. Trading at record levels, the TSX is up 3.6% year-to-date and 17.5% year-over-year. This far outpaces the S&P 500, which is down 3.5% in 2022 and up 16% year-over-year. Canadian stocks are not the only investing opportunity attracting attention, the Canadian […]
In this month’s market review, our Chief Options Specialist, Jason Ayres, reflects on the March market conditions.
The TSX, Canada’s main stock index has been setting a number of record highs, while U.S markets notch up some of their best weeks in more than a year. The bullish sentiment comes on the heels of hawkish sentiment from the U.S Federal Reserve after it raised interest rates and said it hopes for a […]