Industry News

Global economy seen slowing through 2006

(July 13, 2005) The global economy will slow over the coming year, but growth in Asia’s developing economies should maintain a relatively healthy pace, according to Scotia Economics’ Global Outlook report. The U.S. consumer is expected to finally show signs of fatigue, as interest rates continue to rise, although housing could remain strong. Weakness in […]

By Steven Lamb |July 13, 2005

3 min read

Industry

Manulife trimming guaranteed funds lineup

(July 13, 2005) Advisors will face a slightly shrinking product roster this fall when Manulife Financial makes cuts to its family of guaranteed funds. Manulife decided to make the changes because the risks outweigh the returns, explains Rick Annaert, Manulife’s vice-president of investment products. “We’ve reviewed our risk metrics,” he said. “We considered the amount […]

By Al Emid |July 13, 2005

2 min read

Industry

Confidence is strong, but are job stats misleading?

(July 12, 2005) Canadians are optimistic about their economic future, due in large part to stable interest rates and falling unemployment numbers, but critics say consumers are being misled by job creation statistics. Despite volatile number reported by the University of Michigan, Canadian confidence has remained steady and strong during the past three quarters. Today, […]

By Kate McCaffery |July 12, 2005

3 min read

Industry

Crocus hit with $200 million lawsuit

(July 12, 2005) A class action has been filed against Manitoba’s Crocus Investment Fund. The statement of claim, which seeks $150 million in damages, plus an additional $50 million in punitive damages, was issued on Tuesday in Winnipeg. It names 17 former executives and board members of the troubled labour fund, which announced last month […]

By Doug Watt |July 12, 2005

2 min read

Briefly:

(July 15, 2005) An Ontario court has convicted Andrew Rankin on 11 counts of illegal tipping, but cleared him on 10 charges of insider trading, drawing to a close his six-week insider trading trial. The former managing director of RBC Dominion Securities’ mergers-and-acquisitions branch was charged with passing insider information to his childhood friend Daniel […]

By Staff |July 11, 2005

12 min read

Economists weigh in on Canadian outlook

(July 11, 2005) Economists say Canadian economic growth could peak in 2006, then pull back to higher but more moderate levels. Summer forecasting season is well underway and the consensus so far puts Canadian GDP growth between 2.9% and 3.4% in the coming year. The latest reports — one from BMO Financial Group and another […]

3 min read

RBC opens first retail insurance branch

(July 11, 2005) RBC has followed through on a recent pledge to set up retail insurance offices next door to conventional bank branches. RBC Insurance opened its first office at the Woodside Square Mall in Scarborough, Ontario last month. The move, considered controversial by some industry watchers, is an attempt to bypass current regulations that […]

By Doug Watt |July 11, 2005

3 min read

Berkshire distances itself from accused rogue advisor

(July 8, 2005) Berkshire Investments says it had no involvement in alleged wrongdoing by an advisor that worked for the firm in Victoria, B.C. Ian Thow was the subject of a scathing profile in The Vancouver Sun earlier this week. The article described Thow’s extravagant lifestyle, which reportedly included ownership of a $1.5 million yacht, […]

By Doug Watt |July 8, 2005

2 min read

Analysts square off on market movement

(July 8, 2005) In the wake of an equity market run-up over the past three years, many investors are starting to get nervous. Will the markets continue to recover, or will the rally fizzle out? Subodh Kumar, chief U.S. investment strategist at CIBC, is considered bullish. He says the current valuation of 18 to 20 […]

By Steven Lamb |July 8, 2005

4 min read