Market Insights

Investors wary of markets

Canadian investors remain cautious in their outlook on the markets, according to the latest reading of the Russell Financial Health Index. The index currently stands at 48, with no change since the last reading in Q3 of 2010. “The lack of change in investor confidence is common at this time of the year, due to […]

By Staff |February 4, 2011

1 min read

Market Insights

India: Going for jumbo gains

The Indian economy is an elephant growing at 9%, making it a formidable beast in the global financial jungle, a financial expert from India recently said. An amusing parallel, but the pachydermal analogy actually makes a strong case for the world’s fourth largest economy as an investment destination of choice. “India is the country of […]

By Vikram Barhat |February 4, 2011

5 min read

Industry

January a hot month for fund sales

Canada’s mutual fund industry started 2011 on a high note, with net sales of between $2.45 billion and $2.95 billion, according to preliminary estimates from the Investment Funds Institute of Canada. Net industry assets totalled between $639.1 billion and $644.1 billion at month-end, an increase of about 0.94% from the end of December. These statistics […]

By Steven Lamb |February 3, 2011

1 min read

Industry

Mid-East unrest boosts fund returns

Political upheavel in Tunisia and Egypt helped boost Canadian mutual fund returns in January, on fears that Middle East oil supplies could be disrupted, according to a preliminary report from Morningstar Canada. “Concerns grew that protests could spread to larger oil-producing countries and that supplies through the Suez Canal and Sumed oil pipeline could be […]

By Steven Lamb |February 2, 2011

1 min read

Large cap growth managers on top in Q4

New data from the Russell Active Manager Report shows Canadian large cap growth managers in Canada gained 11.1% in the final quarter of 2010, their highest return since the first quarter of 2009. This also beats the S&P/TSX Composite Index’s return of 9.4% and the median value manager’s return of 9.1% during the same period. […]

By Staff |February 2, 2011

4 min read

Opportunities for long bond investors

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke continues to stand against allowing the U.S. economy to enter a period of deflation, an economic condition he believes would spell long-lasting financial hardship for Americans. His solution — the centrepiece of a monetary control philosophy often referred to as the Bernanke Doctrine — is to open the valves of the U.S. money supply and let the dollars flow into the economy. The availability of so much cheap money, the theory goes, would stimulate spending in all corners and give the economy a much-needed nudge towards a renewed era of sustained growth.

3 min read

Long bond investors see opportunities

3 min read

Segregated funds offer protection

Financial advisors must make investment decisions for their clients based on whatever information is available at that moment, not unlike the physician who must make a diagnosis with limited information about his patient’s condition. The best advisors ask lots of questions and keep copious notes. Most advisors rely on the standard financial planning dictum of […]

By Rod Tyler |February 1, 2011

5 min read

Keep emotion in check, portfolio balanced

In at the top, out at the bottom, the stock market is an expensive place to get to know yourself. J. Matthew Beckerleg, partner and portfolio manager at Pembroke Management Ltd., says investors should remove emotion from the process.

By Vikram Barhat |January 28, 2011

5 min read