Market Insights

2020 has been an interesting year to say the least. A global pandemic, the fastest bear market in history, and increasing unemployment or salary cuts. If you are thinking about topping up your RRSP this year but do not have access to liquid funds other than your TFSA, there may be a strategy that can work in your favour.

In my last blog I showed that Mr. Trump is not the stock market president, in that the U.S. stock market has had better returns under various presidents during their term and that since 1948, the U.S. stock market has done better under a Democratic president than a Republican.

President Trump has often bragged about how well the stock market has performed since he was elected. With the U.S. stock market recovering all its losses since its March lows and recently hitting a new all-time high, it’s time to do some fact checking

Recently there have been media reports of a few companies that had purchased pandemic insurance. Two notable examples are the Wimbledon Championship Tennis Tournament and the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Consuming cannabis is the new normal. In 2013, Uruguay was the first country to legalize recreational cannabis. In 2018, Canada was the first industrialized country to legalize recreational cannabis. Today, there are over fifty countries that have legalized medical and/or recreational cannabis.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently posted a blog about corruption and COVID-19.

Take advantage of income splitting and pay less tax by using a spousal loan

In the current economic environment, buying GICs can feel like making a deal with the devil.  With interest rates at lows, with little to no projection to increase in the near term, what is the real price you pay to guarantee and lock in your return?

Pink Floyd’s classic song ‘Comfortably Numb’ sums up the current state of global markets and the economy. Central bankers (‘the doctors’) have successfully revived the global economy (‘the patient’) from the COVID crisis through massive injections of liquidity

The old investing adage “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” signifies the importance that dividends and return of capital play in a sound investment strategy.

Within our Matco investment process, there are two primary layers of investment management. The first layer is security or stock selection, which is similar to choosing the ingredients for a recipe.

During their working years, many people become accustomed to a consistent pay cheque being available in their personal bank accounts on a bi-weekly basis.

COVID-19 has certainly changed the way we work and live. One of the most positive outcomes is improved productivity. Evidence can be found all over social media as friends and family share posts of de-cluttered spaces, learn a new language and grow the ever-elusive sour dough yeast.

Have you ever hit the road heading to a place you have never been without a map? Or arrived at the airport with no idea of your destination? Setting goals and building strategies to reach them are elements of successful behavior.

Like the Netflix hit series ‘Stranger Things’, the global COVID crisis has turned the lives of billions of people upside down for the last three months.

The world of bonds, the boring capital market security that has failed over the years to provide the same dramatic appeal and excitement as the stock market.

Since March 22nd, global stock markets have had a powerful rally with Canadian and U.S. stock markets, up 36% and 34%, respectively as of April 29th.

Given the stalling of the global economy in order to stop the spread of COVID-19, central banks and governments are forced into a corner to do “whatever it takes” to dampen the impact of a recession.

Despite a severe market correction brought on by fears of a global pandemic around the coronavirus, or COVID-19, Anil Tahiliani, a portfolio manager and vice-president at Calgary-based Matco Financial Inc., is hanging in with his portfolio selections and has in fact added to some existing holdings on price weakness.

On the weekend, Saudi Arabia cut its official crude selling prices for April, effectively launching an oil price war against Russia. The price cut was a result of Russia and Saudi Arabia failing to agree on terms surrounding further production restrictions that were slated to begin April 1st.

Since February 21st, investors have been gripped by the fear of the Coronavirus spreading globally and causing the next recession. Unfortunately, given the digital age we live in, fear, bad news and fake news all spread faster than good news.

News that the Coronavirus (Covid-19) is spreading outside of China, has caused investors to hit the panic sell button. With Covid-19 not yet contained, the economic damage continues to spread from China and across multi-national companies in the airline, hotel, cruise, casino, entertainment and logistics sectors.

This morning one of the Fund’s top ten holdings (with a 3.7% portfolio weight) – Northview Apartment REIT announced a takeover proposal at a 12% premium to yesterday’s closing price. The all cash deal is expected to close in the third quarter.

As of Feb. 4th, Tesla’s stock year to date has gained 112% in less than 24 trading days. Is this parabolic move based on fundamentals or just irrational exuberance? We looked under the hood to check out the facts.

In this edition of Matco Insights, we take a closer look at the upcoming Saudi Aramco IPO while exploring some worthwhile market implications and considerations. More specifically, how could this potentially historic milestone within the energy sector impact the markets and your portfolio.