Canada’s economy will avoid slipping back into recession, but growth will remain modest in 2011 and 2012, according to the Conference Board of Canada’s Canadian Outlook—Autumn 2011. “The ongoing volatility in equity and commodity markets is a reminder of how fragile the state of the U.S. and global economy remains,” said Pedro Antunes, the Conference […]
Originally from our sister publication, Advisor.ca. Here’s a shock: international business and political events shook the confidence of Canadian investors in the third quarter. That’s the finding of the latest Manulife Financial Investor Sentiment Index survey. The debate over raising the American debt ceiling was cited by 34% of survey respondents as a cause for […]
Originally from our sister publication, Advisor.ca. World leaders need to co-operate on building a sustainable global financial framework, even if it means setting aside some of their national priorities in the process. The stakes are simply too high for larger economic players to chart their own course, according to a Canadian with some recent experience […]
Originally from our sister publication, Advisor.ca. In the months following Lehman Brothers’ implosion, investors stampeded into bonds, with U.S. Treasuries the issue of choice. Since then, market watchers have repeatedly warned of an impending slaughter, as interest rates would eventually have to rise. While that rise may be inevitable, it is not coming any time […]
While the news has been dominated by the European debt crisis, worries about jobs are what weighs most on U.S. consumer sentiment, according to the latest RBC Consumer Outlook Index. Amid continuing job concerns, U.S. consumer confidence remained nearly flat for October, the third consecutive month with little change, according to the RBC Consumer Outlook […]
Equity funds in Canada suffered a fifth consecutive month of overwhelmingly negative returns in September amid high volatility and bleak economic news. This led to dismal results for the third quarter of 2011 for all 23 of the Morningstar Canada Fund Indices that track equity categories, with 16 of them losing more than 10%, according […]
The assets for the U.S.’s 100 largest public sector retirement plans rose 1.3% to US$2.8 trillion in the second quarter of 2011, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. The rise marks the highest level since the second quarter of 2008. Year-to-year, total assets rose 17.6%, or US$414 billion. Holdings of corporate […]
Originally from our sister publication, Advisor.ca. Investors should be cautiously optimistic about the outlook for Canada and emerging markets, two top experts at BMO said during a conference call on Friday. The Canadian scene On the economic front, we continue to perform relatively well,” said Paul Taylor, chief investment officer, BMO Harris Private Banking. Both […]
Events surrounding the credit issues of European sovereigns such as Greece, Portugal and Italy dominate the news. The idea of a country declaring bankruptcy seems difficult for most people—especially Canadians—to comprehend. We may consider the benefits of Greek citizens, such as reports of taxi drivers retiring at age 53, to be egregious, but also wonder […]
Canada has surpassed the United States for levels of economic freedom, according to a new report released today by the Fraser Institute, Canada’s leading public policy think-tank. Canada ranks sixth in the world for economic freedom with a score of 7.81 while the United States fell to 10th overall with a score of 7.60, according […]