Market Insights

Ravaged small caps may offer opportunity

Small caps fell harder and faster than large cap stocks in 2008. In fact, the definition of small cap itself is in question as valuations have plummeted to extreme lows. Yet, history suggests small caps usually have good performance during the early stages of a stock market recovery. A report released by Merrill Lynch on […]

By Mark Noble |February 18, 2009

5 min read

Time to open an emergency account

It’s something every advisor knows and hopefully puts into practice: get your clients to establish an emergency bank account. From the 1970s through to the 1990s, this was a no-brainer, as interest rates were relatively good on the usual savings vehicles — high-interest savings accounts and Canada Savings Bonds. But in the last decade or […]

By Janet Freedman |February 10, 2009

4 min read

Treating a household like a business

During recessions and market downturns, homeowners often take comfort in their biggest investment asset: their home. But should they? With spending and investing on many people’s minds these days, home prices, and the widespread conviction that investors never lose money on a house purchase, are being tested. As with much in life, the value of […]

By Scot Blythe |February 10, 2009

5 min read

Budget 2009: Few items of interest for advisors

This year’s federal budget was not obviously aimed directly at financial advisors and their clients. There’s nothing comparable to measures we have seen in recent budgets such as pension income splitting in March 2007 or the tax-free savings accounts announced last February. Nevertheless, there are aspects of the 2009 budget that we should be thinking […]

By Peter Drake |February 3, 2009

3 min read