Over managing your investments could cost you money
There are two ways to manage your portfolio. You can take a consistent approach with little change in the allocation to stocks and maintaining that balance over time. Alternatively, you can make periodic shifts in the weighting of stocks and bonds. These shifts can be based on a specific criterion, or just your gut feeling […]
Interest Rate Increases will be Painful
The Bank of Canada has warned us of pending interest rate increases for a long time. Last week interest rates were increased by one quarter of one per cent. Many are anticipating six interest rate increases over a relatively short period of time. These increases are necessary to slow down economic activity in order to […]
The pandemic will continue to change how we work
It’s time to focus on your career, given the changes to employment as a result of the pandemic, writes Peter Watson. Work has changed as result of the pandemic. Change has occurred in sectors that seem logical, but changes are also happening in areas that were not directly affected. Restaurant employment has seen a mass […]
Facebook Parent Company Shares Plunge in Value
Last Thursday, shares of Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook, plunged 26 per cent in value in just one day. Mark Zuckerberg lost US$29 billion. For the last few years FANG shares appreciated significantly. FANG is the acronym for Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google. When companies do extraordinarily well, many investors decide to hop on the […]
Rising Interest Rates Ahead
The Bank of Canada continues to sound the alarm that higher interest rates are just around the corner. There are two significant reasons why. One. Inflation, as measured by the consumer price index had an annual increase of 4.8 per cent in December. This is the highest level in three decades. The target inflation rate […]
Successful Investing starts with asset allocation
Asset allocation is the most important decision for investors, writes Peter Watson. Stocks have a higher expected rate of return than bonds. They also have a higher amount of uncertainty and volatility. Bonds have a lower expected rate of return. They are less volatile and the risk of losing money is far less than owning […]
New Year’s Resolution: Is it Time for a Career Change?
Rethink your current career to see if you should make a change, writes Peter Watson. Financial success starts with your ability to earn an income. Your employment is not just a job, it is your current livelihood and your future financial security. It makes perfect sense to periodically evaluate your working life. Consider making this […]
The Perfect Gift for Your Child in 2022
It’s a new year and why not give your children a gift they really deserve in 2022, writes Peter Watson. The gift: a mutual fund that invests in a broadly diversified portfolio of stocks around the world. Why is this important? It is not money, but rather the educational experience of owning an investment. The […]
Investing Can Be Simple: Do What Works
Picking the best mutual fund is a difficult task, writes Peter Watson. You would hope for two things: The mutual fund would stay in business, and the fund will outperform its benchmark. In 2001 there were 2,900 US-based equity mutual funds. Twenty years later only 41 per cent of those funds were still in existence. […]
Tax Avoidance Hurts Us All
It is unfair that most Canadians pay their fair share of taxes while some of the rich and famous do not, writes Peter Watson. The world has just had another glimpse of how the privileged have avoided taxes. This round of tax avoidance has been named the Pandora Papers. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists […]
