Low interest rates, rising inflation, and a lower US dollar combined to lift the price of gold for the fourth straight week. With the Fed openly talking about another round of quantitative easing the interest in gold as a hedge and as a speculation jumped right along with its price. Gold ended the week at US$1,738 per ounce, up...
An option strategy that works well for those want to take advantage of time value is calendar or time spreads. It is also a good strategy in a low volatility environment. With the MX Volatility Index at 15.35% and well below its 200-day moving average there is a good argument in support of the position that volatility is low....
We allude to fertilizer, of course, something that hasn’t been much in the news lately, given all the fuss and bother about European (and other) debt problems overhanging the global financial system. But people must eat, and animals must be fed. It just so happens that supplies of one staple grain crop are tight at the...
Earlier this week, a closely watched indicator suggested continuing improvement in the US economy. The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing purchasing managers index climbed to 53.9 in December, up from 52.7 in November. The gauge posted its best reading since June, as factory activity showed broad-based growth...
Year-to-date, the traditional non-cyclical sectors have performed on cue and in textbook fashion, outperforming cyclical stocks by a wide margin. The S&P/TSX Capped Healthcare (+12.8%), Capped Telecom (+13%), Income Trust (+15.4%) and Capped REIT (+13.8%) Indexes have posted year-to-date double-digit gains compared with...
Last week’s billion-dollar plus sale of the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan’s majority interest in Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment to a couple of Canada’s largest telcos is an example of effective decision-point resolution. It remains to be seen whether Canada’s Competition Bureau will approve the transaction. But...
One of the sectors usually associated with non-cyclical stocks is real estate. You can see that in the sectors performance. The S&P/TSX Capped Real Estate Index was ahead 2.6% year-to-date to the end of November. It is up 6.3% over the past 12 months. That’s not too surprising, given that the bulk of the index comprises...
When momentum rules the day in stock markets, it’s difficult to go against the grain. Only the boldest of the bold have the stomach to do so, placing bearish trades in the near-certain expectation of some success. In the past few weeks, that type of speculation has borne fruit. Others rely on defensive strategies to at least...