Investments

January a hot month for fund sales

Canada’s mutual fund industry started 2011 on a high note, with net sales of between $2.45 billion and $2.95 billion, according to preliminary estimates from the Investment Funds Institute of Canada. Net industry assets totalled between $639.1 billion and $644.1 billion at month-end, an increase of about 0.94% from the end of December. These statistics […]

By Steven Lamb |February 3, 2011

1 min read

Mid-East unrest boosts fund returns

Political upheavel in Tunisia and Egypt helped boost Canadian mutual fund returns in January, on fears that Middle East oil supplies could be disrupted, according to a preliminary report from Morningstar Canada. “Concerns grew that protests could spread to larger oil-producing countries and that supplies through the Suez Canal and Sumed oil pipeline could be […]

By Steven Lamb |February 2, 2011

1 min read

Commodities rally continues

It may come as no surprise, but 2010 was a very strong year for commodity prices. How strong? The Scotiabank Commodity Price Index, which tracks the price of 32 commodities, surged 17.8% on the year. The index capped the year with a hefty month-over-month gain of 5.5% in December. Since the cyclical low, reached in […]

By Steven Lamb |January 27, 2011

3 min read

U.S. equities hold promise: Laurentian Bank

The U.S. economy is strengthening and will set the tone for the global investment landscape in 2011, according to the chief economist of Laurentian Bank. “Two significant events occurred at the end of 2010 that generated significant momentum for the American economy,” says Carlos Leitao, pointing to the second wave of quantitative easing and the […]

By Steven Lamb |January 27, 2011

2 min read