RRSPs, RRIFs, TFSAs, PPPs, critical illness insurance, long-term care insurance, high-limit disability insurance, life insurance, joint-and-last-to-die insurance, charitable donations at death—no wonder we get so tired as we get older!   Read More

We expect interest rates to keep climbing in 2018. Higher rates have hurt the prices of high-yield stocks. They often raise their dividends, however, while bonds never pay more. And   Read More

‘Buy high, sell low, repeat until broke’ is an emotional investment strategy best left to lemmings. The MoneyLetter’s behavioural finance columnist Ken Norquay says feeling emotions is okay: reacting to   Read More

Retirees are often advised to avoid risk by buying government bonds and holding them to maturity. But this exposes retirees to the risk of losing purchasing power due to inflation.   Read More

The US dollar (USD) rises when stocks fall more often than not. If you believe, as The MoneyLetter columnist Keith Richards does, that there is reason for a substantial market   Read More

Every month the Money Reporter, the newsletter for investors whose interest is more interest,  publishes its list of recommended bonds and preferred shares.
What to do about bonds now
After spiking a   Read More

The strength of The Investment Reporter stock selection system lies in not attempting the near-impossible task of outsmarting all other investors consistently (which is what you have to do if   Read More

Accountant Mark Goodfield (aka The Blunt Bean Counter) recently warned subscribers to The TaxLetter of some costly common investment mistakes and how to avoid them.
The duplication of investments is one   Read More

Behavioural finance analyst Ken Norquay encourages investors to create an action plan when the market is less emotional than it is now. Create a data-based program that tells you when   Read More

A study shows that from 1900 to 2017, dividends produced 90 per cent of the returns of investors worldwide. So focus as much on dividends as on profits and government   Read More

Recent weakness in the Canadian market leads us to recommend Canadian equity funds for new purchases right now. Higher stock valuations in the US have made international equity funds the   Read More

Contributing TaxLetter columnist Mark Halpern, CFP, TEP, spends a lot of time with generous and fortunate people who will have accumulated a lot of money by the time they die.   Read More

We’ve always thought that discipline may help you choose the best investments and increase your returns. Here are six things to remember when you buy stocks.
We’ve often stressed the point   Read More

Not all money market instruments are substitutes for each other. Below we look at the various securities available for investing your cash in, and identify which ones we have preferences   Read More

Domestic and international demand have aligned with the historic seasonal trends for base metals. Seasonal analyst Don Vialoux recently told Investor’s Digest readers which two exchange-traded funds to buy as   Read More

A sound investment strategy involves keeping some of your portfolio in cash. But where should you put it? Below we look at some of the options available to you for   Read More

When you buy stocks in sectors and sub-sectors of the market, keep your goals in mind. If you’re a conservative, income-seeking investor, focus on utilities, financial stocks and consumer stocks.   Read More

Vancouver-based HollisWealth® portfolio manager Elvis Picardo, thinks it would be safe to assume that market volatility will be higher this year than it has been in the last couple of   Read More

Aggressive investing may pay off, or backfire horrendously. It all depends on the market environment, and on your willingness to give your aggressive investments the extra care they require.
If you   Read More

Every month the Money Reporter, the newsletter for investors whose interest is more interest, publishes its list of recommended bonds and preferred shares.
What to do about bonds
Bonds have begun the   Read More

The TaxLetter contributing editor Mark Halpern recalls Martin Luther King’s sagacious advice: “If we are to go forward, we must go back.” When it comes to planning your financial future,   Read More

The Dow Jones Industrial Index has gone parabolic. (Prices are increasing and the rate of increase is increasing.) This pattern usually occurs in commodities or speculative individual stocks, rarely in   Read More

Strip bonds are well suited for RRSPs, RRIFs or TFSAs. They offer many advantages, such as certainty when planning for income. Remember, however, it’s best to hold strips inside a   Read More

So far in 2018, the January barometer suggests that markets will close the year higher than when they began the year. (Canadians have, of course, a special reason to be   Read More

In the debate over whether it’s best to invest actively or passively, it’s easy to lose track of the availability of a third option. Combining both investment approaches can be   Read More

Not quite what American author and editor Horace Greeley is credited with saying when advising exploitation of 19th century western expansion and prosperity in the USA. Here in Canada in   Read More

Columnist Mark Halpern shares his insight and analysis on using a Canadian insurance policy to protect your assets from the tax man. It’s a tax-smart investing strategy that honest, hard-working   Read More

Recent weakness in the Canadian market leads us to recommend Canadian equity funds for new purchases right now. Higher stock valuations in the US have made international equity funds the   Read More

A recent report that the US is considering terminating NAFTA caused the Canadian dollar, major Canadian blue-chip stocks and government bond yields to sink. What should you do to prepare   Read More

Behavioural finance author Ken Norquay adopts a Buddhist prayer to offer his take on some strategic investment advice for the new year.
We’ve just been through what I call The   Read More

Whether you invest in equity mutual funds or directly in stocks, you need to diversify your holdings and balance them to suit your own investment circumstances and objectives. Below we   Read More

After the biggest tax-reform since the Reagan administration, it is useful to have tax-smart investing strategies for today’s world. Both the US and international markets are expected to rise. With   Read More

DRIPs (Dividend Re-Investment Plans) and cash option plans let individual investors build their wealth. We outline 12 advantages that accrue to DRIP shareholders and lead you through a four-step process   Read More

MoneyLetter columnist Keith Richards thinks that the market is ripe for a stronger-than-normal tendency for sector and stock rotation from strong to weak performers in the coming weeks. He names   Read More

It’s best to diversify your portfolio across all five sectors of the economy: finance, utilities, consumer, manufacturing and resources. Remember, though, there’s danger in loading up on stocks in sectors   Read More

Portfolio manager and MoneyLetter columnist John Stephenson says that despite persistent worries over valuation, there is no historical or economic reason to fear a market sell-off anytime soon. For that   Read More

No one GIC strategy, such as laddering, is best in all kinds of rising interest rate markets. So you might as well use the strategy which makes the most sense   Read More

Pondering taxes can be a headache-inducing exercise so we hope not to compound the after effects of anyone’s riotous holiday partying. In any event, TaxLetter columnist Mark Goodfield (aka The   Read More

Scotia Canadian Dividend has been a relatively strong performer compared to its peers in the Canadian dividend and equity-income mutual fund category. It’s a fund that will fit with an   Read More

Jason Geall of Corwin Mortgage Capital explains the value of investing in private mortgages. This alternative investment is relatively unknown to investors, and readers of Investor’s Digest of Canada have   Read More

American Depositary Receipts, or ADRs, give you benefits. One is diversification. It’s tempting to call ADRs American ‘Diversification’ Receipts. They give you industries that Canada lacks or has in short   Read More

Research has shown that the prices of individual stocks have become increasingly volatile since the early 1960s. This has led some to conclude that you need as many as 50   Read More

It’s that time of year when many of us are thinking of both gift giving and tax planning opportunities. Contributing editor to The TaxLetter, Mark Halpern, CFP, TEP, is a   Read More

Our ‘buy-low-sell-high’ approach to getting higher-than-average long-term returns has nothing to do with being brilliant when the stock market goes UP. It’s all about not losing when the market goes   Read More

American shale oil production is growing quickly. It’s set to make the US a net oil exporter again. This will reduce or eliminate Americans’ need for Canadian oil. Shale oil   Read More

As the year winds down and markets flirt with new highs, it’s a good time to review your portfolio and make sure its asset allocation is suitable for your needs.
Most   Read More

‘Save your Confederate money, boys. The south will rise again.’ You may recall the lyrics about ‘Confederate’ dollars. They never did rise again. But the Yankee dollar? That’s another story.   Read More

Scotia Canadian Dividend has been a relatively strong performer compared to its peers in the Canadian dividend and equity-income mutual fund category. It’s a fund that will fit with an   Read More

American Depositary Receipts, or ADRs, give you benefits. One is diversification. It’s tempting to call ADRs American ‘Diversification’ Receipts. They give you industries that Canada lacks or has in short   Read More

Investor’s Digest contributor, Keith Richards of ValueTrend, shows investors an investment strategy known as the Elliott Wave Theory. He says the wave we experienced during 2017 is unprecedented and unusual.   Read More

It’s said that gold comes out of dark underground mines only to disappear into dark bank vaults. When we publish our gold stock survey, we do outline the yellow metal’s   Read More

There is no shortage of ways to calculate the yield on a preferred share. When do you go by which one?
When it comes to calculating the yield on a bond   Read More