The National Bank of Canada

The year came in like a lion on the world’s equity markets. At this writing the MSCI All Country World index is up 4.4% from the beginning of the year. The gains in the advanced countries were...

The U.S. Federal Reserve kept the fed funds rate unchanged at zero and its statement was little changed. It re-emphasized the thresholds for the unemployment rate (6.5%) and the inflation rate (2.5%)...

Moody’s downgraded the credit ratings of five of Canada’s big banks. The main reasons cited were record household debt levels and a possible correction of housing prices that the U.S....

SummaryThanks to the budget surpluses posted in the ten years preceding the recession, the supply of Government of Canada bonds diminished regularly over that period. Once the recession hit, the...

Unable to find a compromise on a lasting solution to the deficit and debt problem, US politicians are resorting to short-term extensions of measures to push back the threat of a potential economic...

The 2013 edition of the World Economic Forum, where the global financial elite meet in Davos, in the Swiss Alps to discuss problems affecting the entire planet, wrapped up yesterday. It appears that...

Last Wednesday, the Bank of Canada surprised the financial markets by stating that even if the key interest rate will eventually increase, rate hikes now were less imminent. Low inflation pressures...

According to just-released data, equity mutual funds recorded net inflows for the third consecutive week trough Jan. 23 (+1.4 billion in U.S. equities). The performance of the ETF sector was not as...

Conditions in European financial markets have improved significantly. With fears concerning convertibility or redenomination risk in the eurozone bond market now virtually gone, maintaining financial...

FACTS: Canada’s consumer price index fell 0.6% in December, versus consensus expectations for only a 0.2% drop. The sharp monthly decline allowed the annual inflation rate to remain unchanged at...

The Canadian S&P/TSX Composite index is entering another reporting season. 8 companies have yet to report in January. This will be followed by another 126 index constituents in February and 96 in...

The Bank of Canada did not budge, which came as no surprise. However, the change in its tone was unexpected: the BoC stated that rate increases announced in months past are less imminent, which caused...

This morning's Canadian Consumer Price Index is expected to come in between 1.2% and 1.4% depending on whether or not the most volatile elements are included. Given Governor Carney's more cautious...

Preliminary data on weekly inflows into U.S. mutual funds suggest that the previous week’s surge into equity funds was not a fluke. According to Reuters, inflows were again positive last week....

The Bank of Japan made a major announcement overnight. It announced that its asset-buying program would climb to 101 trillion yen by the end of 2013, and switch to an open-ended commitment starting in...

FACTS: Canadian retail sales rose 0.2% in November, topping consensus expectations. There was, however, a two-tick downward revision to the prior month to +0.5%. There were stronger sales in only 4 of...