Welcome to the Chalten Investment Review for Q2 2018. In last quarter’s review we dedicated some space to reminding investors that the best way to deal with market volatility is to be prepared. Being prepared means an appropriately targeted asset allocation, broad diversification and disciplined rebalancing. When we’re prepared we can watch the oft peculiar […]
We recommend that investors follow an “evidence-based approach” with their investments. What does the evidence tell us? Investors should maintain globally diversified portfolios, keep costs low and select a mix of risky and safe investments that is suitable for their risk tolerance and financial goals. Once a sensible portfolio is in place, holding on through […]
Bitcoin, blockchain, initial token offerings…..yikes! As financial headlines dedicate an increasing amount of coverage to this relatively new area, it’s left many investors scratching their heads. What is bitcoin? Do I need to know about this? Am I missing out on an opportunity? Below we present a question and answer that we hope investors might […]
With recent market volatility, many investors have been voicing legitimate concerns about the future direction of markets and what they might do about it. What direction are we headed for the remainder of the year? How can we avoid the crash? Below we present a question and answer that we hope investors might find helpful. […]
Welcome to the Chalten Investment Review for Q4 2017. The fourth quarter of 2017 capped another strong year for risky asset investment returns, especially equity returns. While the CAD/USD exchange rate remained relatively stable during Q4, the Canadian dollar gained 7% against the USD during 2017. Even with Canadian dollar strength, however, Canadian investors benefited […]
At the end of April we wrote a piece looking at some new research on the calendar effect and popular heuristic known as Sell in May and go away. While there is some evidence that this particular anomaly does exist and has persisted over certain periods of time, there is not really a good theoretical foundation for […]
On October 19 Fortune published an article with the headline: “30 Years after Black Monday, the Dow Hits an All-Time High”. The article goes on to speculate: “only time will tell if we have another crash ahead of us. But in the meantime, investors seem to think that skepticism and caution may be just what we […]
Welcome to the Chalten Investment Review for Q3 2017. Last quarter we highlighted how currency movements can impact the returns of a diversified portfolio and the merits of keeping currency exposure on the equity side of your portfolio while hedging currency exposure on the bond side of your portfolio. July brought another meaningful appreciation of […]
Stock market investors face a difficult challenge. While long-term stock market returns are quite attractive, in the short-term returns can be quite volatile. This volatility can be difficult to stomach at times, especially when accompanied by worrying news flow. Adding to the angst for Canadian investors can be the volatility of the Canadian dollar yet […]
“We see these approaches to managing people’s affairs through a private corporation as creating an unfair playing field……We’re trying to tighten these loopholes to make sure that it’s fair.” Doesn’t sound like taxes for small business owners are going down, does it? The above is from federal finance minister Bill Morneau’s July 18 announcement outlining […]