Entries from October 2008

This and That # 116: Thank goodness October is over

October 31st, 2008 · 9 Comments

The S&P 500 was down 18% in October and the TSX Composite fell 16% in October. Other equity markets are down sharply as well. The bulls and the bears debate if stocks are the bargain we think.
Bottom watching is a favourite sport on Wall Street these days. Jason Zweig writes in Wall Street Journal that [...]

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Tags: Miscellaneous

Bogle expects stocks to return 10%

October 30th, 2008 · 15 Comments

There is nothing like a bear market to boost the expected return from stocks. In The Little Book of Common Sense Investing (review), published last year, John Bogle projected an average annual return of 7 percent over the next ten years: 2 percent from dividends, 5 to 6 percent from earnings growth and a 1 [...]

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Tags: Investing

Thrift making a comeback?

October 28th, 2008 · 22 Comments

The latest edition of Maclean’s magazine features a cover story on The Joy of Frugality. The story talks about a new mood of thrift sweeping the globe in the wake of the credit crisis:
There’s a growing sense that our lifestyles are about to be dramatically transformed. For the first time in as much as half [...]

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Tags: Miscellaneous

Globe and Mail’s Discount Broker Rankings

October 27th, 2008 · 27 Comments

Qtrade is once again (for the third straight year) the winner in the Globe and Mail ranking of the online discount brokers. BMO InvestorLine, E*Trade, TD Waterhouse and Credential Direct round out the top five, though RBC Direct Investing missed a spot by a mere whisker. Qtrade’s top ranking (reviews, comments and customer opinion on [...]

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Tags: Discount Brokers

Why this bear market isn’t as bad as you imagine

October 26th, 2008 · 18 Comments

It’s a common refrain these days: “My portfolio is down 40 percent”. However, a more accurate statement would be: “I’m down 40 percent in the equities portion of the portfolio from the previous market peak”. Here’s why the dramatic drops in the stock market isn’t as bad as you think:

The Sleepy Portfolio is an [...]

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Tags: Investing