Market View

Canada’s labour market added 40,700 jobs in February, compared to an expectation of 20,000 while unemployment rates slightly increased to 5.8%, supporting the Bank of Canada’s policy to hold rates for longer. On the other hand, Organization of The Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) members voluntarily extended production cuts until the end of June to stabilize oil prices. The Canadian dollar was 74.23 cents USD. The U.S. S&P500 ended the week up 0.4%, while the TSX was up 1.1%.

A lot more greens this week than reds. Materials edged up 4.7%. Industrials, financials, and consumer staples added 1.2%, each, while consumer discretionary and real estate added 0.6%, each. Energy edged down 0.9%, while technology ended the week slightly down 0.3%. The most heavily traded shares by volume were Suncor Energy, Canadian Natural Resources, and Bitfarms.

5 from 5i

Here are five reads we found interesting last week:

• Buy & Hold vs. Fear & Greed, written and published by Ben Carlson of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC

• 3 Key Retirement Decisions Affected By Higher Yields, by Christine Benz of Morningstar

• You Have Time, Being first’ to something isn’t as important as being right, authored Ian Cassel of MicroCapClub

• Avoiding Burnout & a Mild-Life Crisis, and published by Ben Carlson of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC

• How Do Higher Interest Rates Push Inflation Down?, authored by Discipline Funds

Happy Reading & Stay Safe!

Disclosure: The analyst(s) responsible for this report do not have a financial or other interest in securities mentioned.