Market View

Canada’s inflation slowed down meaningfully in April due to the end of the consumer carbon price and a weak global oil price environment, as oil demand fell and production continues to be elevated. On the other hand, the credit rating agency, Moody downgraded the U.S. Treasuries from Aaa to Aa1, citing a deepening concern about the federal debt and deficits. (May 23). The Canadian dollar was 72.15 cents USD. The U.S. S&P 500 ended the week down 1.5%, while the TSX was up 0.7%.

A lot more greens this week than reds. Materials edged up 4.7%, while consumer staples and consumer discretionary gained 3.0% and 1.2%, respectively. Industrials added 1.1%, while financials gained 0.8%. On the other hand, energy and technology ended the week down 1.9%,  each, while real estate edged lower by 0.8%. The most heavily traded shares by volume were Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD), Manulife Financial Corporation (MFC) and Royal Bank of Canada (RY).

5 from 5i

Here are five reads we found interesting last week:

• 60/40 Portfolio Corrections, Bear Markets and Recoveries, published by Ben Carlson of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC
• What’s Next for High-Yield Bond Funds?, by Gabe Alpert of Morningstar.
• Tariff Math Leaves Retailers Very Little Choice on Prices, written by Courtenay Brown of Axios
• You Can’t Put a Price on Mental Freedom, published by Nick Maggiulli of Of Dollars and Data
• Some Things I’ll Never Spend Money On, written by Ben Carlson of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC

Happy Reading & Stay Safe!

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