Gordon Gekko hasn’t done the investment industry’s reputation any favours. Michael Douglas’ unscrupulous movie character quickly became shorthand for all that is wrong with Wall Street and financial markets with his infamous ‘greed is good’ speech. But you don’t have to look too far away from the big screen to see real-life examples of people whose actions have perpetuated the link between the wealth industry, untrustworthy characters and get-rich-quick trades.
Canada’s benchmark interest rate hit an all-time high of 16% in 1991 – and here investors are in 2022, freaking out over projections it’ll touch 1% by June. But there’s a reason for the current unease. Despite rate increases being forecast the minute governments and central banks opened the floodgates on trillions of dollars of stimulus, things have now “got real”.
Between the pandemic, inflation, and geopolitical tensions, market uncertainty reigns right now. You might have heard some disturbing words, like shares “plunging”, prices “soaring”, and investment “volatility”. Many people, therefore, are asking themselves: should I take money out of the market and get back in when skies are clearer?
As Canadians locked their doors to avoid the freezing temperatures this winter, many settled back and watched the action unfold in China. But, at times, it was difficult to tell the bigger story. Was it which athletes made the podium, how many times Xi Jinping cozied up to Vladimir Putin, or was it the growing number of reports explaining the slowing Chinese economy?
It’s that time of year again. The Christmas tree has come down, you’ve dived into your new year’s resolutions, and … now it’s RRSP time.
