Andrew Pyle

It is said that the average American spends hundreds of hours per year on Facebook. Now the company has gone public, it is quite possible that investors in the stock might spend the same amount of time figuring out whether they did the right thing.

With much fanfare the...

As I commented in last week's Capital Strategy, investor unease has built up in recent weeks over the prospect that we might be in for a repeat performance of what happened to equities after April in both 2010 and 2011 -- namely, correction and heightened volatility.

While there are...

There is no shortage of things in this crazy world that perplexes investors, and the list seems to grow daily for some. One of the simplest, yet most potentially hazardous, puzzlements out there is how interest rates in the US can remain so low (near historic lows in fact) despite...

In the past couple of weeks, the Bank of Canada has warned Canadians that it will play the bad parent if their debt-hungry ways didn't change -- threatening to use its monetary policy toolbox if necessary.

Considering that policy is supposed to target inflation, this stance was both surprising...

At the beginning of April, the S&P500 was trading above 1400 or more than double the valley it dug itself into three years ago. Measured from the low to the high seen this month, the S&P rose more than 110 per cent -- its best performance since 1999. Not a...

This was a busy week on the Canadian fiscal scene as not only did Ontario and New Brunswick deliver their latest budgets, but the federal government came forth with its as well. In terms of Canada's overall budgetary picture, investors have more or less become unfocused over the years, even...

Whether you are an ardent bull or fervent bear, it's hard to dismiss the latest round of economic numbers out of the U.S. as anything but constructive. The columns may be filled with continued talk of how much drag America's unemployment is, but the trend has been positive now for...

Canadian bond yields have been hovering near historic lows for weeks now, even with equity markets showing a braver face. While investors scratch their heads wondering which market has it right, borrowers are laughing all the way to the bank. Incredibly, the major chartered banks have four-year mortgage rates below...

Depending on one's perspective, 2011 will be viewed as disappointing, bordering on terrible; or, it will be looked back on as a year where we should be thankful. True enough. Stock markets experienced their wildest ride since the beginning of 2009 and shockwaves were felt from three global epicentres --...

While last week ended on a positive note in terms of Europe's handling of its fiscal crisis, Canadians will remain concerned about how everything that has happened and could happen will effect things on this side of the pond. In my discussions with clients and business owners, this concern generally...

As Americans head into their Thanksgiving long weekend, they will have plenty of things to be thankful for. Unfortunately, an effective government will not be one of them.

While we have not been startled by the lack of political leadership in Europe in dealing with the region's debt crisis...

Canadian banks will be closing the books on the fiscal year come Halloween and no matter how this last quarter shakes out in terms of earnings, there will be at least a sigh of relief among executives that some of the intense concerns from back at the end of the...

The other day I spoke to a reporter about the merits of so-called capital preservation tools which enable investors to protect their assets, while placing bets on the outcome of riskier markets such as stocks and commodities. Most popular of these is the Principal Protected Note, or PPN. A variant...

Once upon a time, Canadians engaged in self-criticism and did not feel themselves a nation of 'flag-wavers,' or at least not to the tune of what was typically observed south of the border.

We may have ruled the hockey rink and contributed many important scientific firsts, but our perception...

The risk-off trade that has permeated global capital markets through the summer and which have re-intensified this month, has counted among its victims the Canadian dollar. Where only in late July the Loonie was trading north of US$1.06, recent selling pressure has taken the buck down below 98 cents (testing...

With Labour Day fast approaching, investors are getting ready to say farewell to a summer that has been less than kind in terms of not only equity market performance, but reflections on the economy as well.

The other week, we were prepared for bad news by both the Bank...

The same culprits that came out of the woodwork last summer to predict impending recession are back at it. The amount of airtime being given to these folks, after they so missed the call last year, is amazing.

I was stopped by a business owner on the street who...

Nothing like a good old fashioned panic in global stock markets to give the gold bulls yet another second wind.

Just over a month after the yellow metal punctured the $1600/oz level, and only a week after taking out $1700, spot gold prices broke above $1800 this past week...

Now that we have scraped through the U.S. debt ceiling drama, leaving in its wake the worst five-day loss for the S&P 500 since May of last year, attention rightly so returns to Europe and its own fiscal woes.

Yes, the new debt ceiling agreement has been...

We are mere days away from the August 2 deadline for the U.S. Congress to pass legislation providing the federal government with an increase in the debt ceiling.

At the time of writing, the political jousting between Republicans and Democrats has continued with the latest round coming from back-to-back...