Financial Investment Services

Jan. 30, 2009
 
Dow: 8000.86     Nasd: 1476.42     S&P: 825.88   
Tsx: 8694.90     Vent: 882.63 
 
•Gold: $927.30                                           •Oil: $41.68
•Silver: $12.57                                            •Nat Gas: $4.42
•Palladium: $193.30
•Platinum: $991.30
 
•Best Performance Mutual Funds:
1 Month:  Precious Metals Equity Funds.
3 Month:  Precious Metals Equity Funds.
 
•Worst Performing Mutual Funds:
1 Month:  China & International Equity Funds.
3 Months:  Financial Services Equity Funds.
 
…..Doug T

It appears a Trade War or at least an extensive and costly legal battle is looming between the U.S. - Canada and other global nations regarding NAFTA and the international obligations contained in that agreement.
 
President Obama has chosen to include protectionist language in recent U.S. stimulus package legislation, which calls for a “Buy America only” policy as his  country prepares to [...]

A historically huge stimulus package nearing $1 TRILLION – U.S. Dollars ($819 billion actually), was approved by the Democratic house yesterday.  With this amount of new money entering the marketplace, some analysts feel the value of the U.S. dollar is likely to go down.
 
As a rule, when the value of U.S. currency declines, the price of gold goes up.  [...]

If Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff and his party aren’t satisfied with the Conservative Government’s progress reports regarding regular updates on the new budget’s implementation and cost, they reserve the right to defeat the Government.
On Tuesday, Mr. Ignatieff said there were some “positive elements” to the budget, but he was concerned about several things, such as whether [...]

Russia has halted plans to deploy missiles near the Polish border, following a phone conversation this week between U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.  Analysts believe this could be a sign Moscow is seeking better ties with the new U.S. President and may pave the way for dialogue on other disputes between [...]

An investigation reveals that in a string of recent cases, Corporate insiders emails have been compromised by people far from the inner circles of corporate power and used for personal gain.  Regulator have recently revealed that an information technology analyst in Calgary, Alberta was reading the personal e-mails of investment bankers working on a deal, [...]

In a move that bucks the trend of shrinking companies and corporate cost cutting, this fast-food giant has unveiled plans for a $2-Billion U.S. expansion, including opening more than 1,000 new restaurants globally including 165 in North America.
Record numbers of customers walked through the doors of McDonald’s outlets during the fourth quarter, with the average [...]

Canadian Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper is about to introduce a budget that has red ink all over it.  If the $34 Billion dollar rumored price tag is correct, Canada will realize the certainty and reality of the largest deficit in more than a decade.
How things have changed from just a few months ago, when [...]

Methamphetamine production and usage is apparently surging again as the  popularity of this drug increases.  Following a dramatic decline over several years, the availability of meth–a highly addictive stimulant cooked with chemicals, from over the counter cold medications, began to grow in 2008.  Labs can be found in homes, rental units, barns and even vehicles.  Users [...]

•U.S. Marketplace:  Budget predictions project a huge shortfall looming for U.S. Social Security spending.  The axe is expected to fall by the year 2017, when the Social Security Program will fail to pay its way for the first time since it was established under then President Franklin D. Roosevelt.  Present day unfunded liability is estimated [...]