It looks like we may see our world opening up a little for the long weekend. Garden centers and golf courses will open allowing us to get outside. You may be feeling excited or a little nervous to venture out into the world. My mother has been busy sewing homemade masks for our family that I am very thankful for. You can't see in the above picture but both Kieron and I are smiling and happy to be outside in the sun! In our house we are debating the use of masks and wonder what you think. If you would like to share your thoughts on whether or not you will wear a mask in public please take our poll at the bottom of our blog page and I will share the results next week. If you have disposable masks we found it useful to know how to wear them safely. Even though we have seen some opening of the economy most of us will not be venturing far from our homes this long weekend so I wanted to share the following article so you could have Free Cultural Experiences to Explore From Your Sofa

 

Economic and Market Update

U.S. equities have rebounded upwards of 30% from their March lows. Even though we have had some good news and investor optimism returning, we are also aware that the future is full of unknowns that could impact the current stock market momentum. Lori Calvasina, RBC Capital Markets Head of U.S. Equity Strategy shares her thoughts on What a market recovery can look like.

 

Economists are spending considerable time attempting to predict the shape of the economic recovery. The image below illustrates the various outcomes a recovery could take. Please note the below charts are talking about GDP growth recovery which does not always coincide with stock market performance.

The market has been hoping for a V-shaped recovery, which is a short sharp collapse followed by a bounce back to pre-crisis activity. However current sentiment is for a “swoosh” – a large drop followed by slower recovery. Listen to RBC’s Chief Economist, Craig Wright who discusses how we can bend the curve to speed up recovery Can business stimulus hasten the “swoosh” recovery?

 

I have been really enjoying RBC’s Disruptors' podcast series and I hope you have as well. This week’s episode focuses on how the biggest global power houses had been throwing around their weight, hurting small economies like Canada. In a post-COVID economy, small nations like ours will need to be savvy and create an environment where start-ups can be shrewd and up their game. David Skok, the founder and editor-in-chief of The Logic discusses In Innovation, It’s David vs Goliath and asks:

• Can the media succeed in Canada without subsidies?

• What do we need to create ten Shopify’s?

• Is Sidewalk Labs’ exit a victory or defeat for Canadian innovators?

Financial Health

We continue to hear about fraudsters taking advantage of people during this time and the incidence of fraud across Canada has been increasing. I had my personal email compromised two weeks ago which was very disruptive and worrisome. This article gives Five Cyber Tips to Tidy Up (and Help Protect!) Your Digital Life.

 

Near the end of the year in our discretionary portfolios we assess the capital gains realized in a non registered account and attempt to harvest losses to minimize or offset potential taxes owed. We have had strong portfolio gains the past several years and have struggled to trigger losses in accounts because we didn’t have many. In 2020 we could see an opportunity where net capital losses potentially triggered in non registered accounts could be carried back to offset capital gains triggered in the previous three years and you could recoup taxes paid. To learn more about this strategy listen to the podcast Planning for capital losses with tax-loss selling. If you prefer to read about this topic please refer to Capital Losses and Tax Loss Selling. Please contact us if you would like to discuss this strategy further but know we are continually monitoring for opportunities and will be more active near year end.

 

COVID-19 continues to change the way we work, spend and live. We expect that the digital transformation that was already well underway will be accelerated because of the necessary changes due to the pandemic. A recent Payments Canada survey found that 62% of respondents were using less cash in the pandemic.

• 53% were using card & mobile tap for in store purchases

• 38% increased their use of e-commerce platforms

• 61% of respondents were using ATMs less frequently

Below is a picture of Steph working in her home office. Steph joined our team earlier this year and has been supporting us with documentation, movement of funds and transfers. You may not have met her yet but she is diligently working supporting our clients administrative needs and looking forward to meeting many of you when we return to the office.

 

We hope you have a wonderful long weekend and that we see the sun!