Forever wishing he was fishing, an urban teen could wade the creeks of Burnaby, angling for mischief and trout. For me, the once pristine city streams were the fascinating wrong-end of demographic flow. Trickling past concrete pillars holding millions of cars, creosote-soaked train bridges, rusty shopping carts, the occasional raccoon carcass, and a few little pan-fryers that would never see a pan.

 

Under the freeway, a murderer lurks at the other end of each darkened culvert. So, with a sharp chunk of granite in the pitching hand, an ambitious troublemaker could clog up the pipe’s entry until the creek water rose a few inches, then let it go all at once and run through the pipe, screaming like bat out of a COVID lab. If you couldn’t intimidate with size, you could be sufficiently insane to avoid confrontation.

 

Biden’s US Financial Culvert runs briskly, with unspent tranches yet to flow. Political trends, if anything, threaten to just sort of walk away and leave the tap running. Meanwhile, here in Canada, the federal Liberals are about to bring down their first COVID budget, (finally) with the expected theme “We will not be outspent!”

 

Does this Frenzied Flow Feed Inflation? Train tracks can really stretch a dime. Line them up and wait for the iron monster to press them into… oblong, untradeable nickels. As noted last week, beware of year-over-year comparisons. But even if the CPI measurement does start to climb, stay invested in whatever market strategy suits you while real estate and financial markets drink it up.

 

 

Weekly Report:

• Have we already seen the cycle top for yields? – The economic data through April has only been good news on top of good news, but the puzzling drop in global yields seemingly suggests the opposite, leaving investors to wonder.
• U.S. earnings season in full swing – U.S. stocks were biased to the upside during the week. However, trading volumes were relatively light as investors prepared for the onslaught of Q1 2021 earnings season, which started in earnest on Apr. 14 with positive announcements by the major U.S. banks.
• Regionally: (♬♪♫. One of these things is not like the other! ♬♪♫…) Canada jobs report fuels optimism; Luxury goods bounce back strongly; Alibaba fined following anti-trust investigation.

Full report here: Global Insight Weekly

 

And in case you’re still awake, here’s something a little lighter:   In short – we want grandchildren

 

 

Enjoy this really truly springy weekend upon us.

 

 

Mark