Below is a summary of some of the relevant news items from the Capital Markets and the Economy from the past week extracted from RBC Global Insights and FactSet Research.

You can catch up on the past four weeks’ Weekly Update in the link to my Blog.

Read my latest Smart Investor newsletter on my website. The Q1 2025 edition covers Market Review for 2024, a discussion about the main themes for 2025, and some long-term multi-decade trends. In Shiuman’s Corner find out what my favourite books were from last year.

 

Markets

Market scorecard as of close on Friday February 21st, 2025.

Country	Equity Indices	Level	1 week	YTD
Canada	S&P/TSX Composite	25,147	-1.3%	1.7%
U.S.	S&P 500	6,013	-1.7%	2.2%
U.S.	NASDAQ	19,524	-2.5%	1.1%
Europe/Asia	MSCI EAFE	2,443	-0.2%	8.0%

Source: FactSet

• TSX closed lower on Friday, near worst levels. Broad decline across sectors. Canadian equities finished down 1.3% for the week.

• US equities were down in Friday trading, ending near worst levels. S&P logged its worst session of 2025 and major indices capped weekly declines.

• Big risk-off session sparked by growth concerns in the wake of the softer flash February Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMIs), with services actually falling into contraction. Follows last week's ~60 bp downturn in Q1 GDP tracking estimates on the back of the weaker January retail sales report.

 

 

Economy

Canada

• Canada’s headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 1.9% y/y in January compared to a 1.8% y/y increase the previous month as higher energy prices offset the impact of the federal government’s GST/HST tax holiday on broader consumer goods. This marked the sixth consecutive month that the headline reading came in at or below the 2% level.

• Canada saw an unusual seasonal jump in the housing market, with new listings increasing 11% from December to January, the largest monthly increase in almost two years. However, this increase in new listings has failed to energize home sales; resales have fallen in the past two months, with January showing a 3.3% m/m decline.

 

U.S.

• The release of the U.S. ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index earlier this month signaled the first expansion in over two years. January’s rise to 50.9 was primarily driven by a sharp rebound in new orders, while production and employment also showed modest gains.

• However, some economists have since opined that the surge in new orders may be partially attributable to pre-buying in anticipation of potential tariffs, as companies looked to stockpile inventory before any potential price increases or changes in trade policy took effect.

 

Further Afield

• Chinese President Xi Jinping attended a symposium for Chinese private enterprises on Monday where he met prominent technology leaders, including the founders of DeepSeek, Unitree Robotics, Huawei Technologies, Xiaomi, and Alibaba Group.

• The government is now positioning the private sector as a key driver of national competitiveness and economic growth. This suggests the potential for measured policy support and a more predictable regulatory environment in the coming years.

 

Notes About Companies in Model Portfolio

• Q4 2024 earnings season is winding down with over 80% of the S&P 500 having already reported. Approximately 55% of companies have reported sales that exceeded Bloomberg consensus expectations, beating by an average of 1.1%. From an earnings perspective, 76% have beaten expectations, with the average beat rate of 6.5% being below the 8.5% average over the past five years.

• Apple (AAPL) announced its largest-ever spend commitment, with plans to spend and invest more than $500 billion in the U.S. over the next four years. This new pledge will support a wide range of initiatives that focus on artificial intelligence, silicon engineering, and skills development for students and workers across the country. As part of this package of U.S. investments, Apple and partners will open a new advanced manufacturing facility in Houston to produce servers that support Apple Intelligence™.

• Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A/BRK.B) operating results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024 and 2023 were released on Saturday. Net earnings were $88.995 billion for the full year compared with $96,223 billion the previous year.

 

Feel free to contact me with any questions and/or to discuss investment ideas.

I appreciate the opportunity to serve you and look forward to continuing to help you accomplish your long-term financial goals.

 

Regards,

Shiuman