Canadian Economy on the Edge, Frigid Temps and #BestThisWeek

It’s evident that the Canadian economy is on the verge of a major bust due to the sharp decline in the price of oil. The situation is dire, and there’s a high probability that it may plummet soon. Layoffs in Alberta are just the beginning of the ripple effects that will soon be felt across the country. The US economy could experience a surge due to the lower oil prices, leading to a significant divergence in the neighbouring economies’ trajectories. This scenario poses several challenges that need to be addressed urgently.

• A quickly weakening Canadian Dollar means many imports are going to get very expensive (very quickly). The other side of that sword is Canadian exports (that are not commodity based) suddenly get cheaper (to the rest of the world).
• American investments in your RRSPs will strengthen with the weakening dollar, but Canadian stocks may take a hit, due to the weakening economy.
• Interest rates? Could go either way really, given imports will increase in price, but gas prices continuing to drop may offset.

Buckle up folks this is going to be a very rough (economic) ride ahead.

In Ottawa we have been having our standard bitter cold (not bitter cold like in Alert, but still cold), which means the Rideau Canal skateway is open, and driving is quite exciting with all of the black ice. Too bad it’s going to cost more to vacation down south this winter (again with the weakening Canadian Dollar).

Repeat Site note: If you feel so inclined my site now has a cert, so you can now read https://www.canajunfinances.com if you so choose. I am still knocking the kinks out of things, but it should work just fine for you.

My Writings for Week Ending January 16th

I turned 54 this week, life continues on, but I am 1 year closer to my retirement. Maybe (and more likely, maybe not):

• I still remember with great fondness my Mum canning and making preserves at home that was why I was so happy to hear that 2015 is the Year of the Mason Jar, yipee!
• There are less jobs but more full-time jobs, hence the thoughts on Jobs? In Canada? In December ?
• This past Saturday I tried out a new idea with Financial Tweets of the Week, seemed relatively well received, I may try it again this weekend, we shall see.
• Frigid Temps, Plunging Oil, Paris and #BestThisWeek was the start of 2015 overview of the week.

This Week’s Finest (Adieu Target Canada)

A rough week in the financial world, with Target Canada going down and shutting all of their stores. The stores never seemed as “good” as down south, guess other folks agreed:

• Michael James asks a tricky question with When Would You Offer More than the Asking Price? no maybe not with used cars, but with stock purchases, just maybe.
• Did Target not figure out that simply taking over Zellers stores wasn’t the best plan? I think they just figured that out.
• Someone is passing themselves off as Ellen Roseman? She needs your help !
• The Blunt Bean Counter enjoyed his Bungle in the Jungle (aka a visit to Africa) so much he gave us one more glimpse of it with Mark & Lori’s Excellent African Adventure – Part Three
• The coolest tech idea this week? A 3-d printed Shelby at the Detroit Auto Show, that is what. Who did this? ORNL (Oak Ridge National Labs) the people that bring you safe and efficient nuclear power (hence the Simpsons reference this week).
• Barry from Money we Have (and the Huffington Post, as well) explains to use The Credit Cards He Uses, good to have a rational explanation for why you have a credit vehicle.
• In this world there are some very evil folks, like Hockey Player Jack Johnson’s parents, who seem to have used him to amass a great life (for a while).
• Nelson from Financial Uproar did a guest post on Sustainable Personal Finance about Stop Trying to Pick Individual Stocks ? That sounds like me writing a guest post about the jobs of Pay Day loans, but, it is well worth reading.
• Marie from Boomer and Echo helps those still waiting to get into investing with How to Get Started with Index Funds (using TD E-series funds), very informative (as usual).
• Wait, you don’t have a portfolio template to work from? That’s easily remedied with the Canadian Couch Potato who gives us some Model Portfolios (for 2015)
• Don’t worry Mark from My Own Advisor has a while until he is Transitioning out of the work force, but reminds old guys like me you do need a good plan and criteria to decide when is the best time.
• I do know that Mark from 2nd Career Search is a Pink Floyd fan, and he seems to be paraphrasing “Money” when he says Keep a Bank Cash Stash in Retirement (OK, it’s not that close to “Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash”).

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Preet Video Fun

So you figure that selling your house you will get a huge profit? Let Preet reset your expectations for you:

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Facebook Fun

We are over at the Facebook as well, but then again, we are in most social media out there, and oil prices is what everyone is talking about so:

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My Twitter feed is where I re-tweet many great articles by some of my featured writers (and make the occasional odd or off colour commentary on life (in 140 characters or less)).