For all of you worried about interest rates jumping back in April 2016, you have another month’s reprieve with the Canadian Dollar rebounding (along with Oil Prices) and a “strengthening” of the economy, The Bank of Canada kept the overnight rate the
same for a while longer. Their exact statement about why they kept the rates the same is:
Overall, the risks to the profile for inflation are roughly balanced. Meanwhile, financial vulnerabilities continue to edge higher, in part due to regional shifts in activity associated with the structural adjustment underway in Canada’s economy. The Bank’s Governing Council judges that the overall balance of risks remains within the zone for which the current stance of monetary policy is appropriate, and the target for the overnight rate remains at 1/2 per cent.
Bank of Canada April 2016
So the Canadian economy seems to be “in the zone” for now, however, that zone continues to be the in dire need of stimulation zone.
The hockey season in Ottawa was a complete disappointment, and it’s unfortunate that the team owner, who seems to be more skilled at finding organ donors than winning coaches, has fired all the coaches. Since there are no Canadian teams left, it’s time to move on and find another team to support. Personally, I’ll be watching the Jays and Formula 1, as they are both thrilling and entertaining.
Under the your mileage may vary category, I submitted my tax on-line on this past Saturday, and when I checked at MyCRA on Tuesday, the return had been processed and I am due to receive my refund on this coming Monday. That is a very quick system, given these are the dog days of the Tax Year (i.e. the CRA is most busy).
Sorry to see Tom Mulcair get the boot from the top seat at the NDP, but someone was going to have to eat that stunning election collapse. The only question now is, will the NDP return to being the Political Party of the Oppressed and Downtrodden? Will they become the conscience of Canada? Or will they continue their move to the center? The Liberals are hoping for the first one (I bet).
I have a special treat for you. At the bottom of this post, there’s another great John Oliver video. This time it’s on something very on topic: Credit Ratings.
My Writings for Week Ending April 15th
When people make statements like I Just Don't Like Saving I kind of scratch my head and wonder how they got to that point, but surprisingly I hear this more often than you think.
You would think a giveaway would cause a flourish of comments, however, not on my site! No comments have shown up yet? This explains my inability to get a date when I was younger as well (I suppose), but remember I have 1 comment now, and 5 on-line Turbotax licenses to give away (thanks to my friends at Intuit ).
I have Said This Before
Experience is learning from your mistakes. Wisdom is learning from the mistakes of others
No More Half Measures (financially)
If you own a Small Business Mark from the Blunt Bean Counter continues on his tutorials for you folks with What Small Business Owners Need to Know - Shareholder Agreements. Lots of interesting ways to cut up a company, but make sure you are doing it the right (and legal) way.
Free stuff? Advice from successful investors? What else do we need? Mark from My Own Advisor gives us both with Market Masters Review and Giveaway. Free is always a good price for advice, and in this case it really isn't Free Advice is it?
Barry from Money we Have seems to imply there are only 5 Ways to Make Saving Money fun? There must be more ways to make saving money fun?
Goldman Sachs will pay $5B for fraudulent sales of toxic debt, no one will go to jail, which really bugs me, because someone should really be going to jail here. You have kids that sold marijuana going to jail, but not these folk? Justice system seems a tad confused these days. As was foreseen by me, the NASDAQ confirms with Nortel Creditors Clash in Latest Round, and all we learn is that the big winners in these court battles are the Lawyers.
If you are curious about career choice advice, Nelson (who seems to have moved in at Sustainable Finance) has some insights. He shared 5 Life Lessons I Learned Working Retail. I was never a sales kind of guy. I was always sales support. People who really dig selling stuff are a rare breed. Folk that are good at it are even rarer. Psychology and Money are linked? Absolutely! Blessed by the Potato has a good article to point this out with Conjunction Fallacy and Real Estate.
As an investor, it is always good to hear other folks' opinions on the online investing platform you use. Robb from Boomer & Echo helps me out with TD Direct Investing WebBroker Platform Review. I hear he is soon to be Johnny Manziel's new financial rep. I like tech reviews. Inevitably, I have missed a major feature I should be using. By reading the review, I am reminded to use it. If you are thinking about investing, consider reading Million Dollar Journey. It brings us 5 Key Philosophies for Long Term Investing Success. It's a rewrite of an earlier article, but still worth reading.
How Much Do You Have to Learn to be a Good Investor? Michael James attempts to outline what you really need to know. With investing, a little information can be dangerous. Remember that being good at investing is like being good at golf. Start 10 years ago, and you'll be great!
Credit Reports
Tonight with John Oliver, hits yet another one right out of the park!
2016 Random Thoughts
- January 7th, Market Meltdown, TFSA, WildCard Weekend and #MoneyStories
- January 14th, Cheap Oil, Cheap Dollar, Dead Folk, and #MoneyStories
- January 21st, Loose Money, High Household Debt, Weak Loons and #MoneyStories
- January 29th, Doomsday Clocks, Rogue RRSP Receipts, Cash Crops and #MoneyStories
- February 4th Bouncing Loonies, RRSP Season, Superb Owls and #MoneyStories
- February 12th Lent is Here, Bricked iPhones, Love Day and #MoneyStories
- February 19th Digging Out, Ransomware, RRSP Time and #MoneyStories
- February 26th RRSP Time and #MoneyStories
- March 4th Welcome Americans and #MoneyStories
- March 11th Bank Rate Stays Put, Spring Forward and #MoneyStories
- March 18th Financial March Madness, Budgets and #MoneyStories
- March 25th, Easter is Here and some #MoneyStories
- April 1, Money Fools, Ronnie, and #MoneyStories
- April 8, Tax Time, Spring Delayed, Panama Papers and #MoneyStories
My Twitter feed is where I re-tweet many great articles by some of my featured writers (and make the occasional odd or off-color commentary on life. I am also on reddit, Tumblr, Pinterest , Flipboard, Instagram. I'm on other Social Media sites too. Look for the BigCajunMan userid.
That’s a strong effort from John Oliver. Thank for the mention.
“Free stuff? Advice from successful investors? What else do we need?”
Just a cold beer!
Thanks for the mention – enjoy!
Mark
Take two it will be good weekend ðŸ»