by Nick Miller of Clarity Advantage
In which we are reminded to engage our clients on what’s top of mind for them right now rather than on what’s top of mind for us.
I live near Boston, Massachusetts. The Red Sox are finished. Winter is coming. Around the Miller household, we are preparing our house and garden for the winter. Storm windows hung up, hosta cut down, lime and fertilizer spread around. Early days, still, and we’re working our way through the list, week by week, toward the inevitable arrival of sharply colder temperatures and snow.
As a business owner, I’m feeling like I’m in the same position now – another economic winter is coming, and I need to prepare.
The news coming out of the Eurozone ranges from “not encouraging” on a good day to “frightening” on other days. U.S. and foreign stock market heaves and rolls leave me sea sick as my investment values bounce up and down, almost carelessly. The political and regulatory environment in this country leaves me shaking my head. Our clients’ outlooks for 2012 range from guarded optimism to bracing for a crash.
Continue Reading »
by Mark McElheran of Stikeman Elliott LLP
It remains to be seen whether the reform fever that is presently sweeping through the US securitization market will continue unabated across the 49th parallel but there is no question that these monumental reforms have given rise to a considerable amount of discussion and debate over the appropriateness of similar reforms in Canada. This was perhaps inevitable given the degree of economic integration between the two countries and the fact that both have recently suffered through significant ABS-induced crises (albeit on entirely different scales).
Continue Reading »
Tags: bank, bankruptcy, bubbles, Canada, debt, Economics, finance, insolvency, lender, securitization, trend
Stewart Hall of HSBC Securities Canada issued his comments on today’s Bank of Canada interest rate announcement. [See all of his comments on other economic matters in our Stewart Hall Archives.]
He concludes from the Bank of Canada announcement that, “A policy change is coming, but it is looking like evolutionary change rather than revolutionary… We continue to forecast a rate hike in September of 2010.”
Given the record levels of Canadian consumer and mortgage debt, as interest rates increase many debtors will find their own “tipping point”, where monthly minimum payments exceed monthly maximum earnings.
“Now” is always a good time to sell over-leveraged assets. Including houses…. Ancient wisdom: Greed blinds.
[See all of his comments on other economic matters in our Stewart Hall Archives.]
I have posted today’s note from Stewart here.
He writes, “Despite historically low interest rates, consumers are being priced out of the market for
Continue Reading »
Stewart Hall, economist for HSBC Securities Canada, provides excellent periodic notes on the Canadian economy. Here is the latest one, for your consideration:
Stewart Hall January 29, 2010 Note
My two cents: “V” is the first half of “W”.
