The past two weeks have seen continued market volatility----- including a plunge and subsequent rally yesterday----- as the prospect of a trade war between the U.S. and China continues. This prospect was intensified by President Trump's announcement of more tariffs, impacting $60 billion of trade with China. Not to be shown up, China responded with an announcement of tariffs of its own worth $50 billion.
European markets and the TSX have not been as volatile, but have shown a slight overall decline over the same period. The emerging markets continue to perform steadily while showing some volatility.
Crude oil prices firmed up at the beginning of the week, largely due to
an unexpected draw
on U.S. inventories. This is part of an overall trend of rising crude price over the past three months.
While most equities indexes around the world are down year-to-date, gold, emerging markets, and, of course, bonds are up, which is why we keep our portfolios diversified.
We'll be keeping an eye on the markets. Should markets continue falling, we will rebalance to take advantage of lower prices.
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IN THE REVIEW QUEUE
The Purpose of Life Isn't to Be Happy
by Zat Rana:
For many of us, money is a means to an end. For most of us, that end is to be happy. Zat Rana provides a look at how the ancient Romans and Greeks viewed the purpose of life, and his thoughts on the matter.
Susan Cain: Leading the "Quiet Revolution"
by Farnam Street:
For introverts, Quiet by Susan Cain is one of the most important books to have come out in the last decade. It not only showed that introversion isn't primarily about shyness or not wanting to be around people, but also the unique advantages introverts offer the world. In this wide-ranging interview, Cain discusses the book, the affect it's had on introverts and a number of other related topics.
All the Medalists: Men's 100-Meter Sprint
by the New York Times:
It's incredible to see how much faster elite sprinters have become over the years.
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QUOTES I'M THINKING ABOUT
"If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment."
----- Marcus Aurelius
"The highest activity a human being can attain is learning for understanding, because to understand is to be free."
-----
Spinoza
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JUST FOR FUN
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The Baloney Detection Kit: In this age of misinformation, reactionary culture, and dubious sources, here is some necessary cognitive fortification against propaganda, pseudoscience, and general falsehood via Carl Sagan's rules for critical thinking
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The views of the author do not necessarily reflect those of Raymond James. This article is for information only. Raymond James Ltd. Member-Canadian Investor Protection Fund.
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