Market View

US existing home sales dropped 5.4% month-over-month in June, compared to the estimate of a 3.2% decrease, the number marked the lowest point since December 2023. On the other hand, the Bank of Canada has cut key interest rates for the second consecutive time, bringing the interest rate to 4.5 percent as job growth has struggled to keep pace with the country’s population. The Canadian dollar was 72.38 cents USD. The U.S. S&P500 ended the week down 1.5%, while the TSX was down 0.2%.

It was a mixed week of greens and reds. Real estate rose 3.3%, while consumer staples gained 1.4%. Financials and technology edged up by 0.1%, each. Energy slid by 1.9%, while industrials gave up 1.7%. Materials ended the week slightly down 0.8%. The most heavily traded shares by volume were Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia, and Bank of Montreal.

5 from 5i

Here are five reads we found interesting last week:

• The Biggest Winners in the Stock Market, published by Ben Carlson of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC
• 3 Investment Fallacies I’ve Had to Unlearn, by John Rekenthaler of Morningstar
• 6 Lessons From 6 Years of Retirement, published by The Retirement Manifesto
• Are Higher Rates Finally Starting to Impact Consumer Finances?, written by Ben Carlson of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC
• Great Investing Books for Beginners, written by Carole Hodorowicz and Tori Brovet of Morningstar

Happy Reading & Stay Safe!

Disclosure: The analyst(s) responsible for this report do not have a financial or other interest in securities mentioned.