Market View

The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) came hotter than expected in February, ticking up to 3.2% compared to the forecast of 3.1%, introducing greater uncertainty on when the Fed will lower interest rates. In addition, February’s Producer Price Index rose 0.6% from last month, higher than the expectation of 0.3%, making investors concerned about the stickiness of inflation, and whether it is cooling fast enough to justify a rate cut. The Canadian dollar was 74.00 cents USD. The U.S. S&P500 ended the week up 0.2%, while the TSX was up 0.7%.

A lot more greens this week than reds. Energy and materials edged up 3.3% each. Technology and Industrials added 0.8% and 0.6%, respectively, while consumer discretionary and financials added 0.3%, each. Real estate edged down 1.1%, while consumer staples ended the week slightly down 0.5%. The most heavily traded shares by volume were Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canadian Natural Resources, and Enbridge.

5 from 5i

Here are five reads we found interesting last week:

• The Magnificent Seven: Fortune or Folly?, by John Rekenthaler of Morningstar

• Risks Retirees Face, written and published by Sundar Mohan Rao of HumbleDollar

• One More Thing About Nvidia, written and published by Michael Batnick of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC

• The most potent labour market indicator of all is still strongly positive, published by The Bonddad Blog

• Inflation is Still in a Downtrend, authored by Discipline Funds

Happy Reading & Stay Safe!

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