Investment Q&A

Q: The TD chief economist is predicting a recession for Canada, and is also concerned about stagflation. What are the best investments for our protection?

Q: I have a question prompted by recent headlines (sorry, a rather unsophisticated view of investing).....there appears to be ongoing negotiations between the USA and Iran, with a suggested that some sort of agreement can be reached on nuclear stuff, with the result that Iranian oil will no longer be sanctioned. Some commentators talk about the oil market being flooded with the world price of oil dropping significantly. Do you see that drop in price as very likely? Wouldn't that bring the stock price of Cdn oil producers way down? Is it time to dump shares in oil stocks (I am under water now and this would only get worse). Many thanks for your excellent service.

Q: In retirement I currently rely on my non-registered portfolio to provide about 80% of my income. Within this portfolio only 15% of the portfolio could be classified as dividend or income stocks (like CNQ, RY with 3-5% dividends). Thus far I have been creating income by skimming from my growth stocks, rebalancing when needed, and cashing in on my losers. While I recognize that a higher portion of dividend stocks would provide a greater sense of income certainty and less volatility, I have felt reluctant to forgo, what I currently believe to be, the potential for greater growth by focusing on the careful and patient management of higher potential growth stocks.
Question: From your experience, will I have a greater probability (not certainty) of creating more income in the long term (10 years) through this strategy or should I rely on a greater portion of dividend stocks?

Q: Hi 5i. Question #4 from me as a new subscriber. I continue to have about 70% of my savings in cash with plans to input through dollar cost averaging. A couple of weeks ago you suggested a spread over 6 months. Is this still your view? It seems that the rebound has taken place and I am worried about missing the increases. But I know we are still in an uncertain market. Thank you

Q: If you were looking to diversify outside of North America where would you be looking geographically? Which industries?

Thank you for all your help,

Mike

Q: Dear 5i
I have considerable cash yet in my portfolio and have been doing some buying of late , easing back into the market .
I feel that the worst is likely over but with Trump and his tariffs how can you know for sure . My one concern still is not ,so much what additional tariffs could be added but what will be the near future effects of the current tariffs that are in place . Even with no additional tariffs the ones currently in place once in effect are likely to cause increased inflation , higher prices , higher unemployment and the potential for perhaps a mild recession . That said , is it wise to be buying a whole lot now and be mostly invested or would it be prudent to be maintaining steady buying , regardless of the potential for the negative consequences of the tariffs once they take effect ?
Thanks
Bill C

Q: I'm looking to add some bitcoin exposure to my portfolio. What is the best way to do this? I know of MSTR and FBTC but I saw in a previous question that you prefer the bitcoin etf or whatnot to be in usd. Can you recommend some stocks or ETF that would give this exposure without having to purchase it directly?

Q: As an investment in the cryptocurrency theme, what can you tell me about Hyperliquid.

Q: Can you please comment about ETFs that short the QQQ. I see that SQQQ has a market cap of $2.78B compared with $651M for PSQ; is SQQQ the best choice at 4x the size? SQQQ and PSQ apparently pay high dividends, is that really the case? Finally, with QQD's market cap of only $59M, is this ETF just too small to consider?
Thanks!

Q: Could you please provide some commentary on the Moody’s downgrade of US debt? That’s now three ratings agencies for three I believe. Thank you, Michael

Q: Half of my investments are in US dollars , mostly in large cap Tech and Financials . With erosion of USD value I am concerned on the future value of my holdings . I could convert some currency back to CAD through purchasing some dual listed equities ( Norbert's Gambit ) . Is that a wise strategy as opposed to liquidating and holding US cash ?

Q: Seems more and more Trump is trying to muscle in on the decision making of US companies especially Large ones. i.e. telling Apple to reduce footprint in India n threatening Mattel CEO when he suggested its unlikely to manufacture toys in the US.

We are into this only a few months n there is no certainty the power base will change any time soon.

So far seems the best performance continues to be with the larger companies and frankly he has been helpful to some like Boeing but do I need to start making investment decisions more strategically trying to sidestep areas where the Gov’t is likely to have an ability to impact the decision making of my investments?

Areas like Gov’t plan to reduce drug pricing have really drove down Drug stocks. Will the midterm impact of Trump trying to micromanage larger companies create opportunity for mid caps which may sidestep Trumps ire?

Craig



Have we ever had a

Q: A couple of recent guests on BNN Market Call have suggested that the increase in stock prices in the last 6 weeks or so is not warranted and are not supported by economic data, for example, growth in GDP is softening, consumer confidence is weakening, consumer debt is rising, unemployment is increasing, the housing market is very weak, retail spending is only up in the US because of tariff avoiding purchases, etc Although they do not expressly say so, it would seem they are expecting a significant draw down.

I know you have talked about this before, and even not that long ago, but things seem to be changing all the time. What is your overall current outlook for stocks? For certain sectors? And specifically, what about Gold and gold producers - it seems to me the recent run up was a reaction to all the uncertainty; but would gold continue to increase if those guests’ views prevail and there is a draw down now due to a downturn? Many thanks for your excellent service

Q: Everyone, since January 1st I was down 23 % then today I have rebounded to even for the year. Lots of noise but having the best of the best means just waiting for the noise to end. The noise always ends! Clayton

Q: Hi,
Just looking for your take on the Moody's downgrade and what we can expect as a market reaction. Still time to be 'buying the dip' so to speak, or does this add a different level of caution? What can we expect to see from US bonds, dollar and the overall sentiment towards it being the world's reserve currency? Lots of questions, feel fee to deduct extra credits! Always great to hear your thoughts - thank you!

Q: Good Afternoon Team 5i,

Are you watching the US30Y? I’ve heard that the Trump administration blinked on tariffs initially when it hit 5%, (and the bond market is the more important market to watch this presidency.) Thus, if the US30Y gets up to 5% again this is something to keep an eye on and watch how the market reacts.

Do you feel this narrative potentially holds some truth? If so, would you please explain why the administration would want to keep the US30Y below 5% please?

Thank you.

Q: Given that the US$ has fallen lately and Trump would like it to fall further in value against other currencies, would you consider it wise to take some US$ profits off the table?

Thank you,
Mike

Q: I am looking to increase my fixed income percentage but this current market has me bamboozled. Major markets are basically even YTD despite Trump's tariffs still being on the books. There was a significant rally the other day because the US is “only” going to levy 30% tariffs and China will drop theirs to “only”20%! But while the markets go up, long term bonds continue to drop which I thought was a negative market indicator. So are things as mixed up and incoherent as I think? And with this background is now a good time to buy long bonds, short bonds or equal amounts of both?

Appreciate your insight.

Paul F.

Q: Everyone, three months have passed since I asked this same question, so what are the three issues that you are worrying about today? Clayton

Q: Can you tell me about ownership of the currently bought bitcoin? To whom it belongs in rough proportion? Institutions, individual investors ,foreign and domestic banks?
Thank you
Miroslaw