John’s Blog
Rise of the Dragon
Mark Mobius On January 23, Chinese around the world ushered in the year of the dragon under the Lunar Calendar. The dragon is an auspicious and mythical creature in the Chinese culture. It is a symbol of power such that emperors in the historic days were regarded as the dragon’s ‘sons’ and many Chinese still call themselves “descendants of the …
Gratification
On being a Financial Advisor. “It is like being a teacher, the real gratification comes when the student does well.”
U.S. economy is cranking out jobs
Among the ranks of better-than-expected U.S. economic news, this one is a biggie: The Labor Department reported on Friday morning that U.S. employers added a whopping 243,000 jobs last month, which is about double the gains that economists had been expecting. The private sector added 257,000 jobs, while the number of government jobs shrank. The unemployment rate, which was expected …
The case for smaller firms, bigger yields
Rob Carrick The most often-repeated piece of investing advice of the past couple of years has to be “buy blue-chip dividend stocks.” Hey, I’ve raised this idea a few dozen times myself. But now it’s time to take stock, so to speak. Dividend payers have in many cases soared in price and, while they still offer a good flow of …
Just cut calories – protein/carbs/fat ratio doesn’t matter: study
Leslie Beck There’s no shortage of diet plans promising to melt away the pounds by calling for strict proportions of protein, carbohydrate and fat. But, according to a new study, it doesn’t matter where the calories comefrom. What matters most for shedding body fat is simply eating fewer calories – and sticking to your plan, be it high protein, low …
We’ll keep working past 65 and we’ll like it
BRIAN LEE CROWLEY Prime Minister Stephen Harper has renewed a perennial debate about when Canadians should expect to retire. Mr. Harper reportedly has in mind changes to the Old Age Security and the Guaranteed Income Supplement that would raise eligibility for these benefits from 65 to 67. Much of the reaction has focused on how such changes would affect public …
Trench warfare’ on horizon for pharmacies
Marina Strauss The pharmacy business is thriving in the face of a rocky economy and costly new drug rules. Two separate announcements on Monday tied to drugstore businesses underline the growing interest in the field, even though it has been hit by new government generic drug regulations that pinch pharmacies’ profits. McKesson Corp., a major drug distribution firm, signed a …
Corporate-class mutual funds: Why Haven’t I heard of these before?
Larry MacDonald “Why haven’t we heard of these things before?” That’s the reaction Winnipeg-based financial-planner Daryl Diamond hears when he does presentations on corporate-class mutual funds. Sure, many investors know that switches between funds within a corporate-class family don’t trigger capital gains – which is a handy feature for rebalancing or short-term investing in non-registered accounts. Less well-known are several …
McKesson snaps up slice of Canada’s Katz Group
U.S. health care giant McKesson Corp. is buying a big part of Edmonton-based drug store operator Katz Group Canada Inc. for $920-million. The company says it will acquire the independent outlets and franchise businesses of Katz, a privately held company. Those mainly operate as I.D.A. and Guardian brands across Canada. San Francisco-based McKesson says it expects to pay the $920-million …
Warm Spam: The worst social media recipe, ever
Scott Stratten www.unmarketing.com Back in the old days of the Internet/Email, it was a happy place (we’ll call this time period B.S. “Before Spam”). In the BS years the Internet was pure information and email was a way to communicate useful information and conversation. Every time an email came in, it was like a little butterfly of excitement flew into …
