Rare Earths: Tiny Metals, Massive Impact, Major Contention
Last week [link to oct 17], we talked about trade tensions between China and the US – the world’s two largest economies. One key flashpoint in those talks is rare earth elements. Rare earths might sound like something from a sci-fi movie, but they’re actually critical to everything from your smartphone to fighter jets – and they’re at the centre of the China- US trade debate.
Tag: crwd
Monthly Portfolio Update September 2025
September flipped the script on its usual reputation as a tough month for stocks. North American markets finished strong, capping a solid third quarter and extending impressive streaks of gains. The Toronto Stock Exchange Composite Index surged 5.1%, while the S&P 500 climbed 3.5%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 5.6%. Record highs were the theme of the month: the Nasdaq and S&P hit multiple peaks, delivering their best September since 2010 and strongest third quarter since 2020, while the Dow notched its fifth straight monthly gain. Up north, the TSX also marked its fifth consecutive monthly advance.
Let’s take a quick look at what moved the markets and how my three portfolios performed in September…
Weekly Update for the week ending September 19, 2025
Decisions, Decisions
This week, all eyes were on the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and the Bank of Canada (BoC) as both central banks faced the same question: should they finally ease up on high interest rates? With inflation cooling, jobless claims ticking higher, and consumers growing cautious, markets were betting heavily on cuts – and both banks delivered. For the Fed, it was the first cut since December 2024, while the BoC hadn’t lowered its benchmark rate since March 2025.
What Happens When Central Banks Cut Rates?
When central banks cut rates, it’s like turning down the interest on your credit card or mortgage – borrowing gets cheaper, and spending gets easier. But depending on whether it’s the BoC, the Fed, or both, the ripple effects for us investors can look a little different.
Weekly Update for the week ending July 4, 2025
When Good News Is Bad News (and Vice Versa)
This week brought a steady stream of US labour market data, and you might’ve noticed something that feels a little backwards: sometimes good news about jobs or the economy makes stocks fall, while disappointing news sends markets higher. At first, this can be hard to wrap your head around. After all, if more people are working and businesses are hiring, that should be a positive sign, right? But markets don’t just react to the data itself – they react to what that data means for interest rates and the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) next move.
Weekly Update for the week ending April 25, 2025
US markets took another body blow at the start of this past week, once again set off by a tweet from President Trump. He renewed his public attacks on Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell, calling him a “major loser” and demanding immediate rate cuts to juice the economy. Trump even floated the idea of firing Powell – a move that, while legally difficult, has rattled investor confidence.
Weekly Update for the week ending April 11, 2025
The sell-off at the start of the week wiped out the past 12 months of gains, with stocks edging closer to bear market territory. Since the previous Thursday, US markets saw their steepest three-day decline since 1987 – and before that, not since World War II. Meanwhile, Canada’s TSX Composite Index (TSX) experienced its sharpest drop since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. This time, though, the damage was self-inflicted—and, frankly, far from fun. ☹