July was a month of shifting investor preferences, with the major indexes moving in noticeably different directions. The Toronto Stock Exchange Composite Index (TSX) and Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), with their greater exposure to traditional companies, extended their monthly winning streaks. Meanwhile, the more growth-oriented S&P 500 Index (S&P) and Nasdaq Composite Index (Nasdaq) extended their monthly losing streaks. Just as the markets had a mixed month, so did my three portfolios. And like the major indexes, the portfolios showed how different sector exposure can produce very different results, particularly when technology stocks fall out of favour.
Tag: iag
Weekly Update for the week ending July 31, 2026
The AI Revolution: Understanding the Technology Behind the Investment Boom?
Artificial intelligence (AI) may seem almost magical, but behind every AI-generated response is a complex learning process. After exploring what AI is in Part 1 of The AI Revolution: Understanding the Technology Behind the Investment Boom, we now look at how AI actually learns.
In Part 2, we explain what training data is, how AI models are created, why building them requires enormous computing power, and the difference between training an AI model and using one. Understanding this process helps explain why companies are investing billions of dollars in the technology and infrastructure behind the AI revolution.
Weekly Update for the week ending July 3, 2026
AI Spending: When Hype Meets Reality
AI stocks have been back in focus, but not for the reasons that drove their earlier surge. After pushing to fresh highs, parts of the sector have started to cool as investors take a closer look at what’s actually fuelling the rally beneath the surface. The story is shifting from pure excitement around artificial intelligence to something more grounded – the rising cost of building it.
What was once framed as a software-driven revolution is increasingly looking like an infrastructure buildout, with massive spending going into chips, data centres, networking, and energy systems. That shift is starting to raise new questions about funding, profitability, and how long this level of investment can realistically continue without more pressure on balance sheets.
This week I discuss what’s driving the latest move in AI-linked stocks, why spending has become the central theme, and how that ripple effect is starting to show up across the broader market.
Weekly Update for the week ending June 26, 2026
Canada’s Missing SPR
Last week we looked at America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve and why it matters for oil prices, inflation, and financial markets. This week, we turn to Canada – where no such reserve exists. Instead of a government-controlled buffer that can be released during supply shocks, Canada relies on a very different system shaped by domestic production, commercial inventories, and private market forces. The result is an approach to energy security that looks quite different from what many investors might expect, with important implications for how supply disruptions are absorbed.
Weekly Update for the week ending June 19, 2026
America’s Emergency Oil Tank
The ceasefire between Israel and Iran reduced the immediate threat to global oil supplies, but it also underscored a quieter issue. After years of emergency releases, including during the recent US-Iran conflict, America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) now sits at its lowest level in more than 40 years. While most investors rarely think about the SPR, its size can influence oil prices, inflation expectations, and the market’s ability to weather future supply shocks.
Monthly Portfolio Update November 2025
Monthly Portfolio Update November 2025
November didn’t feel like a typically strong month for the markets, even though most major indexes still finished in the green. After such a strong run over the past six months — including a stronger than expected September and October — I had expected that momentum to carry right into year-end. Instead of the strong month I’d been expecting, the markets were quite volatile in November, a month that normally gives investors a smoother ride.