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Monthly Portfolio Update August 2025

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August is usually a sleepy month for markets, with many professional investors off on holiday and trading volumes thin. But this year, the supposedly quiet stretch turned into another winning month. All four major indexes extended their streaks, with the Nasdaq Composite Index (Nasdaq) chalking up its fifth consecutive monthly gain – up 1.6%, its longest run in nearly a year and a half. The S&P 500 (S&P) added 1.9%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) climbed 3.2%, and the Toronto Stock Exchange Composite Index (TSX) led the pack with a surge of 4.8%, its strongest showing of the summer. For the S&P and DJIA, it marked their longest streak since fall 2024.

The rally was less about confiden

Weekly Update for the week ending August 15, 2025

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Paying to Play: What Nvidia and AMD’s China Access Means for Investors
The Trump administration has struck a highly unusual deal with Nvidia (NASD: NVDA) and AMD (NASD: AMD) to sell certain artificial intelligence (AI) chips to China – Nvidia’s H20 and AMD’s MI308 – the companies must hand over 15% of those sales to the US government. In return, they get the export licenses needed to ship the chips to China. This effectively reopens a market that had been closed off under earlier restrictions..
While it might sound like a simple trade-off – a cut for the US, access for the companies – it sets a dangerous precedent.

Weekly Update for the week ending August 8, 2025

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An Ominous Start to a Historically Volatile Month
Well, August didn’t waste any time making waves. Both the Canadian and US markets opened the month with sharp declines on August 1, but the storm clouds actually started forming the day before. President Trump signed an executive order imposing new import duties, ranging from 10% to 41%, on about 90 countries. Canada was hit with a hefty 35% rate, alongside India, Taiwan, and others. The tariffs didn’t take effect until August 7, but the announcement alone rattled markets, fuelling worries about renewed trade tensions and rising inflation risks.

Then came Friday’s US jobs report, which landed with a thud. Payroll growth in July came in roughly 25% below expectations, and to make matters worse, May and June were revised down by a combined 258,000 jobs. That raised fresh concerns about a slowing economy.

Monthly Portfolio Update July 2025

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July was another milestone month for markets, powered by strong corporate earnings, growing artificial intelligence (AI) excitement, cautious central banks, and signs that both economies might be cooling. The Toronto Stock Exchange Composite Index (TSX), S&P 500 Index (S&P), Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), and Nasdaq Composite Index (Nasdaq) all surged to record highs mid-month, fueled by optimism on multiple fronts. But those gains didn’t fully stick – markets pulled back in the final stretch as fresh trade tensions and persistent inflation concerns crept back into the picture.

Weekly Update for the week ending August 1, 2025

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Liberation Day, part 2

President Trump kicked off a new wave of tariffs this week, reigniting global trade tensions. The move came just days after progress with the European Union (EU) and Japan had boosted market optimism – but that optimism is now giving way to concern.

The latest action includes a sweeping 35% tariff on Canadian goods not covered by CUSMA, which caught many by surprise. It also targets exports from Brazil, India, and other trading partners, with tariffs ranging from 10% to 25%. These new duties hit a wide range of products, from industrial parts and electronics to everyday consumer goods, raising fears of a broader trade war.