November 2012 Market Recap

November Recap   

With Obama winning a second term in the White House, fears over the potential impact of the fiscal cliff of automatic tax increases and spending cuts caused a selloff in many of the commodity focused sectors. Many worry that if the cliff is not averted, the U.S. and global economy will be thrust into a recession, which will lessen demand for commodities. Precious metals companies were also hit with some disappointing earnings and company guidance, pushing stocks down further.

Given the importance of energy and materials to the Canadian market, the S&P/TSX Composite Index was down 1.28% on the month. Even a strong showing from the financial sector couldn’t pull the index into the black. Financials were strong on the month, gaining ground in the second half of the year thanks to strong earnings results and expectations for Canadian   banks.

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November Fund Ranking Report

Each month, we analyze more than 1200 mutual funds, pooled funds, and hedge funds putting them through our proprietary quantitative valuation model. We then prepare our Monthly Fund Ranking Report which rates and ranks each of the funds in our universe.

You can download our November 30, 2012 Investment Fund Ranking Report here.

November Socially Responsible Investing Report 

With environmental and human rights concerns becoming more important to people, interest in the Socially Responsible Investing segment has never been stronger. In an effort to help keep investors and advisors informed on the SRI funds available, we have created our monthly Socially Responsible Investing Fund Report, which will be published on a monthly basis.

You can download the November 30, 2012 Socially Responsible Investing Report here.

November WRAP Funds Report 

Fund of Fund or WRAP funds have consistently led the mutua  funds sales stats in the past few years. Investor and advisor interest in the products are at an all time high, given the unprecedented levels of market volatility and uncertainty that is prevalent in the markets today. To help you zero in on the best WRAP funds available, we have created our new Monthly WRAP Funds Report that will be published on a monthly basis. If there is a WRAP fund that you would like to see added to this report, please contact us and we will add it for our next edition.

You can download the November 30, 2012 WRAP Fund Report here.

November Portfolio Review 

Equity markets were mixed, with Canadian markets lower and foreign markets rallying higher. Against this backdrop, our portfolios were all positive, except for our Growth Portfolio, which was modestly lower. All portfolios outpaced their respective benchmarks during the month as our conservative core equity funds largely outperformed, offsetting relative underperformance from our fixed income and resource funds. Risk reward metrics continue to be well within expected ranges

You can download our detailed Portfolio Review here.