The Schultz Group - ScotiaMcLeod Peterborough

Global Forecast Update  The global economy is regaining traction, with virtually every region transitioning from recession to recovery around mid-year. For many of the countries around the world hit hard by the cascading recession and credit crunch, in the euro zone for example, the turnaround began in the second quarter.

Why You Want to Own Canada This report is a sequel to a theme piece entitled " Foreign Exposure Rising: Impacts on Canadian Equity Strategy " published in April 2007. In the first report, we looked at how the elimination of the foreign content rule would impact Canadian equities and funds flows as domestic pension funds would aim to reduce their home bias.

News Release July 31, 2009 A cyclical recovery is underway in the global auto industry, according to the latest Global Auto Report released today by Scotia Economics. Auto sales in June posted their best performance since last July, after bottoming earlier this year. Purchases have started to improve in most regions, led by China in the developing markets and Germany in mature markets. Vehicle production has also started to rebound, enabling the auto sector to help drive the global economy towards recovery

Scotia Economics Report  In their monthly Global Forecast Update entitled Rebooting Growth released today, Scotia Economics has raised their projections indicating that the global economy is on the verge of crossing over from recession to recovery.

Ontario Savings Bonds - New Products   The Province of Ontario has announced new terms for the 2009 Ontario Savings Bonds (OSBs), which are available for purchase until June 19th. The Province is offering a new Variable Rate structure, a Step-Up Rate issue, and three new Fixed Rate issues.

Alternative Energy:  How Much Does It Cost?  How do the costs of alternative energy technologies compare? We find that solar crystalline is the most expensive at $153 while solar thermal is $90 per MWh, both still significantly more expensive than traditional sources. In comparison, nuclear power costs $62, coal is $55, and natural gas plants are $52 per MWh. Wind and geothermal power are the least expensive alternative energy sources at $43 and $36 per MWh, respectively.

RRIF Re-Contribution Deadline March 2, 2009  If you received the full minimum amount based on the existing withdrawal schedule in 2008, the new changes allow you to re-contribute up to 25% of the 2008 minimum amount. This amount can be re-contributed to any of your RRIFs, life income funds or other locked-in RRIFs.

eConfirms Now Available  Scotia eRecords, our paperless record keeping service, has now been enhanced to include Trade Confirmations and Mutual Fund Prospectus documents. Many clients have already taken advantage of this service for their Monthly Statements and Annual Trading Summaries.

2009 Federal Budget Highlights The 2009 Federal Budget was delivered on January 27, 2009 and contained a number of proposals impacting the taxation of individuals:

The Myths of Market Underperformance Psychologists talk about the human propensity to gravitate towards evidence that supports existing biases. What that means, quite simply, is that in buoyant markets, investors are prone to believe outrageous claims by market bulls – think no further than “the world has changed forever” rhetoric and best selling books like “Dow Jones 36,000” and Harry Dent’s “The Great Boom Ahead” in the tech boom in 1999 and 2000.

Update from Jerry Coleman - Harbour Funds As depicted above, both fund portfolios experienced material declines in their respective net asset values during the fourth quarter and calendar year 2008. We take small solace in the fact that our results significantly bettered the market benchmarks and most of our peer fund group.

Alternative & Renewable Energy -Down......But Not Out It is no secret that alternative and renewable energy stocks have been massacred over the past several months, due primarily to a decline in the global energy complex, as well as higher cost and more stringent requirements for debt financing. Global alternative energy equities have fallen almost 70% year-to-date, compared with a 35% decline for the S&P/TSX Composite Index and a 42% loss for the MSCI World Index (Exhibit 1).

Historic Market Rebounds Global economies and markets were presented with unprecedented challenges in 2008. As we head into a new year, many of these challenges still exist. While this can be unsettling for investors, it’s important to remember that staying committed to a disciplined investment strategy is never more important than in volatile times.

Tax-Free Savings Accounts - Now Available Starting in 2009, Canadian residents age 18 (subject to provincial age of majority) or older will be eligible to contribute up to $5,000 annually to a TFSA, with unused room being carried forward.   However; contribution room will begin to accumulate at age 18.

Mr. Market - Whenever Charlie and I buy common stocks for Berkshire’s insurance companies (leaving aside arbitrage purchases, discussed in the next essay) we approach the transaction as if we were buying into a private business.

Warren Buffet's New York Times Arcticle The financial world is a mess, both in the United States and abroad. Its problems, moreover, have been leaking into the general economy, and the leaks are now turning into a gusher. In the near term, unemployment will rise, business activity will falter and headlines will continue to be scary.

ScotiaMcLeod Statements now available via email.  Effective April 26, 2008, clients currently accessing their investment account(s) on Scotia Online will have the ability to sign up for Scotia eRecords. This new service allows clients the ability to access their statements in electronic format (PDF) instead of receiving them by mail.  All documents will appear just like the paper versions and can be printed in colour.  You can sign-up by logging in to your Scotia Online Account and clicking on the Accounts and Tranfers Tab.  Next, click on Document Preferences and select paperless option.