FERGUSON, Mo. – The city of Ferguson has turned to a Fortune 500 company based in the St. Louis suburb in hopes of reversing its deteriorating financial situation.
Ferguson was in financial trouble even before the protests and looting touched off by the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, 18, by now-former police officer Darren Wilson last August. Its reserves were $25 million in 2013, a figure that’s expected to decline to $4.8 million by June 2016. The city also has run a multimillion-dollar deficit over the past two years.
Mayor James Knowles III and former city manager John Shaw met last week to seek a possible solution with officials from Emerson, an international manufacturing and technology company, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1VaOJMj ) reported. Knowles said no specific “ask or offer” was made during the meeting, and he declined to elaborate on specifics.
“We have a budget deficit we have to resolve, and that was one topic of conversation,” he said…

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Canadians are playing it safe when it comes to investing.
Sun Life Global Investments’ Investor Sentiment Report finds investors are holding an average 25% of their portfolio—including both personal savings and employer-sponsored retirement plans—in cash.
The rest breaks down as follows:
Canadian stocks and stock mutual funds (34%);
Canadian bonds and bond mutual funds (13%);
foreign stocks, bonds and mutual funds (12%);
ETFs (5%); and
other (11%).
“To the extent that foreign exposure is indicative of an investor’s risk appetite (and often his or her understanding of the importance of diversification), the 12% average holdings of foreign stocks, bonds and mutual funds is noteworthy,” the survey states.
Getting the money out of your mattress »
Just 16% of investors plans to invest more in foreign assets over the next year. More than half (57%) say no and 26% either don’t know or aren’t sure…

BlackBerry reports its fiscal second-quarter results before markets open Friday. Here’s what to expect.

WASHINGTON – Chair Janet Yellen said Thursday that she expects the Federal Reserve to begin raising interest rates from record lows by the end of the year.
In a lecture at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Yellen said she thought inflation would gradually move up to the Fed’s target rate of 2 per cent as unusually low oil prices and other factors prove temporary. And she suggested that global economic weakness won’t likely be significant enough to dissuade the Fed from raising its key short-term rate from zero by December.
Yellen’s comments may help clarify doubts about the Fed’s intentions that deepened last week after its latest policy meeting ended. The Fed chose not to raise rates, citing global economic pressures and concern about excessively low inflation.
That decision raised worries that the Fed had greater concerns about economic problems in China and falling stock markets than investors had previously thought.
In her speech Thursday, Yellen said Fed officials continue to monitor economic troubles abroad…

The RioCan and Kimco real estate businesses are unwinding their Canadian partnership, which jointly owns 35 properties in six provinces.

CTV NewsEuropean markets post gains despite slump in Volkswagen share priceCTV NewsLONDON — European stock markets pushed ahead Monday as investors moved on from the recent uncertainty surrounding the U.S. Federal Reserve. The main talking point in markets though was the 20 per cent slump in Volkswagen's share price following …VW shares plunge most in six years on US emission scandalThe Globe and MailVolkswagen AG shares drop 22% after admitting it cheated on emission testsFinancial PostVolkswagen apologises for emissions blunderBBC NewsThe Guardian -Huffington Post (blog) -NDTVall 663 news articles »

A speech by Stephen Poloz, retail sales for July and BlackBerry earnings are the highlights on the Canada events calendar this week.

Our equities analyst looks ahead to the investment day

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We’ve all made dumb mistakes with our savings over the years. But one of the biggest mistakes investors make is doing nothing at all.
Over the last couple of years I’ve met an awful lot of folks who are sitting on large sums of cash. Some of these people used to be fully invested, but they got spooked and liquidated their portfolios—some have even been on the sidelines since the 2008-09 crisis. Others have sold a house or a business and are suddenly flush for the first time. In both cases, they tell me the idea of moving that cash into the markets is as appealing as jumping naked into the frigid ocean. And so they do nothing.
This may not seem like a grave mistake: after all, a savings account never goes down in value. But that’s ignoring opportunity cost: the returns you give up when you fail to implement your investment plan. A simple balanced portfolio such as the Global Couch Potato (40% bonds and 60% Canadian, U…

VANCOUVER – La Mancha Holding SARL has a friendly deal to acquire 30 per cent of Endeavour Mining Corp. (TSX:EDV) which will get, in return, a majority stake in the Ity gold mine in western Africa plus up to US$138 million in financial commitments.
La Mancha is a private investment company headed by its chairman Naguib Sawiris — an Egyptian businessman who provided some of the funding for the launch of Wind Mobile as a competitor to Canada’s largest wireless carriers.
Endeavour says the partnership puts it in line to produce 580,000 ounces annually from five operations in western Africa, including in Cote d’Ivoire where the Ity open pit mine is located, 480 kilometres northwest of the capital Abidjan.
“We are pleased to welcome La Mancha and Naguib Sawiris as our long term strategic partner with the shared vision of building a leading, Africa-focused gold producer,” Endeavour chief executive Neil Woodyer said in Monday’s announcement.
Vancouver-based Endeavour will issue 177…

Depending on where you live and work, the answer to this question will vary. In addition to potentially having a workplace pension plan, Canadians have private options such as RRSPs and TFSAs, as well as several government products to navigate such as CPP, OAS and GIS. Depending on which province you are in, you may also benefit from a provincial pension plan. With so many products, it is no wonder that Canadians are struggling with determining how much they will need to retire.

Despite the number of potential income streams, does the current retirement system in Canada help retirees amass enough assets to live off of for 20 to 30 years of retirement, or are its requirements and constraints hindering people from saving and investing effectively?

As provincial and federal governments attempt to improve our retirement system, one has to ask whether Canada currently has an ideal system and what can be done to strengthen it. Determining the best way forward can be challenging, since retirement security spans government politics, employer practices, individual investor education and cultural differences…

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I’m hard at work on this year’s MoneySense Retirement 100. But before it’s published next month I’d like to share a few observations about the general state of Canadian dividend stocks.
There are about 330 dividend payers on the TSX and the largest 100 by market capitalization get into the Retirement 100.
Royal Bank is the largest dividend stock in the land with a market capitalization of about $100 billion. Barrick is about 10 times smaller and trades near $10 billion. It’s the 38th largest dividend payer. DHX Media is at $1 billion and is in 151st place. Strad Energy Services, with a market capitalization near $100 million, is number 292. Overall, there are only a few large dividend stocks in Canada and many smaller ones.
Dividend stocks have, collectively, fared poorly over the last 12 months with average total returns of -8.3%.
But a few big outliers can skew the average…

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Tap for the latest from Maclean’s on the 2015 campaign

For most voters, the state of the country’s economy will be a deciding factor when they cast their ballot on Oct 19. Here are five questions Canadians may want answered on the economy in Thursday night’s leaders’ debate:
1. Are you talking to me?
All three parties have economic platforms targeting the so-called middle class, which they all say they want to help. But the leaders don’t often go beyond the superficial label. This is important because some data show the income of most families has not substantially grown since as far back as the 1980s…

The $112 billion Public Sector Pension Investment Board has become the latest Canadian pension fund to open a European office in London, appointing a former Permira deal maker to spearhead its private equity efforts in the region.

Our equities analyst looks ahead to the investment day

The $112 billion Public Sector Pension Investment Board has become the latest Canadian pension fund to open a European office in London, appointing a former Permira deal maker to spearhead its private equity efforts in the region.

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The following is a list of initial public offerings planned for the coming week. Sources include IPO ETF manager Renaissance Capital, and SEC filings.
Week of September 14:
Nabriva Therapeutics AG – Vienna, Austria, 6 million American depositary shares, each representing 100 common shares, priced $15 to $17, managed by Leerink Partners, and RBC Capital Markets. Proposed Nasdaq symbol NBRV. Business: Developing a novel antibiotic for bacterial pneumonia.
Penumbra Inc. – Alameda, Calif., 3.8 million shares, priced $25 to $28, managed by J.P. Morgan, and BofA Merrill Lynch. Proposed NYSE symbol PEN. Business: Markets devices for neuro and peripheral vascular conditions and diseases.
RegenexBio – Rockville, Md., 5.6 million shares, priced $17 to $19, managed by Morgan Stanley, and BofA Merrill Lynch. Proposed Nasdaq symbol RGNX. Business: Developing gene therapies for rare diseases with proprietary gene delivery platform.
The post Initial public offerings scheduled to debut next week appeared first on Canadian Business – Your Source For Business News.

U.S. stocks also retreat amid volatile week

MONTREAL – The maker of Ski-Doo snowmobiles is delivering inventory to dealers a couple of weeks earlier this season to ensure customers have their products well ahead of the first snowfall, in what could be a more challenging winter market.
Dealers wanted earlier deliveries to better accommodate their buyers who placed orders last spring, BRP chief executive Jose Boisjoli said Friday during a conference call about its second-quarter financial results.
“We shipped earlier to help the dealer not to have the bottleneck in the shop,” Boisjoli said.
BRP (TSX:DOO) expects global snowmobile sales will be down a little this coming season as ongoing challenges in Russia and a weak Alberta economy more than offset strength in the United States and Western Europe.
Ski-Doo orders from Western Canadian dealers were significantly lower in the second quarter, contributing to a 20 to 25 per cent reduction in overall sales from the oil producing region in the second quarter.
The rest of Canada was “flattish” for a 10 per cent reduction in Canadian sales, Boisjoli told analysts…

MOSCOW – Trading on Russia’s stock exchange was suspended for almost two hours on Tuesday due to technical problems.
The Moscow Exchange, which is the centre of Russian financial trading, said it encountered a “technical failure” in its data centre at around 3 p.m. local time.
Stocks and bonds trading resumed at around 4.50 p.m., with derivatives and foreign exchange following shortly afterward with extended trading sessions partially compensating for the lost time.
The exchange had said backup systems would be used to resume trading.
The exchange’s main MICEX index was trading up by almost two per cent on the day.
The post Moscow Exchange suffers almost two-hour outage due to technical problems appeared first on Canadian Business – Your Source For Business News.

Our equities analyst looks ahead to the investment day

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Caesars Palace in Las Vegas is being fined $9.5 million by federal and state regulators for not taking steps to prevent money laundering in the casino.
The U.S Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced Tuesday that the agency had settled its investigation into the casino for $8 million. Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman A.G. Burnett says the state agency plans to levy its own $1.5 million fine against the company in a separate settlement.
The investigations stems from actions the casino made as early as 2012.
The federal agency says Caesars Palace willfully and repeatedly violated the Bank Secrecy Act, including allowing high-rollers to gamble millions anonymously in private areas of the casino. The agency says the casino marketed the private gambling rooms in the United States and abroad, particularly to Asian gamblers, but didn’t watch for possible suspicious activity in the cash flow that resulted, including large wire transfers…

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Q: I have funds sitting in a high interest bank account. I am totally risk adverse because of a partner’s unfortunate business investments and resulting bankruptcy. I have favoured real estate always. What should I do as a senior with no company pension or income from investments?
—Dee
A: It’s unfortunate to hear about your partner, Dee. I am guessing that they are also a senior and may be coming into retirement with limited savings.
When people talk about investment risk, I think that they mistakenly focus on the short-term fluctuations of the stock market. It’s the 6 o’clock news effect. Or these days, the Facebook effect.
In the long term, stocks go up. The Toronto Stock Exchange has returned 7.6% annualized in the 10 years ending Dec. 31, 2014. Over 20 years and 30 years, returns have been 8.83% and 8.97% respectively.
While some companies will fail–whether private, like your partner’s company, or public, like Nortel–there will always be companies that provide good goods and services and make a profit for investors…

The Bank of Canada’s latest rate decision, housing data and a number of retail earnings are on tap this week.

Canada’s five biggest banks are scheduled to report their fiscal third-quarter earnings this week, shedding new light on how lenders are faring amid a Canadian economy struggling due to lower prices for oil, Canada’s top export.

On tap in Canadian business this week: quarterly financial results from the country’s five big banks, and more.

Canadian miner Eldorado Gold Corporation says the financial crisis unfolding in Greece isn’t having an impact on its operations in the country.

The Financial Post’s Kristine Owram looks at some of the day’s top business and financial stories.

Cenovus Energy Inc. has agreed to sell its oil-and-gas royalty business for roughly C$3.3 billion to Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. The oil company is selling Heritage Loyalty L.P., which holds about 4.8 million acres in royalty interest and mineral fee title lands, in a bid to cut costs amid dropping oil prices.

Sun Life Financial Inc. is continuing to expand its U.S. operations, agreeing to buy Redmond, Wash.-based investment manager Prime Advisors, Inc. The financial terms have not been disclosed, but Prime had $13 billion in assets under management at the end of May.

CBC.caThe Latest: EU Official: 'Regrettable' No New Bailout GreekNew York TimesATHENS, Greece — The latest news on Greece's financial woes (all times local): ___. 9.35 p.m.. As a midnight deadline closes in, the head of the agency responsible for preserving financial security in the European Union says "it is regrettable" that …Report: Germany rebuffs Greek bid for crisis funds before default deadlineWashington PostEurogroup to discuss Greece at 0930 GMT on WednesdayReutersGreek Voters to Decide on Convoluted Bailout Question July 5Wall Street JournalSydney Morning Herald -Fox News -Los Angeles Timesall 12,284 news articles »

(Getty Images)
Having planted a stake firmly in the camp of financial independence, I’m often asked exactly how the phrase “findependence” is different from retirement.
There are a lot of distinctions between the terms, many of them subtle ones. I often say that financial independence means working because you want to, rather than because you have to financially speaking. In the latter case, the situation is akin to the bumper sticker that says “I owe, I owe so off to work I go.”
I may also say that findependence (I’ll use the contraction of financial independence here now) often occurs years if not decades before traditional retirement. There are several early retirement practitioners running websites about how they achieved financial independence in their 30s or 40s, although they usually add that they continue to “work” in the sense of doing some work for money. That “work” will typically be as an independent supplier rather than an employee and may consist of writing books, running web sites and perhaps publicly speaking…

(Illustration by Sebastien Thibault)
The Conservatives are expected to table a new consumer protection code governing banks in the coming months, but don’t expect the campaign-friendly bill to improve your bottom line. While intended to empower banking customers navigating the financial services industry, pundits say the “Comprehensive Financial Consumer Code” falls flat because it does little to protect Canadians from being nickel-and-dimed at every turn.
“If people think this code will in any way limit what they pay to their banks, they’re dreaming,” says John Lawford, executive director and general counsel at the Public Interest Advocacy Centre.
Instead, the code will only feature standardized fee disclosure boxes on bank statements, loosened ID requirements on new accounts, mandatory cooling-off periods on a greater range of products, and a crackdown on misleading advertising.
As is now the case with Canada’s telecom providers, Lawford would have preferred to see the banks prevented from charging paper-bill fees—not to mention more egregious pay-to-pay tactics, such as charging customers $1 to $2  to make mortgage, loan and credit card payments…

Stung by sanctions and recession, Iranian investors have one eye on the country’s stock exchange, and the other on the international talks about the country’s nuclear program.

Cenovus Energy Inc. has agreed to sell its oil-and-gas royalty business for roughly C$3.3 billion to Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. The oil company is selling Heritage Loyalty L.P., which holds about 4.8 million acres in royalty interest and mineral fee title lands, in a bid to cut costs amid dropping oil prices.

Sun Life Financial Inc. is continuing to expand its U.S. operations, agreeing to buy Redmond, Wash.-based investment manager Prime Advisors, Inc. The financial terms have not been disclosed, but Prime had $13 billion in assets under management at the end of May.

CBC.caThe Latest: EU Official: 'Regrettable' No New Bailout GreekNew York TimesATHENS, Greece — The latest news on Greece's financial woes (all times local): ___. 9.35 p.m.. As a midnight deadline closes in, the head of the agency responsible for preserving financial security in the European Union says "it is regrettable" that …Report: Germany rebuffs Greek bid for crisis funds before default deadlineWashington PostEurogroup to discuss Greece at 0930 GMT on WednesdayReutersGreek Voters to Decide on Convoluted Bailout Question July 5Wall Street JournalSydney Morning Herald -Fox News -Los Angeles Timesall 12,284 news articles »

Canadian insurer Sun Life Financial is buying U.S. investment manager Prime Advisors Inc. for an undisclosed amount.

ATHENS, Greece – Greece is holding an emergency meeting with its financial rescue creditors in the hope of getting more loans. Without a deal, it could default on its debts as soon as next week, which could be the first step in a chain reaction that sees the country fall out of the euro currency union.
Here is a broad look at the key issues in the crisis.
___
CURRENT ISSUE
The Greek government must make a 1.6 billion euro ($1.8 billion) loan payment to the International Monetary Fund this month. It doesn’t have the money. It is negotiating with other eurozone countries and the IMF to get 7.2 billion euros in loans — the last installment in a bailout package expiring this month. Without that money, Greece will likely default on the IMF loan. Even bigger payments come due later this summer. Its creditors are demanding that Greece make reforms and cuts, including to public pensions, before releasing the money.
___
NO BOND MARKET
Greece needs loans because it cannot borrow on bond markets at affordable rates, as other countries do to finance their spending…

At the top of our key events list this week is the latest earnings report from BlackBerry Ltd.

Housing affordability continued to decline in Toronto and Vancouver, while conditions for homebuyers improved in Alberta during the first quarter of the year as lower oil prices caused the real estate market to soften.

NDTVUS pledges high-end equipment for NATO rapid response forceReuters CanadaMUENSTER, Germany (Reuters) – The United States said on Monday it would contribute special operations forces, intelligence and other high-end military assets to a new NATO rapid response force that aims in part to deter any future actions by Russia.Carter: US to give weapons, aircraft, troops to NATO unit to defend against …Washington PostUS won't let Russia 'drag us back to the past': Pentagon chiefTimes of IndiaEU extends sanctions against Russia, cites 'destabilizing role in eastern Ukraine'CTV NewsBusinessDay -The Globe and Mail -Reutersall 743 news articles »

 
Julie Gordon/Reuters
RBC on housing costs
A report by RBC Economics says housing affordability continued to decline in Toronto and Vancouver, while conditions for homebuyers improved in Alberta during the first quarter as lower oil prices caused the real estate market to soften. RBC says mortgage rate cuts improved the affordability of homes in many Canadian markets. And that offset rapid price growth in Toronto and Vancouver, leaving national affordability levels relatively flat.
A new study on biphasic anaphylaxis
A new study led by researchers from the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario suggests about 15 per cent of children who have a severe allergic reaction that involves anaphylaxis can actually have a second reaction hours after the first. The researchers warn that doctors and parents should be on the lookout for this type of two-stage or biphasic anaphylactic reaction. The study is the largest ever to look at biphasic anaphylaxis.
Ed Sheeran rules the MMVAs
Quite a night for Ed Sheeran at the Much Music Video Awards as he hosted the show, ad-libbing raunchy one-liners, verbally sparring with presenters, performing songs and also hauling in two awards for himself…

(Getty Images / Peter Dazeley)
Nobody likes to pay taxes.
But while they are inevitable, you can minimize the amount you pay.
Brent Vandermeer, a portfolio manager with HollisWealth, says to build a tax efficient portfolio you need to pay attention to what you hold and where it’s held.
“A lot of people view each of their own accounts that they have set up as distinct little buckets that they manage,” he said.
“From a tax efficiency point of view that actually negates some of the benefit of having certain kinds of investments in more tax efficient accounts.”
That’s because in the eyes of the Canada Revenue Agency, not all investment income is created equal.
Under the tax rules, interest income from investments like savings accounts, GICs and bonds are fully taxable at your marginal tax rate, while dividends benefit from the dividend tax credit that helps reduce the amount of tax you owe.
And only half of any capital gain is included when calculating your taxes.
Vandermeer says those differences mean you need to pay attention to where your investments are held, whether it is your RRSP, tax-free savings account or other non-registered account…

Consultant runs his own business from home and says continuing to work past 65 for a few extra years will allow his nest egg to last longer

The head of Canada’s biggest pension fund wants to curb the spread of short-term thinking in corporate boardrooms as management teams face increasing pressure to focus on short-term earnings growth and stock-price gains over long-term growth.