Want to know how to get a good grade in economics in Canada? It helps if you live in a place that gushes oil.

According to the Conference Board of Canada’s first “How Canada Performs: Economy” report card, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador each get an “A+” for economic performance.
Meantime, the other provinces get a “B” and below. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia received the worst grades, or a “D,” while the rest of Canada was in the middle of the pack.

Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador are not only the top-rated regions in Canada, but in the overall report card that also looks at 16 advanced nations……

CLICK HERE for the complete report

Given the extended winter much of the country has suffered through, I hope I’m not tempting fate by suggesting now is a good time for a financial spring cleaning. Just like changing the winter tires, getting the flower beds in order, and scrubbing behind the appliances, it’s about getting your whole house in order. It may not be fun, but it needs to be done….

CLICK HERE for the complete list

For years, home prices in Canada tracked those in the US, including during the crazy bubble years. But as US home prices peaked in 2006 and then skidded downhill unglamorously, Canadian home prices, after a brief swoon during the financial crisis, just continued to soar, unperturbed by reality and unhampered by any sense of gravity.

Now the average home price in Canada is $400,000, according to an analysis by BMO, one of the largest Canadian banks. In the US, where price bubbles are forming once again in a number of cities, the mean home price is $250,000. OK, we’re comparing average and mean, which aren’t the same thing, but the trends speak volumes (chart by OtterWood)

….read more HERE

Let’s just put this right up front: We’re seeing more pressure on American portfolios now than we’ve seen in the last few years.

Instead of rising steadily like it did in 2012 and 2013, the stock market is now struggling.

Instead of keeping pace or beating the major averages, like the Dow Industrials or S&P 500, the average stock is lagging. Heck, the much broader Russell 2000 Index just cracked its 200-day moving average and is trading roughly where it did seven months ago.

The dollar can’t seem to catch a break, precious metals are just treading water, and interest rates have been slumping rather than rising, as I and just about every other analyst and investor were expecting. All in all, that means it’s been much harder to make money as an individual investor.

But not impossible, mind you. No, what you need to do to beat the portfolio heat in this environment is to zero in like a laser on what is working — the stocks rated the highest by an independent rating agency with no axe to grind.

But even that’s not enough. You have to go a step further and weed out those stuck in loser sectors with no momentum or strong fundamentals, those with excessive interest rate exposure, and those that are just sitting there like a pet rock.

You also want to focus strongly on companies that are paying you — the investor — back! I’m talking about those with proactive managements that are paying out generous dividends, buying back stock aggressively, or otherwise reorganizing their companies to be leaner, meaner, and more focused on building value for you!

That’s what I spent several recent weeks focusing on, and the result is my new special report, “Six Mega Market Winners for 2014 — and Beyond!“

These are companies that fit the general outline I spelled out earlier. One of them is a master limited partnership (MLP) that’s expanding its network of storage terminals and pipelines in order to better serve the booming domestic energy industry. Instead of treading water, this stock is making new record highs every day. But I don’t think this move is over at all, given the growth potential that lies before it.

Another is a packaging company that yields 37 percent more than the average S&P 500 stock. It spent the past year restructuring its business to dump some dead real estate weight. That freed up money for shareholder-friendly actions — including a large special dividend earlier this year.

Its shares flirted with an all-time high in just the past few days. But considering all the things it has going for it, I believe this company has more room to run.

In other words, there ARE stocks that offer consistent, growing profits, and better yields than you can get in either the S&P 500 or the government bond market. I’ve highlighted some favorite sectors, like domestic energy and aerospace before. And in this new report, I give you some of my favorite names within those sectors — and more.

If you’re interested in checking out “Six Mega Market Winners for 2014 — and Beyond!” all you have to do is click here. Or give us a call at: 1-800-291-8545 and we’ll get you taken care of right away! These are some of my best ideas for taking the heat off your portfolio in a year that’s proving a lot tougher than the last few!

Until next time,

Mike

“The United States of America is an empire. But it is an empire like no other in history. It is an empire based on giving away money. The general taxpayers are taxed to give the money away, and those who profit from the expansion of the empire are paid by the government to produce the weapon systems which enable the United States government to project power around the world.

The foreign aid system is a system of bribery. It bribes leaders of countries around the world to keep their mouths shut regarding the extension of American power. This extension of power does not benefit the man in the street. It benefits various special interests, especially the military-industrial complex.”

….continue reading HERE