Stock price when the opinion was issued
HXT-T vs. XIU-T. They have basically identical holding but one pays a dividend so has different tax treatment. He is indifferent. In a TFSA, there is no reason to not to use the XIU-T.
Any sale triggers either a capital loss or gain. It depends on the election you made with CRA on your exact tax treatment. Capital gains are the most efficient tax treatment.
Benefit of CRA and dividends only comes from Canadian companies. So, even if you have an ETF that pays a distribution that comes from European or American companies, that dividend is treated as income even though it comes through a Canadian ETF.
He very much likes the Global X series of corporate class ETFs. They give you broad exposure to markets but don't have those distributions, so they're a bit more tax-efficient. Now, there are some additional costs in there to create those structures. As well, it really depends on your tax rate whether they're a really big benefit to an individual. More benefit to those in higher tax brackets than in lower ones.
(A Top Pick Nov 6/12. Up 11.86%.) Seasonal strength is from October to May of each year. Historically, the best time to own the Canadian market instead of the US market is from Dec 7 until March 7. Overnight, all of the commodities such as gold, oil, silver, copper are being bought by China. Canada is a commodity market. (See Top Picks.)