A Comment -- General Comments From an Expert (A Commentary)

He's not sure you'll find bargains per se. You can find some relative bargains among the larger-cap names if you look at not just the PE, but also the growth in front of them. Some of those names look good, while others have a very expensive PEG ratio. Again, you have to be very selective. 

For growth, he looks for at least double-digit teens to maybe 20% earnings growth going forward. PEG ratios that are below 2 or 1.5.

We probably don't have as much dry powder waiting to be deployed. But gold has been performing very well, as has silver. He prefers silver, as it's outperformed gold this year. Banks have recovered very nicely so far this year.

When you look at the grand scheme of things, the US has more depth, different companies, and certainly more companies that are in the growth area. There are also opportunities beyond the NA borders.

He has most portfolio assets in the US, with some in Canada. Just a smidgen in international markets. He doesn't intentionally focus on a region, it's more company-specific. For example, he owns MELI, a Latin American company that's like a blend of PYPL and AMZN.

In general, they have the opportunity to perform because the USD has been underperforming relative to the rest of the world (not including Canada). So you get the upside in the currencies of the international markets. 

Certain international markets are cheaper than the US on a valuation perspective, no doubt about that. US is at high valuations. However, earnings growth continues to look good in the US. The aggregate earnings growth estimate for the S&P for 2026 is 12-13%, very conducive to more market upside.

Really likes the space -- a long-term mega-theme. A lot of companies in the space are a bit expensive right now, and spending can be quite cyclical. The whole area is high beta. He's not in any names right now, too expensive, but will probably be back in some day. As an active manager, he checks names and trends on his radar at least weekly.

He wouldn't want anybody to load up on any particular commodity. They all go through cycles. Oil does it, gold does it. Silver will do it.

You want to own both, the best of each. Don't forget about the US banks. A name like JPM (which he owns) has done very well on the strength of the US economy, deregulation, and very strong management.

Crazy this year, and for the last three. Pretty amazing the impact that the tech run is having on the market. Since the middle of April, the QQQ (benchmark of the NASDAQ) is up 40%. It's truly historic.

Doesn't think so. JP Morgan came out with a research study -- claims that there are 41 pure AI stocks that have contributed 70% of the returns this year for the S&P 500. The other 459 stocks have contributed the other 30%. Just wait until the buildout is done by the vendors, and then you have the end users who are going to be using the built-out AI infrastructure. Still a long runway.

It can sort of feel like a shell game. Rubber's going to hit the road come 2026 after all this spending for the last 2-2.5 years. That's when we'll find out whether the vendors are going to be making money. 

But he thinks that, more importantly, it's whether the end users that are going to be using this AI infrastructure are going to be making money. So far, he believes the answer is yes for both sides. For the infrastructure, there's still a heck of a lot more to be built out on the hardware, let alone the software. And the end users are the ones who are going to benefit.

Definitely hitting the healthcare side, speeding up R&D on biotech. Definitely impacting entertainment business; one of the reasons NFLX is doing so well is because they've really embraced AI. It will filter down even into manufacturing.

He and his team believe that robotics are going to be a big, big deal in 2026. But robotics only work with the AI infrastructure. 

There's a lot more to come.

A lot of people compare this market to dot-com times. It's not the same. Completely different metrics. A lot of portfolio managers got wiped out then because they were trying to call the top. We're now very much in a period of momentum and sentiment. You just have to watch the price action.

Investing 101: The Advantage of Time

Time is a valuable asset in the realm of investing. Starting to save for retirement at a young age provides a significant advantage due to the power of compounding. Intuitively, most individuals tend to treat $1 as $1, however, the idea of consumption deferral (rather than immediate consumption, investing and delaying consumption) suggests that the value of $1 depends on how it is allocated. For example, $1 spent on a good or service that one can immediately use or consume has value to an individual, but even with a modest return of 7% per year, investing that $1 at age 20 can yield approximately 18 times the initial investment by the age of 65. In a sense, that $1 gets transformed into having a present-day value of $18.

This exponential growth is attributed to the reinvestment of earnings, where each year's gains generate additional returns in subsequent years. By starting early, individuals harness the full potential of compounding, allowing their money to work harder and grow significantly over time. In the below chart, we have visualized the leverage that is at one’s disposal by beginning their investment journey early. One dollar invested at the age of 20, growing at 7% per year becomes ~$21 by the age 65. As this individual ages, the future return of $1 invested shrinks – ie. at the age of 45 $1 invested for the next 20 years is ~$4. 
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Investing 101: Make mistakes when you are young with less money to lose

If you are going to make a mistake, in almost all cases it is probably better to make them young. With investing, you have more time to bounce back from a mistake but perhaps more importantly, the dollar value with which a mistake is being made is going to be far lower. A mistake at a young age is going to be far less impactful than at a later age and be assured, mistakes will be made whether you are active or passively investing.

As a 20-something that retires 40 years later (hopefully), you are probably not going to look back at that initial $10,000 you (maybe) lost in the market and view that as the big difference maker in your retirement. However, if that experience turned out well and led to added financial security, you will probably view it as one of the most important financial decisions you ever made.
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He wouldn't expect a lot from this meeting. The tariff regime from the Trump administration has been very well telegraphed. Most heads of state have come away with a deal they wouldn't have expected. Keep in mind that the land border between Canada and the US is the longest trade conduit we have. We have some critical minerals that they use in the US, so there are some areas that we can push back on.

The bigger, thornier issue is that USMCA is up for renegotiation next year. Will the Trump administration just rip it up and say let's start again? The optics of cutting a deal on the fly are interesting. Something like the healthcare sector had follow-through that was quite disconnected from the initial announcement.

He'd expect some headlines, but what we actually get delivered may be somewhat different. We've reached the point where the president needs to recognize that Canada's a major trading partner, and the US will suffer if tariffs remain. Tariffs are a tax on US consumers, not on Canadians.