As we slide into a Halloween weekend, we hope the spookiness will lift from the equity markets, and a clearer direction will emerge. A Halloween tradition from the 16th century is that after a volatile October, equities will perform well for the next six months, a “buy in November, sell in May” strategy. The U.S. midterm elections loom large for Tuesday, November 3, and all eyes are on that contest. U.S. markets will be open on election day; watch for fireworks. When differen

On October 19, 1987, a market event now referred to as “Black Monday” occurred. That day, the TSX was down 11.3%, and the Dow fell 22.6%. Everything was down. This week was a not anywhere near that bad. World shares were mixed overnight as oil prices held at their highest levels since May (war with Iran). European markets remained troubled by political instability, and the main indices were down. The Asian markets were recovering, except for Japan. Investors were retreating

The Halloween season is approaching, and investors may be worried about the spooky “October Effect” on stock prices. While nine of history’s twenty largest single-day percentage declines in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) occurred in October, the S&P 500 has also gained value in October more often than it has declined. Average October performance throughout the past 96 years actually shows a slight gain. This week, most global markets posted a positive performance, wi