An Update from The Moir Team – Fall 2008

by Bev Moir on September 10, 2008

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Important News About the Moir Team

We have some good news to report! Ingrid Sojka, my Administrative Associate, is expecting her first baby! It’s a very exciting time for her and her husband Jan. The baby is due October 25th; the not so good part of the message is that Ingrid’s last day in the office is Friday October 3rd.

Her plan is to return following a one-year maternity leave. We’ll miss her; she’s been part of the Moir Team for two years now and I rely on her greatly. She says I can call her if I’m stuck (!!!) and she’ll do some work for us from home once she and the baby get settled. We wish them all good health and much joy!

Here are the plans I’ve put in place to keep things running smoothly: Beverley Thompson (another Bev!) will join us from another ScotiaMcLeod team on Monday, September 22nd to overlap with Ingrid. Bev T. has been part of ScotiaMcLeod for many years; in fact when I joined the firm 14 years ago she was working in the office and was one of the individuals who gave me encouragement. I greatly appreciated her support then and look forward to working with her again!

Bev is an Administrative Assistant. This means she’ll be unable to take orders to buy or sell stocks and bonds. I’ll be staying close to the office and we’ll have other back-up arrangements in place for the times I’m booked and unavailable to come to the phone. The office number remains the same (416-945-4454) and Bev’s email address is beverley_thompson@scotiamcleod.com.

Matt Zavaglia, a third year University of Toronto student, has been hired to work with us on a weekly basis throughout his school year. Matt worked with us this summer (largely behind the scenes) and was a great help. We’re pleased he’ll continue with us.

Please take a moment to introduce yourself when you call in the coming weeks!

Market Update
Jittery markets can upset even the most confident investors. This year’s extreme volatility has been a case in point. We know that a long-term, focused strategy is the best protection against a difficult market cycle. The enclosed colour graph produced by Russell Investments illustrates the importance of maintaining a long-term perspective during this time of market volatility.

Dating back to 1924, the graph shows that positive “bull” market returns outnumber the negative “bear” markets we’ve experienced and, you can see that history shows “bear markets” are generally of shorter duration. We’re currently experiencing a bear market and while we don’t know how long it will last, I can say with confidence that it will be followed by an up-market that will be stronger and will likely last longer!

What to Do Right Now

Upcoming Seminars and Media Events

  • Retirement Planning and Transitioning seminars – October and November 2008. Please call to be added to the invitation list.
  • CP24 – Tuesday September 23rd @ 2:50 pm “Raising Financially Literate Children.”
  • Article in the November Issue of Glow Magazine.

Retirement Tip
Jeremy Siegel is a 62-year-old economist who is affiliated with the prestigious Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania. He wrote Stocks for the Long Run in 1994 and now, 14 years and four editions of his book later, he continues to caution investors from bailing out of stocks during times of market upheaval. As reported by the Globe and Mail’s Brian Milner this summer, here are some pointers based on Dr. Siegel’s research:

  • Stocks are safer than bank deposits, over the long term, when inflation is taken into account.
  • The biggest winners over the long haul are always stocks with the highest dividend yields.
  • No strategy exists that will out-perform the market all of the time.
  • No indicator tells you when stocks hit bottom.
  • A little knowledge is worse than no knowledge for the novice investor.

I believe the markets are presenting opportunities, especially for the long-term investor.

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