I just received reports that the Conservative Party "slide" as of late has stopped and the Conservatives maintain a lead over the Liberals of about 5%. Apparently, critics and pollsters alike are attributing the recent Conservative slide in support because of Stephen Harper's comments about this week's stock market slide creating some "bargains" and "buying opportunities".
These comments have been referred to as "callous" and "making Harper seem out of touch".
The reality is, unfortunately for the Greens and the Liberals (the main critics of this comment by Harper), is that, in fact, there are market buying opportunities that have been created as a direct result of the slide in stock market prices. The Canada Pension Plan, a huge institutional buyer of quality stocks and bonds and a supplier of retirement income for contributing Canadians over the age of 60, a supplier of disability income for contributing Canadians, and a supplier of death benefits for contributing Canadians, is definitely well-positioned to "buy low" and eventually "sell higher" in order to provide these 3 prescribed benefits. As well, thousands of private Canadian pension plans, some even union-controlled and operated, are quietly but surely seeking market bargains in order to better position the accounts they maintain for their memberships.
Let there be no doubt, Canada is feeling the recent market downturn but, fortunately, is better able to respond and can respond quicker than our American investor counterparts. Canada has a strong banking and credit union system with strong liquidity regulations. And something not mentioned often is the fact that Canadians are generally more conservative in their approach to debt. $0-money down for car, house, and vacation purchases is a rarity in this nation.
And now Canadians stand to reap the rewards. I find it strange that the Greens and the Liberals have a problem with that.
D'Arcy Barker is a Chartered Financial Planner and Registered Employee Benefits Consultant. He is licensed in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta.
