Money Sense

[Anonymous]

Say, seoulbro. We have made some recent nice sales for our software (high end engineering stuff, so not cheap) - paid by credit card in US$ over internet, then put into our US$ company account.

Wish to convert to Canadian at optimum time  .. of course an educated  guessing game at best.



Official was at 130+ this morning. We get 1.275 at our bank if I do it via internet and 1.29 if we take out cash and use a moneychanger .. all being a nice bonus for us. But I digress from my question.



We are not in a hurry. I know it is a guessing game, but are there any "vibes out there" that exchange rate could move appreciably in either direction in the near to moderate future?

June has historically been not a good month for the Canadian dollar.  This June looks worse than in the past.



The biggest factor in this will be monetary policy. The Bank of Canada could adopt a negative interest rate policy (NIRP). The U.S. Federal Reserve, on the other hand, could do the exact opposite. A number of Fed officials have said that a rate hike in June is a real possibility.



Hold on to your US dollars for now.

[Anonymous]

This shows the importance of Alberta to the national economy. One and a quarter percentage points shaved off of our GDP in the second quarter. If the twinning of Trans Mountain is approved later this year and ground is broken on it, it would be a much bigger boost than all of Trudeau's stimulus plans.



http://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/wildfires-in-alberta-will-hurt-economic-growth-bank-of-canada-says/">http://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/wild ... nada-says/">http://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/wildfires-in-alberta-will-hurt-economic-growth-bank-of-canada-says/

OTTAWA – The Bank of Canada said Wednesday that the wildfires that razed parts of Fort McMurray, Alta., and forced the shutdown of several oilsands operations will exact a toll on the economy, but noted that it would be temporary as it kept its key interest rate on hold.



The central bank said that its preliminary assessment — its first since the disaster erupted earlier this month — suggests the fires will cut 1.25 percentage points off real GDP growth in the second quarter.



In its April monetary policy report, the bank had predicted growth at an annual rate of 1.0 per cent for the second quarter.



"While we don't know the bank's updated tracking excluding the wildfires, it's likely that the bank is tracking a contraction for the second quarter," TD Bank senior economist Leslie Preston said.



The Bank of Canada is expected to update its full outlook for the economy and inflation in its next monetary policy report on July 13, when it also makes its next rate announcement.



Despite the cut to its expectations for growth in the second quarter, the Bank of Canada kept its key interest rate at 0.5 per cent. The rate is a major factor used by Canada's big banks in determining their prime lending rates.



The central bank noted that growth in the first quarter was in line with expectations and the economy is expected to rebound in the third quarter as oil production resumes and reconstruction of the areas devastated by the fire begins.



The downgrade of the second quarter follows similar moves by economists at some of Canada's big banks.



The Bank of Montreal has predicted the economy will contract at an annual rate of 1.0 per cent in the second quarter due to the Alberta wildfires compared with the implied contraction of 0.25 per cent based on the central bank's figures.



Bank of Montreal senior economist Robert Kavcic said many economists may have been expecting a little bit more caution from the Bank of Canada in its rate announcement statement.



"Bottom line is that the wildfire is going to have an impact on growth in Q2 and Q3, but it is just going to shift the timing of growth around," he said.



"A lot seems to be going as they were expecting when they put out the last (monetary policy report), minus the wildfire which doesn't have a policy implication. So you add it all up and it is very neutral."



BMO expects the Bank of Canada to keep its key interest rate on hold for the next year with rate hikes only coming into view in the second half of 2017.

[Anonymous]

Oil is expected to draw back from flirting with the $50 level. The wildfires in Alberta and temporary production slashed in heavy oil centres Venezuela and Nigeria took a lot of oil off the market. Production will rebound especially in Alberta in June and see oil  fall back a bit.

[smell the glove]

So buying and owning gold is a bad idea?

Owning physical precious metals for investment purposes (which I have done), isn't ideal in this day and age.  Storage concerns...  Theft concerns...  Transportation concerns...



The only thing going for owning physical precious metals, at least here in Canada, is that it is one of the last ways to avoid paying capital gains taxes, since the buying and selling of precious metals isn't very well regulated here, if at all...

[Twenty Dollars]

So buying and owning gold is a bad idea?

Owning physical precious metals for investment purposes (which I have done), isn't ideal in this day and age.  Storage concerns...  Theft concerns...  Transportation concerns...



The only thing going for owning physical precious metals, at least here in Canada, is that it is one of the last ways to avoid paying capital gains taxes, since the buying and selling of precious metals isn't very well regulated here, if at all...

Don't live in N. America. I am accustom to keeping 5 thousand dollars or more in a safe, because I don't have an active bank account. Plus many don't trust the banking system here. Plenty of room for some closely held ingots that would become my pets.

[smell the glove]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

[Anonymous]

So buying and owning gold is a bad idea?

Owning physical precious metals for investment purposes (which I have done), isn't ideal in this day and age.  Storage concerns...  Theft concerns...  Transportation concerns...



The only thing going for owning physical precious metals, at least here in Canada, is that it is one of the last ways to avoid paying capital gains taxes, since the buying and selling of precious metals isn't very well regulated here, if at all...

As a general rule, the CRA allows you to choose how you want your gains and losses on the sale of commodities, including gold, to be treated for tax purposes: on an "income" or "capital" account.



Taxpayers who choose to report on income account include any profits from sale as income. Consequently, if they experience a loss from the sale of the commodity, that loss can be used to offset any source of income.



Most taxpayers, however, choose to report gains from commodity transactions on capital account, since only 50% of a capital gain is taxable. Of course, by doing so, any losses on the sale of commodities must be treated as capital losses, which can only be used to offset other capital gains.

[Twenty Dollars]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

Union pension, dividends, etc, into my bank account in  N. California.

I do not have an active bank account here. I get as much cash as I need from any ATM machine.

See that was simple.

[Anonymous]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

Union pension, dividends, etc, into my bank account in  N. California.

I do not have an active bank account here. I get as much cash as I need from any ATM machine.

See that was simple.

Are you not charged a fee every time you use an ATM and it converts your money?

[Twenty Dollars]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

Union pension, dividends, etc, into my bank account in  N. California.

I do not have an active bank account here. I get as much cash as I need from any ATM machine.

See that was simple.

Are you not charged a fee every time you use an ATM and it converts your money?

Yes Fash. $3.00. I usually take a large amount, as not to use it several times a week. I almost never use a credit card here either.

[smell the glove]

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

And I'll omit the fact that you tried to get tough with me for no reason when you first arrived at Memebee...



I can be quite civil, should the climate be correct.

[Twenty Dollars]

http://s1359.photobucket.com/user/seamajor1/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2016-05/629B78D2-B8C2-4565-8C59-CCDE7BEBA05B_zpszydvg8rq.jpg.html">

Some things aren't that important.

[Anonymous]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

Union pension, dividends, etc, into my bank account in  N. California.

I do not have an active bank account here. I get as much cash as I need from any ATM machine.

See that was simple.

Are you not charged a fee every time you use an ATM and it converts your money?

Yes Fash. $3.00. I usually take a large amount, as not to use it several times a week. I almost never use a credit card here either.

That's very different than how we did things when we lived in Kazakhstan for one year.

[Twenty Dollars]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

Union pension, dividends, etc, into my bank account in  N. California.

I do not have an active bank account here. I get as much cash as I need from any ATM machine.

See that was simple.

Are you not charged a fee every time you use an ATM and it converts your money?

Yes Fash. $3.00. I usually take a large amount, as not to use it several times a week. I almost never use a credit card here either.

That's very different than how we did things when we lived in Kazakhstan for one year.

That sounds like an exotic destination. What was the money scene there? Your husband must have been working in that country?

[Anonymous]

How do you not have an active bank account, Seaman?



How do you get your union pension payments paid?



In fact, I cannot imagine anyone, other than a homeless bum, having the ability to even live in this day and age without at least a chequing (checking) account...

I'll be nice the first time.

My name is seamajor.

Union pension, dividends, etc, into my bank account in  N. California.

I do not have an active bank account here. I get as much cash as I need from any ATM machine.

See that was simple.

Are you not charged a fee every time you use an ATM and it converts your money?

Yes Fash. $3.00. I usually take a large amount, as not to use it several times a week. I almost never use a credit card here either.

That's very different than how we did things when we lived in Kazakhstan for one year.

That sounds like an exotic destination. What was the money scene there? Your husband must have been working in that country?

Yes, my husband's company sent him there for a one year renewable contract..



It was a full expat package with return air tickets for all of us, housing, international school, tax free salary paid in American dollars and local transportation..



There wasn't much for me to do and I missed my job, life and family in Canada, so my husband did not renew and we moved back to Calgary.