September this year was a time when we had hoped to take one more step towards normal in our fight against COVID 19. Many of us started to go back to the office a bit more, our kids started a new chapter in their schooling and others inched their way further towards their old routines. In doing so, we have seen a predictable increase in COVID cases while also being surrounded by smoke and attacked by moths that seemed to cover just about every surface imaginable. While trying to digest all that we are up against, we found some comfort in reviewing one of our favorite stories about resilience and the need to step up in hard times.
We have spoken to many of you about your COVID experience and we are surprised at just how many people had a fantastic summer. Different… but still great. Your ability to shake it off and step up into new experiences, new timelines and very new social interactions has been motivating for everyone on our team.
Markets and the Economy
As it relates to markets and the economy, they too have shaken off the initial COVID shock of March and we are seeing the recovery continue to push forward. With so much contradictory information bombarding us every day, we are looking at “The Great Pause” as having three different phases.
Phase 1: Rapid Rebound
This phase began near the end of March as fear and economic contraction were abundant. As it became clear that the COVID situation was horrible but manageable to some degree, a rebound in markets occurred based on our eventual return to growth and profitability. Projections went from bad to less bad which the markets typically react well to.
Phase 2: The Sorting Phase
We believe we are now in the sorting phase where good news and bad news will wage a somewhat equal battle against each other, but growth will continue to make progress. This is a very difficult period where short-term news may cause large swings in sentiment and growth projections. Managing risk and focusing on the long term will be paramount.
Phase 3: The New Normal
This phase may start in late 2021 or early 2022. This means we have a ways to go, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. This is where we see how meaningful the changes in our habits really are. It would be foolish to predict what this looks like at this time, but it appears like there are a few trends that will persist. A few of these are Big Tech, Big Health, Big State and Big Green (finally!).
Our New Client Account Access Website
A few months ago, we introduced a new client account access portal. This new portal is extremely user friendly and allows for your statements and confirmations to be delivered to you electronically instead of the paper showing up in your mailbox. Going forward, the site will be enhanced to include many different features including electronic tax slips and householding to help you keep track of your accounts.
PLEASE SIGN UP NOW and if you have any trouble, just give us a call.
Note that you will need to provide one of your Manulife Securities account numbers as well as your SIN number to complete the process.
