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Strategies & Market Trends : Three Amigos Stock Thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ditchdigger who wrote (13804)	2/8/1999 10:40:00 AM
From: MoneyMade	Respond to of 29382

MTMC---GREAT ENTRY NOW at 9 3/16!!!!!!!!!

To: Ditchdigger who wrote (13804)	2/8/1999 6:07:00 PM
From: Sergio H	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 29382

DD, Not a bad day for bid.com. Here's an opinion on the Canadian economy. Not very bullish...just yet anyway...on Natural Resources: STRONG ECONOMIC OUTLOOK PREDICTED FOR CANADA By John Dawe A number of recent economic developments have prompted analysts to predict strong economic growth for Canada in 1999. This is particularly good news for investors because Canadian markets lagged behind their U.S. counterparts last year. A solid economic performance in the upcoming year could be the medicine these markets need to rebound. Among the forecasters, the Conference Board of Canada is a leader with its prediction that the Canadian economy will grow by 2.8% in '99. This nearly matches the 2.9% growth rate anticipated for '98. A key component of the formula underlying this estimate is the fact that there was a major drawdown of inventories by Canadian businesses in the fall of last year. This has created renewed demand and has set the stage for a major recovery in production. The Conference Board also notes that economic expansion in Canada can be achieved in the coming year irrespective of the performance the U.S. economy, which it expects will cool from a growth rate of 3.9% in '98 to 1.9% in '99. The Conference Board is also bullish on the impact that the growing federal budget surplus will have. It believes there will be approximately $2.5 billion more in fiscal stimulus included in the next federal budget than it anticipated in its last ‘Canadian Outlook' report. Paul Darby, the Conference Board's Director of Economic Services, also stated that “Excellent employment growth, real wage gains and further tax relief should keep retail sales growing by about 4 per cent in 1999, down from the 4.7 per cent recorded in 1998.” In related news, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released a report on Friday that included praise for Canada's efforts in keeping inflation under control. The IMF noted that this a created a firm foundation for economic growth in Canada over the next few years and could allow Canada to cut interest rates if its economy were to stall. However, the IMF is less bullish than the Conference Board on its outlook for 1999 and predicts Canadian economic growth of 2.2%. Evidence of the strong Canadian economy was also seen in the release Friday of Canada's recent unemployment statistics. A report from Stats Canada showed that the unemployment rate in December fell by 0.2% to 7.8%. This represented an unexpectedly strong increase in full-time job growth and was reflective of 44,000 new jobs in the goods-producing sector and 43,000 new jobs in the service sector. This is the first time since 1990 that the unemployment rate has fallen below 8.0% and is a sound indication that Canada's economy is revitalizing. Looking forward, these developments generally bode well for small cap investors who are prepared to do some research and invest with a value-oriented, long term approach. On a shorter-term basis, however, buried in the details of these reports are indications that the forestry, fishing, mining and oil and gas sectors are still hurting. Some of these sectors may still need to complete structural changes before they see a turnaround. Others are at the mercy of sloppy commodity prices, but may be poised for improvement if Asian and Latin American economies stabilize. In sum, these stats send a positive message on the outlook for Canadian markets, but the fundamentals indicate investors should be selective when picking stocks which will capitalize on this opportunity. To access reports relating to this story you may wish to try the following hyperlinks: www2.conferenceboard.ca nationalpost.com newsworld.cbc.ca imf.org You can read this great story and more at stockgroup.com