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The Blue Jays captured the hearts of Canadians this past season with an improbable run to the World Series. And while it ended with the heartbreak of a Game 7 extra-innings loss, the Jays wasted no time in their efforts to run it back, storming into the offseason with bold roster moves. Canadians are now gearing up for the upcoming Winter Olympics in February, where the return of NHL players to Olympic ice promises a thrilling showdown and a chance to reclaim hockey supremacy. All this evokes a sense of Canadian pride in the face of ever divisive issues. We are certainly operating in an environment of heightened uncertainty, though you wouldn’t know it from looking at financial market results.

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Last year was a volatile one for the financial markets as unpredictable Donald Trump entered the White House in January. Expecting the returning President Trump to bring hot markets with his election, as in his first term, investors soon learned to their chagrin that he was serious about his “Beautiful Tariffs”. Markets then tanked, recovered and then soared when he dropped the worst of his tariffs. That, and a renewed Artificial Intelligence (AI) mania, ignited a buying frenzy. Seemingly everything that could be traded went up, with even crypto, gold and silver joining the financial market glee.

Sources:

1. Source: The Washington Post. (2026, January 11). Running deficits larger than during the Great Depression is reckless.
2. Source: Ward, Jasper. (2025, December 17). Trump says next Fed chair will believe in lower interest rates ‘by a lot’.
3. Source: Swanson, Ana. (2026, January 3). Why Haven’t Trump’s Tariffs Had a Bigger Impact?
4. Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. (2023, November 8). Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2019 to 2022.
5. Source: Choi, Matthew and Merica, Dan. (2026, January 12). After Venezuela, Trump eyes Iran.
6. Source: Atkins, Eric et al. (2025, November 30). Manufacturing meltdown.
7. Source: Craig Brown, Robert. (2015, March 4). National Policy.
8. Source: Smith, Fergal. (2026, January 2). Canadian factory downturn lengthens as new orders hit a three-month low.
9. Source: Senate Democrats. (2026, January 3). President Trump Discusses the Capture of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela.

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We last left you in early July with the observation that the financial markets now seemed to thrive on and reward uncertainty. The equity and credit markets had plunged in March on the initial economic fears over the Trump tariffs and then rebounded joyfully in April when Trump variously delayed and fiddled with his tariff strategy that had threatened to burn the U.S and global economy.

Sources:

1. Source: Kirby, Jason. (2025, October 4). U.S. tariff revenue piles up as Canada abandons tit-for-tat trade war approach.
2. Source: Chase, Steven. (2025, October 2). LeBlanc hopes to make progress on steel, aluminum tariff relief before USMCA review
3. Source: Chase, Steven et al. (2025, October 7). Ahead of talks with Carney, Trump says his tariffs are working.