One of the most important principles of sound investment management is staying on top of what’s happening in the world and how those events affect finances. Conditions change quickly, and keeping up-to-date on developments and trends can be challenging. The team of experts producing IWB have been advising Canadian investors for over 25 years.
Edited and Published by Gordon Pape. Associate Editor: Richard Croft
With Gavin Graham, Ryan Irvine, Glenn Rogers, Shawn Allen, Adam Mayers, Paul Bamford & Michael Corcoran.
Recent Issues
iwb22531 (September 8, 2025)
Trump’s scorecard… The Week… The case for independence… Richard Croft updates iShares Russell 2000 ETF, iShares S&P/TSX Capped Financial Index ETF, Purpose Bitcoin ETF, The Goldman Sachs Group… Gordon Pape updates Maple Leaf Foods, Thomson Reuters, Stryker Corp., Norfolk Southern, Alphabet… Strange indicators
iwb22530 (August 25, 2025)
Vietnam offers opportunity, The Week, RRSP Portfolio posts gain, Gordon Pape updates Apple, Amazon, Adam Mayers updates Disney, McDonalds, Loblaw, Glenn Rogers updates Roku, RTX, Webinar reminder
iwb22529 (August 18, 2025)
Voting with your wallet… Top performing ETFs… The Week… Smart glasses finally have their day Glenn Rogers updates Palantir Technologies, Bank of America, Carrier Global Corp…. Masters of Finance: John Law… New Ryan Irvine webinars
iwb22528 (August 11, 2025)
Pipeline companies look south… The Week… Gold pauses (briefly) after record run… Gavin Graham’s gold updates… Gordon Pape updates Thermo Fisher Scientific, Alphabet
Recent Updates
Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.B)
Berkshire is a giant conglomerate holding company, with hundreds of operating subsidiaries and huge stock investments.
Dollarama (TSX: DOL)
Dollarama has 1,719 stores in Canada. Its highly profitable business model includes directly sourcing its products at low cost, generally from Asia, and from China in particular. All stores are company-owned and operated in leased premises. It also owns 60% of the fast-growing 752-store Dollarcity chain, with established locations in Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Peru. Dollarcity recently opened its first eleven stores in Mexico.
lululemon Athletic (NDQ: LULU)
The fact that its products are proprietary, along with its strong brand reputation, allows lululemon to sell at very lucrative margins. Its gross margin of 54% equates to a markup over costs of 117%!
It now has 811 company-operated stores in 23 countries. The locations of the stores are 47% in the US, 21% China, 9% Canada, 14% in Asia Pacific, 6% in Europe and the Middle East, and 3% in Mexico. Close to half of its revenue is now derived from online direct-to-consumer sales.
Canadian National Railway (TSX: CNR, NYSE: CNI)
CNR operates across Canada and south through Chicago and Memphis to the Gulf of Mexico. Most of its revenue (69%) is from Canada and the rest is from the US. About 35% of its revenues relate to overseas traffic, while 65% represents freight moving within North America.
iShares Russell 2000 ETF
IWM is an ETF designed to track the investment results of the Russell 2000 Index. The underlying index is the most widely followed benchmark for small‑cap equities.