Check out the second quarter podcasts!
Investment Team members Jason Liu and Tracey Chen discuss their Q2 2026 commentaries with relationship manager Sydney Campbell.
A few charts worth discussing
“The U.S. fiscal situation is top-of-mind for me this week, especially after the FOMC rate decision on Wednesday. There seems to be no real path toward a balanced budget other than cuts to military spending (which seem unlikely) or cuts to entitlements such as Medicare and Social Security.”
Other charts worth pointing out
Investment-grade corporate bond markets by currency
AI-related investment-grade debt issuance
AI-related high-yield and leveraged loan issuance
YTD software index performance
10-year government bond yields – U.S., Germany and Japan
Maturing U.S. Treasury debt within one year
Strait of Hormuz tanker vessel transit activity
China crude oil imports
U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve levels
Historical U.S. household savings rate
European cyclicals vs. defensives – relative price
Minister apologizes as Korean leveraged ETF investors nurse heavy losses amid chip stock rout
The May 27 introduction of single-stock leveraged Exchange Traded Funds has seen Korean retail investors pile in with net purchases of 14 trillion won ($9.7 billion), compared with roughly 2 trillion won by foreign investors, according to KB Financial Group.
But the speculative trading boom that helped fuel one of the world’s hottest equity markets has resulted in those investors nursing heavy losses as Korea’s Kospi index has experienced a sharp correction, led by a downturn in chip stocks.
The pain has been especially acute for holders of single-stock leveraged ETFs tied to chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, which had surged alongside the AI-driven semiconductor rally.
The KODEX SK Hynix Single Stock Leverage ETF — a product designed to deliver twice the daily move in SK Hynix shares — has fallen more than 80% since its June 23 peak, according to LSEG data.
It comes after a blistering rally in the Kospi has come to an abrupt halt, with jitters over chip stocks seeing the value of the index plunging almost 35% over the last month.
South Korea’s finance minister Koo Yun-cheol accepted lawmakers’ demand for an apology in a parliamentary session on Wednesday after single-stock leveraged ETFs were introduced without careful consideration, according to Reuters.
The country’s Financial Services Commission Lee Eog-weon also said on Wednesday that the regulator is considering cutting off access to the products to all but professional investors.
This week’s fun finds
To celebrate the Toronto Caribbean Carnival (a.k.a. Caribana), relationship manager Aisha organized a laid-back Moai full of good food, music and vibes. Carnival is all about energy, culture and bringing people together. Her Moai kept that same spirit with a spread of flavourful Caribbean dishes. It was a perfect way to kick off the long weekend. Thanks, Aisha!
‘Spider-Man’ superhero jumps to the aid of a man using wheelchair to cross several lanes of traffic
A man using a wheelchair was struggling to get across six lanes of traffic in an Arkansas city when help came in an unexpected way — from a spidery superhero who jumped into action from a red Jeep waiting at a light.
Christopher Hellenthal was still garbed in his Spider-Man costume from a superhero-themed event at a trampoline park where he works when he spotted the person in traffic Tuesday and ran out to help, declaring: “I got you.”
Hellenthal swiftly rolled the person in the wheelchair to safety only seconds before the light changed and the rows of traffic advanced. The moment was captured by a street security camera in the city of Jonesboro and shared on social media by local police, who thanked Hellenthal for helping the man reach safety across the crosswalk.
