Embark’s Head of Investments shares regular market recaps to help families understand what moved the markets—and what it could mean for education savings.
About Yelena Stepanyan, CFA, MBA
Yelena Stepanyan, CFA, MBA, is Head of Investments at Embark, overseeing approximately CAD $6.4 billion. With 25+ years in finance, she leads investment strategy, asset allocation, external manager oversight, new product development, and customer education. Yelena holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School and is a CFA Charterholder. She previously served as Chair of the Institutional Asset Management Committee at CFA Society Toronto and is a member of the Secondary School Relations Committee.
Outside of work, Yelena is a proud mother of three who strongly believes in education savings. She speaks four languages and is active in the community, giving back as a leader.
The Bank of Canada and the U.S. Federal Reserve cut rates by 25 bps, pushing U.S. stocks to records and the TSX to new highs. Bonds held steady and the Canadian dollar firmed slightly, ending around 1.37 versus the U.S. dollar.
Stocks mostly rose on expectations of rate cuts, led in Canada by resources and tech, though a hotter U.S. inflation reading cooled sentiment. Bonds advanced on lower rate expectations, and the Canadian dollar stayed range bound near 1.38.
Markets rebounded midweek on Fed-cut hopes; the TSX rose on resource strength and gold hit a record above $3,600/oz. Bonds advanced, while the Canadian dollar edged slightly lower.
August saw the TSX set a new record led by banks and gold miners, while U.S. stocks hit fresh highs. Bonds were steady, money-market yields stayed attractive, and the Canadian dollar was little changed.
July saw central banks hold rates as inflation reached 1.9% year-over-year. Equities rose (TSX +1.7%, U.S. in CAD +3.6%), bonds fell (-0.7%), money market gained (+0.2%), and the Canadian dollar weakened vs. USD.
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