December 2023 Pricing Commentary (Audio version now available – use the controls above.) The remarkable stock market rally that began in late autumn extended into December, ending 2023 with strong performances across all major equity indices. Our ABC Funds capitalized on this positive momentum, adding to their meaningful year-to-date outperformance with additional December gains. Notably, all three ABC Funds ended the year reaching new all-time highs since inception. These strong results were driven by a number of key portfolio contributors including NVIDIA, Broadcom, ASML, Autodesk, Meta, Alphabet, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and Brookfield Corp. Looking ahead to 2024, our optimism is underpinned by several key factors shaping the market landscape. First and foremost is our expectation of falling interest rates and more dovish central bank monetary policies. Any reduction in interest rates should be enthusiastically received by investors and provide a major catalyst for higher stock prices. Secondly, negative investor psychology continues to overhang the marketplace, which presents excellent risk/reward common stock opportunities. Additionally, there remains significant investor cash reserves on the sidelines which could be committed to equities with any potential positive catalysts. Finally, we are optimistic with regard to expanding North American economic activity, resulting in increasing corporate earnings, growing M&A, and company share buyback activity. Furthermore, central to our investment thesis is a great new wave of innovation which we believe is at the heart of the current investment cycle and will fuel corporate earnings for years to come. Our ABC Funds are strategically positioned with portfolio holdings at the forefront of significant technological advances including artificial intelligence, robotics, spatial computing, and new drug discoveries. In summary, our investment team remains optimistic on the economic and investment prospects for 2024. As a result, our portfolios are committed to our large capitalization and diversified North American common stock selections. Irwin A. Michael, President I.A. Michael Investment Counsel Ltd.
