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CURRENCIES
Day over day statistic
Tuesday $0.9428 $0.01210 US DOLLAR YEN Monday $0.9458 $0.01208

Biggest % gains in stocks over $5

1
CARDIOME PHARMA $5.29 +28.40 +16.62

STUDS

Fees bother Canadians

SHARON SINGLETON QMI Agency Canadians are increasingly disgruntled with bank fees and the trouble they have getting their banking problems resolved, according to J.D. Powers annual report on customer satisfaction. On the whole, the 2011 survey found that customer service among the nations lenders has improved. Overall satisfaction came in at 756 on a 1,000-point scale this year, up 26 points from 2010. It was the third consecutive year of improvement. However, fees and problem resolution continue to let the lenders down, the study found. All of the banks, with the exception of Laurentian Bank, saw customer satisfaction over fees deteriorate. That should suggest a strong message to do something about fees, said Lubo Li, senior director of the financial services practice at J.D. Power and Associates in Toronto. Its not that you cant charge fees, its just that they need to be communicated clearly so customers know what they are getting for their money. Just calling something a maintenance fee doesnt cut it, Li said, adding customer satisfaction on bank charges improved when more explanations were given. Its not necessarily that banking fees are rising, though there has been some increase, but that people dont understand what they are being charged for at a time when cash-strapped consumers are making every penny count. Courtney Barber, a St. Johns

BANKING: Customer service improves over last year, but problems remain

businessbriefs
LOONIE CONTINUES RISE
The Canadian dollar rose to its best level in more than threeand-a-half years against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, as debt fears in the U.S. continued to slam the greenback. The currency climbed as high as $0.9412 to the U.S. dollar, or $1.0625, its strongest level since November 2007. The U.S. dollar fell across the board as a speech by U.S. President Barack Obama gave no sign of a swift breakthrough in deadlocked talks to raise the U.S. debt ceiling. Commodity prices such as oil also rallied on a weaker U.S. dollar, though investors shrugged off fears that a U.S. default would undermine the appetite for riskier assets, while a run of strong earning reports further boosted market sentiment. Shares of Canadian National Railway Co. slid more than 3% Tuesday on concerns of a potential slowdown in global economic growth along with profit-taking after a rally by its stock this year. The slide came a day after CN Rail reported better than expected second-quarter results, despite difficulties including floods in Western Canada, forest fires and mudslides. Although CN did not change its earnings guidance for 2011, it did recognize that there are some macroindicators that suggest that there could be some headwinds leading into the fourth quarter, Raymond James analyst Steve Hansen said. The pace of global growth is probably one thing that is weighing on investors minds, Hansen said. By late morning, CNs stock was down $2.49, or 3.3%, at $72.75 on the TSX. The stock has risen about 13% this year. Reuters

Consumer satisfaction index ranking (based on a 1,000 point scale)

Big Five bank segment TD Canada Trust RBC Royal Bank BMO Bank of Montreal Scotiabank CIBC Presidents Choice Financial Laurentian Bank of Canada Manulife Bank National Bank of Canada Alterna Bank ATB (Alberta Treasrury Branch) HSBC Bank Canada
Source: J.D. Power and Associates

Banking more customer friendly

Midsize segment

2 GLG LIFE TECH $7.79

3 SINO-FOREST CORP. $7.12 +11.95

Biggest % losses in stocks over $5

FINANCIAL 1 WALL$15.01 10.49

DUDS

750.3
Midsize segment average

Big Five segment average

2 GWR GLOBAL WATER $5.40 6.09 3 WESCAST INDUSTRIES $9.95 5.69

Todays big nancial numbers

GO FIGURE

The decline in points that the Conference Board of Canadas monthly measure of consumer condence in July. It was the third straight drop as consumers fretted about job prospects.

1.8

765.3
nine months before discovering the differences. When I no longer qualified for the student account, I assumed the bank would roll my account over into something with similar services, she said. At the very least, I thought I would be contacted with some information on the types of accounts that were available to me. Instead, I was getting ripped off with a per-use fee for my debit transactions an account that was not at all suitable for the type of customer I am. Overall, complaints about

780.5 751.3 741.3 729.2 721.2 786.5 770.3 757.3 747.2 735.2 734.2 710.2
QMI AGENCY

CN SHARES SLIDE

The sale price for a bottle of 1811 Chateau dYquem, the most valuable bottle of white wine ever sold, setting a Guinness World Record. The buyer was a former head sommelier at a top Parisian restaurant.

$121,000

based contract administrator, was one such disgruntled bank customer. When she graduated from university to her first job, her student bank account was switched to a lower-fee account, but with only a handful of free debit transactions, meaning she would pay through the nose once that limit was exceeded. As a student, she had been used to unlimited debit and favoured her card over cash. Not realizing the change, she ended up paying about $90 a month in transaction fees for

banking have declined this year, with the number of customers reporting problems dropping five percentage points to 16%. But for those who did encounter problems, the other main gripe was the inability to get their problems solved with one call. TD topped the survey, with a satisfaction ranking of 780. RBC came in second with 751. CIBC came out bottom among the biggest banks with a customer satisfaction score of 721. sharon.singleton@canoe.ca

TECH SECTOR: Companys stock tumbles 60% since February high

Canadians stand firm with RIM

ALASTAIR SHARP Reuters TORONTO Wall Street and Silicon Valley have issued verdicts on Research In Motion, and they are mostly damning for the BlackBerry maker. Canadians, on the other hand, are eager to give their compatriot the benefit of the doubt. In both the smartphone and tablet computer markets, the momentum belongs to Apple, which edges ever closer to the title of worlds most valuable stock, and Google, its Android software embraced by an army of device makers. By contrast, RIMs shares have fallen 60% from a February peak, hammered by a litany of bad news. The company has missed its own limp quarterly forecasts, suffered crucial delays in bringing advanced smartphones to market and elicited yawns when it launched its long-awaited PlayBook tablet. In the latest sign of decline, RIM said on Monday it will cut 11% of its workforce, even as it rushes to pull off a tricky transition to a new Blackberry operating system. Against that backdrop, there is a discernible gap between Canadian and non-Canadian analysts covering the struggling Ontario-based technology

Men face fines, prison over alleged scam

BRIAN DALY QMI Agency MONTREAL Six men could face fines and two of them could face prison after an allegedly bogus foundation swallowed up $2 million from investors. Quebecs financial watchdog, the AMF, said Tuesday that it has filed 258 charges against the men after 34 investors lost money between 2007 and 2009. The AMF and the Ontario Securities Commission froze the assets of Fer de Lance Foundation following a tip from someone claiming to be a victim. The watchdog alleges money was funnelled to bank accounts in Switzerland and the Turks and Caicos Islands. These are major investments, were talking about investments of $100,000, $300,000 (per person), AMF spokesman Sylvain Theberge told QMI Agency on Tuesday. He said recruiters working for the foundation solicited investors from across Ontario and Quebec. The victims were invited to a lawyers office and allegedly told their money would be securely invested in a trust account. It gave security to the investors because the people thought that in a trust (account), everything was protected, said Theberge. They told them Your capital is 100% guaranteed and we promise you returns that could range from 20% to 300% in very short order. The AMF said the Fer de Lance Foundations true mission is still unclear. Investors were told the entity was created to dedicate all efforts and available means to enhance the well-being of the human race. The AMF is seeking a total of $4.7 million in fines against Paul M. Gelinas, executor of the foundation, and Jean-Pierre Desmarais, a lawyer and legal adviser. Both men could also face prison terms of five years less a day if convicted. Also charged are foundation CEO and chairman George E. Fleury, secretary-treasurer and managing director Michel Hamel, and alleged recruiters Rejean Duguay and Denis Nadeau. Investors have yet to receive compensation, as forensic auditors try to trace the money. First we have to demonstrate that the money thats in the accounts is really the money that belongs to these investors, said Theberge. He adds that some of the victims might live in Ontario. The AMF asked Ontario securities officials to freeze foundation accounts in that province.

CRIME: Quebec watchdog says money funnelled to Caribbean accounts

MORRIS LAMONT QMI Agency Canadian analysts are sticking by Jim Balsillies Research In Motion despite severe losses by the company.
leader. Put simply, Canadians have a lot more time for their national champion. One in five analysts covering RIM currently suggest buying the stock. But the ratio is one in three for Canadian analysts. The pessimism of the big U.S. bulge-bracket firms is really what presumably has driven the stock to the levels that its at, said Paul Taylor, chief investment officer for BMO Harris Private Banking. The Bank of Montreal unit manages $14.5 billion for wealthy Canadians and holds less than $100 million of RIM stock. It irks them to think a Canadian company could possibly have the backbone to compete with the likes of Apple, said Taylor. RIM has long been a source of Canadian pride, a start-up that beat giants like Ericsson and Motorola to make the BlackBerrys secure mobile e-mail an essential tool. Now a global firm with billions in quarterly sales, RIM faces a new generation of users besotted with its touchscreen rivals. Still, Canadian enthusiasm runs deep. A prime example is Scotia Capitals Gus Papageorgiou, who kept an outperform rating on RIM since before the iPhone launched in 2007. Papageorgious price targets since early 2009, on average, were 80% higher than the stocks close that day. To be sure, not everyone agrees its the Canadians who have misjudged RIM. The Canadian investors have far more of a global picture in terms of what is driving RIMs business, said Geoff Blaber, a London-based analyst at CCS Insight. A lot of the U.S. investment analysts can be somewhat focused on what is happening on their doorstep.

Sylvain Theberge, spokesman for Quebecs AMF, says people made investments of up to $300,000 with the Fer de Lance Foundation, which is now under investigation.

Le Journal de Quebec les

Canadians not planning for senility, report finds

The majority of Canadians have no plan in place for someone to take care of their finances if they lose their mental faculties, according to a report. Its a subject many people dont want to even think about, with the majority of Canadians aged 45 and older believing their investment skills will increase as they age, the study by the BMO Retirement Institute found. The BMO Retirement Institute recommends a continuing power of attorney. Its a legal document that gives another person authority to deal with your personal affairs if you lose decision-making capabilities. QMI Agency

SAVINGS: BMO says people dont want to think about disability later in life

Consumers still willing to indulge sweet tooth

NEW YORK Hershey Co. reported higher-than-expected quarterly results and raised its full-year outlook, showing that consumers are willing to pay more to satisfy their sweet tooth even in a weak economy. The worlds largest chocolate maker raised prices to offset soaring costs for commodities such as cocoa and dairy. But those price increases have not dented demand as much as they have in other product categories. Hershey expects 2011 earnings to rise by about 10% and sales to increase by about %6. The company sees full-year earnings of $2.79 to $2.82 per share. Reuters

RESULTS: Hershey raises full-year outlook

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