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THE CYCLE?
There has been no shortage of headlines of late regarding commercial real estate, with the big glass office tower variety we are all accustomed to seeing in our downtown cores being a particular focus. There have always been natural ebbs and flows in office vacancy, but historically they have been closely tied to the business cycle. This time certainly does feel different. Toronto vacancy rates are north of 15% and, more importantly, occupancy is less than 50% of pre-pandemic levels most days.
Commercial leases are typically in the 5-10 year range which means the trend of increasing vacancy could extend for many years to come. Empty or unsustainable offices will create both challenges and opportunities from an investment perspective. We believe in being prepared, but patient, on this one.
An Interview with Jane Fraser, Chief Executive Officer of Citi | The Economic Club
Jane Fraser has had a prolific career which led to her role as CEO of Citi. This is a wide-ranging conversation on the current state of banking and the economy. It is particularly interesting in hindsight, as it took place in the thick of the Silicon Valley Bank failure.
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An excellent presentation from Benedict Evans on the rise of the big software companies as gatekeepers to consumers. i.e. if you want to reach customers in most businesses these days, Google or Amazon are probably going to be part of the story.
Advertising is the price you pay for having an unremarkable product or service
- Jeff Bezos
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In a time where US banks are working hard to hold onto deposits, this was probably not the best news. Apple joined the fray with a high interest account that is not only reasonably high-yielding, but also has the potential to attract an already loyal customer base.
We include this article not entirely because of the content, but because of the dynamics it exposes. Tech companies are clearly making a gradual foray into reshaping the financial ecosystem. How long until we are receiving notifications on our iPhones to renew a mortgage…?
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A practical overview of the implications of the coming (current?) AI boom, from an individual who likely understands the business of implementing new technology as well as anyone in the world. Bill covers off the implications of AI across productivity, health, and education, amongst others.
In addition, advances in AI will enable the creation of a personal agent. Think of it as a digital personal assistant: It will see your latest emails, know about the meetings you attend, read what you read, and read the things you don’t want to bother with. This will both improve your work on the tasks you want to do and free you from the ones you don’t want to do.
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