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In an earlier post I observed that, based on some 200 years of history, major bull markets typically last for about 15 years. Since the most recent bull market began roughly six years ago, it probably makes sense to believe that we investors have time on our side.

But that’s not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about Janet Yellen and XRB.TO. Yellen is going to give a major presentation at Jackson Hole, WY., tomorrow. Some people, at least, are betting that she will offer some hints about there being a real possibility of increasing interest rates later this year. Part of the argument would certainly be that American industry is doing well.

How well? Take a look at the chart at the end of this article. It shows the performance of the S&P 500, demonstrating my point. It’s up about 25% from this year’s low, compared to an increase of only 11% for XRB.TO.

Now, gentle reader, please look at the chart for XRB.TO, with which I began this column. As the folks who developed this vehicle explain things, it is a low-to-medium risk investment which can generate income in a low-interest world. Like many of the investments I follow, it trades on the TSE.

If Ms. Yellen sends out higher-rates messages, that will cause me some concern, but not a lot. After all, one of the reasons XRB is doing so well is that the Canadian dollar is relatively weak, compared to the greenback. I think that offers protection, at least.

Of course, that might just be my natural optimism speaking. If you read my columns often, you will know full well that I never make buy or sell recommendations.

If, like me, you want to be in touch with the markets all day long, I should mention a couple of apps I use on my iPhone. One is StockWatch, by Toughturtle. That neat gizmo tracks my stocks and the markets in general. It can even create technical charts for you. It takes a while to get comfortable with it, but it is a superb tool to have in your pocket. The other is Kcast Gold Live, by Kitco Metals Inc. That app provides current, global prices for metals, oil and indices.

If I could only chose one of the two, it would definitely be Stockwatch.

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