Yahoo Finance Top 10 searched topics on Yahoo Finance Canada in 2022
From cars to coins and beyond, we take a look at what investors were searching for the most on the website this year
Every year, the Yahoo Finance Canada team takes a look at what users were searching for the most on the site. There was no shortage of volatility and changing dynamics in financial markets, but cars and crypto were some of the biggest areas of interest among our audience. Here's a breakdown of what transpired in these sectors and beyond.
Energy
In a nail-biting year for all things energy, "oil prices" and "gas prices" ranked first and second, respectively, on Yahoo Finance Canada's top 10 most searched list.
In late-February, Russia's invasion of Ukraine roiled the global energy complex, sending benchmark crude prices to triple-digit highs last seen before the major oil price collapse that gained momentum in 2014. A growing consensus on a recession next year has weighed on prices since June.
But investors didn't ignore this year's crude rally, sending several oil and gas stocks to the top of the list of best performers on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Rather than risk investment on new production, many of those companies rewarded shareholders with juicier dividends and stock buybacks this year. Those upsized perks didn't sit well with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden as fuel prices climbed to record highs over the summer.
In October, Biden slammed American oil majors for booking "outrageous" profits. Trudeau's government is set to roll out a new two per cent tax on stock buybacks in January, double the one per cent excise included in Biden's climate-focused Inflation Reduction Act.
Analysts say strong returns from Canadian oil and gas stocks in 2023 will see the resource-heavy S&P/TSX Composite index (^GSPTSE) outperform U.S. markets next year.
While oil and gas investors rejoiced, 2022 was a year of pain at the pumps for drivers. Gasoline and diesel prices spiked to record highs due to a mix of resurgent demand, tight refinery capacity, and rising crude costs thanks to the war in Ukraine. According to Statistics Canada data, Vancouver saw an eye-watering average price of 225.4 cents per litre for regular gasoline in June.
Cryptocurrency
The second half of the year hasn't been kind to the crypto world. Bitcoin, the most well-known digital coin, is capping off 2022 trading at a two-year low.
Bitcoin and bitcoin price nabbed the fourth and eighth spots on the top 10 most searched list.
While some investors might be used to the boom-bust cycles of cryptocurrencies, confidence in the sector was particularly shaken by the abrupt collapse of crypto exchange platform FTX. Investors were hoping Binance, a rival exchange, would come to the rescue but those hopes were short-lived after Binance's CEO announced it walked away from its preliminary intention to acquire FTX.
Binance was the seventh most searched topic on the Yahoo Finance Canada website.
Coinbase (COIN), a major publicly-traded exchange platform, was fifth on the list. The company's stock is ending the year at an all-time low, unable to escape the curse of plunging cryptocurrency prices and industry scandals that have undermined investor confidence.
Transportation
In case you hadn't heard, Elon Musk bought Twitter and took it private in a deal worth $44 billion. But that's not the Musk-led company readers were looking into this year. Tesla stock (TSLA), which hit a 52-week low just before the holidays, was one of the top searched in 2022. Shares of the electric vehicle company have fallen about 66 per cent this year as of late-December, erasing around $626 billion of shareholder value, according to Bloomberg.
The slide doesn't just coincide with Musk's takeover of Twitter. Competition in the electric vehicle market has been heating up, with traditional automakers investing billions in new production around the world.
But Tesla wasn't the only transportation company Yahoo Finance Canada readers were keen to read up on. Air Canada (AC.TO) rounded out the list in the 10th spot. The Montreal-based airline had a tumultuous 2022, as it grappled with a surge in travel demand and what it called "operational instability" through its post-pandemic recovery.
The increase in demand, combined with labour shortages and processing issues, resulted in a wave of cancellations and delays and brought chaos to Canada's busiest airports. Air Canada's stock has had an equally bumpy ride through 2022, with shares down around 12 per cent this year as of late-December.
Rounding out the top 10
In a year shaped by inflation and geopolitical instability, "gold price" ranked number six on Yahoo Finance Canada's top 10 most searched list.
A go-to store of value when inflation runs hot, and a traditional safe haven when world events get spicy, the price of gold climbed to a 19-month high above US$2,000 per ounce in March as Russian President Vladimir Putin ramped up attacks on Ukraine. Since then, the yellow metal's performance has lagged, primarily due to the Federal Reserve raising interest rates by 425 basis points from March to December, strengthening U.S. Treasury yields.
Speaking of yellow and metal, "Canadian dollar" was number nine on this year's most searched list. The loonie had a tough year on the heels of strong performance against the U.S. dollar in 2021. After starting the year at about 79 cents U.S., Canada's currency has dropped to a two-year low, near 73 cents U.S. That's mainly due to the mighty greenback benefiting from its reputation as a global safe-haven currency, which has pushed it higher this year against many international peers.
The top 10 most searched-for topics on Yahoo Finance Canada in 2022
Oil prices
Gas prices
Tesla stock
Bitcoin
Coinbase
Gold price
Binance
Bitcoin price
Canadian dollar
Air Canada stock
Michelle Zadikian, Alicja Siekierska and Jeff Lagerquist are senior reporters at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow them on Twitter @m_zadikian, @alicjawithaj and @jefflagerquist.
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