The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that with markets doing flip-flops every time Donald Trump opens his mouth, investors are asking what is safe these days. Globe columnist Gordon Pape writes that a former portfolio manager of a top-rated dividend fund suggests the best combination of cash flow and safety for income investors right now is to buy shares in the Big Six Canadian banks. Dale Harrison of Vancouver, says: "The Big Six banks currently generate an average 14-per-cent return on equity [ROE], with a dividend payout ratio of 51 per cent. This means the internal growth rate for the banks is 6.86 per cent, well in excess of the inflation/regulatory allowed earnings growth of pipelines and utilities. Most pipelines and utilities have lower ROEs and much higher payout ratios, resulting in low internal growth rates." Mr. Harrison also notes that five of the six largest banks have not reduced dividends since the Great Depression of the 1930s, even during times of severe earnings weakness such as the early 1990s recession and the 2008-09 financial crisis. National Bank is the sole exception. Mr. Pape recommends BMO S&P/TSX Equal Weight Bank Index ETF and the BMO Covered Call Canadian Banks ETF.