Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday.  Anzac Day, Australia, New Zealand.

April 25, 1915: Battle of Gallipoli.
April 25, 1953:The double helix structure of DNA is described by James Watson and Francis Crick, revolutionizing the understanding of genetics and heredity.
April 25, 1959: The St. Lawrence Seaway opened to shipping. Go to article

1901: First license plates issued.
Oliver Cromwell, English Statesman, Revolutionary, b. 1599.
Ella Fitzgerald, singer, b. 1917.

‘SNL’ wraps up milestone season
The final two celebrity hosts for the 50th season of “Saturday Night Live” have been announced. “White Lotus” star Walton Goggins will make his debut on the show’s May 10 broadcast, with Arcade Fire appearing as the musical guest. For the season finale on May 17, actress Scarlett Johansson will host for the seventh time, with Bad Bunny serving as the musical guest.

Back for more ‘revenge’
“Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith” is returning to theaters next week to celebrate the film’s 20th anniversary. Starring Hayden Christensen, Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor and Samuel L. Jackson, the final film in the “Star Wars” prequel trilogy will be shown in several formats, including, for the first time, 4DX.

Mathematicians just solved a 125-year-old problem, uniting 3 theories in physics

Ghost forests are growing as sea levels rise

‘Royal Egyptian inscription’ of Ramesses III’s name is first of its kind discovered in Jordan

Cloudy with a chance of mushballs: Jupiter’s monster storms include softball size hailstones made of ammonia

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Passy, France
Tandem paragliders fly over the Arve Valley, one of the most polluted in France. Pollution in the area is mainly caused by wood heating, particularly used in the many chalets in winter, as well as heavy road transport on the major traffic route between France and Italy, and industrial activity
Photograph: Jean-Philippe Ksiazek/AFP/Getty Images

Qingdao, China
Imported iron ore is sorted into piles at a port
Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Emperor penguin chicks take their first swim in Atka bay, Antarctica
Photograph: National Geographic/Bertie Gregory/Reuters
Market Closes for April 25^th, 2025

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Income tax returns are the most imaginative fiction being written today. –Herman Wouk, 1915-2019.
Canada
(MT Newswires)
The Toronto Stock Exchange closed modestly lower on Friday as investors took positions ahead of Monday’s federal election, even as Rosenberg Research flagged the index “should soon move into position for a summer rally”.
Today, the S&P/TSX Composite Index fell only the second time in the last 10 sessions, closing down 17.02 points at 24,710.51.
Sectors were mixed, with Base Metals down 1.4% and Industrials down 1%, while the Battery Metals Index was up 3.5%.
In its latest ‘Technical Analysis’ on global equity markets, Rosenberg Research said the TSX had “successfully tested important support during its tariff-related decline earlier this month and then rebounded”.
It noted the relevant support was the 22,554 to 21,467 range.
By Bloomberg Automation:
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite was little changed, with seven of 11 sectors higher and four lower.
As of market close, 171 of 218 stocks rose, while 43 fell.
Boralex Inc. led the advances, rising 3.2%, while Novagold Resources Inc. decreased 11%.
Markets at a Glance:
* S&P/TSX Index was little changed at 24,711
* Four of 11 sectors fell
** Industrials declined, down 1%
** Health care gained, up 1%
* Crude oil rose 0.7% to $63/bbl
* Natgas rose 1% to $2.96/mmbtu
* Gold fell 1.5% to $3,282/oz
* Silver fell 1.6% to $33/oz
Advancers:
* Boralex Inc. (BLX CN) +3.2%
* Spin Master Corp. (TOY CN) +3.1%
* TransAlta Corp. (TA CN) +2.4%
* Shopify Inc. (SHOP CN) +2.2%: Hartford Growth Adds CME Group, Exits Shopify
* Chartwell Retirement Residences (CSH-U CN) +2%
Decliners:
* Novagold Resources Inc. (NG CN) -11%: M&A in U.S. Totaled $18.6 Billion Last Week
* Energy Fuels Inc/Canada (EFR CN) -6%
* Tfi International Inc. (TFII CN) -5.5%: TFI International PT Cut to $115 from $128 at TD Cowen
* WSP Global Inc. (WSP CN) -4.3%: WSP Global Falls as Largest Holder Plans 2.1 Million Share Sale
* Cargojet Inc. (CJT CN) -3.6%
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A solid Wall Street week ended with gains for stocks as a rally in the market’s most-influential group offset conflicting signals about progress in President Donald Trump’s trade negotiations.
The surge in megacaps sent the S&P 500 above 5,500, with the gauge notching its longest advance since January.
Tesla Inc. jumped 9.8% while Alphabet Inc. climbed on solid results.
Equities briefly lost steam as Trump suggested another delay to reciprocal tariffs was unlikely, and he wouldn’t drop levies on China without “something substantial” in return.
Bonds and the dollar rose.
“Markets have staged an impressive recovery,” said Mark Hackett at Nationwide.
“While fears of a 2008- or 2020-style crisis are fading, the road back to record highs won’t be easy.
Markets are showing resilience, but still face the same persistent challenges, including tariff uncertainty and signs of an economic slowdown.”
Worries about the economic fallout from tariffs drove US consumer sentiment to one of its lowest readings on record while long-term inflation expectations climbed to the highest since 1991.
As investors weighed mixed signs on whether the trade war between the world’s two largest economies is de-escalating, Bloomberg News reported China is considering suspending its 125% tariff on some US imports.
Trump told Time magazine he expects to wrap up trade deals with US partners looking for lower tariffs in three to four weeks.
But the president gave confusing signals about the status of talks with China, even as Beijing has denied negotiations are taking place.
“We are currently in tariff purgatory,” said Joachim Klement, strategist at Panmure Liberum.
“There is no fundamental change to the outlook, so markets latch on to noise and get constantly whipsawed by the ever-changing utterances of Donald Trump and his cabinet.”
While recent data indicate US spending is holding up so far, the outlook for this year is less promising.
With companies poised to pass on tariff and commodity costs to shoppers, the hikes could further slow consumer demand and juice inflation.
As profit margins remain close to record levels, Corporate America has some room to absorb costs from higher tariffs.
However, the track record of S&P 500 companies over the past two decades suggests their ability to withstand additional levies is fragile, at least by one measure.
Nearly all the margin growth eked out from corporate sales on the gauge since 2004 has come from the booming technology sector, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.
Removing the group, profitability barely rose.
“The tariff-induced slowdown in economic activity, as well as the higher costs, will crimp corporate profit growth,” said David Lefkowitz at UBS Global Wealth Management.
“But the economy should rebound next year as businesses and consumers adjust to the tariffs, with an assist from Federal Reserve rate cuts and certainty on tax policy.”
Bank of America Corp. strategists led by Michael Hartnett said investors should sell into rallies in US stocks and the dollar.
The greenback is during a longer-term depreciation while the shift away from US assets has further to go, they noted.
The trend would continue until the Federal Reserve starts cutting rates, the US reaches a trade deal with China and consumer spending stays resilient.
Foreign investors have sold $63 billion of US equities since the start of March, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategists estimate, noting that the data from high-frequency fund flows suggest that European investors have been driving the selling, while other regions have continued to buy US stocks.
Forecasters anticipate the trade war will hit economic growth this year and next as tariffs push prices higher and put a dent in consumer spending.
The US economy is set to expand 1.4% in 2025 and 1.5% in 2026, according to the latest Bloomberg survey of economists, compared with 2% and 1.9% in last month’s poll.
The median respondent now sees a 45% chance of a downturn in the next 12 months, up from 30% in March.

Corporate Highlights:
* Intel Corp. Chief Executive Officer Lip-Bu Tan gave investors a stark diagnosis of the chipmaker’s problems this week, along with the sense that it will take a while to fix them.
* Apple Inc. is seeking to import most of the iPhones it sells in the US from India by the end of next year, accelerating a shift beyond China to mitigate risks related to tariffs and geopolitical tensions.
* T-Mobile US Inc. reported fewer new wireless phone subscribers than analysts expected in the first quarter.
* AbbVie Inc. raised its profit outlook for the year on better- than-expected sales from newer autoimmune treatments but warned its forecast doesn’t consider any potential changes in trade policy.
* Centene Corp. expects higher medical costs this year, adding to investor concerns after the largest health insurer sounded a similar alarm earlier this month.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.7% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.1%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.6%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 2.8%
* The Russell 2000 Index was little changed
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%
* The euro fell 0.2% to $1.1363
* The British pound fell 0.2% to $1.3320
* The Japanese yen fell 0.7% to 143.64 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 2.1% to $95,404.61
* Ether rose 2.3% to $1,803.71
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined six basis points to 4.26%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.47%
* Britain’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 4.48%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.6% to $63.19 a barrel
* Spot gold fell 1.3% to $3,305.25 an ounce

–With assistance from John Viljoen and Kit Rees.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
I don’t know why we are here, but I’m pretty sure that it is not in order to enjoy ourselves. –Ludwig Wittgenstein, 1889-1951.

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Senior Investment Advisor

Queensbury Securities Inc.,
St. Andrew’s Square,
Suite 340A, 730 View St.,
Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

Tel: 778.430.5808
(C): 250.881.0801 (Text Only)
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com