Month: November 2016

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

This appeared in The Wall Street Journal recently:
Notable & Quotable: James Q. Wilson
From “What Is Moral, and How Do We Know It?” by political scientist James Q. Wilson (1931-2012) in Commentary magazine, June 1993:
Almost every important tendency in modern thought has questioned the possibility of making moral judgments. Analytical philosophy asserts that moral statements are expressions of emotion lacking any rational or scientific basis. Marxism derides morality and religion as “phantoms formed in the human brain,” “ideological reflexes” that are, at best, mere sublimates of material circumstances. Nietzsche writes dismissively that morality is but the herd instinct of the individual. Existentialists argue that man must choose his values without having any sure compass by which to guide those choices. Cultural anthropology as practiced by many of its most renowned scholars claims that amid the exotic diversity of human life there can be found no universal laws of right conduct. . . .
I wish to argue for an older view of human nature, one that assumes that people are naturally endowed with certain moral sentiments. We have a peculiar, fragile, but persistent disposition to make moral judgments, and we generally regard people who lack this disposition to be less than human. Despite our wars, crimes, envies, snobberies, fanaticisms, and persecutions, there is to be found a desire not only for praise but for praiseworthiness, for fair dealings as well as for good deals, for honor as well as for advantage. These desires become evident when we think disinterestedly about ourselves or others. . . .

Mankind’s moral sense is not a strong beacon light, radiating outward to illuminate in sharp outline all that it touches. It is, rather, a small candle flame, casting vague and multiple shadows, flickering and sputtering in the strong winds of power and passion, greed and ideology. But brought close to the heart and cupped in one’s hands, it dispels the darkness and warms the soul.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Oil lamps offered by devotees illuminate the Bagmati River flowing through the premises of the Pashupatinath Temple during the Bala Chaturdashi festival in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Tuesday. Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters

Devotes wearing their traditional dresses carry the religious statue of Saint Saturtino, patron of the city, in Pamplona, northern Spain, on Tuesday. Alvaro Barrientos/AP

Emma Morano, thought to be the world’s oldest person and the last to be born in the 1800s, blows out candles during her 117th birthday celebration in Verbania, northern Italy, on Tuesday. Alessandro Garofalo/Reuters
Market Closes for November 29^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	19121.60	+23.70   +0.12%
S&P 500	2204.66	+2.94   +0.13%
NASDAQ	5379.918	+11.105   +0.21%
TSX	14999.81	-15.55
		-0.10%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18307.04	-49.85
		-0.27%
HANG SENG	22737.07	-93.50
		-0.41%
SENSEX	26394.01	+43.84
		+0.17%
FTSE 100	6772.00	-27.47
		-0.40%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.511		1.524
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.094		2.115
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.2910		2.3124
U.S. 30 Year Bond		2.9459		2.9755

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74431	0.74584
US $	1.34353	1.34076
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.43059	0.69901
US $	1.06480	0.93914

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1186.55	1187.70
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	45.23	47.08

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell a second day as crude tumbled with an OPEC deal now seen at risk after Iran said it wouldn’t cut production.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.1 percent to 14,999.81 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, paring an earlier loss of as much as 0.5 percent as gains among big banks offset weakness in commodities. Trading volume in the Canadian equity benchmark was 9.2 percent lower than the 30-day average. The index remains up 15 percent in 2016, the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg.
     Energy producers led the index down, slumping 1.8 percent as a group for a fourth day of losses, the longest losing streak since Nov. 4. Only three of 11 industries in the S&P/TSX declined, as materials and utilities also lagged.
     Crude sank below $46 a barrel in New York, slumping 3.9 percent, after Iranian oil minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh told reporters in Vienna his country won’t cut output. Saudi Arabia on Sunday for the first time floated the possibility of leaving Vienna without an agreement. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. says the oil market is pricing in a 30 percent chance that producers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will reach a deal.
     Among other moves:
* Raw-materials companies fell 0.7 percent as industrial metals slumped, paring the biggest monthly rally in four years on signs China is taking steps to cool a trading frenzy in commodities. Copper, lead, nickel, aluminum and zinc all retreated.
* Teck Resources Ltd., the best-performing stock in the S&P/TSX this year, lost 2 percent. Teck is up about six-fold in 2016 on rallies in metallurgical coal and zinc.
* Bank of Nova Scotia advanced 1.6 percent, to the highest in two years, after reporting fourth-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ expectations on gains in capital markets and domestic banking. The lender is the top-performing lender in Canada this year with a 32 percent rally.
US
By Sofia Horta e Costa and Lu Wang
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks regained their momentum and hovered near all-time highs as traders digested encouraging data on gross domestic product growth and real estate, looking for hints about the strength of the economy ahead of Friday’s payrolls report.
     The S&P 500 Index added 0.13 percent to 2,204.66 at 4 p.m. in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.12 percent to 19,121.60. And the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.21 percent to 5379.92
     “Notable today is a bit of rotation back into large cap tech stocks that have been lagging,” said Jonathan Krinsky, chief market technician at MKM Partners LLC. “Facebook, Google, Microsoft are all up about one percent and financials are also doing a bit better. Those are big sectors in the market, so that’s obviously helping.”
     Stocks have rallied on speculation president-elect Donald Trump will increase fiscal spending to stimulate the world’s largest economy. Investors will turn attention to Friday’s jobs release on clues on the pace of future interest-rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. The probability of a rate increase in December has now reached 100 percent compared with 68 percent chance at the start of November.
     The U.S. economy expanded more than previously reported last quarter, rising at a 3.2 percent annualized rate, the fastest in two years, Commerce Department figures showed. Home prices in 20 U.S. cities continued to climb in September, while a gauge of values nationwide exceeded the pre-recession peak, according to S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller data. The reports added to a recent flurry to better-than-expected economic releases, lifting the Bloomberg ECO Surprise Index to the highest level since August.
     Oil slipped before petroleum-producing nations meet and begin work on agreement to curb production. The oil market is pricing in a 30 percent chance of producers reaching a deal to cut output at a meeting on Wednesday, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Freeport-McMoRan Inc., the miner which gets about 11 percent of its revenue from oil, fell 5.1 percent.
     “I think people are treating volatility in the crude market as a one off event around the OPEC meeting and really trading stocks on the fundamentals of the improving economic data,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist and director of research for Wunderlich Securities in Boston.
     Among stocks moving on corporate news, Tiffany & Co. added 3.2 percent after the jewelry maker’s third-quarter profit exceeded estimates as demand improved in China and Japan. TiVo Corp. shot up 6 percent at the market’s open but then fell back, adding just 0.2 percent, after the digital-video recording firm signed a licensing deal with Netflix Inc. Amicus Therapeutics Inc. sank 22 percent after U.S. regulators said accelerated approval for its Fabry-disease treatment is not an option.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

The craving for position, for prestige, for power, to be recognized by society
as being outstanding in some way, is a wish to dominate others, and this wish to dominate
is a form of aggression.  And what is the reason for this aggressiveness?  It is fear isn’t it?
Krishnamurti

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Never limit yourself because of others’ limited imagination; never limit others
because of your own limited imagination.
                                             -Mae Jemison, b. 1956

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

BRIGHT CROSSWALKS:
Artist Christo Guelov makes drivers and walkers alike more aware of crosswalks and makes Torrelodones, Spain, more beautiful with his project, Funnycross, for which he paints pedestrian crosswalks eye-catching shades of color.   You can see Guelov’s work at the artist’s website, www.christo-guelov.net.

Numbers of the day:
2 Trillion – Estimated number of galaxies in the universe according to a new study.  That’s 10 times the number previously thought.
51.3 Percentage of worldwide internet access accomplished via cell phones or tablet computers in October, putting mobile devices in the top slot for the first time.

On Nov. 28, 1943, President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin met in Tehran during World War II.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Fishermen place bamboo where they will later place tree branches and food to catch fish in a river in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Monday.Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters

Strollers make their way through the morning fog across a landscape covered with frost near Cologne, Germany, on Monday. Federico Gambarini/dpa/AP

Snowmaker Jose Martinez checks the artificial snow-making machine at a ski resort in Verbier, Switzerland, on Monday. Denis Balibouse/Reuters
Market Closes for November 28^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	19097.90	-54.24   -0.28%
S&P 500	2201.72	-11.63   -0.53%
NASDAQ	5368.813	-30.107   -0.56%
TSX	15015.36	-60.08
		-0.40%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18356.89	-24.33
		-0.13%
HANG SENG	22830.57	+107.12
		+0.47%
SENSEX	26350.17	+33.83
		+0.13%
FTSE 100	6799.47	-41.28
		-0.60%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.524		1.560
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.115		2.147
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3124		2.3572
U.S. 30 Year Bond		2.9755		3.0045

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74584	0.73934
US $	1.34076	1.35255
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.42300	0.70274
US $	1.06134	0.94221

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1187.70	1187.70
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	47.08	44.76

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell the most in two weeks, as energy companies are mired in a losing streak with talks among producers continuing ahead of the OPEC summit in Vienna this week.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.4 percent to 15,015.36 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, the most since Nov. 11. Trading volume in the Canadian equity benchmark was 11 percent lower than the 30- day average. The index remains up 15 percent in 2016, the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg.
     Energy producers led the index lower, falling 1.4 percent as a group for a third day of losses, the longest losing streak since Nov. 4. Seven of 11 industries in the S&P/TSX were lower. Canadian National Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. retreated as industrial stocks also declined.
     Medical marijuana producer Canopy Growth Corp. jumped 5.9 percent after agreeing to buy German pharmaceutical distributor MedCann GmbH Pharma and Nutraceuticals. The Canadian government, meanwhile, is preparing to review a task force report on recreational legalization.
     Among other moves:
* Raw-materials producers rose 1.8 percent as industrial metals extended their winning streak. The Bloomberg Industrial Metals sub-index posted its biggest five-day gain since 2011 as zinc touched the highest level in nine years.
* Teck Resources Ltd.,  slipped 0.5 percent. Teck is up in 2016 on rallies in metallurgical coal and zinc.
* Encana Corp. dropped 3.9 percent for a third day of losses after John Gerdes at KLR Group cut his rating for the stock to accumulate from buy.
US
By Julie Edde
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell the most in four weeks as investors speculated that gains sparked by expectations for brisker economic growth under a new administration went too far too quickly.
     Financial shares that have paced a three-week surge since the election fell 1.4 percent Monday, after the value of American financial firms was inflated by more than $300 billion since Nov. 8. Consumer discretionary shares slipped after the start of the holiday sales season was lackluster. Utility stocks climbed 2 percent as a rout in bonds eased.
     The S&P 500 Index lost 0.5 percent to 2,201.82 at 4 p.m. in New York, halting a four-day advance that left the equity benchmark at a record. It had gained 3.4 percent since the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 8. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 52.80 points to 19,099.34, while the Russell 2000 Index halted a 15-day surge that was the longest since 1996.
     “With S&P at new all-time highs there is too much hope for fiscal reflation priced into markets at least in the short- term,” said Ralf Zimmerman, an equity strategist at Bankhaus Lampe KG based in Dusseldorf, Germany. “Investors don’t know anything about the future stimulus and today’s futures declines are also triggered by fading hopes for a meaningful OPEC deal.”
     Equities had rallied while bonds plunged on speculation Donald Trump will be able to implement fiscal stimulus to jumpstart growth in the world’s largest economy. Investors will turn attention to U.S. jobs data due Friday for clues on the pace of future interest-rate increases, while OPEC nations continue to work toward a deal to curb production. A referendum Sunday in Italy also has cooled demand for riskier assets.
     “People are stepping back and saying the market is a little bit overbought, let’s sit back here and see if we get some follow through” said Matt Maley, an equity strategist at Miller Tabak & Co. LLC in New York. “The OPEC meeting is giving people a little bit of a reason to take a little bit of a breather.”
     Backward looking economic figures will have little impact on the likelihood of the December rate decision, as a hike is viewed with increasing certainty, though the data may indicate whether the Federal Reserve intends to implement additional increases next year. The probability of a rate hike in December has now reached 100 percent compared with 68 percent chance at the start of November.
     On Tuesday, third quarter GDP growth are released along with information on corporate-profits. Profits have declined in five of the last six quarters and are important as such to see an acceleration in business investment. As the end of the earnings season approaches, 19 companies are reporting this week with many retailers including Tiffany & Co. and Dollar General Corp.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Freedom is a  state of mind – not freedom from something.
Krishnamurti

As ever,
 

Carolann

 

Many live in the ivory tower called reality; they never venture on the
open sea of thought.
                                             -Francois Gautier, b. 1959

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Number of the Day:  3,000
Cost (in US dollars) of a set of 350 colored pencils, markers, charcoals, and watercolor brushes.  The set, created by Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld, has a waiting list at New York’s Museum of Modern Art gift shop.

Are These the World’s Most Magical Places?, a short video by National Geographic, introduces four natural wonders in different location on Earth.  It gives a glimpse into their history, explains the science behind their beauty, and features some awe-inspiring pictures.  Whether you are looking for an exciting travel destination or just want to see something extraordinary from where you are right now, this vieo will fascinate.  Find it at http://bit.ly/natgeoplaces.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Dogs wait as its owner stands in a polling booth to vote in the first round of the French center-right presidential primary election in Nice, France on Sunday, November 20^th, 2016. Eric Gaillard/Reuters

Waves crash against the harbour wall as Storm Angus passes Newhaven in southern Britain on Sunday, November 20^th, 2016. Hannah McKay/Reuters
Market Closes for November 25^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	19152.14	+68.96   +0.36%
S&P 500	2213.35	+8.63   +0.39%
NASDAQ	5398.920	+18.242   +0.34%
TSX	15075.77	+0.24
		—

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18381.22	+47.81
		+0.26%
HANG SENG	22723.45	+114.96
		+0.51%
SENSEX	26316.34	+456.17
		+1.76%
FTSE 100	6840.75	+11.55
		+0.17%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.560		1.589
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.147		2.181
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3572		2.3498
U.S. 30 Year Bond		3.0045		3.0207

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.73934	0.74127
US $	1.35255	1.34903
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.43286	0.69791
US $	1.05937	0.94395

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1187.70	1186.10
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	44.76	46.66

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rallied for a third straight week, the longest winning streak since July, led by Alberta utilities after the province agreed to compensate them for lost revenue from the phase out of coal plants.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index was flat at 15,075.44 at 4 p.m. in Toronto and gained 1.4 percent on the week as metals and mining companies offset declines in energy stocks. Trading volume in the Canadian equity benchmark was 42 percent lower than the 30-day average with U.S. markets reopening for a half day of trading after the Thanksgiving holiday. The equity benchmark is up 16 percent in 2016, the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg.
     Energy producers fell 1.1 percent as a group for a second day of losses. Crude futures fell 4.3 percent in New York for the biggest drop in more than two months. Saudi Arabia pulled out of talks with non-OPEC producers including Russia. The meeting, scheduled for Monday, was later abandoned entirely. Members of the production group have wrestled with how to distribute the burden of supply cuts ahead of a ministerial meeting at the end of the month.
     Barrick Gold Corp. and Goldcorp Inc. added at least 1.8 percent to drive a 0.9 percent increase in gold producers. Gold recovered from a nine-month low, posting its first gain in four days as the dollar halted a rally. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index retreated from its highest levels in a decade. Gold has struggled, slumping 7.2 percent in November as the prospect of rising interest rates and stimulative spending from President- elect Donald Trump have dimmed the attractiveness of the precious metal as a haven.
     Among other moves:
* Amaya Inc. jumped 7 percent. The online gaming company’s founder David Baazov has secured new financing for his $4.1 billion bid to take the firm private. This comes after a Dubai firm said a previous offer of backing was given without its knowledge.
* Capital Power Corp. and TransAlta Corp. both rallied the most on record as the power generating companies along with Atco Ltd. were granted a total of C$1.1 billion in compensation from Alberta for phasing out coal plants in the coming years.
TransAlta surged 17 percent while Capital Power gained 9.6 percent.
* Ithaca Energy Inc. tumbled 11 percent, the most since July, after first output from its North Sea Stella field was delayed until January as the company works to fix faults in electrical junction boxes at the floating facility.
US
By Emma O’Brien and Stephen Kirkland
     (Bloomberg) — The dollar trimmed a weekly advance that was spurred by prospects of higher U.S. interest rates. U.S. stocks rallied to a record.
     The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell from the highest level in more than a decade, while emerging-market currencies clawed back gains after India’s rupee fell to a record-low on Thursday. All four major U.S. equity benchmarks reached all-time highs as trading resumed following the Thanksgiving holiday. Oil dropped the most in more than two months on doubts OPEC will come to an accord to cut output as planned talks between producers inside and outside the group was canceled.
     Strong economic data and the prospect of increased spending after Donald Trump won the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential vote have fueled a surge in bets on Federal Reserve rate hikes, propelling the greenback higher against all but two of it peers this month. Traders see an increase in borrowing costs in December as a certainty, while the odds of additional moves by June have risen to more than 60 percent, according to futures data tracked by Bloomberg.
     “The dollar bull run had perhaps become a little stretched,” said Lee Hardman, a currency strategist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. in London. “We’ve had a very strong run since the election and it’s just a bit of a pull back.”
     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2 percent at 4 p.m. in New York.
* The yen posted the worst weekly performance among major currencies.
* The rupee strengthened after sinking to a record low Thursday.
* China’s yuan, which fell to an eight-year low this week, was little changed.
* South Africa’s rand pared gains after the nation moved closer to a junk credit rating as Fitch Ratings Ltd. changed the outlook on its assessment to negative from stable.

     Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index rose 0.4 percent to a record high. Equity markets in the U.S. are due to shut at 1 p.m. local time Friday.
* European stocks also gained, with trading volume below the 30- day average.
* Actelion Ltd. jumped after people familiar with the matter said Johnson & Johnson has approached the Swiss drugmaker about a potential takeover.
* Emerging-market shares posted their weekly advance in more than a month.

     Bonds
* The difference between German two-year yields and the equivalent swap rate reached the widest level since 2012 amid speculation the European Central Bank may relax its deposit rate floor for bond purchases.
* Yields on 40-year Japanese bonds reversed an earlier climb as an auction saw 499.7 billion yen ($4.4 billion) of securities sold at a highest yield of 0.725 percent.
* “The 40 year bonds were well received in the auction, triggering a bout of bond buying,” said Masahiko Sato, an analyst at Nomura Holdings Inc. in Tokyo.

     Commodities
* Gold’s first gain in four days cut this week’s loss to 2 percent.
* West Texas Intermediate crude oil lost 4.3 percent to $46.06 a barrel.
* Ore with 62 percent content delivered to Qingdao climbed 3.5 percent to $79.61 a dry ton on Friday, according to Metal Bulletin Ltd.

 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Put your heart, mind, and soul into even your smallest acts.  This is the secret of success.
Swami Sivananda

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

It’s not reason that gives us our moral orientation; it’s sensitivity.
                                               -Maurice Barres, 1862-1923

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

On November 24^th, 1801, Dorothy Wordsworth wrote in her journal:

A rainy morning.  We all were well except that my head ached a little, and I took my breakfast in bed.  I read a little of Chaucer, prepared the goose for dinner, and then we all walked out. I was obliged to return for my fur tippet and spencer (a close-fitting jacket or bodice), it was so cold … As we were going along we were stopped at once, at the distance perhaps of fifty yards from our favourite birch tree. It was yielding to the gusty wind with all its tender twigs, the sun shone upon it, and it glanced in the wind like a flying sunshiny shower.  It was a tree in shape, with stem and branches, but it was like a spirit of water.  The sun went in, and it resumed its purplish appearance, the twigs still yielding to the wind, but not so visibly to us.  The other birch trees that were near it looked bright and cheerful, but it was a creature by its own self among them.  –from The Book of Days.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

The moon sets behind a statue atop the facade of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican before a Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on the occasion of the closing of the Holy Door on Sunday. The Holy Door closing marks the end of the Jubilee of Mercy. Gregorio Borgia/AP

A photographer stops to capture the early morning ground fog on the National Mall in Washington on Saturday. J. David Ake/AP
Market Closes for November 24^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	19083.18	Closed
S&P 500	2204.27	Closed
NASDAQ	5380.678	Closed
TSX	15075.20	-5.71
		-0.04%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18333.41	+170.47
		+0.94%
HANG SENG	22608.49	-68.20
		-0.30%
SENSEX	25860.17	-191.64
		-0.74%
FTSE 100	6829.20	+11.49
		+0.17%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.589		1.555
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.181		2.184
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3498		2.3552
U.S. 30 Year Bond		3.0207		3.0207

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74127	0.74103
US $	1.34903	1.34947
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.42420	0.70215
US $	1.05572	0.94722

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1186.10	1185.35
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	46.66	46.66

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks ended the day little-changed as energy producers retreated to offset a rally in industrial metals led by First Quantum Minerals Ltd.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index edged lower to 15,075.20 at 4 p.m. in Toronto on Thursday, erasing an earlier gain of as much as 0.3 percent. Trading volume in the Canadian equity benchmark was 68 percent lower than the 30-day average with U.S. markets closed for the Thanksgiving holiday. The equity benchmark is up 16 percent in 2016, the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg.
     First Quantum and Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. climbed at least 2.9 percent as copper stocks led gains with the metal set for its biggest monthly gain in a decade with a 21 percent rally. TransAlta Corp. rose 7.8 percent, the most in seven months, after Alberta said utilities in the Western Canadian province will be compensated for the power-generation capacity they add under new rules to lure investment. Energy producers slipped to offset the advance.
     Among other moves:
* Sherritt International Corp. is up 54 percent during a four- day winning streak with nickel joining the wider rally in industrial metals.
* Diversified miner Teck Resources Ltd., the best-performing stock in the S&P/TSX this year with an almost six-fold gain, rose 0.3 percent, on a four-day rally to the highest in more than three years.
* Bombardier Inc. added 1.1 percent after winning a $620 million option order for 40 double-deck trains for the Normandy region of France.
* Energy stocks slipped 0.2 percent as crude ended little- changed, trading near $48 a barrel in New York. Iraq’s prime minister said the country will shrink production, while Russia said it would go no further than a freeze.
US

US MARKETS CLOSED FOR THANKSGIVING.
Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

When a man has an idea of what he must be and how he must act,
and undermines this by not ceasing to act in the opposite way,
he must realize that his principles, his beliefs, his ideals,
will inevitably fall prey to hypocrisy and dishonesty.
It is the ideal that begets the opposite of itself.
Krishnamurti

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

I paint object as I think them, not as I see them.
                          -Pablo Picasso, 1881-1973

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

On November 23^rd, 1940, George Beardmore wrote in his journal: (Birmingham had been bomber the two previous nights.  He was there to meet his wife Jean and baby daughter and take them to his lodgings in Bromsgrove.)

In New Street Station itself chaos and old night were reigning, also complete ignorance of what was happening.  No trains were arriving from the south and I quickly discovered that no official lived who could tell me how long a passenger from Rugby would take to go to Stafford (for this was Jean’s roundabout route) and come back to Birmingham.  By 6 p.m. a small group of people like me had gathered in the lee of a tin-plate advertisement  on the bridge crossing the lines peering out into the darkness for the first sign of an approaching train.  My compassion was sufficiently roused to take a girl and young fellow, who were starving and seemed completely lost – they were waiting for the arrival of parents from Camden Town – across to the Midland Hotel and give them beef sandwiches and beer before returning to the pitchy hell of the station to meet a train that did not contain Jean…I telephoned the Cottage and heard that  Jean had just arrived at Bromsgrove…
   Jean’s story was characteristic of her.  She had been turned out of the Stafford train at Tamworth and she was wondering what one normally does in Tamworth on a dark night when the ticket inspector said:  “That post office van is going to Birmingham.  You can ask the driver and tell him Mr. Taylor sent you.”  Of course, the carrying of passengers in a mail van is as illegal as you can get, but presently Jean found herself sitting

With the baby among bags of letters and parcels in the rear of the van…” –from The Book of Days.

On Nov. 23, 1943, during World War II, United States forces seized control of the Tarawa and Makin atolls from the Japanese.

November 23, 1936: First Globe & Mail published.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

From left, Jack, Nikki and Rae Forbes of Asheville, N.C., wear hats to fit the holiday as they head through the terminal after arriving at Denver International Airport early Wednesday. Travelers are criss-crossing the country Wednesday, clogging airport terminals in a rush to reach their Thanksgiving Day destinations. David Zalubowski/AP

Pavilions are seen on a lake during a snow day in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, China on Tuesday. Reuters

The rising sun casts a warm, glowing light where two swimmers are silhouetted near the island of Ruegen in Stralsund, Germany on Wednesday. Stefan Sauer/AP
Market Closes for November 23^rd, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	19083.18	+59.31   +0.31%
S&P 500	2204.27	+1.33   +0.06%
NASDAQ	5380.680	-5.670   -0.11%
TSX	15084.29	-16.09
		-0.11%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18162.94	+56.92
		+0.31%
HANG SENG	22676.69	-1.38
		-0.01%
SENSEX	26051.81	+91.03
		+0.35%
FTSE 100	6817.71	-2.01
		-0.03%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.555		1.541
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.184		2.180
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3552		2.3119
U.S. 30 Year Bond		3.0207		2.9996

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74103	0.74391
US $	1.34947	1.34424
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.42392	0.70228
US $	1.05517	0.94771

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1185.35	1212.25
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	46.66	46.63

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fluctuated after a four-day rally, as a rout in gold futures sent miners tumbling while investors continued to pile into financial services shares.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.1 percent to 15,080.91 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, after closing Tuesday at the highest level since June 2015. The equity benchmark is up 16 percent in 2016, making it the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. Canadian shares are about 11 percent more expensive than their peers in the S&P 500 Index.
     The runup in Canada’s equity benchmark faltered as global shares were little changed amid rising expectations for higher U.S. interest rates. Investors have sought riskier assets since the U.S. election fueled speculation the new administration will implement policies that bolster the world’s largest economy. Gold prices fell below $1,200 Wednesday as the metal’s appeal as a store of value wanes on bets inflation is set to rise.
     Financial stocks, which account for about a third of the S&P/TSX, climbed 0.5 percent, while gold miners led materials producers lower by 2.6 percent. Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank, the nation’s two largest banks, both gained at least 0.6 percent. Barrick Gold Corp. lost 4.5 percent
US
By Camila Russo
     (Bloomberg) — The Dow Jones Industrial Average added to its all-time high and the Russell 2000 Index extended a rally to 14 days as data fueled speculation that the world’s largest economy can withstand higher rates that the Federal Reserve has signaled may be imminent.
     Industrial stocks rose the most, with Caterpillar Inc. and United Technologies Corp. adding more than 1 percent on the durable goods data. American Express Co. led advances among financial shares as as the yield on 10-year Treasury notes surged. REITs, utilities and phone shares have struggled in the latest rally as the need for their high dividend yields has waned as bonds plunge. Microsoft Corp. slid 1.2 percent to weigh on technology shares.
     The S&P 500 Index rose 0.1 percent to a record 2,204.61 at 4 p.m. in New York. The Dow rose past 19,080, adding to an all- time high. The Russell 2000 Index of small caps climbed 0.5 percent to the most ever. It’s up 16 percent during its longest winning streak since 1996.
     Stock benchmarks have advanced on speculation Donald Trump’s pledges to cut taxes and increase fiscal spending will boost companies that benefit from economic growth. The fresh equity records also came as American companies ended a five- quarter decline in profits. U.S. markets will be closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday.
     “The market is quite bullish at the moment but we run into a holiday, so I think people will probably take some chips off the table,” said Christian Zogg, head of equity and fixed income at LLB Asset Management in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. “The market is basically waiting for some concrete measures on the tax side and fiscal spending. So far, there is not much concrete to calculate, so I think today will be rather quiet.”
     Traders are pricing in a 100 percent chance that the Fed will raise interest rates next month, compared with a 68 percent probability at the start of November. Fed officials saw a strengthening case to raise interest rates as the labor market tightened, with some saying a hike should happen in December, according to minutes of their November gathering released Wednesday in Washington.
     The S&P 500 has rallied 3 percent since the U.S. presidential election and is headed for its first monthly increase since July, led by commodity producers and financial companies.
     Among shares active, Deere & Co. jumped after the agricultural-equipment maker posted quarterly net income that was more than double the average analyst estimate. Peers CNH Industrial NV climbed.
     Eli Lilly & Co. tumbled after its Alzheimer’s drug failed to slow the progress of the disease in a final-stage trial. Biogen Inc. slid 8.8 percent.

 

Have  a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent! 

As an individual, a specific entity, you have physical, mental, and nervous limits, among others.
If you know your own limits and try to stay within these limits,
you are free.
Swami Prajnanpad

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Sometimes you will never know the value of a
moment until it becomes a memory.
                               –Dr. Seuss, 1904-1991

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On Nov. 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade in Dallas. Suspected gunman Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as the 36th president of the United States.
Go to article »

MEANWHILE IN MASSACHUSETTS
   –by Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy

Meanwhile in Massachusetts Jack Kennedy dreamed

Walking the shore by the Cape Cod Sea
Of all the things he was going to be.

He breathed in the tang of the New England fall
And back in his mind he pictured it all…

He would heed that touch: he didn’t know how
Part he must serve, a part he must lead
Both were his calling, both were his need…

But now he was here with the wind and the sea
And all the things he was going to be.

He would build empires
And he would have sons
Others would fall
Where the current runs

He would find love
He would never find peace
For he must go seeking…

All of the things he was going to be
All of the things in the wind and the sea.
                                  -October 1953

 

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Visitors look at humanoid robots depicting Katsushika Hokusai (r.) and his daughter Oei on Tuesday, in a life-sized model of Hokusai’s atelier on the opening day of the Sumida Hokusai Museum in Tokyo’s Sumida Ward. The museum, which is dedicated to Japanese woodblock print artist Katsushika Hokusai, creator of some of the most iconic art of the genre, opened Tuesday in the neighborhood he lived in some two centuries ago. Eugene Hoshiko/AP

Indigenous men from Pataxó occupy the entrance of the Planalto Palace during a protest against agribusinesses and in demand of the demarcation of their ancestral lands, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday. Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters
Market Closes for November 22^nd, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	19023.87	+67.18   +0.35%
S&P 500	2202.94	+4.76   +0.22%
NASDAQ	5386.352	+17.492   +0.33%
TSX	15100.38	+60.51
		+0.40%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18162.94	+56.92
		+0.31%
HANG SENG	22678.07	+320.29
		+1.43%
SENSEX	25960.78	+195.64
		+0.76%
FTSE 100	6819.72	+41.76
		+0.62%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.541		1.570
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.180		2.204
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3119		2.3137
U.S. 30 Year Bond		2.9996		2.9916

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74391	0.74553
US $	1.34424	1.34132
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.42856	0.70000
US $	1.06273	0.94098

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1212.25	1214.25
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	46.63	45.69

Market Commentary:
If you torture the data long enough, it will confess to anything
                                                       -Darrell Huff, 1913-2001
(How to Lie With Statistics, 1954)
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose a fourth day to reach the highest level in 17 months, as major banks and consumer staples advanced with retail sales posting the biggest one-month gain since April.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 0.4 percent to 15,100.38 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, trading at the highest level since June 2015. The equity benchmark is up 16 percent in 2016, making it the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. Canadian shares are about 11 percent more expensive than their peers in the S&P 500 Index.
     Canada’s equity benchmark joined gains around the world as the Dow Jones Industrial Average topped 19,000 for the first time. The MSCI All-Country World Index of developed and developing markets is up 3.6 percent this year and is headed for its biggest annual increase since 2013. Copper posted the highest closing price in 16 months to pace gains in metals as emerging markets advanced.
     Canadian retail businesses posted a 0.6 percent rise in sales in September, the biggest gain since April and in line with forecasts, in what may be one of the first indications the government’s new child benefits are being spent. Retailer Hudson’s Bay Co. added 0.4 percent to halt a five-day slide.
     Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., the gas station and convenience store operator, rose 0.9 percent for a second up day after boosting its quarterly dividend. Couche-Tard also reported second-quarter earnings and sales that were short of estimates.
     Financial services stocks, which account for about a third of the S&P/TSX, climbed 0.4 percent while raw-materials producers gained 1.2 percent to pace gains in the index. Gold prices advanced a second day.
     Gaming company Amaya Inc. retreated 6 percent, the biggest drop in five weeks. A Dubai investment firm, KBC Aldini Capital Ltd., denied it’s backing a $6.7 billion offer by Amaya founder David Baazov to take the gaming company private and said it has filed a complaint with U.S. securities regulators, the Globe and Mail reported.
     Energy producers slipped 0.2 percent, one of three industries lagging the index. Crude prices fell, trading near $48 a barrel in New York. Investors are awaiting the results of an official meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Nov. 30 in Vienna discussing a deal to cut back on production to balance supply. Talks Tuesday didn’t resolve the question of whether Iraq and Iran will participate in any production cuts.
     Natural resource producers are the top-performing companies in the Canadian market this year, with materials stocks climbing 42 percent on a rebound in commodities prices from gold to crude. Investors have shrugged off a series of market surprises– from the U.K. Brexit vote in June to Trump’s surprise U.S. presidential win earlier in November — to propel global markets higher.
US
By Rita Nazareth and Lukanyo Mnyanda
     (Bloomberg) — All four major U.S. stock benchmarks rallied to records, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average topping 19,000 for the first time. Metals climbed, while oil was little changed.
     The Dow Average rose alongside the S&P 500 Index, the Nasdaq Composite Index and the Russell 2000 Index to all-time highs. The MSCI All Country World Index extended this month’s advance and emerging-market shares surged. Copper jumped to its highest since July 2015. Oil closed near $48 a barrel after an OPEC committee failed to agree on Iranian and Iraqi output levels. European bonds rallied on bets policy makers will extend their stimulus program.
     Equities rose on speculation the world’s largest economy is strong enough to withstand higher borrowing costs. The market- implied odds of a Federal Reserve hike in December reached 100 percent, according to Bloomberg calculations based on futures. A rate increase “could well become appropriate relatively soon,” Fed Chair Janet Yellen said last week. The fresh stock highs also came as American companies ended a five-quarter profit slump.
     “We’ve finally broken through to new records,” said Heinz- Gerd Sonnenschein, an equity strategist at Deutsche Postbank AG in Bonn, Germany. “We can move on to pricing in the improving outlook: there are strong signs that the U.S. economy is in good shape and that bodes well for corporate earnings.”
     Sales of previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly climbed in October to the highest level since February 2007, a sign of momentum in the housing market a month before a jump in borrowing costs, National Association of Realtors data showed Tuesday. Reports on new home sales, durable goods and manufacturing are due Wednesday, as well as minutes from this month’s Fed meeting. U.S. markets will be closed Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday.
     MSCI’s global gauge rose 0.3 percent at 4 p.m. in New York.
     The S&P 500 Index rose 0.2 percent to 2,202.94, the Dow Average and the Nasdaq added at least 0.3 percent. The Russell 2000 gained for a 13th day in the longest run since 1996.
     The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.2 percent as Anglo American Plc and BHP Billiton Ltd. rose at least 4.9 percent. Enel SpA led gains in utilities after announcing a plan to cut costs and dispose assets of about 3 billion euros ($3.2 billion).
     The MSCI Emerging Markets Index extended a two-day rally to 1.7 percent as benchmark gauges from Brazil to China and Russia advanced.
     The Bloomberg Commodity Index posted its biggest three-day advance since June. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said Monday that investors should bet on higher prices in the next year as manufacturing picks up around the world, the first time the bank has recommended an overweight position for the asset class in more than four years.
     Gold extended a rebound from the lowest in more than five months, while copper paced gains in industrial metals. Iron ore and steel in China surged to their daily limits.
     Oil ended the session little changed after rising and falling about 2 percent. The talks in Vienna Tuesday haven’t resolved the question of whether the group’s second and third- largest members will participate in any production cuts, and the matter will be put off until the meeting of ministers on Nov. 30, according to two delegates. While Libya’s OPEC governor Mohamed Oun said the meeting ended with a consensus that will be presented to ministers, he didn’t comment on Iran and Iraq’s role.
     The dollar fluctuated against its major peers as traders looked beyond the Federal Reserve’s December policy meeting in search of fresh impetus.
     Before losing steam, the dollar had tracked Treasury yields higher as futures traders fully priced in an interest-rate hike for the Fed’s Dec. 14 policy decision partly on speculation that President-elect Donald Trump’s economic policies will fuel inflation.
     “The dollar is flying after Donald Trump’s victory, and the rally should continue into early 2017 — thereafter, the greenback could weaken,” Royce Mendes, an economist at CIBC World Markets, wrote in a note. “Although that’s fully priced into markets, the delivery of the first hike since 2015 could see markets add to expectations for further tightening, giving the dollar a temporary boost.”
     The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the currency against 10 major peers, rose 0.1 percent. The greenback gained 0.2 percent to 111.07 yen.
     China’s central bank raised its yuan fixing for the first time in 13 days as the dollar’s ascent eased. The rand climbed after the South African government said it would delay a plan to build new nuclear power plants, allaying concern that the cost of the program would strain fiscal targets.
     Bonds climbed across Europe, finding relief after weeks of being whipsawed by political headlines and speculation about higher U.S. interest rates. With the next ECB policy decision due in December, investors are looking for clues in a series of recent remarks from officials who pledged to maintain current levels of monetary stimulus.
     Officials from the ECB are signaling they “are not intending to reduce its monetary stimulus soon,” said Marius Daheim, a senior rates strategist at SEB AG in Frankfurt. “That points to divergence between monetary policy in the U.S., where we are looking for a rate hike in December by the Fed, and the ECB maintaining its steady hand and continuing with its ultra- loose monetary policy. That’s what is creating this payback.”
     ECB President Mario Draghi said on Monday that the central bank is “committed to preserving the very substantial degree of monetary accommodation necessary to secure a sustained convergence of inflation toward” the target of just under 2 percent. This followed comments from Governing Council members Benoit Coeure and Francois Villeroy de Galhau on Monday signaling the time to start scaling down the QE program has not yet arrived.
     The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 2.32 percent, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader Data.

 

Have  a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

The absurd denial of the truth is natural in man.
Man does not want to be, but to appear to be.
He does not want to see what he is, but tries only to see himself as the person
other people take him for, when they talk about him.
Swami Prajnanpad

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

 

Design is not just what it looks like and feels like.  Design is how it works.
                                                                 -Steve Jobs, 1955-2011

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Just back from attending the World Business Forum in New York.   Very informative; outstanding business and academic presenters; many  held the view that the US economy will continue to  improve and that the outlook for the US dollar is to continue strengthening relative to world currencies, especially given Janet Yellen’s guidance for a rate hike in December.  I stayed close to 5^th Ave. & Central Park South, so witnessed the unrelenting protesters in front of the Trump Tower.  Most of the Americans I spoke with at the business forum were reticent to express any opinion on the President-Elect.   It’s the US Thanksgiving on Thursday – a holiday with more significance for Americans than any other.  Given how divisive this election was, I’m sure there will be many contentious dinner conversations when families aggregate on the holiday.

On this day…
November 21, 1976 – World premiere of the movie Rocky.  Cost only a million to make, with virtually unknown actors and went on to be one of the biggest grossing films of all time.
Nov. 21, 1995, the presidents of three rival Balkan states agreed to make peace in Bosnia, ending nearly four years of terror and ethnic bloodletting that have left a quarter of a million people dead in the worst war in Europe since World War II.
November 21, 1988 – Brian Mulroney wins second majority for PCs with 170/295 seats (43.3% pop vote); the Free Trade election.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Alex Carrillo Quito of Ecuador imitates the character Rocky Balboa from the 1976 movie “Rocky,” on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, in Philadelphia, Monday. Four decades after the Nov. 21, 1976, premiere of “Rocky,” the movie’s reach is international, and the title character’s underdog tale of determination, grit, and sleepy-eyed charm still resonates with fans. Matt Rourke/AP

Children enjoy yellow leaves of ginkgo trees at Jingu Gaien, the outer garden of Meiji Jingu Shrine, on Monday in Tokyo. Shizuo Kambayashi/AP
Market Closes for November 21^st, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	18956.69	+88.76   +0.47%
S&P 500	2198.18	+16.28   +0.75%
NASDAQ	5368.859	+47.346   +0.89%
TSX	15039.87	+175.84
		+1.18%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	18106.02	+138.61
		+0.77%
HANG SENG	22357.78	+13.57
		+0.06%
SENSEX	25765.14	-385.10
		-1.47%
FTSE 100	6777.96	+2.19
		+0.03%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.570		1.579
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.204		2.212
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3137		2.3548
U.S. 30 Year Bond		2.9916		3.0296

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74553	0.74040
US $	1.34132	1.35062
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.42549	0.70151
US $	1.06275	0.94095

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1214.25	1211.00
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	47.49	45.69

Market Commentary:
On November 21, 1995 – Dow Jones tops 5000 for the first time.
Number of the Day
$1.06
The level the euro against the dollar, rekindling an old debate: Will the common currency reach parity with the dollar?
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks advanced for a third day to their highest level in 17 months as natural resources producers rallied with oil on continued optimism of an OPEC production cut and gold rebounded from the lowest level in five months.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 1.2 percent to 15,039.87 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, and is trading at the highest level since June 2015. The equity benchmark is up almost 16 percent in 2016, making it the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. Canadian shares are about 11 percent more expensive than their peers in the S&P 500 Index.
     Energy companies picked up 2.5 percent, also hitting 17- month high, and raw-materials producers gained 1.7 percent to lead advances in 10 of 11 industries in the S&P/TSX. Telecommunications stocks were the only laggards. Trading volume was 4.4 percent lower than the 30-day average.
     Suncor Energy Inc. and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. increased more than 2.2 percent as energy stocks jumped for a third day with the price of oil at a three-week high. Crude prices rose 3.9 percent in New York, adding to last week’s 5.3 percent gain, as Iran signaled optimism that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will reach a consensus. Iraq said it will offer new proposals to help reach a deal at the Nov. 30 meeting in Vienna.
     Teck Resources Ltd., the nation’s largest diversified miner, added 3.9 percent as industrial metals were led by a rally in copper while nickel rebounded from the lowest in two weeks. The London Metal Exchange’s index of metal prices slid the most since August last week. Copper producer First Quantum Minerals Ltd. jumped 7.2 percent.
     Natural resource producers are the top-performing companies in the Canadian market this year, with materials stocks climbing 40 percent on a rebound in commodities prices from gold to crude. Investors have shrugged off a series of market surprises — from the U.K. Brexit vote in June to Donald Trump’s surprise U.S. presidential win earlier in November — to propel global markets higher. The MSCI All-Country World Index of developed and developing markets is up 3.3 percent this year and is headed for its biggest annual gain since 2013.
     Teck Resources is the top stock in the S&P/TSX, up almost six-fold this year as prices for coking coal and zinc have also surged. Energy producers have jumped 30 percent, led by Bonavista Energy Corp. and Encana Corp.
     Goldcorp Inc. rose 1.3 percent as gold advanced from the lowest level in more than five months as the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index snapped three days of gains. Silver also rose after nearing a bear market.
US
By Lu Wang and Rebecca Spalding
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose, pushing four major benchmark indexes to simultaneous records for the first time since 1999, as investors added to a post-election advance spurred by speculation the incoming administration’s policies will incite brisker economic growth.
     The S&P 500 Index rose 0.8 percent to 2,198.19 at 4 p.m. in New York, for its first record since Aug. 15. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 88.62 points to 18,956.55 to a fresh high, while the Russell 2000 Index capped a 12th day of gains in its longest rally since 2003. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.9 percent to its highest level ever.
     “It’s a push on the upper end of the equity markets due to this renewed belief that there’s tax cuts and stimulus spending coming in 2017 and 2018,” said Chad Morganlander, a money manager at Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. in Florham Park, New Jersey, where he helps oversee about $172 billion. “The overall equity markets are taking a cue from that and they are trading on the belief that earnings will move higher as well as revenues in 2017.”
     The new milestone for the S&P 500 arrived as companies ended a five-quarter profit slump and Donald Trump’s election fueled optimism that his plans to cut taxes and boost fiscal spending will benefit industries more geared toward economic growth. Acknowledging the strength in the economy, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Thursday that the central bank is close to lifting interest rates, comments that sent Treasuries lower and yields on the 10-year note toward 2.25 percent.
     “There’s optimism that it’s more likely that Trump is going to put us on an economic fast track versus Clinton,” said Terry Morris, manager director of equities at BB&T Institutional Investment Advisors in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. “The election had something to do with this, and I also think there’s some short covering going on. People that were hedging the election had to rush to cover after the news, and I think generally the perception is the economy is starting to pick up as the Fed is likely to raise rates in December.”
     Investors have boosted bets for tighter monetary policy since Donald Trump’s election win, on speculation his policies will spur growth and increase inflation. After Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said last week the central bank is close to raising rates, traders are now pricing in a 98 percent chance of a move in December. If the Fed doesn’t act as expected, it may bring on more market turmoil, says Seven Investment Management’s Ben Kumar.
     Most-hated stocks are among the biggest winners since Trump’s victory. A Goldman Sachs Group Inc. basket of 50 companies that have the highest short interest in the Russell 3000 Index has climbed 11 percent since Nov. 8, four times the gain in the broad market measure.
     Financial shares have done the heavy lifting since the last record, rising 14 percent since the August high. Energy producers are up 3.9 percent, while groups coveted for their high dividend yields have tumbled with bonds. Real-estate investment trusts and phone companies have tumbled more than 11 percent.
     Energy shares rallied 2.2 percent Monday, following crude higher, after Iran signaled optimism OPEC will agree to a supply-cut deal and Iraq said it will offer new proposals to help bolster the group’s unity before members meet next week. Chesapeake Energy Corp. and Murphy Oil Corp. led gains.
     Tyson Foods Inc. tumbled 14 percent after posting earnings that missed estimates and appointing Tom Hayes to succeed Donnie Smith as chief executive officer.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

The spiritual can never be attained,
until the material has been extinguished.
Swami Vivekananda

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Nothing is impossible, the word itself says “I’m possible!”
                                                 -Audrey Hepburn, 1929-1993

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

 

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Carolann is out of the office, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Visitors stand in front of an illuminated object during the Christmas Garden event at a botanic garden in Berlin, Germany on Friday. Stefanie Loos/Reuters

Huge waves crash on the San Esteban de Pravia seafront in the northern Spanish region of Asturias on Friday. Eloy Alonso/Reuters
Market Closes for November 18^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	18867.93	-35.89   -0.19%
S&P 500	2181.90	-5.22   -0.24%
NASDAQ	5321.513	-12.459   -0.23%
TSX	14864.03	+37.94
		+0.26%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	17967.41	+104.78
		+0.59%
HANG SENG	22344.21	+81.33
		+0.37%
SENSEX	26150.24	-77.38
		-0.30%
FTSE 100	6775.77	-18.94
		-0.28%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.579		1.562
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.212		2.181
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.3548		2.2901
U.S. 30 Year Bond		3.0296		3.0004

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74040	0.73941
US $	1.35062	1.35243
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.43024	0.69918
US $	1.05895	0.94433

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1211.00	1226.75
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	45.69	45.42

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose a second day, capping the biggest weekly gain in a month, as energy producers advanced with crude on growing optimism OPEC nations will secure an output deal.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 0.3 percent to 14,864.03 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, trading at the highest level in more than three weeks. The equity benchmark is up 14 percent in 2016, making it the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. Canadian stocks are about 10 percent more expensive than their peers in the S&P 500 Index.
     Energy producers advanced 0.8 percent Friday to contribute most to gains as five of 11 industries in the S&P/TSX advanced. Trading volume was 10 percent lower than the 30-day average. Encana Corp. added 3.1 percent.
     Crude capped a weekly gain of its own in New York as futures rose 0.6 percent, recouping earlier losses after OPEC member Algeria said the organization’s meeting with Russia gave it confidence a deal can be reached. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said a consensus is emerging and Russia is considering an output freeze of six months. Crude prices have whipsawed between gains and losses this week as the outcome of the meeting remains murky.
     Natural resource producers are the top-performing companies in the Canadian market this year, with materials stocks rallying 38 percent year-to-date on a rebound in commodities prices from gold to crude. Teck Resources Ltd., the nation’s largest diversified miner, is the top stock in the index, up almost six- fold this year as prices for coking coal and zinc have also surged.
     Financial services stocks edged higher, adding 0.6 percent as a group. The head of Canada’s housing agency warned the country may need further changes to mortgage rules to further reduce risks to the real-estate market and protect the financial system.
     Canadian inflation meanwhile quickened for a second month in October, advancing 1.5 percent from year-ago figures. The data are in line with expectations inflation is poised to rebound as the drag of cheaper gasoline fades and economic growth accelerates.
     Brookfield Asset Management Inc. added 0.6 percent. The alternative asset manager said it was prepared to offer $13 a share to acquire TerraForm Power Inc., valuing the company at about $1.8 billion.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks added to the rally sparked by Donald Trump’s surprise election, rising for a second week on speculation the president-elect will introduce policies that will spark brisker economic growth.
     The biggest beneficiary has been small caps, with the Russell 2000 Index rallying 11 straight days to cap its longest winning streak since 2003 as the dollar strengthened. The gauge ended the five days higher by 2.6 percent. The S&P 500 Index rose 0.8 percent, with financials again contributing the most to the advance. Technology shares joined the rally after concerns over trade policies faded. The Dow Jones Industrial average edged up for the week after touching a fresh high on Nov. 15.
     The benchmark for American equity has added 2 percent since president-elect Donald Trump won the U.S. election, led by a surge in financial stocks and shares of industrial companies. While the former added to its rally in the week with a 2.2 percent advance, shares in companies that build bridges and make equipment were little changed. Health-care stocks that rallied 5.8 percent last week pared those gains with a 1.2 percent decline.
     Since the election losses remain the biggest in dividend- paying groups like utilities, real estate and consumer staples shares that had led the market in the first half of the year.
     The variation in returns among sectors has created an opportunity that some investors have seized upon, according to record flows into exchange-traded funds that track financial and industrial companies. That’s happened as dispersion within the stock market reached levels unseen since the start of the bull market — a good sign for active managers.
  

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

 

Be magnificent!
 

 “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style”. Maya Angelou

As ever,
 

Karen

“In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.” Dalai Lama

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Carolann is out of the office, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A girl looks into the mouth of a polar bear head ice sculpture at the launch of Hyde Park Winter Wonderland’s Magical Ice Kingdom in London on Thursday. This year’s Winter Wonderland starts on Nov. 18, 2016 and lasts until Jan. 2, 2017. Frank Augstein/AP

The International Space Station (ISS) crew member Thomas Pesquet of France gestures as he sits in a bus before boarding spacecraft at the Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Thursday. Kirill Kudryavtsev/Reuters
Market Closes for November 17^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	18903.82	+35.68   +0.19%
S&P 500	2187.12	+10.18   +0.47%
NASDAQ	5333.973	+39.389   +0.74%
TSX	14826.09	+92.87
		+0.63%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	17862.21	+0.42
		—
HANG SENG	22262.88	-17.65
		-0.08%
SENSEX	26227.62	-71.07
		-0.27%
FTSE 100	6794.71	+44.99
		+0.67%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.562		1.504
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.181		2.125
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.2901		2.2101
U.S. 30 Year Bond		3.0004		2.9135

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.73941	0.74501
US $	1.35243	1.34227
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.43714	0.69583
US $	1.06263	0.94106

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1226.75	1229.20
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	45.42	45.57

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose for the third time in four sessions, to the highest close in three weeks, joining gains around the world as the Federal Reserve signaled the pace of interest rate increases will be gradual while energy producers advanced with crude.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 0.6 percent to 14,826.09 at 4 p.m. in Toronto. The equity benchmark is up 14 percent in 2016, making it the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. Canadian stocks are about 10 percent more expensive than their peers in the S&P 500 Index.
     Global equity markets rallied after Fed chair Janet Yellen said a rate hike could come “relatively soon” in prepared text for testimony she’s scheduled to deliver before Congress’s Joint Economic Committee in Washington. Traders are now pricing in 98 percent probability of a rate hike next month, from 68 percent at the start of November, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. 
     Energy producers rallied 0.5 percent as 10 of 11 industries in the S&P/TSX posted gains. Trading volume was 12 percent higher than the 30-day average. Suncor Energy Inc. added 0.5 percent.
     Crude futures declined 0.3 percent in New York, erasing earlier gains after dropping 0.5 percent Wednesday. Saudi Arabia’s minister of energy and industry said he’s optimistic producers will reach a deal at OPEC’s highly anticipated meeting in Vienna Nov. 30. Crude prices have whipsawed between gains and losses this week as the outcome of the meeting remains murky.
     Natural resource producers are the top-performing companies in the Canadian market this year, with materials stocks rallying 39 percent year-to-date on a rebound in commodities prices from gold to crude. Teck Resources Ltd., the nation’s largest diversified miner, is the top stock in the index, up almost six- fold this year as prices for coking coal and zinc have also surged.
     Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. added 1.1 percent, reversing an earlier loss of as much as 7.8 percent. The head of the drugmaker’s mail-order pharmacy affiliate and a former Valeant manager were indicted on federal charges that they defrauded shareholders. The executives Andy Davenport and Gary Tanner were charged by federal prosecutors in Manhattan on multiple counts including wire fraud and conspiracy to launder money.
     Great Canadian Gaming Corp. slumped 8.4 percent, the most in more than four years, after insider Neil Baker agreed to sell as much as eight million shares of the company. Prior to the deal, Baker owned or controlled almost 11 million shares, or about 18 percent of the casino company’s issued and outstanding stock.
US
By Rita Nazareth, John Hyland and Stephen Kirkland
     (Bloomberg) — The S&P 500 Index neared an all-time high, rising with the dollar as Treasuries fell after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen signaled the central bank is close to raising interest rates.
     The U.S. stock benchmark rose to within four points of a record, and the Russell 2000 Index of smaller companies capped its longest rally since March 2013, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained despite a disappointing sales forecast from Cisco Systems Inc. U.S. government bonds slid after Yellen’s comments and a wave of data that pointed to U.S. economic strength. The greenback’s gains helped oil fall below $45 a barrel.
     In her first public comments since the U.S. election, Yellen told lawmakers that the Fed is close to boosting borrowing costs as the economy continues to gain traction. The comments weighed on Treasuries, with yields on 10-year notes slipping to 2.29 percent. Bank stocks pushed their rally since Donald Trump’s presidential victory back above 10 percent, while energy shares retreated. Speculation that Trump’s administration will carry out fiscal stimulus continues to lift industries that are perceived to benefit from economic growth.
     “A Trump victory could herald higher inflation, a roll back of financial regulation, higher spending and renewed attacks on the Fed’s independence,” said Michael Ingram, a market strategist at BGC Partners in London. “Having made some apocalyptic predictions in the event of Trump’s victory, markets quickly took a ‘glass half-full’ view. The more appropriate question is ‘What’s in the glass — champagne or cyanide?”’
     Traders are betting a Trump presidency will quicken the pace of interest-rate increases, pricing in a 98 percent chance that the Fed will act next month, compared with odds of about 80 percent before the election. Reports Thursday showed U.S. housing starts jumped to a nine-year high in October, while jobless claims fell to the lowest level in four decades.
     The S&P 500 added 0.5 percent to 2,187.12 as of 4 p.m. in New York, the highest close since Aug. 15, when the gauge closed at a record 2,190.15. The Russell 2000 jumped 0.6 percent to a record, while the Dow Average gained 0.2 percent.
     Earnings reports were also in focus. Best Buy Co. jumped 14 percent after its profit surpassed expectations, while Cisco slid 4.8 percent after predicting worse-than-estimated earnings and unexpectedly forecasting a decline in sales. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Staples Inc. dropped after reporting sales that missed estimates.
     The Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed 0.6 percent, the most in a week and erasing a slide of as much as 0.3 percent.
     Longer-dated U.S. government bonds led losses as Yellen told U.S. lawmakers Thursday that a rate hike could come relatively soon. The economy continues to create jobs at a healthy clip and is inflation inching higher, she said.
     Benchmark Treasury 10-year yields climbed six basis points, or 0.06 percentage point, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader data. Thirty-year Treasury yields jumped eight basis points to 3 percent. Two-year yields added two basis points to 1.03 percent.
     A bond-market gauge of expectations for U.S. consumer prices over the next decade climbed this week to the highest since April 2015. The measure, known as the break-even rate, which represents the extra yield investors demand on regular 10- year notes over similar-maturity TIPS, reached 1.97 percentage points. The difference has risen from below 1.2 percentage points in February. The debt pays interest on a principal amount that rises with consumer prices.
     The dollar climbed to a five-month high versus the yen as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe prepared to meet President- elect Trump in New York.
     Traders are watching for any comments from Trump, who’s accused Japan of currency manipulation. He and Abe will meet at 5 p.m. New York time, according to a Trump adviser. The U.S. currency was buoyed after Fed Chair Yellen said a rate hike could come “relatively soon.”
     “The fact that she didn’t push back against market expectations for a December hike is perhaps the most significant takeaway,” said Jack Spitz, managing director for foreign exchange at National Bank of Canada in Toronto. “The dollar is higher as a result.”
     The dollar rose 0.8 percent to 109.99 yen, after reaching 108.56 yen, the strongest level since the start of June. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the U.S. currency against 10 major peers, extended gains at its highest level since February. The gauge surged 2.8 percent last week, the most since September 2011.
     West Texas Intermediate oil for December delivery declined 0.3 percent to $45.42 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
     “The only that’s changed from earlier today is that the dollar is stronger,” said Tim Evans, an energy analyst at Citi Futures Perspective in New York. “The rising dollar appears to be triggering selling of commodities.”
     Copper rebounded, ending a two-day slide, amid signs of resilient demand from U.S. home builders.
     On the London Meal Exchange, copper, zinc, lead and tin rose, while aluminum and nickel slipped. Meanwhile, a gauge of 18 base-metals producers tracked by Bloomberg Intelligence climbed 0.7 percent.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

 

“Your present circumstances don’t determine where you can go; they merely determine where you start.” Nido Qubein

As ever,
 

Karen

 
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Nelson Mandela

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Carolann is out of the office, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Storm clouds gather above Perch Rock lighthouse in New Brighton, northern England on Wednesday. Phil Noble/Reuters
A purebred Spanish horse is seen during the Sicab International PRE Horse Fair, which is dedicated exclusively to the purebred Spanish horse, in the Andalusian capital of Seville, southern Spain on Wednesday. Marcelo del Pozo/Reuters
Market Closes for November 16^th, 2016

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	18868.14	-54.92   -0.29%
S&P 500	2176.94	-3.45   -0.16%
NASDAQ	5294.586	+18.964   +0.36%
TSX	14733.22	-22.88
		-0.16%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	17862.21	+194.06
		+1.10%
HANG SENG	22280.53	-43.38
		-0.19%
SENSEX	26298.69	-5.94
		-0.02%
FTSE 100	6749.72	-43.02
		-0.63%

Bonds

Bonds		% Yield		Previous  % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond		1.504		1.537
CND. 30 Year Bond		2.125		2.166
U.S.    10 Year Bond		2.2101		2.2207
U.S. 30 Year Bond		2.9135		2.9595

Currencies

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.74501	0.74512
US $	1.34227	1.34206
Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.43720	0.69580
US $	1.07069	0.93397

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	1229.20	1226.95
Oil	Close	Previous
WTI Crude Future	45.57	45.81

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell after climbing the most in seven weeks, as material producers retreated with metals and banks slipped a second day on speculation gains had gone too far too quickly in the past week.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 0.2 percent to 14,733.22 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, paring earlier losses of as much as 0.6 percent while halting a two-day advance. The equity benchmark is up 13 percent in 2016, making it the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg. Canadian stocks are about 9 percent more expensive than their peers in the S&P 500 Index.
     Global equity markets retreated and the dollar rose against most major peers amid rising speculation the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in December. Traders are now pricing in 94 percent probability of a rate hike next month, from 68 percent at the start of November, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. 
     Financial shares tumbled after leading a rally in equities in the week following Donald Trump’s election win, on speculation his policies will goose domestic economic growth.
     Financial services stocks, which make up about a third of the S&P/TSX, fell 0.2 percent to pace declines while six of 11 industries in the index retreated. Trading volume was 4.6 percent higher than the 30-day average. Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. and Sun Life Financial Inc. fell at least 1 percent. Bank of Montreal slipped 0.2 percent, falling for the first time in three sessions.
     Materials and energy producers lost at least 0.3 percent as crude slipped 24 cents to settle at $45.57 a barrel in New York after a government report showed U.S. supplies rose.
     Natural resource producers are the top-performing companies in the Canadian market this year, with materials stocks rallying 40 percent year-to-date on a rebound in commodities prices from gold to crude. Teck Resources Ltd., the nation’s largest diversified miner, is the top stock in the index, up almost six- fold this year as prices for coking coal and zinc have also surged.
     Marijuana grower Canopy Growth Corp. ended a heavy day of trading down 15 percent, reversing an earlier gain of as much as 33 percent to halt a seven-day winning streak. Smaller peers Aphria Inc. and OrganiGram Holdings Inc. retreated at least 8.4 percent.
US
By Rita Nazareth, Yun Li and John Hyland
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks retreated, while the dollar advanced as investors assessed the potential implications of President-elect Donald Trump’s policy outlook. Crude oil fell.
     Banks led losses as the S&P 500 Index swung back to declines, while Apple Inc. paced a rally in technology companies. The Treasury yield curve flattened, with 30-year bonds outperforming shorter-dated debt as traders moved toward a consensus that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next month. The dollar returned to a nine-month high versus major peers. Crude slipped even as Russia’s oil minister expressed optimism that OPEC would reach a deal, with government data showing an increase in American supplies.
     The expectation Trump would expand fiscal stimulus to boost U.S. growth sparked a bond-market rout that this week pushed 30- year Treasury yields to their highest level this year, while buoying bank and industrial stocks. Central-bank officials, including Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren, have said more fiscal support would bolster the case for tightening. Rate-hike odds were above 90 percent, even after a report today indicated inflation remains muted, with wholesale prices unexpectedly weak in October.
     “Sometimes we have to sit back and take a breath and say ‘we’ve gone too far too fast,”’ said Art Hogan, chief market strategist and director of research for Wunderlich Securities in Boston. “As much as we love to believe that all the pro-business things that the new administration and the Republican Congress is going to move forward with, that’s still next year’s business. You have to look at a market that in the short term is getting stretched.”
     The S&P 500 fell 0.2 percent to 2,176.94 as of 4 p.m. in New York, after closing Tuesday within 0.5 percent of an all- time high set in August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average halted its longest rally in almost four months, slipping 0.3 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.4 percent.
     “Overall it seems the market has to pause a little bit to assess how far it’s gone since Trump’s win,” said Benno Galliker, a trader at Luzerner Kantonalbank AG in Lucerne, Switzerland. “We haven’t seen this kind of sector dispersion in a long time. Now everything has changed — it’s a paradigm shift.”
     The Stoxx Europe 600 Index has alternated between gains and losses for seven straight days. The gauge slipped 0.2 percent Wednesday after earlier jumping and falling as much as 0.6 percent. Bayer AG was one of the biggest contributors to the move, dragging down chemical companies after issuing 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) of convertible bonds.
     The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose for a second day, adding 0.6 percent.
     In the Asia-Pacific region, stocks in New Zealand extended gains into Thursday, rising for a fourth straight session. Futures on equity benchmarks elsewhere in the region signaled losses, with Nikkei 225 Stock Average futures in Osaka slipping at least 0.2 percent with contracts on indexes in Australia, South Korea and Hong Kong.
     Thirty-year Treasury yields fell four basis points, or 0.04 percentage point, to 2.92 percent, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader data. U.S. two-year yields rose less than one basis point to 1 percent. The gap between two- and 30-year yields declined to about 1.92 percentage points. It touched as low as 140 basis points in August.
     “The market is firming in its expectations that the Fed is going to go,” said Aaron Kohli, a fixed-income strategist in New York at BMO Capital Markets Corp., one of 23 primary dealers that trade with the central bank. “I don’t think the economic data is good this morning, but it also wasn’t bad enough to deter the Fed. We sold off very sharply in the last week and a half, and there’s some money that’s being put to work.”
     Traders assign about a 94 percent probability, the highest level this year, to the Fed boosting rates at its final meeting for the year on Dec. 13-14, futures contracts indicate.
     European bonds fell, with yields on Portugal’s 10-year bonds rising by 18 basis points to 3.65 percent. Italy’s 10-year yield increased seven basis points to 2.03 percent, while the rate on similar-maturity German bunds dropped to 0.30 percent.
     The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the U.S. currency against 10 major peers, rose 0.3 percent. The gain built on a 2.8 percent surge from last week, which was the most since 2011.
     “The medium-term outlook for the dollar is still solid, and we expect it to strengthen well into the first quarter of next year,” said Ned Rumpeltin, the European head of currency strategy at Toronto-Dominion Bank in London. “But some in the market might adopt a cautious near-term stance ahead of the testimony and during the shaping of the new administration.”
     Currencies of commodity-producing nations, including the Australian dollar and South African rand, were among the biggest losers Wednesday. The MSCI Emerging Markets Currency Index fell 0.3 percent as the yuan slid to its weakest point since December 2008.
     The yen was little changed early Thursday at 109.10 per dollar after slipping 2.4 percent over the past two sessions.
     West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery dropped 24 cents, or 0.5 percent. to settle at $45.57 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent for January settlement retreated 32 cents to $46.63 a barrel in London.
     Stockpiles climbed by 5.27 million barrels last week, according to the Energy Information Administration, with a 1.5 million barrel gain forecast by analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Refiners used 16.1 million barrels a day of crude, up 309,000 barrels from a week earlier. Russia is ready to support an OPEC decision to stabilize the market, Energy Minister Alexander Novak said, with OPEC ministers due to meet Nov. 30 to discuss how to implement production cuts.
     “You would have expected to see more selling after such a big build in crude,” said Gene McGillian, manager of market research for Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. “There’s a feeling that OPEC will come to some sort of an agreement later this month, which makes selling risky.”
     Copper and aluminum declined in London, extending their retreats from one-year highs reached last week, while zinc retreated from its highest close since 2010. Metals rallied last week on a combination of increased speculative interest in China and optimism President-elect Trump’s pledge to spend as much as $1 trillion on infrastructure will boost demand.
     Gold fell 0.3 percent Wednesday to $1,225.28 an ounce.

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

 

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

As ever,
 

Karen

“In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.” Dalai Lama

 

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com