Posted on

March 31, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

March 31st: 1889: Eiffel Tower opens.

POEM # 63
   -e.e. cummings

…come quickly come
run run
with me now
jump shout (laugh
dance cry
sing) for it’s Spring…

Earth’s crammed with heaven. –Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Canada’s Keean White, riding For Freedom Z, competes in the FEI World Cup equestrian jumping speed class in Omaha, Neb., on Thursday.Nati Harnik/AP

New York Mets infielder Jose Reyes talks with members of the media in the clubhouse at CitiField on Friday in New York. The Mets open their season at home on Monday against the Atlanta Braves. Julie Jacobson/AP

A visitor to St. James’s Park takes a selfie while lying among daffodils in London on Friday. Peter Nicholls/Reuters
Market Closes for March 31st, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20663.22 -65.27

 

 

-0.31%
 
S&P 500 2362.72 -5.34

 
 

-0.23%
 
NASDAQ 5911.738 -2.606

 
 

-0.04%
 
TSX 15547.75 -31.01

 
 
-0.20%

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 18909.26 -153.96
 
-0.81%
 
HANG

SENG

 24111.59 -189.50
 
-0.78%
 
SENSEX 29620.50 -26.92
 
-0.09%
 
FTSE 100* 7322.92 -46.60
 
-0.63%
 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.627 1.628
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.305 2.322
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.3892 2.4179
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0126 3.0310
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.75087 0.74967
 
 
US

$

 1.33180 1.33392
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.41903 0.70471

 
US

$

 1.06550 0.93852

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1244.85 1248.80
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 50.60 50.35

 

Market Commentary:
Number of the Day:
$6.5 billion

The sum the U.S. government awarded AT&T, along with valuable airwaves, to start building a nationwide broadband network for first responders.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks ended an uninspired first quarter with a slight decline Friday but managed to eke out a fifth consecutive quarterly gain, the longest streak of advances since 2007.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 31 points or 0.2 percent to close out the quarter at 15,547.75, an increase of just 1.7 percent since the beginning of the year, placing it 21st out of 24 developed-world benchmarks.
     Financials were the biggest decliner, falling 0.6 percent. Energy shares added 0.2 percent as the price of oil rose 0.8 percent to $50.73.
     In other moves:
* The information technology index rose 0.6 percent as BlackBerry Ltd. jumped 14 percent. The company continued its transformation into a software provider, beating fourth-quarter earnings estimates and surpassing its software-revenue target for the full year
* Enercare Inc. rose 3.8 percent after rival Reliance Home Comfort was bought by Hong Kong’s richest man for C$2.82 billion.
US
By Lu Wang
     (Bloomberg) — Its last day may have been a washout, but the first quarter just took its place among the best of the lengthening bull run for U.S. stocks.
     Even with a 0.2 percent decline Friday, the S&P 500 Index surged 5.5 percent in the three months ended March 31, the biggest advance since shares jumped 6.5 percent at the end of 2015. More than 350 companies rose in the quarter as gains that began just before Election Day swelled to 14 percent.
     While equities have lost the momentum of February, when investors anticipating President Donald Trump growth programs pushed the S&P 500 higher for six straight weeks, March’s final five sessions still notched the best return since Valentine’s week. Energy producers led the advance, rallying 2.2 percent for the biggest increase since early December while consumer stocks, commodity companies tech shares each climbed more than 1 percent.
     March just missed becoming the fifth consecutive up month for equities, a span that encompasses the entirety of the Trump bump that has reinvigorated the rally that turned eight years old on March 9. Equities are jumping as corporate earnings bounce back and investors pour money into shares in anticipation of Trump promises including lower taxes and greater public spending.
     “Confidence returns not only to the stock market, but also to the economy,” Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at Milwaukee-based Robert W. Baird, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “The carrot is still out there, with the carrot being tax reform and infrastructure spending. Till those things come to the forefront, it’s still buy the rumor.”
     Friday’s session reprised a pattern that has held for more than a month in which a week’s final hour saw exaggerated volatility, this time to the downside. The S&P 500 erased a gain in the session’s last 30 minutes. Banks and energy companies paced the retreat, offsetting gains in real-estate trusts and utilities that came as Treasury yields slipped. Also today:
* FMC Corp. rose 13 percent, the most in the S&P 500. The pesticide maker agreed to acquire DuPont Co.’s crop-protection assets and DuPont agreed to acquire FMC’s health and nutrition business.
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 percent to 20,663.22, trimming its advance since January to 4.6 percent.
* Russell 2000 Index rose for a seventh day, the longest streak since November. It has now completed the retracement of all its losses from March 21, when concern began to build that President Donald Trump’s health-care bill might falter.
* Nasdaq Composite Index was little changed on Friday. Up 9.8 percent, the tech-heavy gauge posted the best quarter since 2013. Just a week ago, it looked as if the dormant CBOE Volatility Index was awakening. Fast-forward five days, and the gauge known as the VIX is closing in on its lowest quarterly average since the final months of 2006. The measure has lost 18 percent this year through Thursday as the S&P 500 Index climbed 5.8 percent.
* CBOE VIX Index rose 7.2 percent, trimming its weekly loss to 4.6 percent
* ECONOMY:
** U.S. consumer spending rose less than forecast in February even as wage growth improved, according to government data that also showed inflation reached the Federal Reserve’s goal for the first time in almost five years.
** Fed New York President William Dudley said the central bank’s median forecast for three rate hikes this year “is in a reasonable place” but the number could be a little bit more, or a little bit less, depending on how the economy performs.
* EARNINGS (S&P 500):
** None until April 4
* European stocks rose for a fourth day, with the Stoxx Europe 600 Index adding 0.2 percent. The index rounded out its longest run of quarterly gains since 2014, rising 5.5 percent, as a chorus of strategists and investors say the reflation rally in Europe has more to go, boosted by those seeking sanctuary from lofty U.S. stock valuations.

 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

In Sanskrit, one calls the bird twice born.
And this name is also given to the man who submits for at least twelve years
to the discipline of mastering his self and the noble thought, who emerges from it with simple needs,
with a pure heart, and ready to take upon himself all the responsibilities of life
in a broad and disinterested spirit.  One estimates that this man is born again from the blind envelopment
of the ego to the freedom of the life of the soul,
that he has entered into a lively connection with his environment,
that he has become one with the Whole.
Rabindranath Tagore

 

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life
as by the obstacles which he has overcome.
           -Booker T. Washington, 1856-1915

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

Posted on

March 30, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Birthday: Vincent Van Gogh, b. March 30, 1880.

Van Gogh’s first solo show opened in Paris on March 15th, 1901.  He went to his grave in 1890 having sold only one of his roughly 900 paintings. His first-ever show occurred 11 years after his death when the influential Galerie Bernheim-Jeune in Paris mounted an exhibition of 71 of the Dutch artist’s works.  During its two-week run, the show caused a sensation.  Among the painters who strolled through the gallery were Henri Matisse, Maurice de Vlaminck and Claude Monet (who was especially taken with an 1889 canvas, Field with Poppies).  It was van Gogh’s first big step on the road to becoming an art superstar.  One of the show’s paintings, Still Life: Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers, would later smash records when it sold in 1987 to a Japanese buyer for nearly $40 million US.  –Christopher Harris, Globe & Mail.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

George Lewys, 5, poses for a photograph with Owl butterflies during an event to launch the Sensational Butterflies exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London on Thursday. Stefan Wermuth/Reuters

Sofia Lopez (r.) and Eve Chick, both 3 years old, meet Moominmamma (r.) and Moomintroll during a photo call for the Moomin Adventures at Kew Gardens Easter Festival at the Royal Botanic Gardens in London on Thursday. The festival will run from April 1-17. Moomins are fairytale characters taken from the books of Finnish illustrator and writer Tove Jansson. Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
Market Closes for March 30th, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20728.49 +69.17

 

+0.33%
 
S&P 500 2367.64 +6.51

 

+0.28%
 
NASDAQ 5914.344 +16.797

 

+0.28%
 
TSX 15574.53 -83.10

 
-0.53%
 
 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19063.22 -154.26

 
-0.80%

 
HANG

SENG

 24301.09 -90.96

 
-0.37%

 
SENSEX 29647.42 +115.99

 
+0.39%

 
FTSE 100* 7369.52 -4.20

 
-0.06%

 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.628 1.592
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.322 2.289
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.4179 2.3801
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0310 2.9864
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.74967 0.75034

 
US

$

 1.33392 1.33273
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.42463 0.70194

 
US

$

 1.06800 0.93633

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1248.80 1251.10
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 50.35 49.51

 

Market Commentary:
Numbers of the day:
$271 billion

The value of global withdrawn M&A in 2017, the second highest first-quarter total on record after 2007.
$582.2 billion

The amount investors borrowed against their brokerage accounts in February, a record high for margin debt and a fresh sign of bullishness among flummoxed investors trying to navigate the political and economic crosscurrents driving markets.

On this day in 1999, shares of Priceline.com soar 331% during their first day of trading to close at $69. The company had priced its initial public offering at $16. A month later, the stock hits $162.375, but within 18 months, the stock is trading at less than $5 per share.

Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks closed lower as investors reacted negatively to a big deal in the oil patch, offsetting crude prices that rose above $50 a barrel for the first time in more than three weeks.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 79 points or 0.5 percent to close at 15,578.76, its first decline in seven trading days.
     The energy index tumbled 1.9 percent as Cenovus Energy Inc. plunged 14 percent, its biggest one-day drop ever. The company is buying C$17.7-billion worth of Canadian assets from ConocoPhillips, adding risk to its operations at a time of uncertain oil prices.
     The decline in the energy index came despite a 1.7 percent gain in the price of West Texas Intermediate crude to $50.37, the first time it’s hit the $50 mark since March 8. The materials index also fell, losing 0.7 percent as the price of gold fell 0.8 percent.
     In other moves:
* Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lost 2.9 percent after the bank announced that it has increased its offer for PrivateBancorp Inc. by 20 percent to about $4.9 billion
* Dollarama Inc. jumped 11 percent after the retailer reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results, boosted its dividend and said it plans to open 1,700 new locations across Canada.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks climbed as investors assessed the latest numbers on fourth-quarter growth and consumer spending, while two policy makers said the Federal Reserve may have to raise rates more than currently forecast.
     The S&P 500 added 0.3 percent to 2,368 at 4 p.m. in New York as the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 69 to 20,728.
The Russell 2000 Index of small-cap shares jumped 0.8 percent.
* Financial stocks lead market, up 1.2%
* Energy shares up for third day as crude oil adds 1.8%
* Consumer staples and utility stocks underperform as 10-year Treasury yield gains 4bps
* “The honeymoon period with the Trump administration may be ending,” BMO Capital Markets strategists Brian G. Belski and Nicholas Roccanova wrote in a note. “Stock prices are likely to bounce back-and-forth in the coming months as investors work through the potential ‘negatives’ associated with policy rhetoric and the ‘positives’ of the improving macro and earnings growth environment”
* VIX up for first time this week to 11.5
* Volume 12% below year-to-date average across all exchanges
* ECONOMY:
** U.S. economy grew at 2.1% pace in 4Q, revised from 1.9%
** The dollar rose after Fed Bank of Boston President Eric Rosengren said four rate increases may be needed in 2017 to guard against overheating the U.S. economy
** San Francisco’s John Williams said he wouldn’t rule out more than three hikes in total in 2017
* EARNINGS (S&P 500):
** None until April 4
* European stocks rose, closing at their highest since early December, as miners and energy producers climbed
** Commodity producers gained for a third day, while energy shares tracked oil prices higher.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

The purity of life is the highest and most authentic art to follow.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

A Goal without a plan is just a wish.
-Antoine de Saint-Exupery, 1900-1944

 

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

Posted on

March 29, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

RESILIENT WINDMILLS
Windmills located in Nashtifan, Iran, are believed to have been create between AD 500 and 900 and are still operational today.  Check out National Geographic’s video about the history of these structures at http://bit.ly/natgeowindmills.

On March 29, 1973, the last United States troops left South Vietnam, ending America’s direct military involvement in the Vietnam War.
Go to article »

Worry is a misuse of your imagination.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Some of the 404 participants pose for a photo in Toronto, Canada, on Tuesday during the ‘Next Einstein’ competition, which set a Guinness World Record for the ‘largest gathering of people dressed as Albert Einstein,’ according to organizers of the Einstein Legacy Project to encourage innovation and free-thinking. Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University/Reuters

Models wear floral arrangements as they interact with travelers at Central Station in Utrecht, Netherlands, on Wednesday. About 20,000 spring flowers were used to promote Keukenhof, the largest flower show in the world. Peter Dejong/AP

A protester wearing a European Union-flag-themed beret takes part in an anti-Brexit demonstration in Birmingham, England, on Wednesday after Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May triggered the process by which the United Kingdom will leave the European Union. Darren Staples/Reuters
Market Closes for March 29th, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20659.32 -42.18

 

 

-0.20%
 
S&P 500 2360.49 +1.92

 

+0.08%
 
NASDAQ 5897.547 +22.407

 

+0.38%
 
TSX 15648.55 +49.98

 
+0.32%
 
 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19217.48 +14.61
 
+0.08%
 
HANG

SENG

 24392.05 +46.18
 
+0.19%
 
SENSEX 29531.43 +121.91
 
+0.41%
 
FTSE 100* 7373.72 +30.30
 
+0.41%
 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.592 1.624
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.289 2.311
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.3801 2.4160
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 2.9864 3.0190
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.75034 0.74743
 
US

$

 1.33273 1.33791
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.43480 0.69696
 
US

$

 1.07658 0.92882

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1251.10 1257.25
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 49.51 48.37

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1999, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above 10,000 for the first time, finishing the day at 10006.78.
Numbers of the Day
1%
The Dow industirals have drifted lower for 10 of the past 12 sessions but are down just 1% over that period.
$37,000
The U.S. price for a year of a newly approved eczema drug, a figure that Regeneron and Sanofi said was reached after months of negotiations with pharmacy-benefit managers.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks closed higher, buoyed by crude producers as oil rose to a three-week high.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index added 59 points or 0.4 percent to 15,657.63 after data from the Energy Information Administration showed a decline in U.S. fuel supplies last week.
     The price of West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 2.1 percent to $49.40, pushing the energy index up 1.1 percent.
     Materials stocks added 0.7 percent, led by Eldorado Gold Corp., which jumped 9.9 percent after the company said it received improved terms for concentrate sales at its Olympias mine.
     In other moves:
* Enghouse Systems Ltd. plunged 9.4 percent after the company’s rating was cut by RBC
* The health-care index rose 1.7 percent as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. gained 4 percent.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks edged higher on the third slowest trading day of the year as investors assessed economic data and continued to weigh the likelihood of legislative reform in the Trump administration.
     The S&P 500 added 0.1 percent to 2,361 at 4 p.m. in New York, as Europe ended higher and Asian markets were mixed. The U.S. benchmark gained the most in nearly two weeks on Tuesday as data showed consumers are more upbeat than any time since 2000, helping investors shrug off President Donald Trump’s health-care flop last Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 42 points to 20,659.
* Utility shares lower by 0.5% and real estate stocks higher by 0.3%
** 10-year Treasury yield down 4bps
* Financial shares lost 0.5% for biggest decline in market after rallying Tuesday
* Oil extended Tuesday’s gain as an unexpected disruption in Libyan crude output overshadowed record U.S. stockpiles; energy shares gained 1.2%
* VIX down for 4th session to 11.4
* Volume reached 5.86b shares, third-lowest of 2017
* A gauge tracking global stocks excluding the U.S. has outperformed America by almost 300bps so far in 2017; that trend will continue over the next 12 months because policy optimism and valuations are high in the U.S., whereas overseas markets show a better cyclical backdrop, according to strategist Ian Wright at Goldman Sachs
* ECONOMY:
** MBA mortgage applications index fell 0.8% in week ended March 24
** February pending home sales index rose 5.5% to most since July 2010
** Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said post- market yesterday that two more interest-rate increases in 2017 seem about right
* EARNINGS (S&P 500):
** Wednesday: Perrigo (PRGO)
* Europe Market
** Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.3% as oil extended gains after U.S. crude stockpiles rose less than forecast
** Mining shares climbed the most, tracking copper prices higher

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

My work will be finished if I succeed in carrying conviction to the human family, t
hat every man or woman, however weak in body,
is the guardian of his or her self-respect and liberty, and that this defence prevails,
though the world be against the individual resister.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

It does not so much matter what happens.  It is what one does when it happens that really counts.
                                                                                                     -Laura Ingalls Wilder, 1867-1957

 

 

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

Posted on

March 28, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On March 28, 1979, America’s worst commercial nuclear accident occurred inside the Unit Two reactor at the Three Mile Island plant near Middletown, Pa.
Go to article »

Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.  If we continue to develop our technology without wisdom or prudence,
our servant may prove to be our executioner. –Omar Bradley.

On March 29th, 1857, Edward Fitzgerald wrote to E.B. and Elizabeth Cowell:
Now the black trees in the Regent’s Park opposite are beginning to show green buds; and men come by with great baskets of flowers; primroses, hepaticas, crocuses, great daisies etc., calling as they go, “Growing, growing, growing!  All the glory going!”  -from The Book of Days.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Cherry trees line a road in Gui’an new district, Guizhou province, China, on Monday. China Daily/Reuters

A man carries children to school on his bicycle in Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir, on Tuesday. Danish Ismail/Reuters

The Oxford University men’s crew team take their oars and boat out of the water following training on the River Thames in London on Tuesday. Toby Melville/Reuters
Market Closes for March 28th, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20701.50 +150.52

 

+0.73%
 
S&P 500 2358.57 +16.98

 

+0.73%
 
NASDAQ 5875.141 +34.767

 

+0.60%
 
TSX 15598.57 +92.35

 
+0.60%

 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19202.87 +217.28
 
 
+1.14%

 
HANG

SENG

 24345.87 +152.17

 
+0.63%
 
 
SENSEX 29409.52 +172.37

 
+0.59%
 
 
FTSE 100* 7343.42 +49.92

 
+0.68%

 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.624 1.606
 
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.311 2.284
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.4160 2.3782
 
 
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0190 2.9848
 

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.74743 0.74735
 
 
US

$

 1.33791 1.33806
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.44673 0.69121

 
US

$

 1.08133 0.92478

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1257.25 1257.55
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 48.37 47.73

 

Market Commentary:
NUMBER OF THE DAY
$81 million
The amount for which Pacific Investment Management Co. settled a breach-of-contract suit filed by former star manager Bill Gross, ending a feud that shook the investing world. 
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canada’s benchmark equity index gained for a fifth day as strength in energy and financial stocks offset large declines in gold producers.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 92 points or 0.6 percent to close at 15,598.57 as a spike in U.S. consumer confidence renewed investor optimism in the strength of the world’s biggest economy.
     The energy index gained 1.4 percent as the price of oil jumped 1.3 percent to $48.35. The materials index fell 1.7 percent as the spot gold price got crushed by a spiking U.S. dollar.
     In other moves:
* Goldcorp Inc. plunged 6.9 percent, the most since October 4, after it announced a partnership with Barrick Gold Corp. to develop a deposit in Chile. Barrick fell 2.5 percent
* Home Capital Group Inc. fell 9.6 percent after its board removed CEO Martin Reid amid an investigation into falsified mortgage documents
* BRP Inc. rose 6.5 percent, touching a three-year high.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks climbed amid a rebound in financials and a rally in energy and materials companies.
     The S&P 500 jumped 0.7 percent to 2,359 at 4 p.m. in New York, as European markets climbed. The U.S. benchmark sparked a recovery in foreign markets as it pared losses to 0.1 percent on Monday, after posting its biggest five-day drop since November last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 151 points to 20,702.
* Financial shares rally 1.4% for biggest jump since March 1
* Energy and materials stocks up at least 1.1% with West Texas crude ahead 1.3% and Bloomberg Commodity Index rising for 1st time in 7 sessions
* 10-year Treasury yield up 4bps to 2.42%
* VIX down for 3rd session to 11.5
* Volume 4.7% below YTD average
* While there is investor skepticism that Trump will fare better on tax reform and infrastructure spending than on health care, “some in the market do appear to want to give him the benefit of the doubt for now,” Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, wrote in a note
* ECONOMY:
** Richmond Fed March mfg. survey at 22 vs est. 15
** Consumer confidence jumped in March to the highest in more than 16 years
** U.S. merchandise-trade deficit narrowed by more than projected in February
** U.S. Feb. advance wholesale inventories rose 0.4%; est 0.2%
** Home prices in 20 U.S. cities climbed in the 12 months through January at the fastest pace since July 2014
** Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans said two interest rate increases may be right for this year, given uncertainty surrounding the outlook for inflation and government spending
** Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said the central bank is making slow and gradual progress toward its inflation goal
* EARNINGS (S&P 500):
** After-market Tuesday: RH (RH)
** Pre-market Wednesday: Paychex (PAYX)

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Fearlessness is the first requirement of spirituality.
Cowards can never be moral.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Forgiveness is a virtue of the brave.
     -Indira Gandhi, 1917-1984

 

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

 

Posted on

March 27, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

POINTS OF PROGRESS
NORWAY
Surging ahead in  its uptake of electric cars, the country has now welcomed more than 100,000 all-electric vehicles onto its  roads, aiming for 400,000 by 2020. In 2015, about 2 percent of its car fleet was all-electric, double that of its closest competitor, the Netherlands.  Last year, reports emerged of a ban on gas and diesel cars by 2025, but analysts say electric vehicles will likely dominate by then anyway, not least because of the incentives – including tax and road toll exemptions, free parking in the city center, and bus lane access. –Triplepundit, Electrek, The Economist, The New York Times.

HAWAII
Humpback whales will get a helping hand as they retreat from Alaska each winter to the warmer waters off the Hawaiian islands.  Operation Kohola Guardian – a joint effort between the US Coast Guard and the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources – seeks to keep them safe by monitoring the multitude of whale-watchers and fishermen and minimizing boat strikes and entanglement in fishing nets.  Some 12,000 whales make the journey each year. –Civil Beat.

AUSTRALIA
The resource-rich nation has seen 25 years without recession, bringing it within a whisker of the record set by the Netherlands between 1982 and 2008.  Though its economy contracted by 0.5 percent in the third quarter of 2016, a surprise rise of 1.1 percent in the final quarter hauled the annual growth rate up to 2.4 percent – and prevented the country from slipping into recession, which is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth. –BBC.

URUGUAY
Investment in the country’s hinterlands is set to explode with the assistance of a $600 million  credit line from the inter-American Development Bank.  Half of that money  is to be used on infrastructure – rural roads – with the aim of boosting agricultural productivity as well as passenger and cargo transit.  The other half is to target the governments of the 18 inland departments, strengthening their fiscal management capabilities and their abilities to develop strategic sectors of the economy. –Inter-American Development Bank, Mercopress.

6+3.jpg

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (l.) receives a hongi, a traditional Maori greeting, from Maori elder Professor Piri Sciascia at Government House in Wellington, New Zealand, on Monday. Mr. Li is on three-day visit to New Zealand for high-level talks at a time that both countries are pushing to expand free trade. Mark Mitchell/NZ Herald/AP

Women wearing cheongsam pose for pictures on a walkway along a cliff during an event in Chongqing Municipality, China, on Sunday.Reuters

A passenger views the white cliffs of Dover, the closest British coastline to mainland Europe, from a cross-channel ferry between Dover in Britain and Calais in France on Monday. Toby Melville/Reuters
Market Closes for March 27th, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20550.98 -45.74

 

-0.22%
 
S&P 500 2341.59 -2.39

 

-0.10%
 
NASDAQ 5840.375 +11.637

 

+0.20%
 
TSX 15506.22 +63.55

 
+0.41%

 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 18985.59 -276.94

 
-1.44%
 
 
HANG

SENG

 24193.70 -164.57
 
 
-0.68%
 
 
SENSEX 29237.15 -184.25

 
-0.63%

 
FTSE 100* 7293.50 -43.32

 
-0.59%

 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.606 1.634
 
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.284 2.303
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.3782 2.4105

 
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 2.9848 3.0134
 
 
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.74735 0.74732
 
 
US

$

 1.33806 1.33812
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.45381 0.68785
 
 
US

$

 1.08652 0.92037

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1257.55 1247.50
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 47.73 47.32

 

Market Commentary:
NUMBER OF THE DAY
$4.1 billion
America’s trade deficit in advanced “flexible manufacturing” goods with Japan, the European Union and Switzerland last year, according to Commerce Department data. The U.S. is losing the battle to supply the kind of cutting-edge production machinery that is powering the new automated factory floor, from digital machine tools to complex packaging systems and robotic arms. 
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian investors left the hand-wringing over U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies to the Americans, pushing stocks higher despite lower oil prices and ongoing concerns that the so-called Trump rally is faltering.
     The S&P/TSX Composite index gained 64 points or 0.4 percent to 15,506.22 even as the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average finished lower. Banks, energy and materials stocks gained.
     The price of oil slipped 0.4 percent to $47.79 amid ongoing concerns about a global supply glut, but Canadian energy stocks rose 0.3 percent. NuVista Energy Ltd., Birchcliff Energy Ltd. and Crew Energy Inc. all gained more than 4.5 percent.
     In other moves:
* Pot stock Canopy Growth Corp. jumped 11.1 percent, its biggest gain since November 23, after CBC News reported that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will introduce legislation to legalize marijuana by July 1, 2018. The health-care index, which includes Canopy, gained 1.6 percent
* The materials index added 1.4 percent as Asanko Gold Inc. and Yamana Gold Inc. both gained more than 4 percent. Gold prices rose 0.6 percent.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell, dropping for a 7th day in 8, after President Trump and House Republicans failed to pass his health-care bill, undermining optimism he can enact his promised growth policies.
* S&P 500 index ends 0.1% lower at 2,342 at 4pm after paring early losses of as much as 0.9%
** Loss last week was the most since the week before the election
* Dow Industrials down 0.2% to 20,545
* Financial and industrial shares down, losing at least 0.4% after paring steep declines in early trading
** Morgan Stanley, Capital One and Charles Schwab among worst performers, down at least 1.5%
* Utility and real-estate shares reversed early gains to end the day as the biggest underperformers; 10-year Treasury yield fell 4bps to 2.37%
* Crude oil down 0.4% amid concern that global stockpiles are swollen, even as producers pledged to consider extending a deal to reduce output; energy stocks down 0.4%
* With the drama over the Republican effort to repeal and replace former President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act over, Trump said he’s ready to move on to tax reform
** House Speaker Paul Ryan said the failure of the health-care bill has made tax overhaul more difficult
* “The obstacles to tax reform are at least as great as those that blocked the health-care bill,” Tan Kai Xian, an analyst at consultancy GaveKal Research, wrote in a note; “it is now abundantly clear that fiscal and regulatory reforms are going to take a lot longer to accomplish than many investors previously hoped”
* VIX fell to 12.50 after earlier climbing to the highest since November
* Volume 8.4% lower than YTD average
* ECONOMY:
** Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said in interview with Bloomberg News that two rate hikes may be right for U.S. economy
** Dallas Fed March manufacturing survey at 16.9 vs 24.5 in the prior month; estimate 22
* EARNINGS (S&P 500):
** Pre-market Tuesday: Carnival (CCL)
* Stoxx Europe 600 Index down 0.4% with a gauge for the basic resources sector dropping 3.3%
** Mining stocks had been been among the biggest beneficiaries of the Trump rally that began in November

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Strength does not come from physical capacity.  It comes from an indomitable will.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Every human benefit, every virtue and every prudent act, is founded on compromise.
                                                                               -Edmund Burke, 1729-1797

 

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

Posted on

March 24, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On this day in 1765, Britain’s parliament passes the Quartering Act, requiring American colonists to provide temporary housing to British soldiers.
Also on this day, on March 24, 1989, one of the nation’s worst oil spills occurred as the supertanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on a reef in Alaska’s Prince William Sound and began leaking 11 million gallons of crude.
Go to article »

Be as you wish to seem. –Socrates.

PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE DAY

Race official Graham Warren wears a cat mask and 3D sunglasses trackside during the first Formula One practice session at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on Friday. Jason Reed/Reuters

The Southern Lights are seen from a chartered plane over the Southern Ocean near Antarctica on Friday. The plane that left Dunedin, New Zealand, flew close to the Antarctic Circle to give passengers an up-close view of the Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights. Ian Griffin/AP

Participants of a so-called ‘Mirror March’ (Spiegelmarsch) art performance carry flags and giant mirrors in the old town of Dresden, eastern Germany, on Friday. The performance is a project by artist Svea Duwe. It is said to be a concrete artistic reflection of social movements that are currently taking place in Germany and other European countries. Jens Meyer/AP

More than 500,000 sandhill cranes stop over on the Platte River near Fort Kearny State Historical Park in Kearny, Neb., on Friday. The cranes fly from southern wintering grounds to northern breeding grounds in Canada, Alaska, and Siberia. Nick Ut/AP
Market Closes for March 24th, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20596.72 -59.86

 

-0.29%
 
S&P 500 2343.98 -1.98

 

-0.08%
 
NASDAQ 5828.738 +11.045

 

+0.19%
 
TSX 15442.67 +9.07

 
+0.06%

 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19262.53 +177.22
 
 
+0.93%

 
HANG

SENG

 24358.27 +30.57

 
+0.13%

 
SENSEX 29421.40 +89.24
 
 
+0.30%
 
 
FTSE 100* 7336.82 -3.89
 
 
-0.05%
 
 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.634 1.688
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.303 2.347
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.4105 2.4194
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0134 3.0294

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous   
Canadian $ 0.74732 0.74896
 
 
US

$

 1.33812 1.33518
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.44507 0.69201
 
 
US

$

 1.07993 0.92599

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1247.50 1247.50
 
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 47.32 47.00

 

Market Commentary:
Number of the Day
1,057
The number of hedge funds that closed down in 2016, the most in a year since 2008, dropping the number of operating firms to 8,326, the lowest since 2013.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks closed slightly higher as oil prices notched their first gain this week and investors shrugged off a canceled vote on U.S. President Donald Trump’s health-care bill.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index added nine points or 0.1 percent to 15,442.67 as Republican lawmakers indicated that they’ll tackle Trump’s planned pro-growth policies next no matter what becomes of his health-care bill. The Canadian benchmark was down 0.3 percent on the week.
    Consumer discretionary stocks gained 0.7 percent, led by Amaya Inc., which added 3.8 percent after the online gaming company’s CEO said he’s on the hunt for deals. Energy stocks added 0.1 percent after West Texas Intermediate climbed 1 percent to $48.14, its first gain this week.
     In other moves:
* Detour Gold Corp. jumped 6.9 percent following Thursday’s 5.9 percent loss. BMO analyst Brian Quast said the selloff was overblown.
* Klondex Mines Ltd. tumbled 6 percent after the company missed fourth-quarter earnings expectations. The materials index fell 0.2 percent.
US
By Jeremy Herron and Julie Verhage
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose from session lows to end little changed as investors assessed the fallout from a failed health-care vote that has raised questions on Trump administration’s ability to push its pro-growth agenda through Congress. Treasuries rose and the dollar slipped.
     The S&P 500 Index capped its worst week since the election as political wrangling in Washington dominated sentiment. Banks sank 3.8 percent in the week, though losses were limited Friday after Donald Trump suggested to the Washington Post that he will turn his attention to tax reform. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes fell to 2.40 percent, while the dollar fell for a second week.
     Investors were left assessing the impact of the failed vote on the future of Trump’s pro-growth agenda after the battle captivated Wall Street for most of the week. The White House had threatened to move on to other policy priorities, including tax reform, though its ability to sail its agenda through Congress was thrown into doubt. The reflation trades sparked by Trump’s election have faltered in March, with the dollar down 1.6 percent and the S&P 500 headed for its worst month since October.
     “Whatever the case may be, tax reform was always second on the agenda. What may have changed is that now they’ll go to tax reform next and not come back to this,” Joe LaVorgna, Deutsche Bank AG chief U.S economist, said in a phone interview.
     Read our Markets Live blog here.
     Here are the main moves in markets:
     Stocks
* The S&P 500 ended 0.1 percent lower at 2,343.98 at 4 p.m. in New York. The index fell 1.4 percent in the five days, its worst week since Nov. 4.
* Banks led losses in the week with a 3.8 percent rout that was the biggest since January 2016. Health-care shares slid 1.3 percent in the week.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.2 percent to cap a 0.5 percent drop in the year.
* Japan’s Topix trimmed some losses for a week that included the biggest one-day drop since Trump’s election. The index finished with a 1.4 percent decline for the week. The MSCI Asia Pacific fared better, with a 0.1 percent decrease.

     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Index lost 0.1 percent as it heads for a weekly slide of 0.7 percent. The measure Thursday eked out a gain to snap a six-day losing streak.
* The British pound weakened 0.3 percent to $1.2479, while the euro added 0.1 percent to $1.0797.
* The Mexican peso has rallied about 9 percent versus the dollar this year, setting up for the best first quarter performance in more than two decades.

     Bonds
* U.S. Treasuries rose, pushing the 10-year yield down to 2.41 percent.
* Ten-year yields remained pinned between the average price over the past 50 days and the 100-day moving average for a third straight day.
* European bonds shrugged off stronger-than-expected purchasing managers data out of Germany and France. French 10-year yields dropped six basis points to 0.982 percent.
* The yield on bund benchmarks fell three basis points to 0.40 percent.

     Commodities
* Crude capped a weekly loss as OPEC and its market allies prepared to review cuts, while rising U.S. inventories indicated the measures aren’t working yet.
* West Texas Intermediate rose 27 cents Friday to settle at $47.97 a barrel, trimming the weekly loss to 1.7 percent.999
* Gold futures were little changed near $1,250, holding the week’s gain at 1.4 percent.
* Iron ore futures in China posted an unprecedented weekly loss; the most-active contract in Singapore is lower for a sixth day; and spot prices had the biggest slump since November.

 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

You have to stand against the whole world although you may have to stand alone.
You have to stare the world in the face although the world may look at you with a bloodshot eye.
Do not fear.
Trust that little thing in you which resides in the heart and says:
forsake friends, wife, all, but testify to that for which you have lived and for which you have to die.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,
 

Carolann

 

One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.
                                                      -Malala Yousafzai, b. 1997

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

Posted on

March 23, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On March 23, 2010, President Barack Obama signed into law the Affordable Care Act, the most sweeping piece of federal legislation since Medicare was passed in 1965.
Go to article »

The Numbers:

1 BILLION
Hours of YouTube watched daily by the global population.

506 TONS
Of luggage Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz is reportedly taking on his nine-day visit to Indonesia.  It includes two limousines.

3.77 BILLION
Age (in years) of “microfossils” discovered in Canada.  This would make them the oldest fossils ever found, but scientists suspect they could be as old as 4.28 billion years; the planet itself is estimated to be 4.55 billion years old.

146 YEARS
Since Chicago last experienced a January and February with no snow on the ground, as measured by the National Weather Service.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A bee collects nectar from a flower at the Spring Flowers exhibition at Orman Garden in Cairo, Egypt, on Thursday. The annual exhibition attracts flower enthusiasts and art photographers. Amr Nabil/AP

The Brandenburg Gate in Berlin is illuminated with the colors of the British flag on Thursday to show solidarity with the victims of the recent attack in London. Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters
Market Closes for March 23rd, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20656.58 -4.72

 

-0.02%
 
S&P 500 2345.96 -2.49

 

-0.11%
 
NASDAQ 5817.691 -3.950

 

-0.07%
 
TSX 15433.61 +85.15

 
+0.55%
 
 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19085.31 +43.93

 
+0.23%
 
 
HANG

SENG

 24327.70 +7.29
 
 
+0.03%

 
SENSEX 29332.16 +164.48

 
+0.56%

 
FTSE 100* 7340.71 +15.99

 
+0.22%

 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.688 1.678
 
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.347 2.341
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.4194 2.4014
 
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0294 3.0158
 

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.74896 0.75054

 
US

$

 1.33518 1.33238
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.43971 0.69458

 
US

$

 1.07829 0.92740

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1247.50 1249.05
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 47.00 47.34
 
 

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Linda Nguyen
     (Canadian Press) — TORONTO — A gain across most sectors sent Canada’s largest stock market higher Thursday, as New York indexes barely moved amid a delayed vote in U.S. Congress to replace Obamacare.
     In Toronto, the S&P/TSX composite index climbed 85.15 points to 15,433.61, helped by advancing industrials and financial stocks.
     The increase came a day after Ottawa released its latest federal budget, which held few surprises and avoided making any changes to capital gain taxes.
     Todd Mattina, a chief economist with Mackenzie Investments, said the budget was void of any major announcements because the government had to factor in incoming policy changes out of the United States under President Donald Trump.
     “The Trump effect is keeping Canadian policy-makers in a holding pattern until they have more clarity about the U.S.,” Mattina said.
     “It’s hard to raise local taxes, as your most important trading partner plans on large-scale tax cuts, especially if the goal is to attract highly skilled and talented workers in an new innovation type of economy.
     “The macro outlook on Canada could also change this year if the U.S. suddenly announces major border taxes aggressively renegotiates NAFTA.”
     Mattina also noted that Ottawa will have the option of introducing more measures at its fall fiscal update, or earlier in the year.
     On Wall Street, indexes were at a near standstill, as doubts mount over whether the American Health Care Act backed by Trump will pass through Congress. Near the close of trading Thursday, House Republican leadership postponed the vote because of a lack of support.
     The Dow Jones industrial average lost 4.72 points to 20,656.58, the S&P 500 index fell 2.49 points to 2,345.96, and the Nasdaq composite index pulled back 3.95 points to 5,817.69.
     Investors are watching the ‘Trumpcare’ vote closely because if it doesn’t go ahead, it may spell trouble for the U.S. leader’s other business-friendly policies that have driven stock markets to record levels since November.
     “Investors are starting to wonder if Trump can live up to the high expectations of pushing through a very ambitious agenda of tax cuts and infrastructure spending,” Mattina said.
     In currencies, the Canadian dollar fell 0.14 of a U.S. cent at 74.90 cents US as oil prices fell for a fourth straight day in a row.
     Meanwhile in commodities, the May crude contract was down 34 cents at US$47.70 per barrel and April natural gas contracts were up four cents at US$3.05 per mmBTU.
     The April gold contract fell $2.50 at US$1,247.20 an ounce and May copper contracts was up a penny at US$2.64 a pound.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks slid, with health-care stocks and the viability of President Trump’s agenda in focus as House leaders delayed a scheduled vote on their embattled health-care bill.
* S&P 500 ends 0.1% lower at 2,345.96 after switching between positive and negative throughout the day as outcome of health bill remained murky
** Rose 0.2% on Wednesday after the biggest selloff since October the previous day
* Dow Jones down 5 points to 20,656.58
* Banks and material stocks led with gains of at least 0.2%
* Energy shares down 0.4% after fluctuating between up and down as oil declines for the third time this week
* VIX up for fifth session to 13; highest of 2017
* About 6.3 billion shares traded hands, below YTD average; eight of 11 sectors traded on volume lower than 30-day average
* The current version of American Health Care Act would slash billions of dollars from health-care spending and raise insurance costs for many, according to an analysis by a nonpartisan government body
* ECONOMY:
** Jobless claims increased by 15,000 to 258,000 in the week ended March 18
* S&P 500 EARNINGS: None
* Stoxx 600 Index rallied 0.9% with all 10 sector groups higher
** Consumer discretionary and financial shares led with gains of 1.2%

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

Very few people in this world can reason normally.
There is a terrible  tendency to accept all that is said, all that is read, and to accept it without question.
Only he who is ready to question, to think for himself, will find the truth!
To understand the currents of a river,
he who wishes to know the truth must enter the water.
Nisargadatta

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

One must be one’s own inspiration.
              -Tegla Loroupe, b. 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

Posted on

March 22, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

SPRING

How fair the flowers unaware
That do not know what beauty is!
Fair, without knowing they are fair,
With poets and gazelles they share
       Another world than this.

They can but die, and not betray
As friends or love betray the heart.
They can but live their pretty day
And do no worse than simply play
       Their brief sufficient part.

They cannot break the heart, as friend
Or love may split our trust for ever.
We never asked them to pretend:
Death is a clean, sufficient end
         For flower, friend, or lover.
          -V. Sackville-West, The Garden

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Umbrellas are placed over the statue of the Beatles during a photocall on Liverpool’s waterfront in England on Wednesday. The city is getting ready to celebrate the half-centenary of ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,’ one of the most influential albums by local heroes The Beatles. Peter Byrne/PA/AP

Black swans swim on Lake Baldeneysee, near Essen, Germany, on Wednesday. Roland Weihrauch/dpa/AP

People walk in the World Trade Center Oculus transportation hub beneath a portion of ‘The Water Clouds by Stella Artois,’ a public art installation of balloons to recognize World Water Day, in New York on Wednesday. Mike Segar/Reuters
Market Closes for March 22nd, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20661.30 -6.71

 

-0.03%
 
S&P 500 2348.45 +4.43

 

+0.19%
 
NASDAQ 5821.641 +27.815

 

+0.48%
 
TSX 15348.46 +35.33

 
+0.23%

 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19041.38 -414.50
 
 
-2.13%
 
 
HANG

SENG

 24320.41 -272.71
 
 
-1.11%
 
 
SENSEX 29167.68 -317.77
 
 
-1.08%
 
 
FTSE 100* 7324.72 -53.62
 
 
-0.73%
 
 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.678 1.704
 
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.341 2.363
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.4014 2.4175
 
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0158 3.0343
 
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous   
Canadian $ 0.75054 0.74869
 
 
US

$

 1.33238 1.33566
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.43869 0.69508
 
 
US

$

 1.07979 0.92610

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1249.05 1241.60
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 47.34 47.34
 
 

Market Commentary:
On this day in 2000, the S&P 500 closes above 1500 for the first time, finishing the day at 1500.64.
Number of the Day
109
The number of trading sessions the the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average had gone without a pullback of 1%, the longest such streak since the mid-1990s. Tuesday both indexes closed down more than 1%.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rebounded to end the day higher after briefly moving into negative territory for the year.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 0.2 percent to close at 15,348.46. Earlier in the day, it fell as low as 15,241.55, erasing its gains for 2017 and making it one of the worst- performing developed market benchmarks year-to-date.
     The rebound followed a widespread global rout on Tuesday that saw the S&P 500 lose more than 1 percent for the first time since October over concerns that U.S. President Donald Trump’s pro-growth policies will be delayed. Utilities stocks led the TSX higher, gaining 1.1 percent, while consumer staples stocks rose 0.9 percent.
     In other moves:
* Silver Wheaton Corp. jumped 7.5 percent after the company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results and boosted its dividend
* The health-care index was the biggest loser, falling 1.1 percent. Shares of ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. slumped 6.4 percent.
US
By Dani Burger and Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rebounded after the first 1 percent decline since October, while havens from Treasuries to the yen remained in demand as investors assessed the prospects for pro-growth policies in America.
     The S&P 500 Index edged higher, while technology-heavy measures posted solid advances. Banks slipped to an eight-week low after bearing the brunt of Tuesday’s rout. Treasury 10-year yields fell to 2.40 percent, the yen surged versus all its G-10 peers and gold rose toward $1,250 an ounce. Bloomberg’s dollar measure fell a sixth day, its longest slump since November. New Zealand’s central bank held its benchmark rate steady.
     The gains in U.S. equities provided a measure of calm to the market, though havens remained in demand a day before a Republican health-care bill is set for a vote in Congress. Lawmakers have signaled any setback could delay enactment of tax cuts and spending increases, the prospects for which have underpinned the rally in risk assets since Donald Trump’s election. The depth of selling Tuesday drew some investors back in on speculation the drop went too far given data showing strength in the global economy.
     “Everyone has been waiting for a dip for so long that when you get some kind of a dip, for not just tech but large-cap value too, it’s one of those opportunities to buy in,” said Mariann Montagne, a portfolio manager at Gradient Investments LLC, which oversees about $1.4 billion. “Maybe people are seeing a cue that things aren’t deteriorating across tech land. The deterioration of tech wasn’t due to fundamentals, it was just a function of pricing.”
     Read our Markets Live blog here.
     What’s coming up the rest of this week:
* The U.S. Federal Reserve speakers just keep coming, and as you’d expect Janet Yellen’s appearance on March 23 will attract most attention.
* The timing of the House of Representatives vote Thursday has not been set, with reports differing on whether the Republicans can marshal enough support to pass the measure.
* Central bank policy decisions are expected in New Zealand, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.
* March PMI and final fourth-quarter GDP figures for France are due Friday.
     Here are the main moves in markets:
     Stocks
* The S&P 500 added 0.2 percent to 2,348.50 at 4 p.m. in New York, after earlier falling as much as 0.3 percent. The measure notched on Tuesday its first 1 percent decline since October.
* The Nasdaq 100 Index jumped 0.7 percent, while small caps in the Russell 2000 Index fell 0.1 percent.
* Financial shares slid 0.1 percent following a 2.9 percent rout Tuesday.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.4 percent, the biggest decrease in about a month.
* The FTSE 100 Index slid 0.7 percent, holding its level after London’s worst terror attack in more than a decade left four people dead.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 0.5 percent in its first retreat in almost two weeks.

      Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dropped 0.2 percent, headed for a sixth straight loss..
* The British pound was little changed at $1.2487, showing scant reaction to the attacks in London.
* The Japanese yen rose 0.5 percent to 111.136 per dollar, hitting the strongest in about four months with its seventh straight increase.

      Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 2.39 percent, the lowest in more than three weeks.
* Gilts advanced, sending the 10-year yield lower by eight basis points.
* France’s 10-year yield fell five basis points to the lowest in a week. Germany’s also dropped five basis points.

      Commodities
* Brent took center stage in the oil market after dipping below $50 for the first time this year. It pared losses to trade 0.4 percent lower at $50.73 a barrel.
* West Texas Intermediate oil settled at $48.04, dropping for a third day as data showed U.S. crude supplies climbed.
* Gold capped a sixth straight gain in its longest run since the U.K. vote to leave the European Union. Futures for April delivery gained 0.3 percent to settle at $1,249.70.
* Iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange sank into a bear market as steel in Shanghai posted the longest run of declines this year.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

With the clouds hanging in the air above the trees,
and the birds falling silent before the storm,
this morning brings forth serious reflection,
bringing into question the entirety of existence,
the gods themselves, and all human activity.
Krishnamurti

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Dream big and dare to fail.
       -Norman D. Vaughan, 1923-2002


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

Posted on

March 21, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

On March 21, 1965, more than 3,000 civil rights demonstrators led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. began their march from Selma to Montgomery, Ala.
Go to article »

Also on this day in 2006, Jack Dorsey fires off the first tweet, launching Twitter.

  As this summer’s total solar eclipse over North America gets closer, the University of California, Berkeley and Google are looking for filmmaking volunteers.   The two partners aim to carry out what they’re calling the Eclipse Megamovie Project.  By combining footage from more than 1,000 cameras in the path of the eclipse, they hope to create a 90-minute “megamovie” capturing the phenomenon in  a way no single human could.
  When the moon passes directly between Earth and the sun on August 21st, the center of its shadow will trace a diagonal path across the United States from Oregon to South Carolina.  Observers located at the exact center of the “path of totality” will be able to experience the total eclipse – full moon darkness – for as long as 2 minutes 40 seconds as the moon’s shadow flies over the ground at about 1,500 miles per hour.
  The Eclipse Megamovie Project hopes to select and train some 1,000 volunteers to record as much of the eclipse as they can.  The terabytes of video data will be stitched together to create a complete, high-resolution record of the eclipse.
  “it is truly a transformative, life-changing experience and we want to prepare people for that,” says Laura Peticolas, a physicist with the megamovie project, in a press release.  An application will be released this summer so that anyone can contribute to the project via smartphone.  That footage will be used in a second, lower resolution video.
  For more information, visit the megamovie website at https://eclipsemega.movie/.

7 Earth-size planets orbiting in the habitable zone of a newly discovered solar system 39 light years away, making it the most promising place in the galaxy to look for extraterrestrial life.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A blue tit gathers twigs for its nest from a garden in Vertou, France, on Tuesday. Stephane Mahe/Reuters

Smurf dolls are lined up to promote the new 3D computer-animated movie ‘Die Schluempfe – Das verlorene Dorf’ (‘The Smurfs – The lost village’) in front of Stadelhof railway station in Zurich, Switzerland, on Tuesday. Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters

Visitors celebrating the spring equinox reach their arms up to receive the sun’s energy atop the Pyramid of the Sun at the Teotihuacan archeological site in Mexico on Tuesday. Although the official vernal equinox occurred early Monday, thousands of visitors were expected to climb the ancient pyramid between Sunday and Tuesday to greet the sun and celebrate the beginning of spring. Rebecca Blackwell/AP
Market Closes for March 21st, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20668.01 -237.85

 

-1.14%
 
S&P 500 2344.02 -29.45

 

-1.24%
 
NASDAQ 5793.825 -107.704

 

-1.83%
 
TSX 15313.13 -129.19

 
-0.84%
 
 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19455.88 -65.71

 
-0.34%
 
 
HANG

SENG

 24593.12 +91.13
 
 
+0.37%
 
 
SENSEX 29485.45 -33.29
 
 
-0.11%
 
 
FTSE 100* 7378.34 -51.47
 
 
-0.69%
 
 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.704 1.765
 
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.363 2.414
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.4175 2.4987
 
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.0343 3.1112
 
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.74869 0.74891

 
US

$

 1.33566 1.33528
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.44331 0.69285

 
US

$

 1.08078 0.92526

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1241.60 1232.40
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 47.34 48.17
 
 

Market Commentary:
NUMBERS OF THE DAY
400 million

The approximate number of customers Vodafone will have in India after merging its embattled business there with a local rival, Idea Cellular. The $24 billion deal would create India’s largest wireless company. 

2.01 percentage points
The 10-year break-even rate, which measures the yield premium on the 10-year Treasury note relative to comparable Treasury inflation-protected securities, was 2.01 percentage points Monday. That reflects investors’ expectation of an annual 2.01% rate of inflation over the next 10 years, nearly the same as the 2% reading on the five-year break-even rate.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell to their lowest level this year, reversing earlier gains, as oil prices slumped below $48 a barrel and U.S. President Donald Trump’s promised tax cuts looked less likely.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 0.8 percent to 15,313.13, its lowest close since Dec. 30. Financial stocks fell 1.2 percent as government bond yields lost ground, and the industrials index slipped 1.2 percent after U.S. Republicans warned that failure to pass a health-care bill could jeopardize plans for massive corporate tax cuts.
     Energy stocks lost 1.1 percent as West Texas Intermediate fell 1.8 percent to $47.34, its lowest close since November, on forecasts that U.S. crude supplies will continue to grow.
     In other moves:
* Shares of Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. jumped 9.3 percent after it discovered more copper at a joint-venture mining project in the Democratic Republic of Congo
* Consumer discretionary shares fell 1.3 percent as auto supplier Magna International Inc. lost 3.4 percent.
US
By Jeremy Herron and Joseph Ciolli
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell the most since Donald Trump’s election as the reflation trades that bolstered the dollar and Treasury yields faltered amid growing concern pro- growth policies won’t sail through Congress. Crude slumped through $48 a barrel.
     The S&P 500 Index sank more than 1 percent for the first time since Oct. 11, with the selloff deepening in the final 30 minutes of trading after Reuters reported North Korea would pursue accelerating its nuclear program. Banks led the rout throughout the day, tumbling the most since June as Treasury yields tumbled and Morgan Stanley warned its fixed-income trading won’t pick up. 
     Industrial and material shares slumped as House Republicans warned failure to pass a health-care bill on Thursday could imperil tax and spending reforms. Oil resumed a slide as U.S. crude stockpiles are forecast to increase. Gold topped $1,240 an ounce on haven demand.
     Trump met with House Republicans Tuesday morning to rally support for the repeal of Obamacare as investors look for signs that his plans to cut corporate taxes and boost spending will move forward. Fed Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari repeated Tuesday his opposition to the Fed’s latest rate hike and argued the central bank shouldn’t rush to tighten with signs of inflation remaining subdued. 
     “With the health-care morass, the Trump effect is taking a little bit of a backseat in peoples’ minds,” said Steve Sosnick, an equity risk manager at Timber Hill LLC, the market-making unit of Greenwich, Connecticut-based Interactive Brokers Group Inc. “It feels like the market needs another catalyst. The catalysts had been coming largely from the Fed and the Trump effect. Something is spooking people.”
     Read our Markets Live blog here.
     What’s coming up this week:
* There’s a steady lineup of Fed speakers this week, headlined by Janet Yellen on March 23, while central bank policy decisions are expected in New Zealand, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.
* The House of Representatives votes Thursday on the repeal of the Affordable Care Act.
* March PMI for France is due Friday, along with final fourth- quarter GDP figures.
     Here are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 1.2 percent to 2,343.98 as of 4 p.m. in New York, the biggest drop since September and the lowest level in a month. The index hadn’t fallen 1 percent in any session for 109 straight days.
* Banks sank 2.9 percent for the steepest slide since June 24, the day after the U.K. vote to leave the European Union.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.5 percent. Mining stocks tumbled as the British pound strengthened.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index halted a seven-day advance that was the longest rally since August.

     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index slipped by 0.3 percent, following a 0.1 percent drop Tuesday.
* The euro was up by 0.7 percent at $1.0812, rising versus all of its G-10 peers except sterling.
* The British pound traded 1 percent higher to $1.2487 after U.K. inflation accelerated more than forecast to break through the Bank of England’s target for the first time since 2013.

     Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasury notes fell three basis points to 2.43 percent after earlier rising by four basis points. The rate is down 11 basis points in the past three sessions.
* The U.S. bond rally pushed the yield advantage on 10-year U.S. Treasuries over German debt to the narrowest level in more than four months.
* The yield on 10-year German government bonds rose two basis points to 0.46 percent.

     Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate oil fell 1.8 percent to settle at $47.34 before U.S. inventory data on Wednesday and as Libya prepared to restart crude shipments from major ports.
* Copper slumped 1.8 percent to finish at $5,776 a metric ton in London, amid signs supplies are returning. Disruptions caused the metal to surge last month to the highest level since 2015.
* Gold dropped 0.1 percent to $1,233.68 an ounce, after four days of gains.

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

The outward freedom that we shall attain will only be in exact proportion
to the inward freedom to which we may have grown at any given moment.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Nothing in life is to be feared.  It is only to
be understood.
                   -Marie Curie, 1967-1934

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

Posted on

March 20, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:  Spring Equinox  🙂 !

Spring is when life’s alive in everything. –Christina Rosetti

SPRING VERSE
One swallow does not make a spring.
Bluebirds are a sign of spring; warm weather and gentle south breezes they bring.
In spring, no one thinks of the snow that fell last year.
Don’t say that spring has come until you can put your foot on nine daisies.
Spring-time sweet!
The whole Earth smiles, thy coming to greet.
SPRING PICTURE SLIDESHOW
        Enjoy 10 beautiful images of springtime. This photo comes from Texas. Just click below and smile! 
        (from The Farmer’s Almanac).

On this day in 1602, the western world’s first major publicly traded company is born, as the Dutch legislature grants a monopoly on trade to the Dutch East India Company. In 1609, the company’s directors declare that investors cannot sell their shares back to the company, but only to other investors — giving birth to the modern stock market.
1852: Uncle Tom’s Cabin was published.
1828: the writer Henrik Ibsen was born.
43 BC: the writer Ovid was born.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A robot sits quietly at the Robotics Innovation Center booth during preparations at the CeBit computer fair, which will open its doors to the public on March 20, at the fairground in Hanover, Germany. Fabian Bimmer/Reuters

A cow grazes in a field of Sinapis in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Monday. Baz Ratner/Reuters

Iraqi Kurdish people carry torches up a mountain to celebrate Newroz Day, a festival marking their Spring and New Year, in the town of Akra, Iraq, on Monday. Ari Jalal/Reuters
Market Closes for March 20th, 2017

Market

Index

 Close Change
Dow

Jones

 20905.86 -8.76

 

-0.04%
 
S&P 500 2373.47 -4.78

 

-0.20%
 
NASDAQ 5901.53 +0.53

 

+0.01%
 
TSX 15442.32 -48.17

 
-0.31%

 

International Markets

Market

Index

 Close Change
NIKKEI 19521.59 -68.55
 
 
-0.35%
 
 
HANG

SENG

 24501.99 +192.06

 
+0.79%

 
SENSEX 29518.74 -130.25

 
-0.44%

 
FTSE 100* 7429.81 +4.85

 
+0.07%

 

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous  % Yield
CND.

10 Year Bond

 1.728 1.765
 
CND.

30 Year

Bond

 2.391 2.414
U.S.   

10 Year Bond

 2.462 2.4987

 
U.S.

30 Year Bond

 3.078 3.1112

 
           
           

Currencies

BOC Close Today Previous  
Canadian $ 0.74891 0.74907
 
 
US

$

 1.33528 1.33499
     
Euro Rate

1 Euro=

   Inverse
Canadian $ 1.43408 0.69731

 
US

$

 1.07399 0.93111 

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold

Fix

 1232.40 1229.60
     
Oil Close Previous
WTI Crude Future 48.17 48.82

 

Market Commentary:
NUMBER OF THE DAY
$11.5 million
Median pay for the CEOs of 104 of the biggest American companies in fiscal 2016, up 6.8%. Twice as many companies increased their chiefs’ pay as reduced it.
Canada
By Linda Nguyen | March 20, 2017 17:30 
Source: The Canadian Press
The Toronto stock market fell Monday as oil prices tracked lower ahead of the release of the federal budget, while Wall Street remained steady.
The S&P/TSX composite index gave up 48.17 points at 15,442.32, a notable gain in the gold sector not enough to offset losses in most other sectors.
The market also benefited from news of an unsolicited US$1.1 billion takeover offer that was rejected by Toronto-based Dominion Diamond, a company run by American billionaire Dennis Washington.
Dominion Diamond operates the Ekati mine in the Northwest Territories and owns a 40% stake in the Diavik mine through a joint venture with Rio Tinto.
Shares in the company soared more than 23%, or $3.06, to finish at $16.27 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Canadian markets analyst Craig Fehr said the Canadian market is shying away from any major moves until the federal budget gets released on Wednesday.
Market watchers will wait to see if Ottawa plans on any massive spending in areas like the resource or industrials sectors, which may stand to benefit most.
“This is going to be an interesting budget, not because it’s going to contain a lot of surprises, but it will show a bit of how the government is perhaps trying to navigate the uncertainties that exist now with trade policies and the U.S.,” said Fehr, who is with Edward Jones in St. Louis.
The budget will also be keeping an eye on fiscal restraint to ensure that government debt levels don’t raise dramatically, he added.
“There are a lot of balls in the air for the government and I think the budget is going to address some or all of them at the same time,” said Fehr.
In New York, markets were mixed. The Dow Jones industrial average declined 8.76 points to 20,905.86 and the broader S&P 500 dipped 4.78 points to 2,373.47. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index was barely changed, gaining 0.53 of a point to 5,901.53.
The Canadian dollar was trading at US74.88¢, down 0.10 of a U.S. cent amid weaker crude prices. The April oil contract lost US56¢ at US$48.22 a barrel, while the more heavily traded May contract fell 4US0¢ at $48.91 a barrel.
US
In New York, markets were mixed. The Dow Jones industrial average declined 8.76 points to 20,905.86 and the broader S&P 500 dipped 4.78 points to 2,373.47. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index was barely changed, gaining 0.53 of a point to 5,901.53.
Last week, the U.S. Federal Reserve hiked its key short-term rate by a quarter-point to a range of 0.75% to 1%, committing to staying the course by planning only two more raises this year despite a strengthening U.S. economy.
Following the lackluster performances seen in the two previous sessions, stocks continued to show a lack of direction during trading on Monday. The major averages once again spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.
The major averages eventually ended the day little changed. While the Nasdaq inched up 0.53 points or less than 0.1 percent to 5,901.53, the Dow edged down 8.76 points or less than 0.1 percent to 20,905.86 and the S&P 500 dipped 4.78 points or 0.2 percent to 2,373.47.
The choppy trading on Wall Street came as many traders stuck to the sidelines amid a quiet day on the U.S. economic front.
The economic calendar remains relatively light throughout the week, although traders are likely to keep an eye on reports on new and existing home sales and durable goods orders.
Speeches by a number of Federal Reserve officials may also attract attention this week after the central bank’s decision to raise interest rates by a quarter point last week.
In an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said he voted against the rate hike because inflation is still below the central bank’s 2 percent target.
Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off disappointment with the outcome of the G20 meeting, where finance ministers failed to agree on a commitment to keep global trade free and open.
The token reference to trade in the G20 communique was seen as a reflection of President Donald Trump’s more protectionist policies.
Among individual stocks, shares of Esperion Therapeutics (ESPR) moved sharply higher after the lipid management company said the FDA confirmed that its LDL-C lowering program is adequate to support approval of an LDL-C lowering indication for bempedoic acid.
Aralez Pharmaceuticals (ARLZ) also posted a strong gain following news CEO Adrian Adams acquired an additional 500,000 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s common stock.
Meanwhile, Aevi Genomic Medicine (GNMX) saw substantial weakness after revealing a SAGA trial of AEVI-001 in adolescents with mGluR mutation positive ADHD did not meet its primary endpoint.
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster performance by the broader markets.
Within the biotech sector, Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) posted a standout gain after announcing positive results from a study of its new opioid pain medication.Biotechnology stocks showed a substantial move to the upside, however, with the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index surging up by 2 percent. The jump lifted the index to its best closing level in over a year.
Significant strength also emerged among gold stocks, as reflected by the 1.4 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The strength in the sector came as gold for April delivery rose $3.80 to $1,234 an ounce.
On the other hand, banking stocks came under pressure over the course of the session, dragging the Dow Jones Banks Index down by 1.3 percent. With the drop, the index fell to its lowest closing level in a month.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Monday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed by 0.8 percent, while Australia’s All Ordinaries Index fell by 0.4 percent. The Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.
The major European markets also finished the day mixed. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index inched up by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index dipped by 0.3 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, treasuries moved to the upside on the day, extending a recent upward trend. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, dropped by 2.8 basis points to 2.473 percent.
Amid another quiet day on the U.S. economic front on Tuesday, traders are likely to keep an eye on speeches by several Federal Reserve officials.
Additionally, General Mills (GIS) and Lennar (LEN) are among the companies due to report their quarterly results before the start of trading.
by RTT Staff Writer

 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

 

Be magnificent!

With closed eyes, I have come to this last thought:
even while I am unconscious in sleep, the dangers of life will continue’
in this silent field of my sleeping body, in the same rhythm as the stars above.
My heart beats, my blood courses through my arteries,
and the millions of atoms that live in my body will vibrate in time with the harp
that quivers under the fingers of the great Master.
Rabindranath Tagore

As ever,

 

Carolann

 

Chance is always powerful.  Let your hook be always cast;  in the pool where you least
expect it, there will be a fish. –Ovid, 43 BC-17 AD

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