April 21, 2025, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
I’m writing the newsletter on Carolann’s behalf today, as she is away from the office for the Easter holidays.

April 21, 1789: John Adams sworn in as 1st US Vice President (9 days before Washington)
April 21, 1865: Abraham Lincoln‘s funeral train leaves Washington
April 21, 1956: Elvis Presley‘s first hit record, “Heartbreak Hotel,” reaches #1
April 21, 1980: The first Cubans sailing to the United States as part of the massive Mariel boatlift reached Florida. Go to article

April 21, 2025: Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, a towering figure on the world stage, dies after stroke and cardiac arrest. Go to article

The North Pole could wander nearly 90 feet west by the end of the century
As climate change melts ice sheets and glaciers, water is being redistributed across the globe — and could end up moving the point of Earth’s axis of rotation. Read More.

Two planets will form a ‘smiley face’ with the moon on April 25. Here’s where to look.
A rare ‘smiley face’ triple conjunction is coming to Earth’s morning skies on April 25, when Venus, Saturn and the crescent moon form a celestial smirk near the horizon. Read More.

Student accidentally creates ‘shape-recovering liquid’ that’s an exception to the laws of thermodynamics
A graduate student accidentally created a blend of oil, water and nickel particles that formed an unexpected shape. Read More.

A mysterious, 100-year solar cycle may have just restarted — and it could mean decades of dangerous space weather
New research suggests that the unexpected intensity of the ongoing solar maximum may be partly tied to a lesser-known, 100-year solar cycle. If true, solar activity could spike further in the coming decades. But some experts are skeptical. Read More.

Scientists may have finally found where the ‘missing half’ of the universe’s matter is hiding
About half of the non-dark matter in the universe cannot be accounted for by stars and galaxies alone. Now, scientists say previously undetected clouds of hydrogen gas could finally reveal it. Read More.

TSMC’s upcoming 2nm microchip is a breakthrough. Here’s what it means for the future of tech — from AI to smartphones.
Taiwanese manufacturer TSMC will begin producing the chips from the second half of this year. Read More.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Antarctica
An emperor penguin chick begs its parent to be fed during a blizzard, in the midst of a colony, on the Ekström ice shelf
Photograph: National Geographic/Bertie Gregory/Reuters

Hanoi, Vietnam
Workers check railway tracks at Long Bien Bridge
Photograph: Luong Thai Linh/EPA

Old City, Jerusalem
Christian pilgrims light candles at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Photograph: Saeed Qaq/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock
Market Closes for April 21st, 2025

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1982, futures contracts on the S&P 500 index become available for the first time, as they opened for trading in the pits of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
Canada
(MT Newswires)
The Toronto Stock Exchange started the week with a sharp drop, falling along with U.S. exchanges as investors returned from the holiday weekend amid spreading economic turmoil as U.S. Donald Trump’s tariff wars bite into growth.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index shed 183.95 points, closing out the start of the week on a down note, wrapping up Monday at 24,008.86.
The biggest decliners were Health Care, down 2.77%, and Information Technology, down 1.96%.
Telecoms was the sole gainer, up 0.83%.
By Bloomberg Automation:
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 0.8%, with eight of 11 sectors lower, led by health care stocks.
As of market close, 136 of 218 stocks rose, while 79 fell.
Novagold Resources Inc. led the advances, rising 4.6%, while Energy Fuels Inc/Canada decreased 9.5%.
Markets at a Glance:
* S&P/TSX Index fell 0.8% to 24,009
* Eight of 11 sectors fell
** Health care declined, down 2.7%
** Communication services gained, up 0.9%
* Crude oil fell 1.9% to $63/bbl
* Natgas fell 6.2% to $3.04/mmbtu
* Gold rose 3.1% to $3,411/oz
* Silver rose 0.6% to $33/oz
Advancers:
* Novagold Resources Inc. (NG CN) +4.6%
* Torex Gold Resources Inc. (TXG CN) +2.9%
* G. Mining Ventures Corp. (GMIN CN) +2.6%
* Orla Mining Ltd. (OLA CN) +2.1%: Orla Mining PT Raised to C$19 from C$15.50 at Stifel
* Quebecor Inc. (QBR/B CN) +2%
Decliners:
* Energy Fuels Inc/Canada (EFR CN) -9.5%
* Bausch Health Cos. (BHC CN) -7.9%: Bausch Health PT Cutto $5 from $7 at BofA
* Denison Mines Corp. (DML CN) -6.9%
* Ces Energy Solutions Corp. (CEU CN) -5.9%
* Goeasy Ltd. (GSY CN) -5.6%
US
By Cristin Flanagan
(Bloomberg) — Heavy selling lashed Wall Street anew Monday, with longer-dated Treasuries joining stocks and the dollar in a deepening slump, after President Donald Trump’s censure of Jerome Powell’s interest-rate policy sowed angst among investors already coping with a global trade war.
Trump’s assurances that tariff talks were progressing did little to stop the rout.
The S&P 500 and other major US stock indexes tumbled around 2.5% each in light trading, while a gauge of the dollar weakened to a 15-month low.
The benchmark 10-year fell with the yield reaching 4.4%.
As investors turned away from US securities, haven assets climbed.
Gold jumped to another record, above $3,400 an ounce, while the Swiss franc gained around 1% against the dollar.
The agita also spread to the US credit market.
In derivatives, the cost of protecting a basket of high-grade credit securities against default rose to the highest in more than a week.
Three investment-grade companies looked at selling bonds on Monday, but after seeing the market backdrop, two elected to stand down, and only American Express Co. moved forward with a sale.
The US president took to Truth Social Monday, amping up the pressure on the Fed chair insisting there was “virtually” no inflation and it was time for “preemptive cuts.”
The last reading of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge remains above the central bank’s target; there will be a new readout next week.
Paul Singer, founder of Elliott Investment Management, warned recently at a private event in Abu Dhabi that the US dollar might lose its reserve currency status, according to people present.
Rebuking the Fed risks politicizing US monetary policy in a way that markets find deeply unsettling, according to Christopher Wong, a currency strategist at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp.
“Frankly, firing Powell stretches belief,” said Wong.
“If the credibility of the Fed is called into question, it could severely erode confidence in the dollar.”
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee warned against efforts to curtail the central bank’s independence.
“There’s virtual unanimity among economists that monetary independence from political interference — that the Fed or any central bank be able to do the job that it needs to do — is really important,” Goolsbee said on CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday.
Legal scholars say that a president can’t dismiss a Fed chair easily, and Powell has previously said he wouldn’t resign if asked by Trump.
Trade War
A closely watched ETF tracking the S&P 500 is the second- worst performer among 45 country-specific products since Trump’s second term began, according to Bespoke Investment Group.
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust is down about 14% in that period while a BlackRock ETF tracking German stock market moves has surged 12%.
Monday’s stock selling came amid light volume — around 20% below recent averages — that was crimped by the Easter holiday, and an earnings-reporting season that is still being probed by investors for clues on the future of the economy.
Trading was in Contrast to S&P 500 selloffs earlier this month, those were accompanied by record numbers of shares changing hands.
Major retailers, including representatives from Walmart Inc. and Home Depot Inc., are reported to be meeting with President Trump Monday to discuss his levies.
His tariff offensive has been a weight on US markets amid worries about a financial slump down the road.
“The global economy is being buffeted by a US war on trade, which we believe generates a large enough economic shock to threaten the life of the US and global expansion,” wrote Bruce Kasman, chief economist at JPMorgan Chase.
“While pointing to heightened global recession risk, we also emphasize that this outcome is not likely to take hold immediately.”
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index slid 0.7% on Monday.
Every Group-of-10 currency gained against the greenback.
The jump in the yen weighed on stock indexes in Japan, pushing the Nikkei 225 down 1.3%.
WTI crude fell around 2% to below $64 a barrel.
European stock markets were largely still shut for a public holiday.
In a sign that investors are rotating investments away from the US, Deutsche Bank AG said that Chinese clients have reduced some of their Treasury’s holdings in favor of European debt.
European high-quality bonds, Japanese government bonds and gold are likely to be the potential choices for investors as alternatives to Treasuries, said Lillian Tao, head of China macro and global emerging market sales at the bank.
Shares of Tesla Inc. ended the day down 5.7%.
Dan Ives at Wedbush Securities said the electric vehicle maker faces a “code red” moment as it prepares to report earnings on Tuesday, and called for Elon Musk to step back from his work at the Department of Government Efficiency to focus on the company.
Verizon Communications Inc. and a smattering of defense contractors, including Northrop Grumman Corp., also report Tuesday.
Netflix Inc. was a rare winner after posting record profits on Thursday.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 2.4% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 2.5%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.5%
* The MSCI World Index fell 1.5%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.7%
* The euro rose 1.1% to $1.1514
* The British pound rose 0.6% to $1.3376
* The Japanese yen rose 0.9% to 140.86 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 2.6% to $87,319.06
* Ether fell 0.9% to $1,574.62
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced nine basis points to 4.42%
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.47%
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.57%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.8% to $63.50 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 2.9% to $3,422.49 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Dan Wilchins, Denitsa Tsekova, Ruth Carson, David Finnerty, Catherine Bosley, Joanne Wong, Anand Krishnamoorthy and Phil Kuntz.

Have a lovely day.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Shab
” Be as you wish to seem.”– Socrates
Shab Mohammadpour

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

Tel: 778.430.5808
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com