Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Carolann is away from the office. I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

December 23, 1783 – George Washington resigned as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army after the American Revolution. On This Day
December 23, 1823 – The poem A Visit from St. Nicholas (’Twas the Night Before Christmas) was first published. On This Day
December 23, 1958 – Tokyo Tower officially opened to the public as Japan’s tallest structure at the time. Time and Date
December 23, 1972 – The “Immaculate Reception,” one of the most famous plays in NFL history, took place. History
December 23, 1990 – Slovenia voted for independence from Yugoslavia in a national referendum. Time and Date

National Farmers’ Day (Kisan Diwas) — Celebrated in India to honor farmers and mark the birth anniversary of Chaudhary Charan Singh. Holidays and Observances
Christmas Season Observance — Part of the lead-up to Christmas celebrations worldwide. Wikipedia

Joseph Smith (Founder of the Latter Day Saint movement). b. 1805
Madam C. J. Walker (American entrepreneur and philanthropist). b. 1867
Chet Baker (American jazz trumpeter and singer). b. 1929
Eddie Vedder (American musician, lead singer of Pearl Jam). b. 1964
Carla Bruni (Italian-French singer and former First Lady of France). b. 1967

Scientists claim ‘Lucy’ may not be our direct ancestor after all, stoking fierce debate

Recent fossil finds could mean that "Lucy" wasn’t our direct ancestor, some scientists say. Others strongly disagree.

2,300-year-old Celtic gold coins found in Swiss bog

Two rare Celtic gold coins were discovered in a Swiss bog, and they may have been left there as an offering to the gods.

Best space photos of 2025

An alien comet, a Martian volcano, a man’s fall from the sun and a groundbreaking telescope’s first images: Here are the most jaw-dropping space photos of 2025.

Scientists build ‘most accurate’ quantum computing chip ever thanks to new silicon-based computing architecture

Researchers say they have created the world’s first scalable atomic quantum processor that achieves record-breaking 99.99% fidelity.

‘I’ve never lived in a pretty place like this’: How moving from the US to Germany changed this woman’s outlook on life

Driving past the mountains, creeks, and rivers near her home in southwestern Germany, Kate Raidt says the scenery still catches her attention. She jokes that she’s “probably the only soccer mom from America who loves away games.”

One small change in battery design could reduce fires, researchers say

Lithium-ion batteries are found in everything from smartphones to cars, and while they are generally very safe if stored and charged correctly, there are thousands of documented cases of them catching fire — sometimes with deadly consequences.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

London, England

Fans arrive for day 13 of the Paddy Power world darts championship at Alexandra Palace
Photograph: Adam Davy/PA

Durham, England

Storm McBain puts the finishing touches to her Christmas display at her home in Framwellgate Moor, which took four weeks to install
Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA

Mexico City, Mexico

People enjoy soap suds simulating snowfall as part of Christmas celebrations
Photograph: Raquel Cunha/Reuters
Market Closes for December 23rd, 2025

International Markets

Bonds

Commodities

Market Commentary:
📰 On this day in 1883, Gottlieb Daimler received German patent DRP No. 28243 for “Regulation of the Speed of the Engine through Control of the Exhaust Valve.” It was his second patent for the world’s first workable gasoline-powered internal-combustion engine.
C🎅A🎅N🎅A🎅D🎅A

By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the fourth day, climbing 0.2%, or 58.63 to 32,058.73 in Toronto.
Toronto-Dominion Bank contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 0.7%.
Bausch Health Cos. had the largest increase, rising 4.6%.
Today, 117 of 218 shares rose, while 97 fell; 6 of 11 sectors were higher, led by energy stocks.
Insights
* This year, the index rose 30%, heading for the best year in at least 10 years
* This quarter, the index rose 6.8%
* This month, the index rose 2.2%
* The index advanced 30% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 17% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.1% below its 52-week high on Dec. 22, 2025 and 44.2% above its low on April 7, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 2.5% in the past 5 days and rose 6.3% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.7 on a trailing basis and 20 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.3% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$5.09t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 12.56% compared with 13.09% in the previous session and the average of 14.25% over the past month
Index
Energy | 43.8432| 0.9| 34/4
Financials | 18.1986| 0.2| 12/12
Materials | 17.5141| 0.3| 29/25
Utilities | 6.2774| 0.6| 10/4
Communication Services | 0.4817| 0.1| 3/2
Health Care | 0.2159| 0.2| 2/2
Real Estate | -0.8529| -0.2| 5/13
Industrials | -1.0543| 0.0| 14/14
Consumer Staples | -2.7373| -0.3| 3/7
Consumer Discretionary | -8.0328| -0.8| 3/6
Information Technology | -15.2047| -0.5| 2/8
TD Bank | 11.1400| 0.7| 0.4| 68.5
Enbridge | 8.9910| 0.9| -51.1| 6.5
TC Energy | 7.1250| 1.3| 94.2| 14.1
Canadian Pacific Kansas | -2.8950| -0.5| -21.6| -2.0
Celestica | -4.7910| -1.4| -53.0| 213.4
Shopify | -10.7700| -0.5| -5.6| 51.7
Bausch Health | 4.6| 0.8090| -24.1| -13.6
NFI Group | 4.2| 0.4210| 314.5| 13.4
Birchcliff Energy| 4.1| 0.5730| 3.6| 39.5
Silvercorp Metals | -3.8| -0.7180| 11.8| 173.4
Lithium Americas | -3.1| -0.3830| -36.2| 51.9
5N Plus | -3.0| -0.3420| -11.5| 144.6
(MT Newswires):
Having breached 32,000 for the first time a day earlier, The Toronto Stock Exchange closed above it for the first time on Tuesday, with Morningstar citing sector composition as a main reason for Canadian equity market outperformance this year, even as Rosenberg Research was left singing "Woe, Canada!" after the release of today’s October GDP data.
The resources-heavy S&P/TSX Composite Index closed up 58.63 points, or 0.2%,to 32,058.73, with most sectors higher, led by the Battery Metals Index, up3%, and Base Metals, up 1%.
The index has now set three successive record high finishes leading into the Christmas holiday period, with markets set to close at 1pm tomorrow and not re-open again until next Monday.
Morningstar in a Monday note and entitled ‘Canada’s Stock Market Hit Historic Highs in 2025’ in which it argues sector composition drove much of the Canadian market’s outperformance, while other factors contributed.
Among key, Morningstar noted Canadian stocks rose twice as much as U.S. stock markets in 2025; the materials sector led the market; and Bank of Canada interest rate cuts boosted bank profits, fueling financials.
As a tumultuous year draws to an end, the Canadian stock market is on pace to have a bumper year of outsized gains and eclipse its US counterparts" Morningstar said.
It added: "The composition of Canada’s stock market, which is dominated by the financial, basic materials, and energy sectors, underpinned its strong showing.

Tailwinds for these sectors included a flight into gold, a supportive central bank, rising oil and gas prices, and expanded earnings multiples.
Currency moves strengthened relative returns for Canadian stocks while a rotation away from the US stock market took place."
The Morningstar Canada Index soared 29% in 2025 through Dec. 19, outpacing the Morningstar US Market Index’s 15% return.
It noted the divergence remains just as pronounced in the S&P/TSX Composite Index’s 32% gain, versus the S&P 500’s 14% return so far in 2025.
On the economics front, Canadian real GDP contracted by 0.3% month-over-month in October, as was expected, according to veteran economist David Rosenberg.
But he said the really big disappointment came from the various components, as the weakness transcended economic disruptions from strike-related activity in the civil service and maintenance dislocation in the resource sector.
There were, he added, no special factors behind the -1.5% setback in manufacturing production or the -0.4% pullback in construction spending.
Or the fact that the retail trade sector contracted by -0.6% and has been down now in three of the past four months, "speaking to a soft consumer even with the apparent strength in the labor market of late".
Tack on the -1.1% drop in transportation services, and Rosenberg said you can see that the cyclical components in the local economy softened materially during the month , "and this has actually been a pattern since June, despite the Bank of Canada’s support moves, which we don’t believe is over".
After all, Rosenberg said, considering the lack of any revival in November with Statistics Canada showing a "tepid" +0.1% MoM recovery, Canada is set for Q4 as a whole to come in negative at -0.6% annualized.
He noted the YoY trend in Canadian real GDP has "throttled back" to a "microscopic" +0.4% YoY pace, from +1.1% in September and +2.8% a year ago. Despite the BoC’s aggressive rate cuts, the Canadian economy "in its entirety is barely growing” and is "falling well short of even the depressed pace of aggregate supply, which only leads to one conclusion which is a disinflationary outcome", Rosenberg added.
Rosenberg said: "Canada may well have avoided an unmitigated disaster from the Trump tariff file, but it is abundantly clear that there remains an uncomfortably high level of uncertainty that is holding the economy back — that +0.4% YoY real GDP trend, as an aside, is the weakest since February 2021, when we were crawling out of the pandemic recession.
Yet, the consensus on Bay Street is that the BoC will be on hold all of next year. Our response: This economy needs a lot more help."
On the central bank, Royce Mendes, Head of Macro Strategy at Desjardins, looked at the release of the Bank of Canada’s ‘Summary of Deliberations’ related to its last interest rate decision.
Mendes noted central bankers focused on the resiliency in the economy when deciding to hold rates steady earlier this month.
Upward revisions to GDP, the pickup in LFS hiring and the pop in economic activity in the third quarter all led officials to believe that the economy was beginning to heal from the trade-induced bruises.
But, Mendes also noted, the ‘Summary of Deliberations’ suggests that Governing Council was well aware the perceived strength could be fleeting.
Central bankers noted that volatile components contributed heavily to the surprisingly strong Q3 GDP reading and that final domestic demand, a better gauge of underlying economic momentum, showed no growth during the period.
Moreover, officials also discussed a wider range of labor market measures which painted a much more mixed picture.
Mendes said the conflicting signals about the economy meant that Governing Council was "very comfortable leaving rates unchanged".
He noted there remains high uncertainty regarding both the economy and inflation heading into 2026, particularly given the upcoming CUSMA review.
As a result, Canadian central bankers agreed that it was very difficult to predict when and in which direction the next interest rate move would be, he added.
"That’s a reminder to market participants that the risks to interest rates remain two-sided," Mendes said, before adding: "While market pricing for a rate hike has been delayed until December 2026, we still see a possibility that it either gets pushed back even further or switches to imply cuts.
More recent data has looked softer than what officials had in hand on December 10th and there remains ample headline risk from trade negotiations."
Of commodities, gold continued its record run into late afternoon Tuesday, rising for a third day even as the United States reported an unexpected surge in economic growth in the third quarter.
Gold for February delivery was last seen up $49.90 to US$4,519.30 per ounce, as momentum buying continues to push the precious metal to fresh highs.
Also, West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed up for a fifth-straight session, climbing despite an over supplied market as the Trump Administration continues to pressure Venezuelan exports as it looks to force regime change on the country.
WTI crude oil for February delivery closed up $0.37 to settle at US$58.38 per barrel, while February Brent oil was up $0.33 to US$62.40.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Wall Street traders parsing a batch of economic reports in a session marked by a slowdown in transactions drove stocks to all-time highs. Short-dated bonds underperformed.
The dollar fell.
In a narrow tech-led advance, the S&P 500 rose for a fourth straight day.
Volume was below the average of the past three months ahead of the Christmas holiday.
The index rebounded even after data did little to encourage bets the Federal Reserve will cut rates in the near term.
Treasury two-year yields – more sensitive to imminent Fed moves – remained above 3.5%.
That was after data showed the economy expanded at the fastest pace in two years.
A drop in consumer confidence spurred only a mild bounce in bonds from session lows.
The economy continues to chug higher, but Main Street may feel differently as evidenced by consumer confidence, noted Bret Kenwell at eToro.
“If consumers remain resilient through the holiday and the fourth quarter, it should bode well for US GDP,” he said.
“Earnings have continued to surprise to the upside. Bulls are hoping to see this trend continue.”
The S&P 500 topped 6,900.
Its equal-weighted version – which gives Dollar Tree Inc. as much clout as Apple Inc. – edged lower.
A gauge of big techs climbed about 1% while smaller firms underperformed.
The much-anticipated Santa Claus Rally period officially begins this Wednesday.
Since 1950, the S&P 500 has averaged a 1.3% return, with positive results occurring 78% of the time, according to Adam Turnquist at LPL Financial.
That said, seasonal trends reflect historical tendencies, not guarantees, he noted.
Meantime, the session after Christmas has historically been the most consistently positive day of the year for stocks, noted Bespoke Investment Group.
In the 39 years since 1953 when the market was open Dec. 26, the S&P 500 has only declined six times.
Fed Chair Should Lower Rates If the Market Does Well, Trump Says “There’s going to be more bumps in this road, but there’s also good reason to believe the trends driving the economy — AI investment and high-end consumer spending — will continue in
2026, and that the market can continue to follow earnings growth to the upside,” said Daniel Skelly, head of Morgan Stanley’s Wealth Management Market Research & Strategy Team.
President Donald Trump said he expects his Fed chair to lower rates if the market is doing well, the latest signal that the president is eager for a nominee committed to borrowing cost cuts as he nears an announcement of his choice to replace Jerome Powell.
“I want my new Fed Chairman to lower Interest Rates if the Market is doing well, not destroy the Market for no reason whatsoever,” Trump said in a social media post Tuesday.
“Anybody that disagrees with me will never be the Fed Chairman!”
Money markets see a less than 20% chance of a Fed reduction in January.
Inflation-adjusted gross domestic product increased at a 4.3% annualized pace.
That was higher than all but one estimate in a Bloomberg survey and followed 3.8% growth in the prior period.
“The strongest pace of economic growth in two years is bolstering confidence that corporate earnings will continue to expand robustly in 2026,” said Jose Torres at Interactive Brokers.
“If the economy keeps producing at this level, then there isn’t as much need to worry about a slowing economy and concerns may actually flip back to the price-stability constraint,” said Chris Zaccarelli at Northlight Asset Management.
The GDP reading vindicates the rebound in stocks from April lows, as the economy has remained remarkably resilient in the face of changes to trade policy, according Michael Reynolds at Glenmede.
“The outlook for US economic growth appears bright,” he said.
“The combined effects of tariff policy, fiscal stimulus, shifts in the labor market, AI-related productivity, and the potential for deregulation point to above trend prospects in 2026.”
Traders are trying to decipher what a strong GDP report combined with a weak hiring environment means for monetary policy, according to Scott Wren at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
“Investors should pay attention to the positive trends in place,” he said.
“We believe the next 12 months will favor US equities, based on our expectations for higher US GDP, broadening and accelerating earnings growth, moderating inflation and improved global growth.”
Separate data Tuesday showed US orders for business equipment fell by more than forecast in October.
Non-defense capital goods shipments including aircraft, which feed directly into the equipment investment portion of GDP, were stronger than expected, indicating some momentum headed into the fourth quarter.
Another report showed industrial production barely increased on average across October and November, restrained by weak manufacturing output.
“The economy is demonstrating a Goldilocks scenario with above-potential US economic growth, and declining but elevated inflation and a less robust labor market,” said Eric Teal at Comerica Wealth Management.
“The Fed will likely maintain a dovish bias.” However, in cutting rates further, Teal noted there is an increased risk in pushing long-term bond yields higher and undermining the dollar.
The economy, earnings, and Fed easing give markets decent momentum, but stretched valuations — especially in mega-cap tech — and fading rate-cut tailwinds mean returns will depend more on earnings growth and broader market participation than multiple
expansion, according to Adrian Helfert at Westwood.
Helfert also notes that the 2025 rally is no longer just mega-cap driven, and if the broadening continues alongside resilient consumers and steady margins, it will support a grind- higher scenario rather than a sharp correction.
Investors added new short bets across US stock futures last week, leaving net positioning near neutral levels, according to Citigroup Inc. strategists led by Chris Montagu.
“Even though tech stocks have been volatile in recent months, there is little reason to doubt tech’s staying power and leadership in this market, especially for 2026,” said Paul Stanley at Granite Bay Wealth Management.
Valuations in tech are high, Stanley noted, but some “Magnificent Seven” names have actually underperformed the S&P 500 this year.
That suggests that there is still more room to run and that not all tech stocks are trading at runaway or complacent valuations, he said.

Corporate Highlights:
* US airlines expect to ferry a record number of passengers over the holidays after a year in which economic uncertainty and a bgovernment shutdown have whipsawed travel demand.
* ServiceNow Inc. has reached a deal to buy the cybersecurity startup Armis in a deal valued at $7.75 billion, representing its largest acquisition to date.
* A patient died after receiving Pfizer Inc.’s drug for hemophilia, marking another setback for the company in the treatment of blood disorders.
* Johnson & Johnson was ordered to pay about $1.56 billion to a Maryland woman who blamed the company’s talc-based baby powder for causing her asbestos-linked cancer, the largest such jury verdict for an individual in 15 years of litigation.
* Novo Nordisk A/S won approval to sell a pill version of its blockbuster obesity shot Wegovy in the US, a crucial step in its effort to defend its market share from rival Eli Lilly & Co.
* Ford Motor Co. cut back its EV plans last week in a major announcement, but it simultaneously placed a big bet on a new business line: producing batteries for energy storage.
* Equinor ASA and Orsted A/S said they are engaging with US authorities over security concerns tied to their offshore wind projects, after the Trump administration issued another round of work suspension orders.
* Orsted A/S agreed to sell a majority stake in a Taiwanese wind farm to local firm Cathay as it presses ahead with plans to repair its balance sheet.
* Saks Global Enterprises, facing limited options ahead of a more than $100 million debt payment due at the end of this month, is considering Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a last resort, according to people with knowledge of the situation.
* Ryanair Holdings Plc was fined nearly €256 million ($302 million) by Italy’s antitrust watchdog for allegedly using an “abusive strategy” to thwart customers who booked through travel agencies.
* Samsung Electronics Co.-owned Harman International is buying a key driver-assistance business from Germany’s ZF Group for €1.5 billion ($1.8 billion), as financial stress across Europe’s auto-supplier sector forces companies to rethink their portfolios.
* S&P Global Ratings downgraded China Vanke Co. to selective default on Tuesday, labeling the developer’s recent onshore bond extension as a distressed debt restructuring tantamount to a default.
* Huawei Technologies Co.’s ultra-luxury Maextro S800 sedan is so popular in China nowadays, it’s outselling Porsche AG’s Panamera, Mercedes-Benz Group AG’s S-Class and all other vehicles with sticker prices of at least $100,000.
* Japan’s Tokyo Electric Power Co. saw its shares jump on Tuesday, after local media reported the company plans to develop a data center near its nuclear power plant that’s due for a restart in Niigata prefecture.
What Bloomberg Strategists say…
“The strengthening link between stocks and bonds speaks to a balance of economic data and risks that’s just right to sustain gains in both markets as 2026 begins.”
—Kristine Aquino, Managing Editor, Markets Live.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.5% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.5%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.5%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 0.9%
* The Russell 2000 Index fell 0.7%
* S&P 500 Equal Weighted Index fell 0.2%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.3%
* The euro rose 0.2% to $1.1790
* The British pound rose 0.3% to $1.3500
* The Japanese yen rose 0.5% to 156.29 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 0.6% to $87,684.95
* Ether fell 0.5% to $2,970.73
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.16%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 2.86%
* Britain’s 10-year yield declined three basis points to 4.51%
* The yield on 2-year Treasuries advanced three basis points to 3.53%
* The yield on 30-year Treasuries declined one basis point to 4.82%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.8% to $58.46 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 1.1% to $4,493.88 an ounce

Have a wonderful Evening.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Shima

"Social media has become such an important and integral part of our lives. It has become its own currency." — Paris Whitney Hilton

Shima Zangeneh

Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff

Queensbury Securities Inc.

340A – 730 View Street

Victoria BC V8W 3Y7

Tel: 778-430-5851

Fax: 778-430-5828