PUBLISHED

January 21st, 2025, Newsletter

Dear Friends, Tangents: January 21, 1915: Kiwanis Intl. founded. January 21, 1954: USS Nautilus launches as the first nuclear-powered submarine, redefining naval strategy

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

January 21, 1915: Kiwanis Intl. founded.

January 21, 1954: USS Nautilus launches as the first nuclear-powered submarine, redefining naval strategy and endurance.

January 21, 1976 The supersonic Concorde jet was put into service by Britain and France. Go to article.

Christian Dior, designer, b. 1905.

Geena Davis, actress, b. 1957.

Medieval ‘super ship’ found wrecked off Denmark is largest vessel of its kind

Divers have unearthed the largest cog shipwreck ever discovered in a strait off Denmark, signaling a period of economic development in medieval Europe. Read More.

1,700-year-old Roman marching camps discovered in Germany — along with a multitude of artifacts like coins and the remnants of shoes

Archaeologists in Germany have discovered four Roman marching camps and around 1,500 artifacts, including coins and shoe nails, dating to the third century. Read More.

‘Like watching a cosmic volcano erupt’: Scientists see monster black hole ‘reborn’ after 100 million years

Scientists saw an inactive black hole ‘reawaken’ from a 100-million-year nap with fire and fury. Read More.

James Webb telescope spies rare ‘goddess of dawn’ supernova from the early universe: An extremely early Type II supernova explosion, named after the Titan goddess of dawn in Greek mythology, occurred just 1 billion years after the Big Bang. Read More

Video: Concorde made supersonic travel a reality 50 years ago
Fifty years since its first commercial flight, CNN looks back at the Concorde, the legendary supersonic airliner.

Naomi Osaka makes big fashion statement at Australian Open
Osaka made a bold fashion choice at the Australian Open — then backed it up with a commanding win.

Protein and politics

A key focus of the Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again movement is increasing protein and saturated fat intake. Here’s what cardiologists want you to know.

Video: A trailblazing Olympian
Fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad was the first US athlete to compete in a hijab at the Olympic Games. Now she’s inspiring the next generation.

Fun Fact: On the International Space Station’s altitude (~400 km), Earth’s gravity is still about 90% of surface gravity. Astronauts float because they’re in continuous free fall while orbiting the Earth at about 17,000 mph (roughly 27,600 km/h) – not because of zero gravity.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Lviv, Ukraine

The aurora borealis (northern lights) glow over high-rise flats in western Ukraine
Photograph: Artur Abramiv/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Frankfurt, Germany

Birds fly over the River Main, in front of the city’s banking district
Photograph: Michael Probst/AP

Xigazê, Xizang (Tibet) Autonomous Region

Villagers celebrate Farmers’ New Year on the first day of the 12th month of the Tibetan calendar
Photograph: Xinhua/Shutterstock

Market Closes for January 21st, 2026

Market
Index
Close Change
Dow
Jones
49077.23 +588.64
+1.21%
S&P 500 6875.62 +78.76
+1.16%
NASDAQ 23224.82 +270.50
+1.18%
TSX 32851.53 +101.25
+0.31%

International Markets

Market
Index
Close Change
NIKKEI 52774.64 -216.46
-0.41%
HANG
SENG
26585.06 +97.55
+0.37%
SENSEX 81909.63 -270.84
-0.33%
FTSE 100* 10138.09 +11.31
+0.11%

Bonds

Bonds % Yield Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond
3.414 3.425
CND.
30 Year
Bond
3.845 3.867
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2428 4.2826
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.8621 4.9147
BOC Close Today Previous
Canadian $ 0.7224 0.7226
US
$
1.3842 1.3840
Euro Rate
1 Euro=
Inverse
Canadian $ 0.6187 1.6164
US
$
0.8564 1.1677

Commodities

Gold Close Previous
London Gold
Fix
4747.80 4666.85
Oil
WTI Crude Future 60.34 60.34

Market Commentary:

On this day in 1980, gold hit a then-record price of $850 per ounce. Gold dealers predicted that the price would hit $1,000 per ounce by July, and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury G. William Miller said, “At the moment, it doesn’t seem an appropriate time to sell our gold.” It was. By 1991 it was below $600 per ounce.

Canada

By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose 0.3% at 32,851.53 in Toronto.
The move follows the previous session’s decrease of 1%.
Today, energy stocks led the market higher, as 6 of 11 sectors gained; 120 of 218 shares rose, while 95 fell.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 4.5%.
Vermilion Energy Inc. had the largest increase, rising 6.9%.
Insights
* This month, the index rose 3.6%
* The index advanced 30% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 14% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.8% below its 52-week high on Jan. 19, 2026 and 47.8% above its low on April 7, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is little changed in the past 5 days and rose 3.5% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.2 on a trailing basis and 20.6 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.2% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$5.2t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 8.92% compared with 9.11% in the previous session and the average of 10.08% over the past month
Index Points
Energy | 111.0811| 2.2| 32/6
Financials | 69.6431| 0.7| 18/5
Industrials | 50.8968| 1.5| 21/8
Consumer Staples | 16.8061| 1.6| 7/3
Communication Services | 2.1816| 0.4| 3/2
Consumer Discretionary | 1.4272| 0.1| 6/3
Real Estate | -0.4198| -0.1| 6/12
Health Care | -1.1197| -1.3| 0/4
Utilities | -6.6507| -0.6| 3/10
Information Technology | -70.1958| -2.5| 4/6
Materials | -72.3935| -1.1| 20/36
Canadian Natural | Resources | 31.0000| 4.5| -35.4| 7.0
Cameco | 27.0800| 5.6| 35.2| 34.7
Brookfield Corp | 20.9700| 2.2| -0.9| 1.6
Wheaton Precious | Metals | -17.6100| -2.8| 18.6| 18.0
Agnico Eagle Mines | Ltd | -18.0500| -1.8| 12.9| 22.1
Shopify | -72.4600| -4.2| 52.4| -13.3(MT Newswires)
The Toronto Stock Exchange returned to winning ways Wednesday, buoyed by commodity prices, but mostly boosted by easing geopolitical tensions after U.S. President Donald Trump said he will not use force to take control of Greenland and then later talked up a "framework" security deal with NATO allies related to the entire Arctic Region, that includes Canada.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed up 101.25 points, or 0.3%, to 32,851.53, with most sectors higher, led by Energy, up near 3.4%, and each of the Battery Metals Index, Industrials and Base Metals up by at least 1.3%.
Health Care was the biggest loser, down 1.4%.
The gains for the TSX didn’t match those of U.S. markets, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were both up by 1.1% today, may reflect concerns here around the future of trade talks that are currently on hold, with the United States.
This after Prime Minister Mark Carney and Trump got involved in a war of words through their respective speeches at the World Economic Forum in Davis over the last two days.
In the end, the main take away from Trump’s speech today at the World Economic was that he will not use force in Greenland, as feared.
"I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force," said Trump. "All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland."
In other positive news out of Davos, Trump said he and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte "have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region."
A post on Truth Social reads: "This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations. Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1st."
The post also reads: "Additional discussions are being held concerning the Golden Dome as it pertains to Greenland. Further information will be made available as discussions progress."
Canada’s CTV News noted Trump said the framework of his deal includes not just Greenland, but "the entire Arctic Region."
In his Truth Social post, he does not elaborate on what he means, CTV News added, before noting: There are eight countries with territories in the Arctic. Canada is one of them, along with Greenland (Denmark).
Because of where Alaska is located, the U.S. is also part of it. The other five are: Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia and Iceland.
Trump’s speech came a day after Carney, also speaking at Davos, warned "middle powers" that the world was in the midst of a "rupture" that sees global superpowers use economic integration for coercion.
Trump appeared to take umbrage with Carney’s speech, raising the prospect of further difficulties in trade talks between the two nations later this year.
"I watched your prime minister yesterday, he wasn’t so grateful," said the U.S. President in comments directed at the Prime Minister.
"Canada lives because of the United States," Trump said, before adding" "Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements."
According to Trump, Canada gets "freebies" from the U.S. and "should be grateful" to it.
Of commodities, gold futures rose for a second day late afternoon Wednesday, rising off a day-prior record high amid geopolitical tensions.
Gold for February delivery was last seen up $53.90 to US$4,819.70 per ounce, rising off Tuesday’s record close of US$4,765.80.
Also, West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose amid heightened geopolitical tensions even as the International Energy Agency (IEA) again said global demand will remain well under supply this year.
WTI crude oil closed up $0.26 to settle at US$60.62 per barrel, while March Brent crude was last seen up $0.13 to US$65.08.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Speculative spirits were restored on Wall Street, fueled by hopes for a solution in Donald Trump’s ambitions for Greenland that would avoid tariffs.
Stocks and bonds climbed and gold’s rally cooled as the president claimed a framework of a deal with NATO.
Following a cross-asset slide dubbed by some as a revival of the “Sell America” trade, the S&P 500 added 1.2% in its biggest advance since November.
All of its major industries rose, with the gauge back in the green for 2026.
Energy shares led gains, hitting all-time highs.
Small caps beat the US equity benchmark for a 13th straight session. Big techs also rallied.
Trump’s decision marks a stark reversal for a president who has repeatedly attempted to coerce Europe over Greenland.
It came after a meeting with North Atlantic Treaty Organization Secretary General Mark Rutte at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Still, Trump did not detail the parameters of the “framework” and it was unclear what the agreement entails.
Earlier Wednesday, the president ruled out the use of military force in his quest for Greenland.
“Due to the uproar about the US asserting itself and demanding that it buy Greenland from Denmark, Davos has become an emergency summit,” said Louis Navellier at Navellier & Associates.
“Trump is a bull in a China shop, so it will be interesting to see how all the European allies react.”
Among the myriad of headlines from Davos, the veteran strategist said he personally liked that Trump said that the stock market would double after the rout on Tuesday in the wake of the Greenland chatter.
Meantime, US Supreme Court justices suggested they are wary of Trump’s effort to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook over unproven mortgage-fraud allegations, saying the move could upend the Fed’s independence and rattle markets.
More than 400 shares in the S&P 500 rose.
The yield on 10- year Treasuries slid four basis points to 4.25%.
A $13 billion auction of 20-year bonds drew good demand.
The dollar was little changed.
“Sharp turn Wednesday in favor of risk with Trump’s Greenland ‘TACO’ reversal and a Supreme Court hearing on the Trump/Cook case that seemed to go well for the Fed governor and the Fed as an institution – not to mention an easing of the Japanese yield surge, said Krishna Guha at Evercore.
“None of these issues go away however, and all three will be with us for some time.”
“The markets breathed a sigh of relief during Trump’s speech marathon, where the US President ruled out the use of military to acquire Greenland,” said Fawad Razaqzada at Forex.com.
“But does this mean it is risk back on, and markets will kick on from here after the recent falls? Well, time will tell.”
Trump has ruled out the use of force to acquire this island, but his push for immediate negotiations over ownership will likely maintain the pressure around this sensitive topic, according to James McCann at Edward Jones.
“We will be watching carefully for further signals from the president and European counterparts over coming days, which could provide more clarity on how this dispute might be resolved in a way that secures US defense concerns and protects local sovereignty,” McCann said.
JPMorgan Asset Management’s Bob Michele said the recent selloff in markets was a message to the Trump administration to take action to restore calm as officials did after Liberation Day tariffs rattled investors last year.
“Things are a bit chaotic, and the markets do feel a bit panicked,” he said.
“The market had a fit in April and then they backed off of a lot of things and then calm ensued.
We need to hear some of the same kinds of things.”
Tuesday served as a reminder that investors remain emotional about geopolitical and tariff headlines, and that record allocations to equities leaves little margin for error, according to Mark Hackett at Nationwide.
“Following the strong run to record highs, it is not unusual or unhealthy to see a period of consolidation,” he said.
“As skepticism arises, investors are more reactive, and companies are unable to buy back shares due to earnings blackout periods.
The weakness has been temporary, however, with the rally continuing shortly after earnings season.”
The tariff threats surrounding Greenland show that the stock market, while resilient, is still headline-sensitive, and there will be plenty of headlines in the coming weeks, whether they are from Washington, earnings, economic data or the Fed, noted David Laut at Kerux Financial.
“We remind investors that tariff headlines can cause short- term volatility, but that applies in both directions,” Laut added.
“The tariff threats can easily be unwound and reversed, sparking upside market volatility.”
Laut also said that the tariff-driven stock market declines present opportunities for investors who are looking for an attractive entry point to put new money to work.
He bets value stocks, in sectors like financials, materials and energy, are the better buys right now given elevated valuations in tech stocks.
Provided Europe does not activate its anti-coercion tool or a large-scale divestment of US assets, a correction on the scale of the post-Liberation Day pullback appears unlikely, according to Seema Shah at Principal Asset Management.
“However, this episode may accelerate an emerging structural shift: global investors have shown greater appetite to diversify away from US concentration risks, especially in AI leadership, and renewed geopolitical unpredictability strengthens this incentive,” she said.
“Recent dollar softness is consistent with this gradual global portfolio rebalancing.”
Trump has expressed confidence that the European Union would continue to invest in the US even if he imposed new tariffs related to his quest to take control of Greenland, a proposal that has angered leaders on the continent.
For all the turmoil rattling markets, the foundation for more gains looks solid, several Wall Street strategists say.
Their reasoning generally rests on the idea that risk assets have long looked past prior bouts of geopolitical unrest, except when the disorder causes oil prices to spike.
“Many investors worry it could rattle equity markets. We are less convinced,” Alastair Pinder at HSBC Holdings Plc, wrote in a Jan. 20 note.
The 36 major geopolitical events since 1940 saw US stocks rise 60% of the time in the three months that followed, he said.
“These episodes create chaos in the short term, but they tend to cool over time,” said Kenny Polcari at SlateStone Wealth.
“None of these changes the trajectory of the US economy or the expectations for a strong 2026.
Volatility is your friend, and weakness should be used to build positions in quality leaders that are getting unnecessarily whacked by the headlines.”
Polcari also cites the fact that we’re in the middle of what is expected to be a strong earnings season.
While another reason to be bullish comes indeed from prospects of strong corporate profits, unimpressed investors are delivering the worst share-price reactions on record as the outlook for 2026 turns murky.
Data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence show about 81% of S&P 500 firms have beaten fourth-quarter profit expectations so far.
However, their shares have trailed the benchmark by an average of 1.1 percentage points — the worst relative performance across data going back to 2017.

Corporate Highlights:
* Netflix Inc. slumped after giving a disappointing forecast for earnings in the months ahead as it spends more on programming and works to close its $82.7 billion deal with Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.
* European Union regulators are poised to review competing bids for Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. at the same time — thrusting Netflix Inc. and Paramount Skydance Corp. into a rare head-to- head antitrust battle.
* Apple Inc. plans to revamp Siri later this year by turning the digital assistant into the company’s first artificial intelligence chatbot, thrusting the iPhone maker into a generative AI race dominated by OpenAI and Google.
* United Airlines Holdings Inc. warned that geopolitical tensions risk disrupting what’s been “a pretty hot start to the year.”
* Johnson & Johnson lost a key battle to block experts linking the company’s withdrawn baby powder products to cancer from testifying in court, sending shares lower.
* Berkshire Hathaway Inc., the largest investor in Kraft Heinz Co., may soon sell some or all of its stake in the cheese and ketchup maker, just months after the firm announced plans to split into two companies.
* UnitedHealth Group Inc. plans to give profits from its Affordable Care Act plans back to customers in 2026 as Congress weighs extending tax credits for those plans, the company’s top executive said in prepared testimony.
* As artificial intelligence threatens to upend job markets in countries around the world, Nvidia Corp. Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang brushed off longer term concerns and made the case that skilled vocational workers are seeing increasing demand now.
* One of OpenAI’s top executives defended the company’s addition of ads to its popular chatbot ChatGPT as a way to democratize access to artificial intelligence.
* Artificial intelligence startup SambaNova Systems Inc. is considering raising up to $500 million after talks to sell to Intel Corp. stalled, according to people familiar with the matter.
* Halliburton Co. is ready to quickly restart operations in Venezuela once it obtains US government approval and some sort of payment protections, said Chief Executive Officer Jeff Miller.
* Charles Schwab Corp. reported a surge in average daily trading volume in the fourth quarter as retail investors sought to take advantage of the end of a strong year for the stock market.
* Ally Financial Inc. reported higher-than-anticipated provisions for credit losses in the fourth quarter to prepare for the potential of soured loans.
* Jeff Bezos-backed Blue Origin is building a satellite communication network to deliver connectivity to data centers, governments and businesses, the company said on Wednesday.
* Deutsche Boerse AG agreed to acquire European fund distribution platform Allfunds Group Plc for about €5.3 billion ($6.2 billion) in cash and stock.
* Ryanair Holdings Plc’s chief executive officer said his online sparring with Elon Musk this past week has been good for business.
* Ubisoft Entertainment SA is canceling game projects, shutting down studios and cutting its guidance as the Assassin’s Creed maker restructures its business into five units.
* L’Occitane Groupe, the skincare retailer that was taken private by its billionaire owner Reinold Geiger in 2024, is weighing an initial public offering in the US as soon as this year, people with knowledge of the matter said.
* Burberry’s sales advanced over the key holiday period as shoppers snapped up the British brand’s tartan scarves and trench coats, especially in China, bolstering hopes of a luxury rebound.
* Renault SA plans to reintegrate its Ampere electric vehicle and software operations as Chief Executive Officer Francois Provost reverses a strategy that sputtered due to lower-than- expected EV demand.
* Volvo Car AB, unveiling its first fully electric mid-size SUV, will stick to plans to manufacture the vehicle in Sweden for global shipments, even as the threat of further US tariffs mounts.
* Qiagen NV, the European molecular testing firm, is weighing strategic options including a potential sale amid fresh takeover interest, people with knowledge of the matter said.
* Sony Group Corp. introduced its latest pair of consumer earbuds, with a clip-on design that resembles recent efforts from Bose Corp., Lenovo Group Ltd.’s Motorola unit and Huawei Technologies Co.
* Indian drugmaker Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. is planning to launch a generic version of Novo Nordisk A/S’s Ozempic in March after the drug’s patent expiry, becoming one of the first firms to capture the gold rush for the therapy in the South Asian country.
What Bloomberg Strategists say…
“Traders are taking Trump’s comments that he doesn’t plan to use force to acquire Greenland as a signal that tensions between the allies won’t escalate — but that may be premature.
Trump’s adversarial tone and the straining relationships between the two regions and beyond indicate that the disagreements are far from over.”
—Tatiana Darie, Macro Strategist, Markets Live.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 1.2% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.4%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.2%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.7%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 1.1%
* The Russell 2000 Index rose 2%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
* The euro fell 0.3% to $1.1687
* The British pound was little changed at $1.3426
* The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 158.38 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 0.7% to $89,965.89
* Ether rose 1.1% to $3,021.55
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined four basis points to 4.25%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.88%
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.46%
* The yield on 2-year Treasuries was little changed at 3.59%
* The yield on 30-year Treasuries declined five basis points to 4.87%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.6% to $60.71 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 1.2% to $4,819.43 an ounce

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every New Year find you a better man. –Benjamin Franklin, 1706-1790.

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM

Senior Investment Advisor

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square,

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

Tel: 778.430.5808

(C): 250.881.0801 (Text Only)

Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895

Fax: 778.430.5828

www.carolannsteinhoff.com

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January 21st, 2025, Newsletter

Dear Friends, Tangents: January 21, 1915: Kiwanis Intl. founded. January 21, 1954: USS Nautilus launches as the first nuclear-powered submarine, redefining naval strategy

January, 20th, 2026,Newsletter

Dear Friends, Tangents: January 20, 1265: Simon de Montfort’s Parliament begins, often cited as an early milestone toward representative government. January 20, 1981:

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