October 7, 2016 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

THANKSGIVING
ANYONE CAN DO IT
   -by Thich Nhat Hanh

Looking at Your Empty Plate:
My plate, empty now,
will soon be filled
with precious food.

Looking at Your Full Plate:
In this food,
I see clearly the presence
of the entire universe
supporting my existence.

Contemplating Your Food:
This plate of food,
so fragrant and appetizing,
also contains much suffering.

Beginning to Eat:
With the firs taste, I promise
to offer joy.
With the second, I promise to
help relieve
the suffering of others.
With the third, I promise to
see other’s joy
as my own.
With the fourth, I promise to
learn the way
of non-attachment and
equanimity.

Finishing Your Meal:
The plate is empty.
My hunger is satisfied.
I vow to live
for the benefit of all beings.

Washing the Dishes:
Washing the dishes
is like bathing a baby Buddha.
The profane is the sacred.
Everyday mind is Buddha’s
mind.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Trees sway in heavy rain and wind from hurricane Matthew in front of Exploration Tower early Friday in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Matthew weakened slightly to a Category 3 storm, with maximum sustained winds near 120 mph, but the US National Hurricane Center says it’s expected to remain a powerful hurricane as it moves closer to the coast. Craig Rubadoux/Florida Today/AP

A stunt driver shows his skills at the international motorcycle exhibition in Cologne, Germany, on Friday. The motorcycle and scooter industry will show the latest bikes, from classic scramblers to the fastest racing bikes, at INTERMOT 2016, which runs through Sunday. Martin Meissner/AP
Market Closes for October 7^th, 2016

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By John Hylan 
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks declined for a second day as employment data from the U.S. signaled that interest rates may be rising soon. Gold had the biggest weekly loss in more than three years.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.2 percent to 14,566.26 at 4 p.m. in Toronto, capping a weekly drop of 1.1 percent. The index is up 12 percent this year, making it the third-best performing developed market equity index in the world just behind New Zealand and the U.K.
     Gold capped its biggest weekly loss since 2013 as investors judged that a weaker-than-expected U.S. payrolls report won’t be enough to sidetrack the Federal Reserve from raising interest rates this year. Higher rates hurt the precious metal’s appeal since it doesn’t pay interest. Traders have now priced in a 64 percent chance that rates will rise in December, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
     Canadian stocks remain expensive compared to their U.S. peers. The S&P/TSX is carrying a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.2 compared with 20.3 for the the S&P 500 Index, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
     The decline in the S&P/TSX was broad-based, as nine of the 11 sectors declined. Raw-materials producers led gains, jumping 0.4 percent. Raw-materials and energy producers remain the top- performing industries in Canada this year. The S&P/TSX Materials Index is up 35 percent and set to halt its longest yearly losing streak since 1988. Energy producers are second with a 25 percent gain.
     Barrick Gold Corp. rose 1.6 percent erasing losses earlier this week. Goldcorp Inc. gained 0.4 percent and Franco-Nevada Corp. jumped 0.8 percent.
     Financial shares declined 0.2 percent. Royal Bank of Canada and Bank of Nova Scotia fell 0.3 percent. First National Financial Corp. tumbled 1.1 percent to its lowest level since April 2016. The company said Thursday that new housing rules will cut into its profit growth.
     Sunopta Inc. stock declined to the lowest level in seven months after announcing the conclusion of a strategic review. Oaktree Capital Management invested $85 million into the Canadian natural and organic food producer, and appointed new directors to the board.

US
By Dani Burger and Joseph Ciolli
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks slipped Friday, adding to the first weekly decline in four, as jobs data showing steady growth in the labor market kept the Federal Reserve on track to carry out an interest rate increase this year.
     Materials producers led declines Friday, as gold and silver capped the worst week since at least November. Industrial shares tumbled after Honeywell International Inc. plunged the most since 2011 after profit missed targets. Tyson Foods Inc. retreated after an analyst downgraded the stock while citing a “powerfully convincing” class-action lawsuit.
     The S&P 500 Index slipped 0.3 percent to 2,153.73 at 4 p.m. in New York, pushing the decline this week to 0.7 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 31.26 points, or 0.2 percent, to 18,239.74. It dropped 0.4 percent in the week. Equities pared losses in afternoon trading as investors speculate growth isn’t robust enough to warrant an increase in the pace of tightening.
     “There are still signs of overall health in a very tight labor market,” said Tony Bedikian, head of global markets for Citizens Bank in Boston. “This still leaves a likely December hike on the table here. I don’t think this report sways the Fed in terms of holding back from tightening.”
     Employers added 156,000 jobs in September, showing the labor market is settling into a pace that will support the economy as the Federal Reserve considers tightening monetary policy as soon as next month. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 172,000 advance. The jobless rate rose to 5 percent as the labor participation rate ticked up.
     The odds for a Fed rate hike in December have increased to 64 percent from 53 percent last week, while traders are pricing in a 17 percent chance of an increase as early as November. Officials have indicated a desire to tighten policy to a more normal level, while signaling that the pace of rate increases would be gradual so as not to knock economic growth off kilter.
     The S&P 500 trades at 16.8 times its members’ earnings, compared with global stocks’ valuation of 15.5 times and 14.8 for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.
     The upcoming earnings season, which Alcoa Inc. unofficially kicks off on Oct. 11, will be closely watched for further indications of the health of corporate America. Analysts forecast a 1.5 percent contraction in three-month profit for S&P 500 members, which would be a sixth straight quarterly drop.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

What does it matter if we do not understand the exact meaning of the grand harmony?
Is it not like the bow player who touches a string and at once releases every resonance?  This is the language
of beauty, this is the caress that comes from the heart of the world and goes straight to our hearts.
Rabindranath Tagore

As ever,

Carolann

Recollect that you must be a seaman to be an officer; and also, that you cannot
be a good officer without being a gentleman.
     -Horatio Nelson, Lord Nelson, 1758-1805
to his midshipmen, in Robert Southey, The Life of Nelson, 1860 ed.

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