May 9, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A cat named La Madonna walks on the roof beam of a restaurant located inside the iconic Central Market of Santiago, Chile, Friday. Founded in 1872, the market is known for its restaurants and fresh seafood stands. Esteban Felix/AP

Bangladeshi female workers carry sand unloaded from a ferry at the river Buriganga in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Friday. Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters
Market Closes for May 9^th, 2017

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks opened lower as energy stocks fell and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. surged.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 39 points or 0.3 percent to 15,611. Health care stocks jumped 4.2 percent as Valeant gained 11 percent after boosting its cash pile and its full-year forecast.
     The energy index fell 0.5 percent as the price of crude lost 0.8 percent to $46.07 a barrel. Investors are weighing comments that Saudi Arabia and Russia could extend production cuts to offset rising U.S. shale output.
     In other moves:
* Home Capital Group Inc. jumped 18 percent. The struggling lender agreed to sell as much as C$1.5 billion worth of mortgages and loan renewals to an unidentified buyer
* Open Text Corp. fell 6.6 percent following third-quarter results that missed the lowest analyst estimate
* Hydro One Ltd. lost 4 percent. The Ontario government is selling C$2.79 billion worth of shares in the utility
* Ensign Energy Services Inc. fell 4.7 percent after the company was cut to underperform at Scotiabank
* Bombardier Inc. added 1.9 percent. The company’s biggest outside shareholder withdrew support for Chairman Pierre Beaudoin, while its Chinese joint venture won two contracts valued at $158 million
US
By Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — Most U.S. stocks fell as renewed selling in commodities from gold to crude sent materials producers lower. The dollar gained as bets increased for a hike in U.S. borrowing costs next month. Equity volatility remained near a 24-year low.
     The S&P 500 Index slipped from a record, while technology shares boosted the Nasdaq Composite Index to a fresh all-time high. Bloomberg’s Dollar Spot Index showed the greenback at the highest in a month in the wake of a hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials. Treasuries were steady. Oil slipped toward $46 a barrel on glut concerns. Emerging-market assets proved resilient, with equities gaining a second day.
     Calm blanketed financial markets, with measures of equity and fixed-income volatility at multiyear lows after the dissipation of concerns over European populism in the wake of the French election. Impending central bank meetings, a potential unwind of the Fed balance sheet and more scheduled elections have so far failed to dent optimism. But with stocks at or near records, there is little impetus to place further bets on riskier assets.
     Key events this week:
* Earnings continue to be released, with Walt Disney Co., Mitsubishi Corp., Toyota Motor Corp. and Deutsche Telekom AG among the most notable.
* The Bank of England on Thursday publishes its interest-rate decision and quarterly Inflation Report.
     Here are the main moves in markets:
     Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 0.1 percent to 2,396.83 as of 4 p.m. in New York.
* The CBOE Volatility Index edged higher after closing Monday at the lowest since December 1993.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 added 0.5 percent, the highest since August 2015. Miners rose 1.7 percent.
* Emerging-market shares climbed 0.3 percent for a second day of gains.
     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index advanced 0.5 percent after jumping 0.5 percent on Monday.
* The euro traded at $1.0875, down 0.4 percent. The currency fell 0.7 percent Monday following Macron’s victory as France’s next president, after trading at the highest level since November.
     Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasury notes rose one basis point to 2.40 percent after climbing four basis points on Monday.
* French 10-year yields increased two basis points to 0.86 percent. Similar maturity German yields increased one basis point, to 0.43 percent.
     Commodities
* Gold fell to the lowest in almost 2 months as investors turn their attention to the outlook for rising U.S. interest rates amid easing political uncertainty in Europe.
* Futures dropped 0.9 percent to settle at $1,216.10 an ounce, even after the China Gold Association said demand in the biggest consumer could jump to a four-year high.
* Crude fell as Libyan output rose to the highest in more than two years, getting in the way of OPEC’s efforts to drain a global glut.
* West Texas Intermediate oil slipped 1.2 percent to settle at $45.88 a barrel. Brent for July settlement slipped 61 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $48.73 a barrel
* Zinc and nickel pulled base metals higher as mining equities stage rebound.

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

“There is only one happiness in this life, to love and be loved.” George Sand

As ever,

Karen

 “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.” Maya Angelou

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
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