August 24, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On Aug. 24, 1992, Hurricane Andrew smashed into Florida, causing record damage; 55 deaths in Florida, Louisiana and the Bahamas were blamed on the storm.
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PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A bolt from a lightning storm hits the spire on top of the One World Trade Center tower in New York City. CREDIT: JULIO CORTEX/AP

Visitors interact with an art installation of human sized figurines, ‘The Standing Men’ by AADN of France during the Singapore Night Festival media preview. CREDIT: SUHAIMI ABDULLAH/GETTY IMAGES

DJ Koh speaks at the Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2017 event in New York, as Samsung unveiled the new generation of its flagship Galaxy Note smartphone. CREDIT: DON EMMERT/GETTY IMAGES

Landscape photographer Emily Endean captures a beautiful morning sunrise over Brighton Beach. CREDIT: EMILY ENDEAN/GETTY IMAGES
Market Closes for August 24th, 2017

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1909, Edward H. Harriman, the railroad titan who had run the Union Pacific and Northern Pacific, dies. The Dow Jones Railroad index loses 3% of its value over the subsequent two days.
Number of the Day
-$143 million
Retail-store sales of craft-style beers—from brewers big and small—fell $143 million to $2.3 billion in the first half of 2017, according to data from Nielsen.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose for a third day on low trading volume as copper prices hit a three-year high, boosting materials shares.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 13 points or 0.1 percent to 15,076.16 on volume that was 20 percent below the 30-day average. Materials stocks added 0.5 percent as copper prices reached their highest level since 2014. Nevsun Resources Ltd. led the way with a gain of 7.9 percent, rebounding from a 16 percent decline following its second-quarter results.
     The financials index added 0.3 percent even as Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce fell 1.9 percent following third- quarter results that showed the bank’s mortgage balances continue to rise in the face of slowing home prices.
     In other moves:
* Cineplex Inc. fell 5.5 percent, continuing a decline that has seen it lose 31 percent year-to-date. Movie-theater stocks have been hammered by weak box-office revenues
* Hudson’s Bay Co. lost 5.4 percent. The retailer said the president of HBC International, Don Watros, will leave the company next month
* Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. gained 5 percent after striking a deal to sell First Capital to Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. for $1.6 billion.
US
By Randall Jensen
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks and Treasuries edged lower as markets struck a cautious tone amid political wrangling over the debt ceiling and ahead of central bank speeches in Jackson Hole.
Oil fell as a storm strengthened into a hurricane aimed at Texas.
     The S&P 500 Index ended the day lower after whipsawing from gains to losses. Food retailers led declines after Hormel Foods Corp. and JM Smucker Co. reported earnings that missed estimates and Amazon.com Inc. said it’d start cutting prices at Whole Foods locations next week. The dollar gained against most peers, while U.S. benchmark yields rose to 2.19 percent. Crude slid below $48 a barrel and natural gas futures climbed.
     With little to trade on, investors focused on events that have the potential to roil markets in the next few days.
Speeches Friday by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi may offer clues on the timing of stimulus reduction. President Donald Trump again used Twitter to fuel the debate on legislation to keep the U.S. government open next month. Countering, House Speaker Paul Ryan said Thursday the borrowing limit will be raised.
     Hurricane Harvey is forecast to turn into a Category 3 storm when it makes landfall late Friday in an area of Texas thick with oil refineries and natural gas plants. It’s unlikely to have a major impact on Gulf oil production, but any damage to refineries could sap demand for crude.
     “We’re going to continue to trade in ranges — there’s not enough going on and you still have the central bank puts. Enough is on the sidelines and volumes are very small,” said Andrew Brenner, head of international fixed income at Natalliance Securities LLC. “People are maybe anticipating something out of tomorrow’s Jackson Hole speeches, but I’d be very surprised if anything happens.”

     Among other key events looming this week:
* Yellen is scheduled to discuss financial stability at 10 a.m. New York time on Friday at the Kansas City Fed’s symposium in Jackson Hole. Draghi is set to speak at 3 p.m.
     Here are the main moves in markets:
                             Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index fell 0.2 percent to 2,438.98 as of 4 p.m. in New York. The gauge is down over 1 percent for the month.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.2 percent, and is set for third monthly slide.
* The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index rose 0.3 percent, touching the highest in over a week.
* Germany’s DAX Index rose 0.1 percent, on track for first monthly gain since June.
                           Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained 0.2 percent, targeting its first monthly rise in six months.
* The Japanese yen fell 0.5 percent to 109.57 per dollar.
* The euro dropped 0.1 percent at $1.801.
* The British pound was little changed at $1.2803.
                             Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries gained two basis points to 2.19 percent. The rate on Treasury bills maturing Oct. 12 jumped by as much as five basis points Thursday, the largest intraday move since March.
* Germany’s 10-year yield steady at 0.38 percent, the sixth day without a gain.
* Britain’s 10-year yield fell one basis point to 1.05 percent, lowest since June.
                          Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude declined about 2 percent to settle at $47.43 a barrel, on track for its fourth weekly decline.
* Gold futures fell 0.2 percent to settle at $1,292 an ounce, set to rise for the second month in a row. 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

The key to an easy relationship with other people is not to impose your ego,
nor to crush the ego of others.
Swami Prajnanpad

As ever,

Carolann

Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
-Christian Nestell Bovee, 1820-1904

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 

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