June 5, 2018 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On June 5, 1968, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy was shot and mortally wounded just after claiming victory in California’s Democratic presidential primary. Gunman Sirhan Bishara Sirhan was immediately arrested. 
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PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A candlelight vigil takes place in Hong Kong to commemorate the protestors killed in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1989. Credit: Anthony Kwan/Getty Images

People part in the White Dinner at the Invalides gardens in Paris, France. Diners dress head to toe in white and gather for an impromptu open-air dinner at a different place in Paris every year. Credit: Thibault Camus/AP

Runners start the Rock n Roll Marathon and Half Marathon in San Diego, US. Credit: San Diego Union-Tribune/Zuma Wire
Market Closes for June 5^th, 2018

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary
$~ On this day in 1883, John Maynard Keynes was born in Cambridge, England.
Number of the Day
7606.46
The closing level of the Nasdaq Composite on Monday, the first record high since March. The fresh peak snapped the longest stretch without a fresh high since 2016.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks closed less than 300 points from a record as copper prices rose to the highest since February, boosting miners.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index added 70 points or 0.4 percent to 16,122.25. Materials stocks gained 1.4 percent as copper prices surged on growing labor tensions at the world’s biggest mine. Teck Resources Ltd. rose 5 percent to the highest since February.
     Health-care stocks jumped 3.6 percent. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. added 7.6 percent to the highest since 2016.
     In other moves:
                          Stocks
* Cameco Corp. rose 4 percent, adding to Monday’s 4.7 percent gain. Kazakhstan, the world’s largest uranium miner, said it will support prices at current levels
* Aurora Cannabis Inc. gained 6.4 percent. The pot producer is expanding its exclusivity pact with CTT Pharmaceutical Holdings Inc.
* Hudson’s Bay Co. lost 1.5 percent after the retailer said it would close as many as 10 Lord & Taylor stores, including its flagship Manhattan locations.
                          Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $14.75 discount to WTI
* Gold rose 0.3 percent to $1,297.50 an ounce
                           FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar weakened 0.4 percent to C$1.2976 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell three basis points to 2.25 percent
US
By Sarah Ponczek and Janine Wolf
     (Bloomberg) — The global rally in risk assets that sent U.S. stocks to a 12-week high sputtered on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 swinging between gains and losses before closing higher for a third consecutive day.
     Advances in megacap tech shares helped support the Nasdaq indexes, pushing them to fresh records for a second straight day. Italian bonds tumbled after the nation’s premier pledged a raft of populist measures. Crude oil reversed early losses to close higher for the first time in four days, while the dollar also gained.
     “People are somewhat cautious,” Nick Kalivas, senior equity product strategist at Invesco ETFs, said in an interview at Bloomberg’s New York headquarters. “Not only are they worried about rising rates, but then they’re worried about what’s going on with the economy. That’s going to cause the market to kind of have this choppy, slow grind higher.”
     The outlook for global equities had taken an upward turn in recent sessions, not least because stronger-than-expected data from the U.S. showed the world’s largest economy is in rude health. It’s a relief to investors after weeks of turmoil, though with President Donald Trump stepping up his aggressive trade policies and populists poised to start governing in Italy, there remain plenty of reasons for caution.
     “You have good fundamental data, whether it be on the macro side or the micro side, in terms of earnings, you have different issues buffeting from a headline perspective, and then you have underlying fiscal policy as stimulative and monetary policy is more restrictive than it has been,” Ernie Cecilia, chief investment officer at Bryn Mawr Trust Co, said by phone.
     Italian bonds declined for the first time since they blew up a week ago as Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte pledged in his maiden speech to pursue a program of fiscal expansion. The euro recovered after he later said that an exit from the shared currency is not under discussion and has never been a target for this government.
     Brent futures for August settlement fell earlier beneath its 50-day moving average for the first time since April 4. Brent traded at a more than $9 premium to West Texas Intermediate for the same month. The broader dollar touched a fresh monthly high after better-than-expected U.S. data.
     The South African rand weakened, yields on benchmark bonds rose and retail and banking stocks fell as a report showed that the country’s economy shrank the most in nine years in the first quarter.
     These are some key events to watch this week:
* Reserve Bank of India rate decision on Wednesday.
* U.S. trade balance and Australia GDP also out on Wednesday.
* On Thursday, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meets with U.S. President Trump at the White House to discuss the planned U.S. summit with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
* Also on Thursday, euro-zone GDP.
* Turkey rate decision is due on Thursday.
* G-7 Leaders’ Summit starts in Quebec Friday through to June 9.
     These are the main moves in markets:
                          Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index rose 0.07 percent to 2,748.80, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed at 24,799.98 and the Nasdaq Composite Index increased 0.4 percent to a record 7,637.86 as of 4:07 p.m. in New York.
* The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index fell 0.7 percent.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index dropped 0.2 percent.
* Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 0.3 percent to the highest in more than a week.
                          Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1 percent.  The euro rose 0.1 percent to $1.1714.
* The British pound gained 0.6 percent to $1.3388.
* The Japanese yen strengthened 0.1 percent to 109.72 per dollar.
                           Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell two basis points to 2.91 percent.
* Italian 10-year yields surged 25 basis points to 2.79 percent.
                           Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude increased 0.8 percent to $65.28 a barrel.
* Gold rose 0.4 percent to $1,297.49 an ounce, the first increase in four days.
–With assistance from David Marino. 

Have a great night.

Be magnificent

As ever,

Carolann

Silly thing do cease to be silly if they are done by sensible people in an impudent way.
                                                                          -Jane Austen, 1775-1817

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
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com