November 9, 2018 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: HAPPY FRIDAY!
On November 9 in…
1938: Kristallnacht, Germany.
1989: Berlin Wall opened ~ On Nov. 9, 1989, East Germany lifted restrictions on emigration or travel to the West, and within hours tens of thousands of East and West Berliners swarmed across the infamous Berlin Wall for a boisterous celebration.
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ICYMI:
Recently, a visitor has been paddling around a lake in New York’s Central Park: a brightly colored duck. 

The duck, which quickly became a star on social media, is known as a yu?nyang (??) in China. In English, it’s a Mandarin duck. Why? 

A duck (or yu?nyang) in Taipei, Taiwan. Sam Yeh/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images 

The fowl’s vibrant plumage recalls the dress of government bureaucrats centuries ago, called mandarins in the West. The same connection applied to the dialect those officials used. Even mandarin oranges got the linguistic overlay.

But mandarin is not a Chinese word. Its etymology is disputed.

Some say that during the Qing dynasty, visiting Westerners heard people calling government officials of the ruling class “m?n dàrén” (???): Manchu for “big man” or “boss.”

Others say the term comes from “menteri,” Malay for “court councilor” or “minister,” and that the 16th-century Portuguese who used Malaysia as a steppingstone to China wrote it as “mandarin.”

The duck in Central Park has been solo, but in China, its cousins are believed to be lifelong couples. There is a saying: A pair of Mandarin ducks is more enviable than an immortal.

Amy Chang Chien wrote today’s back story.
-from The New York Times, November 9, 2018

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A photovoltaic power station built under an inter-village poverty relief program in Huojiaping Village of Yihe Township, Suide County, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province. Located on the Loess Plateau, Suide County has abundant sunshine and idle lands which are ideal for the construction of photovoltaic power stations. Currently, local authorities are working with a provincial branch of electricity service provider State Grid on a 33-mega watt photovoltaic power station. Credit: Xinhua/Barcroft Images

Artist, Suzie Gutteridge pictured amongst her art installation entitled, ‘Binding the Past to the present though remembrance’. The installation on display at Salisbury Cathedral in Wiltshire commemorates the Frist World Was. Suzie held over 15 Community workshops to help create project. Over 5000 hand-felted poppies were stitched on to 100 puttees. Puttees were used by soldiers in World War I. They are a long strip of cloth that wound spirally round the leg from ankle to knee for protection and support. Suzie said, “The project has been an amazing and humbling experience”. Credit: Zachary Culpin/Solent News & Photo Agency

A Swedish art collective have claimed responsibility for a series of fairy houses that have popped up on the Isle of Man. Credit: Visit Isle of Man/Mikael Buck
Market Closes for November 9^th, 2018

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Tatiana Darie
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks ended the week on a sour note and U.S. stocks also turned sharply lower Friday amid a fresh round of selling in technology shares sparked by weak earnings. Crude capped its longest losing streak on record.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.5%, with pot and tech shares pacing losses. Gold miners dropped as spot metal prices headed for the longest slump in 17 months. Utilities, consumer staples and industrials were among the sectors that posted gains.
Stocks
* TransCanada Corp fell 1.7 percent as its $8 billion Keystone XL pipeline may face another eight months of delay after a court ruling raised issues with a 4-year-old environmental review.
* STEP Energy Services Ltd extended losses, falling 14 percent, as competitive pressures in the sector are expected to intensify in 2019, according to TD Securities.
* Great-West Lifeco Inc fell 0.3 percent after a report that it’s seeking to sell its U.S. operation that specializes in annuities, executive benefits and life-insurance products, people with knowledge of the matter said.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $42.25 discount to WTI
* Gold fell 1.3 percent to $1,209,70 an ounce FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar fell 1.2 percent at C$1.3202 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell 3.9 basis points to 2.5%
US
By Brendan Walsh and Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell amid a fresh round of selling in technology shares sparked by weak earnings, while crude capped its longest losing streak ever on concern over a supply glut. Large-cap tech names dragged the Nasdaq 100 to a loss of more than 1.5 percent and trimmed a weekly advance for the S&P 500. Chipmaker Skyworks plunged after results signaled a slowdown in smartphone demand. West Texas Intermediate crude capped a 10th straight loss, sending small-cap energy shares tumbling more than 2.5 percent. Walt Disney’s strong earnings minimized damage in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
     Mexican stocks erased a second day of losses after the nation’s president-elect said he won’t change any banking laws. The peso turned higher. Europe’s main equity gauge dropped after disappointing forecasts from Richemont and Thyssenkrupp AG. Treasury yields edged lower after the Federal Reserve on Thursday reiterated its plan for “further gradual” rate increases.
     Investors have their eyes open to any signs the economic cycle is peaking. While lower oil prices seem mostly driven by a surge in supply, not a drop in demand, there are more worrisome signs coming out of China. Data there show softer producer-price gains, weak car sales and a disappointing outlook from a top online travel company, helping to reignite lingering concerns about the health of the world’s second-biggest economy.
     Asian financial shares performed particularly poorly following news that Beijing plans to set quotas for banks to pump credit into private companies. The offshore yuan held this week’s drop as there was little sign of an end to the U.S.-China trade war in the wake of the midterm elections.
     Elsewhere, the pound weakened amid ongoing speculation over a potential Brexit deal. Emerging-market stocks and currencies slid.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index fell 0.9 percent as of 4 p.m. in New York. It rose 2.1 percent in the week for a second straight advance.
* The Nasdaq 100 Index lost 1.7 percent, while the Russell 2000 fell 1.6 percent.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dipped 0.4 percent.
* The Nikkei-225 Stock Average declined 1.1 percent.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index sank 0.6 percent.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index increased 0.2 percent.
* The euro declined 0.3 percent to $1.1333.
* The Mexican peso rose 0.3 percent to 20.132 per dollar.
* The Japanese yen rose 0.2 percent to 113.82 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined five basis points to 3.19 percent.
* The two-year rate lost four basis points to 2.93 percent.
* Germany’s 10-year yield dipped five basis points to 0.41 percent.
* Italy’s 10-year yields was up one basis point to 3.40 percent.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude dipped 0.8 percent to settle at $60.19 a barrel. It is now lower for the year.
* Gold futures sank 1.3 percent to $1,209.50 an ounce, hitting the weakest in a month.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

We live, not as we wish to, but as we can.
                    -Menander, c. 342-c.292

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
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com