April 11, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
April 11, 1945: Liberation of Buchenwald
1968: Civil Rights Act is signed into law.
1713 – France cedes Acadia and Newfoundland to Britain under the Treaty of Utrecht.  Go to article »
You saw that first-ever image of a black hole yesterday, right? You can thank this grad student for the historic photo.

WHAT WE NEED
The Emperor,
his bullies
and henchmen,
terrorize the world
every day

which is why
every day

we need

a little poem
of kindness,

a small song
of peace,

a brief moment
of joy.
  –by David Budbill
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

One of the world’s largest flower gardens, renowned for its tulips, Keukenhof in the Netherlands is pictured from
the air. CREDIT: REMKO DE WAAL/EPA

A boat house is framed by branches at Lake Ammersee in Stegen, Bavaria. CREDIT: LUKAS BARTH-TUTTAS/EPA

Deer stand on a field near Hildesheim, Germany. CREDIT: MORITZ FRANKENBERG/DPA/AP

An image of a black hole surrounded by swirling ring of fire has been captured by a global team of more than 200 scientists using eight telescopes. The image, hailed as ‘huge breakthrough for humanity’ shows a glowing mass of plasma with a clear circular area of distorted spacetime in the centre. CREDIT: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION VIA GETTY IMAGES.
Market Closes for April 11^th, 2019

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Carolina Wilson
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks climbed for the eighth day in nine, pushed up by energy and information technology. One of the best performers was the online platform for merchants, Shopify Inc., which hit an all-time high.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index added 0.02 percent to 16,399 in Toronto. Energy stocks extended Wednesday’s gains when crude traded near a five-month high. Health care was the worst- performing sector, as cannabis stocks dragged down the group.
Shopify reached a record after Roth Capital said channel checks suggest growth in merchant’s businesses remained healthy in first quarter, implying another strong quarter when it reports results on April 30.
In other moves:
Stocks
* SSR Mining rose 3.8 percent after reporting 1Q production numbers
* Lundin Mining Corp. climbed after being upgraded to buy at Goldman
* MTY Food Group fell 8.2 percent after news that the company will buy Papa Murphy’s
* Boralex Inc. declined 3.6 percent after being downgraded to sector perform at RBC
* Waste Connections Inc. slumped after being downgraded to hold at Stifel on headwinds to recycling business
* Cronos, CannTrust, Canopy Growth were among the worst performing pot companies
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $9.20 discount to WTI
* Gold spot price fell 1.2 percent to $1,291.92 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar fell 0.4 percent
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield rose to 1.721 percent
US
By Randall Jensen and Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — Most U.S. equity benchmarks declined amid thin volumes Thursday as investors cast an eye toward the start of earnings season. Treasuries dropped as data confirmed the economy remains on solid footing.
The S&P 500 was an outlier among stock indexes, eking out its 10th gain in 11 sessions in trading more than 20 percent below its 30-day average. Health insurers led decliners as political risks intensified, while industrials paced gains as Boeing, still embattled in the 737 Max crisis, snapped a four- day losing streak. Banking shares rose before Wells Fargo and JPMorgan report first-quarter earnings that will lead off the season Friday.
The 10-year Treasury yield pushed toward 2.50 percent after data showed a strong U.S. labor market and tepid price gains. The dollar advanced the most in more than a week, while the pound fell as Prime Minister Theresa May accepted the European Union’s offer to push the Brexit deadline out six months. Oil in New York retreated from a five-month high as an increase in U.S. inventories to the highest since late 2017 overshadowed OPEC’s efforts to reduce production.
“People are not yet wholly embracing the rally that’s happened. I think that’s evident in some of the numbers,” Mike Stritch, chief investment officer for U.S. wealth management at BMO Wealth Management, said in an interview. “Earnings season is upon us. People are going to wait and see what expectations look like for the rest of the year. That’s going to be the key theme.” Investor optimism on global stocks and commodities has endured even as warnings about a global economic slowdown abound. That bullishness may be tested as companies report earnings. Caution over economic pullbacks has emerged in comments from the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and in the Federal Reserve minutes — which reinforced expectations that interest rates should be on hold for the rest of this year.
In emerging markets, equities declined and were poised to snap their longest streak of gains in more than one year. India’s rupee strengthened as elections started.
Here are some notable events coming up:
* U.S. banks begin reporting first-quarter earnings, led by JPMorgan and Wells Fargo.
* Singapore decides on monetary policy and releases GDP data Friday.

These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index was little changed at 2,888.32 as of 4:00 p.m. New York time.
* The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.2 percent, while the Dow industrial dropped 0.1 percent.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.1 percent.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index sank 0.6 percent to the lowest in more than a week.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 0.8 percent, the first retreat in more than two weeks.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed 0.3 percent.
* The euro fell 0.2 percent at $1.1256.
* The Japanese yen dipped 0.6 percent to 111.64 per dollar.
* The British pound declined 0.2 percent to $1.3059.
* The MSCI Emerging Markets Currency Index was little changed.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries gained three basis points to2.495 percent.
* Germany’s 10-year yield climbed two basis points to -0.01percent.
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 1.15 percent.
Commodities
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index sank 1 percent.
* West Texas crude fell 1.4 percent to $63.72 a barrel.
* Gold decreased 1.4 percent to $1,295.80 an ounce.
–With assistance from Randall Jensen and Eddie van der Walt.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Fear or stupidity has always been the basis of most human actions.
                                                      -Albert Einstein, 1879-1955

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