June 18, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Paul McCartney, b. 1942
1948 Columbia Records unveiled its new long-playing, 33 1/3 rpm phonograph record.  Go to article »
1983~ First woman in space, Sally Ride.

Area star has two potentially life-friendly planets.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A brig with scarlet sails travels through the Dvortsovy (Palace) drawbridge rising above the Neva River during a rehearsal for the Scarlet Sails festivities marking school graduation which will take place on June 24 in St. Petersburg, Russia.
CREDIT: AP PHOTO/DMITRI LOVESKY

The full Strawberry Moon rising above historic Shurland Hall in Eastchurch, Kent, UK, where Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn spent their honeymoon.
CREDIT: JAMES BELL/ALAMY LIVE NEWS

A view of the installation ‘Museum of the Moon’ by Luck Jerram, in the swimming pool Cozzi in Milan ‘Museum of the moon’ installation, Milan, Italy
CREDIT:CLAUDIA GRECO/AFG/REX
Market Closes for June 18th, 2019

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1998, internet stocks got an electrifying boost as Walt Disney agreed to buy 43% of Infoseek for roughly $550 million in cash, stock and warrants. Infoseek’s stock shot up to $42, then closed at $35.13. By March 2001, Disney had exchanged the old Infoseek assets for its own shares at an approximate value of only $5 per share.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian equities rose for a fourth straight session, following U.S. peers higher after President Donald Trump said he had a “very good” phone conversation with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 0.9%. All eleven sectors rose, led by materials and financials. Crude futures rose as much as 4.6% in New York, sending energy shares up.
     Elsewhere, Barrick Gold Corp.’s CEO has no intention of raising his offer to buy out the rest of troubled African unit Acacia Mining Plc. And investors await Canada’s decision on the Trans Mountain Pipeline.
In other moves:
Stocks
* Canfor Corp. rose 7.5% after a CIBC upgrade to outperform from neutral 
* TORC Oil & Gas Ltd. jumped 5.6% 
* SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. rose 5.5% 
* Trulieve Cannabis Corp. gained 5.3% 
* iAnthus Capital Holdings Inc. lost 7% 
* New Gold Inc. fell 6.1% 
* Flowr Corp. dropped 3.6% after a C$50m loan commitment 
Ratings
* Lumber Stocks Upgraded at CIBC as Mill Closures Lift Prices
* AKG CN: Asanko Gold Rated New Buy at HC Wainwright
* ATH CN: Athabasca Oil Rated New Sector Perform at RBC; PT C$1.15
* BCE CN: BCE Upgraded to Buy at TD; Price Target C$63
* CFP CN: Canfor Upgraded to Outperform at CIBC; PT C$14
* SNM CN: ShaMaran Petroleum Downgraded to Neutral at SpareBank
* WFT CN: West Fraser Timber Upgraded to Outperform at CIBC; PT C$73
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $14.50 discount to WTI
* Gold spot price rose 0.5% to $1,346.33 an ounce 
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar strengthened 0.2% to C$1.3382 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell to 1.424%
US
By Sarah Ponczek and Vildana Hajric
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks approached all-time highs on optimism that President Donald Trump will de-escalate his trade war with China, adding to gains sparked by the ECB’s signal it is ready to cut interest rates if warranted. Treasuries and oil rallied.
     The S&P 500 trimmed a rally that topped 1.4% at its height as markets digested news that the Trump administration explored demoting Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell in February. Stocks had jumped within 1% of its all-time high after Trump tweeted earlier that he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Group of 20 summit next week. Trade tensions have weighed on stocks since Trump escalated his trade war in early May. “Up until now, the markets have been quite skeptical that a Trump, Xi meeting would happen,” said Rob Haworth, senior investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Seattle. “This pivot to an attempt to get a deal done is certainly a lot of what’s driving the market.” 
     European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said that officials are ready with stimulus if needed, adding to expectations for easier monetary policies. Central banks in Australia, Russia, India and Chile have recently loosened policy. The Reserve Bank of Australia said Tuesday that further easing is more likely than not.
     The Fed is widely expected to strike a more dovish tone with its decision at the end of its two-day meeting Wednesday. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury approached 2% before the notes pared gains. German 10-year yields tumbled further below zero. Oil surged to its biggest gain in five months as OPEC and its allies moved closer to a meeting to extend supply cuts while the Draghi’s comments raised hopes for increased demand.
     Elsewhere, the yen briefly weakened after a magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck off the northwest coast of Japan, triggering a tsunami advisory. Bitcoin dropped after a four-day surge.
Here are some key events coming up:
* The Fed, Bank of Japan and Bank of England all set monetary policy, along with central banks in Norway, Brazil, Taiwan and Indonesia.
* The Fed’s two-day meeting ends Wednesday with a decision and press conference. Officials are expected to debate a rate cut to shelter the U.S. economy, in part, from the fallout caused by escalating trade disputes.
* Final May CPI data for Britain are due on Wednesday. 
* U.K. retail sales are set for release on Thursday. 
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index rose 1% as of 4:02 p.m. New York time, while the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.4% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 1.4%.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 jumped 1.7%, the biggest increase since January.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index rose 1.5%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.6%, the first increase in five trading sessions. 
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell less than 0.1%, the first drop in three days.
* The euro eased 0.2% to $1.1196, while the yen strengthened 0.1% to 108.42 per dollar.
* The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.2560.
* The MSCI Emerging Markets Currency Index rose 0.5%, the first increase in five trading sessions.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries dropped 4 basis points to 2.06%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield fell 8 basis points to negative 0.32%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate surged 4.1% to $54.08 a barrel.
* Gold rose 0.5% to $1,346 an ounce, the first increase in three days.
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index rose 0.6%.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann                                               

Understand well as I may, my comprehension can only be an infinitesimal

fraction of all I want to understand.

                                                          -Ada Lovelace, 1815-1852

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