January 02, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Carolann is out of the office today, I will be writing the Newsletter on her behalf.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

The Rockwell Harriers take part in the New Years Day Drag Hunt near Emley, West Yorkshire.
CREDIT: CHARLOTTE GRAHAM FOR THE TELEGRAPH

Varsity Spirit All-American Cheerleaders take part in the annual New Year’s Day Parade in central London.
CREDIT: EDDIE MULHOLLAND FOR THE TELEGRAPH

An aerial view shows a surfer on his board at the Praia de Cruz beach in Sal Rei on Boa Vista island, Cape Verde.
CREDIT: INA FASSBENDER/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Market Closes for January 02^nd, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1915, as Europe’s armies mired themselves in a bloody standstill across their muddy trenches, Wall Street had its slowest trading day of the entire 20th century. Only 23,505 shares traded hands on the New York Stock Exchange. Naturally, with no one interested in the stock market, it was also one of the best times to buy in the entire 20th century: By the end of 1915, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had gained 81.66%, its greatest annual gain of all time.
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose on the first trading day of 2020, joining a global rally after China took steps to
lower borrowing costs for companies. The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 0.2% to 17,099.95, climbing for the first time in four sessions. Technology stocks led the market higher, as five of 11 major industry groups rose. Health-care stocks were the worst performers. Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index advance, increasing 2.7%. Ballard Power Systems had the largest percentage gain, rising 12%. Canadian Natural Resources was the biggest drag on the index, declining 1.8%. Aurora Cannabis had the biggest drop, falling 5.7%. Meanwhile, NFI Group Inc. rose 5.7%, after CIBC said the company could be a potential acquisition target for private equity firms this year, if the stock continues to underperform.

Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $23.40 discount toWTI
* Spot gold rose 0.7% to $1,528.49 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar remained flat at C$1.2989 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield fell 4.6 basis points to 1.624%
US
By Vildana Hajric and Claire Ballentine
(Bloomberg) — Stocks started the year on the front foot, building on strong gains for many asset classes in 2019 as investors cheered the latest policy move by China’s central bank to support its economy. Treasuries and the dollar strengthened. The S&P 500 jumped 0.8% to a record on the year’s first trading day, with megacaps Apple, Alphabet and Nike notching all-time highs. It was among the best starts for U.S. stocks in the past decade, though first-day performance has virtually no bearing on how the year plays out. Tech shares led gains, with AMD surging 7% after an upgrade. Small caps underperformed, with the Russell 2000 sliding 0.1%. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced as every sector finished in the green. Gauges in Hong Kong and Shanghai jumped more than 1% after the People’s Bank of China said it will increase the supply of cheap funding to banks, in line with market expectations. “You’ve had a good liquidity-driven momentum-type rally toward year end and that momentum is carrying on in and of itself,” said Kevin Caron, a senior portfolio manager at Washington Crossing Advisors.
The euro fell as data showed the region’s manufacturing downturn deepened in December. The dollar stayed higher as U.S. jobless claims dropped to a four-week low, while the pound weakened following its best quarter in a decade. After a stellar 2019 across most major assets, focus now shifts to the year ahead. Thursday gave investors the latest read on Chinese manufacturing, with the Caixin PMI dipping slightly from its November level but remaining well in the expansionary zone. On the trade front, U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this week said he expects to sign the first phase of a deal with China on Jan. 15, though Beijing has yet to confirm the date.
“Good start to the year — China gave the markets a little jolt to start the year with a liquidity injection into their
market,” said Chris Gaffney, president of world markets at TIAA. “The message is that central banks are going to continue to help sustain growth or actually try to generate more growth in the markets and interest rates will stay low.” Almost Everything Wall Street Expects in 2020 Investors are also keeping an eye on geopolitical tensions, including in North Korea, where Kim Jong Un said he was no longer bound by his pledge to halt major missile tests and would soon debut a “new strategic weapon.” In Baghdad, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia broke up its encampment outside the U.S. embassy after an attack on the compound threatened to spiral into a broader confrontation. Elsewhere, crude oil pared an earlier advance, while gold climbed. The Thai baht fell as much as 1.8% overnight, its biggest drop since 2007, amid speculation the Bank of Thailand could be intervening to curb the currency’s strength.
Here are some events to watch for this week:
* Federal Open Market Committee minutes will be released on Friday.
* U.S. ISM manufacturing is due Friday. The Institute for Supply Management’s PMI is forecast to show a contraction for a fifth straight month.

These are some of the most recent moves in major markets:

Stocks
*The S&P 500 Index jumped 0.8% to 3,257.90 as of 4:02 p.m.
*New York time, the highest on record with the largest climb in three weeks.
*The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1.2% to 28,869.14, thehighest on record with the biggest jump in almost four weeks.
*The Nasdaq Composite Index surged 1.3% to 9,092.19, the highest on record with the largest jump in almost 12 weeks.
*The MSCI All-Country World Index jumped 0.7% to 569.31, the highest on record with the biggest increase in almost four weeks.
*Germany’s DAX Index surged 1% to 13,385.93, the highest in more than two weeks on the largest jump in more than four weeks.
Currencies
*The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index jumped 0.2% to 1,187.38, the first advance in more than a week and the biggest increase in almost two months.
*The euro declined 0.4% to $1.1169, the weakest in a week on the largest decrease in almost two weeks.
*The Japanese yen appreciated 0.2% to 108.55 per dollar, the strongest in more than six weeks.
*The British pound decreased 0.9% to $1.3136, the largest dip in more than two weeks.
Bonds
*The yield on two-year Treasuries declined less than one basis point to 1.57%.
*The yield on 10-year Treasuries decreased four basis points to 1.88%, the largest tumble in almost three weeks.
*Germany’s 10-year yield decreased four basis points to -0.22%, the biggest tumble in a month.
*Britain’s 10-year yield fell three basis points to 0.793%.
Commodities
*West Texas Intermediate crude advanced 0.1% to $61.15 a barrel, the biggest gain in a week.
*Gold strengthened 0.7% to $1,528.38 an ounce, the highest in more than 14 weeks on the largest gain in a week.
–With assistance from Kyoungwha Kim and Yakob Peterseil.

Have a great evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Isabel

Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy.
                                             — Ludwig Van Beethoven, 1770-1827

Isabel Luo,
Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff

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
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com