February 11, 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Asian New Year –  Year of the Ox.

February 11^th, 1990~Nelson Mandela released after 27 years imprisonment in South Africa.

1937 A sit-down strike against General Motors ended with the company agreeing to recognize the United Automobile Workers Union.  Go to article »

Thomas Edison, inventor, b. 1847.
Jennifer Aniston, actress, b. 1969.

Stream “Knives Out,” “Beginners” and more films starring Christopher Plummer, who died last week at 91.

New evidence suggests Richard III really did kill the princes in the tower.

In 2019, a seismologist stumbled upon a fin whale song and discovered the soundwaves could penetrate the rock of the ocean floor, offering a glimpse of as much as 8,200 feet into the crust without adding to the sound pollution humans inflict on the oceans. His study, published this week, details the method.  It may also prove useful to marine ecologists. Just as seismometers on land have been trying to track elephants, oceanic seismometers might help track fin whales, which have been endangered by climate change, habitat loss and the grim legacy of commercial whaling.  “We can use the tools of biology to study seismology,” another scientist said. “And we can use the tools of seismology to study biology.”

When you realize it’s not Friday yet…it will be soon
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Regina King and Best Actor in a Supporting Role winner Brad Pitt walk backstage during the 92nd Oscars
CREDIT: RICHARD HARBAUGH/AMPAS/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

A model walks the runway for the Jason Wu Collection during February 2020 – New York Fashion Week: The Shows at Skylight Modern.
CREDIT: DIMITRIOS KAMBOURIS/GETTY IMAGES

Worshippers gather around candles stuck to jars of honey, arranged as a cross, during mass for the ‘sanctification of honey’ at the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin church in the town of Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria.
CREDIT: VALENTINA PERTOVA/AP
Market Closes for February 11^th, 2021

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1956, the Korean Stock Exchange was established in Seoul.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities ended their eight-day win streak Thursday after marijuana shares plunged.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.4%. Health care and materials led the drop, while industrials were among the gainers.
Tilray Inc. fell the most on record, halting a record three-day rally as a Reddit-inspired attempt to pump up the cannabis sector quickly unraveled. Inter Pipeline Ltd. surged as Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP made a hostile C$7.1 billion ($5.6 billion) offer following the failure of previous talks to produce a friendly deal. Air travel in Canada hasn’t even begun to bounce back from the Covid-19 crisis. Passenger traffic at airport checkpoints in January was just 13% of last year’s levels, versus 38% in the U.S., according to data from the countries’ transportation authorities. The situation for airlines is getting worse, even though virus cases are dropping.
Sun Life Financial Inc. will pay employees a C$500 bonus to thank them for their work during the Covid-19 pandemic and keep many staff working from home until at least September.
Commodities
* Western Canadian Select crude oil traded at an $11.25 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold fell 0.9% to $1,826.31 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was little changed at C$1.2699 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year Canada government bond yield edged higher to 0.997%

By Bloomberg Automation:
     (Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 0.4 percent at 18,392.99 in Toronto. The move was the biggest since falling 1.8 percent on Jan. 29 and follows the previous session’s increase of 0.3 percent.
Today, health care stocks led the market lower, as 6 of 11 sectors lost; 125 of 220 shares fell, while 93 rose. Aphria Inc. contributed the most to the index decline and had the largest move, decreasing 36.0 percent.
Insights
* So far this week, the index rose 1.4 percent
* The index advanced 3.5 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 18 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.7 percent below its 52-week high on Feb. 10, 2021 and 64.6 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 1.9 percent in the past 5 days and rose 2.6 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.4 on a trailing basis and 17.6 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.86t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 13.80 percent compared with 13.93 percent in the previous session and the average of 10.69 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Health Care | -61.0760| -16.8| 1/8
Materials | -29.0541| -1.2| 13/38
Energy | -8.4874| -0.4| 9/13
Communication Services | -5.0923| -0.6| 3/4
Utilities | -4.1149| -0.4| 8/8
Information Technology | -2.2951| -0.1| 5/5
Real Estate | 1.1593| 0.2| 10/16
Consumer Discretionary | 1.4029| 0.2| 8/5
Consumer Staples | 1.6004| 0.2| 7/4
Industrials | 14.0030| 0.6| 15/13
Financials | 27.1645| 0.5| 14/11
US
By Andreea Papuc and Adam Haigh
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose to a record with a late- session advance, while Treasuries slipped as a decline in jobless claims signaled a modest firming of the labor market.
The S&P 500 Index halted a two-day decline. Gains for tech shares lifted the Nasdaq 100 to a bigger advance. Ten-year Treasury yields rose to about 1.15%. In Europe, the Stoxx 600 Index was buoyed by strong results from Royal Mail Plc and Credit Agricole SA.
Applications for U.S. state unemployment benefits fell slightly last week in a sign that the labor market is still gradually improving as the vaccine rollout continues and business restrictions ease. After a sharp run-up in equities at the start of February, U.S. stocks have taken a pause as investors weighed the implications of the latest inflation data.
In the background, there’s still a debate over whether more U.S. stimulus, the vaccine distribution and the government’s determination to kickstart growth will cause the American economy to overheat. “While inflation is not showing up in the data right now, inflation is on its way thanks to fiscal and monetary stimulusand pent-up consumer demand that should intensify as the economy reopens,” Nancy Davis, founder of Quadratic Capital Management, said in a note.
In a speech Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the U.S. job market remains a long way from a full recovery and called on both lawmakers and the private sector to support workers. He also said it will require more than supportive monetary policy to achieve and sustain maximum employment.
Elsewhere in markets, oil slumped after capping the longest run of gains in two years. The dollar held steady and Bitcoin climbed above $47,000. In Asia, several markets in the region were closed ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.
Here are some key events coming up:
* Lunar New Year public holidays begin in nations across Asia, with China breaking for a week.
* Bank of Russia’s policy decision comes Friday.

These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index rose 0.2% as of 4 p.m. in New York.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.5%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 0.2%.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index advanced 0.4%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed.
* The euro advanced 0.1% to $1.2125.
* The British pound fell 0.2% to $1.3806.
* The Japanese yen weakened 0.2% to 104.79 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced one basis point to 1.15%.
* The yield on two-year Treasuries was unchanged at 0.11%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield decreased two basis points to -0.46%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield decreased two basis points to 0.47%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.8% to $58.22 a barrel.
* Gold fell 0.9% to $1,826.68 an ounce.
–With assistance from Michael Msika.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

He is a man whom it is impossible to please because he is never pleased with himself.
                                                            –Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1749-1832.

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
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