May 21, 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday.

1955~First trans-continental solo flight.
On May 21, 1927, Charles A. Lindbergh landed his Spirit of St. Louis near Paris, completing the first solo airplane flight across the Atlantic Ocean.  Go to article »
Still planning your next vacation? How about space?

RIP, Internet Explorer. (h/t Scott Kominers)

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

An African elephant in front of a double rainbow on a hillside in Masai Mara, Kenya. This beautifully-timed photograph shows the moment an African elephant appears to pose for a photograph in front of a fantastic double rainbow. A photography group got caught in a thunderstorm while on a photographic expedition and as the weather passed a beautiful double rainbow occurred in the skies above. The crew was lucky enough to spot an elephant wandering on a nearby hilltop and a lucky photographer was able to queue up a once in a career photograph as the elephant even seemed to pose for the occasion, lifting his trunk triumphantly into the air. Jeffrey Wu, a professional wildlife photographer from Toronto, Canada, clicked the incredible capture on the plains of Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya while filming a documentary.
CREDIT: JEFFREY WU / SWNS

This family of performers have their faces painted in an extraordinary range of bright colours as part of their act. The Bahrupi artist and his children in East Burdwan, India, stage performances which focuses on the theme of different tribal cultures. Bahurupi artists use face paint to transform into different characters during the shows and focus on myths, legends and religious characters in their shows. This group are returning to work now after a lengthy hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic.
CREDIT: AVISHEK DAS/SOLENT NEWS & PHOTO AGENCY

Charlotte Lamb 25 and Hannah Constable from London who were meant to be holidaying in the South of France but got cancelled due to Covid restrictions enjoy the fierce winds next to Brighton Pier instead as the Met Office issue weather warnings for high wind speeds and prolonged rain today. Rain and storm winds are expected today with wind speeds in excess of 55mph along the South Coast and London as the miserable May Spring weather continues. However, sun is on the way for the May Bank Holiday with temperatures expected to hit 22c by the end of the month.
CREDIT: ALEX LENTATI/LNP

Dancers from the Sophie Adams Ballet Company after performing in Southwark Cathedral in London. Candlelit Ballet performances are accompanied by a string quartet.
CREDIT: KRISTY O’CONNER/PA

Market Closes for May 21^st, 2021

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
     This week’s crypto crash has helped erase almost 40% from bitcoin’s price from a peak of almost $65,000 in mid-April.
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities failed to hold onto afternoon gains Friday, dragged down by real estate and consumer staples. The S&P/TSX Composite index dropped less than 0.1%, erasing a gain of as much as 0.4% in the final half hour of trading. Eight of 11 sectors declined, while health care, financial and technology stocks rose. On the M&A front, Kansas City Southern agreed to a $30 billion merger with Canadian National Railway, scrapping a $25 billion deal with Canadian Pacific Railway after it declined to boost its offer.
Commodities
* Western Canadian Select crude oil traded at about a $14.60 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,880.29 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was flat around C$1.2066 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year Canada government bond yield was at 1.539%

By Bloomberg Automation:
     (Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite declined slightly to 19,527.30 in Toronto. The move follows the previous session’s increase of 0.6 percent. Canadian National Railway Co. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 1.9 percent. Hudbay Minerals Inc. had the largest drop, falling 3.4 percent. Today, 121 of 229 shares fell, while 102 rose; 8 of 11sectors were lower, led by materials stocks.
Insights
* This month, the index rose 2.2 percent
* So far this week, the index rose 0.8 percent
* The index advanced 31 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 43 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.4 percent below its 52-week high on May 21, 2021 and 32.1 percent above its low on May 21, 2020
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.2 on a trailing basis and 16.9 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.6 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.06t
* 30-day price volatility little changed to 9.57 percent compared with 9.58 percent in the previous session and the average of 8.97 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
* Materials | -14.0509| -0.6| 19/31
* Industrials | -9.3156| -0.4| 18/12
* Consumer Staples | -4.7517| -0.7| 4/9
* Real Estate | -4.1380| -0.7| 3/22
* Energy | -1.7116| -0.1| 10/11
* Consumer Discretionary | -1.3259| -0.2| 6/7
* Communication Services | -0.7436| -0.1| 2/6
* Utilities | -0.2824| 0.0| 8/8
* Health Care | 0.9601| 0.4| 7/2
* Information Technology | 2.9919| 0.2| 3/8
* Financials | 16.7243| 0.3| 22/5

US
By Claire Ballentine and Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks were mixed after investors were whipsawed in part by volatile trading in high risk assets such as Bitcoin amid lingering concerns about the outlook for inflation. Oil rose for the first time in four trading sessions. The S&P 500 closed little changed after erasing earlier gains when Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said the central bank should speak about reducing bond buying sooner rather than later. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 finished lower, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained as investors shifted from growth to value favorites such as Boeing.  Bitcoin resumed its selloff Friday after China reiterated a warning that it intends to crack down on cryptocurrency mining as part of an effort to control financial risks. “For people to say Bitcoin shouldn’t influence equity prices on a short-term basis, that’s crazy,” said Tom Essaye, a former Merrill Lynch trader who founded “The Sevens Report” newsletter. “We live in a 24/7 market and at least in the short term, it’s run by algorithms and they all trade the same stuff. When you get a negative headline you’re going to see it all sell.”
European shares climbed earlier on prospects of easing lockdowns and as services data signaled a recovery. Asian shares were mostly higher, although they slipped in China. Treasury yields were little changed and the dollar gained. Gold dropped from its highest level in more than four months. China’s has long expressed displeasure with the anonymity provided by Bitcoin and other crypto tokens, and warned earlier in the week that financial institutions weren’t allowed to accept it for payment. China is home to a large concentration of the world’s crypto miners, programmers who use massive computing power to verify transactions on the blockchain. The global economic revival, the risk of a significant pickup in inflation and Covid-19 flareups in some parts of the world continue to shape market moves. Stocks have been volatile this week, with speculative ardor cooling as minutes from the latest Fed meeting flagged the possibility of a debate at some point on scaling back stimulus measures. Still, better-than-forecast jobless claims data on Thursday buoyed sentiment. “Inflation fears and concerns over the Fed tightening monetary policy appear to have eased,” said Fiona Cincotta, senior financial markets analyst at City Index. “The impact from the FOMC minutes where the Fed indicated its readiness to start talking about tapering asset purchases appears to have been short-lived.” Elsewhere, oil trimmed its biggest weekly decline since March. In Europe, Cartier jewelry maker Richemont gained after posting sales that topped estimates.

Here are some key events this week:
* Euro-area finance ministers and central bank chiefs hold an informal meeting. A larger group of EU finance ministers and
central bank chiefs will meet May 22.

These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 was little changed as of 4:01 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.6%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%
* The MSCI World index was little changed
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%
* The euro fell 0.3% to $1.2187
* The British pound fell 0.2% to $1.4155
* The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 108.90 per dollar
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 1.62%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined two basis points, more than any closing loss since May 4
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 0.83%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 3.1%, the most since April 14
* Gold futures fell 0.1% to $1,882 an ounce, ending a six-day winning streak
–With assistance from Kamaron Leach.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

Nothing in my life, no matter how well or poorly lived,
is wiser than failure or clearer than sorrow. -Gregory David Roberts, b. 1952, Shantaram.                                                           

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