April 20, 2012 Newsletter

Tangents:

Today in history:

1945- Soviet troops begin their attack on Berlin

1967- US bombers bomb Haiphong for the first time during the Vietnam war.

Birthdays:

121- Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor

1808- Napoleon III, Emperor of France

1893-Joan Miró, Spanish painter

Question: What do you think stands between you and happiness?

Every criticism, judgment, diagnosis, and expression of anger is the tragic expression of an unmet need. ~ Marshall Rosenberg, 1934-

photos of the day

April 20, 2012

The Comedie Francaise theatre temporary hall and columns, by French sculptor Daniel Buren (the ‘Colonnes de Buren’), are seen in the Palais royal gardens in Paris.

Benoit Tessier/Reuters

Indian girls look at an installation titled ‘Line of Control’ by Indian artist Subodh Gupta in New Delhi, India. The installation made of steel utensils is in the shape of a giant mushroom cloud referring to the dust-cloud of atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, while also alluding to the contested India-Pakistan border, according to a press release.

Kevin Frayer/AP

Market Closes for April 20, 2012:

North American Markets

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Joseph Ciolli

April 20 (Bloomberg) — Most Canadian stocks rose as the main equity index completed its first weekly gain since February after energy shares advanced on improving in German business confidence and better-than-forecast U.S. earnings reports.

ARC Resources Ltd., a western Canadian oil and gas producer, climbed 3.8 percent. Enbridge Inc., Canada’s largest pipeline company, increased 0.9 percent. Bank of Nova Scotia, the country’s third largest lender, declined 0.5 percent, as banks declined for the first time this week. Barrick Gold Corp., the world’s biggest bullion producer, dropped 1.9 percent, dragging the Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index lower, after Societe Generale SA put a sell rating on African Barrick Gold Plc.

The S&P/TSX decreased 6.41 points, or 0.1 percent, to

12,147.28 in Toronto, paring the five-day increase to 0.9 percent. Out of the 253 stocks in the benchmark gauge, 141 gained today.

“Earnings are trumping any fears that are coming out of Europe right now,” Barry Schwartz, a money manager at Baskin Financial Services Inc. in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. The firm oversees about C$400 million ($400 million).

“I don’t think we should be surprised because the economic data coming in over the first quarter was very strong.”

The S&P/TSX’s first increase in eight weeks snapped its longest losing streak since 2008. Canadian stocks rallied after the International Monetary Fund and the Bank of Canada said economic growth will be faster than previously forecast.

Energy companies rose as oil futures gained after the Munich-based Ifo institute said today its business climate index, based on a survey of 7,000 executives, climbed for a sixth month in April. Profit reports from U.S. companies including Microsoft Corp. and General Electric Co. beat estimates.

ARC Resources rose 3.8 percent to C$19.21. Enbridge increased 0.9 percent to C$39.59. MEG Energy Corp., a Calgary- based oil-sands developer, climbed 1.6 percent to C$38.45.

Materials companies in the S&P/TSX were driven down by Barrick Gold, which dropped 1.9 percent to C$39.96.

African Barrick Gold, in which Barrick is the biggest shareholder, was rated new sell at Societe Generale after reporting results yesterday that missed analysts’ estimates.

Bank of Nova Scotia declined 0.5 percent to C$54.75 as an index of banks in the S&P/TSX fell 0.2 percent, reducing its weekly gain to 1.8 percent.

Molybdenum producer Thompson Creek Metals Co. retreated 4.2 percent to C$6.12 after reporting a preliminary first-quarter operating loss caused by its new Endako mill expansion.

US

By Whitney Kisling

April 20 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose, snapping a two- day decline for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, as profits from companies including Microsoft Corp. and General Electric Co.

beat estimates and German business confidence improved.

Equities pared gains as Apple Inc. slid 2.5 percent, extending its loss since April 9 to 9.9 percent. Microsoft, the largest software maker, rose 4.6 percent. GE jumped 1.2 percent as profit gains at the energy business outpaced finance for the first time in two years. McDonald’s Corp. added 0.7 percent amid higher-than-estimated earnings. Bank of America Corp. tumbled

4.7 percent, driving financial shares lower.

The S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent to 1,378.53 at 4 p.m. New York time, as the benchmark index for American equities completed a 0.6 percent weekly advance. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 65.16 points, or 0.5 percent, to 13,029.26 today.

More than 6.6 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, or

1.1 percent below the three-month average.

“On the back of some weaker recent economic data, the earnings story continues to showcase that companies can wring out some profits here,” James Dunigan, who helps oversee $112 billion as chief investment officer in Philadelphia for PNC Wealth Management, said in a telephone interview. “With the constant noise in the background of Europe we seem to be focusing more on the domestic story, at least today. That just gives more credence to the fact that the recovery continues to be in place.”

Profits for the 94 companies in the S&P 500 that reported quarterly results since April 10 beat estimates by 8.5 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The benchmark gauge for U.S. equities has risen 9.6 percent in 2012, even after the index lost 0.6 percent yesterday as home sales fell and jobless claims were more than forecast.

A report today showed German business confidence unexpectedly increased for a sixth month in April, adding to evidence that Europe’s largest economy can weather the sovereign-debt crisis.

Seven out of 10 industries in the S&P 500 advanced today as utilities and consumer-staples companies gained the most.

Microsoft rose 4.6 percent, the most in three months, to $32.42. The software maker reported fiscal third-quarter profit that topped estimates on better-than-expected sales of Windows and Office software for businesses. Corporate demand for Windows computers made up for tepid interest from consumers opting for tablet machines.

GE rose 1.2 percent to $19.36. Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Immelt is increasing the focus on divisions that make gas turbines, jet engines and diesel locomotives while shrinking GE Capital’s balance sheet. He has pledged to boost industrial income this year by 5 percent to 10 percent, excluding the effect of acquisitions, while expanding margins.

Honeywell International Inc. rallied 2.4 percent to $59.39.

The maker of products from flight controls to work boots raised its 2012 forecast after posting quarterly profit that beat analysts’ estimates on demand for aircraft parts and energy technology.

Schlumberger Ltd. gained 2.7 percent to $71.70. The world’s largest oilfield-services provider reported first-quarter profit rose 38 percent as customers increased higher margin deep-water drilling around the globe in response to climbing crude prices.

E*Trade gained the most in the S&P 500, rising 6.1 percent to $10.48, as quarterly profit and revenue exceeded estimates.

The company said loan-loss provisions fell 41 percent to $72 million from the fourth quarter. The retail broker posted four years of losses through 2010, partly because of the subprime mortgage market collapse in 2007.

McDonald’s Corp. added 0.7 percent to $95.94. The world’s largest restaurant chain reported a 4.8 percent gain in first- quarter profit as new menu items such as Chicken McBites attracted U.S. consumers.

SanDisk, which makes memory chips used in mobile devices, declined 11 percent, the most in the S&P 500, to $35.91 after giving a second-quarter sales forecast that fell short of some analysts’ estimates. Chip production at SanDisk and its rivals is outpacing demand, causing prices to fall, Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Mehrotra said on a conference call with analysts yesterday. Some of the company’s customers also ordered fewer chips for mobile phones than SanDisk had predicted, he said.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

Death is extraordinarily like life,

when we know how to live.

You cannot live without dying.

You cannot live if you do not die

psychologically every minute.

Krishnamurti, 1895-1986

As ever,

Carolann

You can’t depend on your eyes when

your imagination is out of focus.

-Mark Twain, 1835-1910

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP, CIM, FCSI

Senior Vice-President &

Senior Investment Advisor