Dear Friends,
Tangents: Happy Friday Eve.
April 9, 1865: Robert E. Lee surrenders at Appomattox, effectively ending the American Civil War.
April9, 1992: 1992 Former Panamanian ruler Manuel Noriega was convicted in Miami of eight drug and racketeering charges. Go to article.
Charles Beaudelaire, writer, b. 1821
| There’s an issue with the Artemis II heat shield, but NASA isn’t worried. Here’s why. |
The Artemis II astronauts are about to fall to Earth at the fastest speed humans have ever travelled inside a spacecraft with a compromised heat shield. But NASA is confident they will be safe. Read More.
| 16th-century silver coin discovered near Strait of Magellan marks the spot of a doomed Spanish colony |
The newfound coin dates to the 1584 founding of a doomed Spanish settlement in southern Chile. Read More.
| How to see Comet PanSTARRS as it brightens in the night sky this week |
Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) could be visible to the naked eye in the predawn sky after April 13 as it makes a close approach to the sun. Read More.
| ‘No one knows what they are’: Researchers discover new type of cell that’s seen only during pregnancy |
A new map of the "maternal-fetal interface" reveals a new type of cell, as well as the types of cells most likely to be affected in conditions like preeclampsia. Read More.
Fewer US babies
Data shows that the fertility rate in the US is nearly 20% lower than it was two decades ago. Experts say there are several reasons for the decline.
Super El Niño
The infamous climate cycle is intensifying in the Pacific Ocean and could redraw global weather maps. Here’s what to expect and when.
Your brain on a plant-rich diet
Eating more plant foods than animal products is linked to a lower risk of dementia, even in older age, according to a new study. But not all plant-based diets are the same.
Hold the pickles
Inspired by a trending AI-generated video, KFC has created this very real puffer jacket filled with pickles to promote its new menu.
‘It really bent your mind’
The “overview effect” is a life-altering phenomenon that astronauts experience in space.
Greetings from Mars
This tourist hotspot is the closest you can get to the red planet without leaving Earth (or at least it’ll look like it). Watch here.
“Trump explained that he agreed to the cease-fire because, ‘we have already met and exceeded all military objectives.’ It’s true. This war reached all of its objectives. It’s been a week since anyone mentioned the Epstein files.” — STEPHEN COLBERT
“Trump claimed that Iran agreed to open the [expletive] strait, although we’ve seen no evidence of that. And he has kindly decided not to end their civilization. So praise be to Allah. What a time to be alive.” — JIMMY KIMMEL
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Marseille, France
A container ship operated by Ocean Network Express sails along the south-eastern Mediterranean coast
Photograph: Thibaud Moritz/AFP/Getty Images
Fuzhou, China
Farmers harvest tea leaves at a plantation in Jiangxi province before guyu, one of the 24 solar terms of the traditional Chinese calendar
Photograph: VCG/Getty Images
Sydney, Australia
A view of Milk Beach at sunset, looking back towards central Sydney and the Harbour Bridge
Photograph: George Chan/AAP
Market Closes for April 9th, 2026
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| Dow Jones |
48185.80 | +275.88 |
| +0.58% | ||
| S&P 500 | 6824.66 | +41.85 |
| +0.62% | ||
| NASDAQ | 22822.42 | +187.43 |
| +0.83% | ||
| TSX | 33477.71 | -142.86 |
| -0.42% |
International Markets
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| NIKKEI | 55895.32 | -413.10 |
| -0.73% | ||
| HANG SENG |
25752.40 | -140.62 |
| -0.54% | ||
| SEN SEX | 76631.65 | -931.25 |
| -1.20% | ||
| FTSE 100* | 10603.48 | -5.40 |
| -0.05% |
Bonds
| Bonds | % Yield | Previous % Yield |
| CND. 10 Year Bond |
3.451 | 3.462 |
| CND. 30 Year Bond |
3.889 | 3.898 |
| U.S. 10 Year Bond |
4.2754 | 4.2911 |
| U.S. 30 Year Bond |
4.8806 | 4.8826 |
| BOC Close | Today | Previous |
| Canadian $ | 0.7236 | 0.7221 |
| US $ |
1.3819 | 1.3848 |
| Euro Rate 1 Euro= |
Inverse | |
| Canadian $ | 0.6159 | 1.6188 |
| US $ |
0.8551 | 1.1694 |
Commodities
| Gold | Close | Previous |
| London Gold Fix |
4792.55 | 4611.70 |
| Oil | ||
| WTI Crude Future | 97.87 | 94.41 |
Market Commentary:
On this day in 1792, Pennsylvania’s state legislature passed a law incorporating the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike Co., the first major transportation stock in the U.S. It took the company about two years to complete the 62-mile toll road, but the P&L was a huge success.
🍒Canada🍓
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 0.4% at 33,477.71 in Toronto.
The move was the biggest since falling 1.5% on March 26 and follows the previous session’s increase of 1.2%.
Today, information technology stocks led the market lower, as 8 of 11 sectors lost; 124 of 220 shares fell, while 95 rose.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index decline,
decreasing 6.5%. Telus Corp. had the largest drop, falling 6.9%.
Insights
* So far this week, the index rose 1.1%
* The index advanced 41% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 26% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 3.1% below its 52-week high on March 2, 2026 and 50.6% above its low on April 9, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 1.6% in the past 5 days and rose 0.9% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 22 on a trailing basis and 16.7 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.2% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$5.32t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 18.44% compared with 18.75% in the previous session and the average of 18.82% over the past month
Index Points
Information Technology| -100.6822| -4.2| 2/7
Energy | -52.2651| -0.9| 6/30
Materials | -40.4145| -0.6| 22/38
Consumer Staples | -26.4008| -2.4| 3/7
Communication Services| -20.0278| -3.3| 0/5
Consumer Discretionary| -4.1518| -0.4| 6/3
Real Estate | -1.5041| -0.3| 7/12
Utilities | -0.3079| 0.0| 6/8
Health Care | 0.4023| 0.5| 4/0
Industrials | 16.8227| 0.5| 19/10
Financials | 85.6627| 0.8| 20/4
Shopify | -93.1000| -6.5| 48.3| -29.7
Canadian Natural Resources | -14.2900| -1.5| 15.3| 35.8
Suncor | -13.2500| -1.8| -24.9| 43.9
Canadian National | 11.7000| 2.1| -22.2| 12.0
CIBC | 12.6200| 1.4| 12.7| 13.8
RBC | 15.1800| 0.7| 16.5| 0.8
Blackberry | 7.4| 1.3700| 244.4| 1.4
Aecon Group | 4.9| 0.9560| -9.9| 45.9
Bird Construction | 4.8| 0.8150| 20.6| 60.4
(MT Newswires)
The Toronto Stock Exchange closed lower on Thursday, the first drop in seven sessions, on some profit taking, but also on wariness around continuing geopolitical tensions across the Middle East and lingering concerns around inflation with a recent spike in oil prices seen adding to existing tariff-related pressures on global economies.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed down 142.86 points, or 0.4%, to 33,477.71, even as losses were capped with the Battery Metals Index up 4.5%.
Losers were led down by Telecom, down near 3.4%, and Info Tech down near 2.1% as stock pickers weigh inflation risks and Fed minutes showed officials are open to rate hikes if inflation stays above target.
Tech stocks are sensitive to interest rate changes due to their reliance on high capital spending.
Higher interest rates increase borrowing costs and could curb investment in innovation and expansion.
RBC Economics, in featured analysis on the United States, noted it has been just over one year since ‘Liberation Day’, when the U.S. administration announced sweeping tariffs on all trade partners to reduce imbalances.
But, RBC said, the trade deficit has not narrowed while trade has been diverted.
At present, RBC added, all eyes are focused on a new shock: The conflict in the Middle East, which has sent oil prices soaring to near-2022 highs when Russia invaded Ukraine.
"Still," the bank said, "beneath the surface, the ramifications of tariffs are building, and spiking oil prices will add to pre-existing tariff price pressures with both core and headline inflation rising in tandem."
In a separate, related but more positive note for Canadians, RBC noted a rebalancing in travel from this country continues as U.S. cross border trips decline amid Canadian anger stemming from the U.S. targeting of certain industries here for tariffs and by President Trump calling Canada the 51st state .
RBC added a sustained pullback in trips to the United States is increasingly being offset by rising travel to other destinations within Canada as well as abroad.
The bank noted travel to the U.S. fell 25.4% in 2025 to 29.1-million trips with weakness persisting into early 2026.
Dollars that might have been spent abroad are being recycled domestically with total tourism spending up 1.7% in 2025.
RBC also noted the shift kept Canada as a net exporter of travel services in 2025 as spending stayed closer to home, and that tourism GDP grew 4.8% in Q4,outpacing a broader economy that contracted 0.6%, marking the third consecutive quarter of out performance.
Of commodities, West Texas Intermediate closed higher Thursday as Iran continues to block the Strait of Hormuz.
WTI did fall off session highs after Israel said it will begin talks with Lebanon.
Iran had maintained a two-week ceasefire agreement reached with the U.S. did include a pledge to halt Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
WTI crude oil for May delivery closed up $3.46 to settle at US$97.87 per barrel after touching US$102.70 earlier.
June Brent oil was last seen up $0.96 to US$95.71.
Gold traded higher by midafternoon Thursday as the dollar weakened after the United States reported a key inflation measure rose, and while the U.S. and Iran argued over the terms of their two-week ceasefire deal.
Gold for May delivery was up $36.10 to US$4,813.30 per ounce.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Wall Street traders drove stocks higher as oil closed below $100 after Israel agreed to direct talks with Lebanon, bolstering expectations that a US ceasefire deal will hold.
Equities extended gains into a seventh straight day, with the S&P 500 notching its longest winning run since October.
That’s despite a selloff in software shares. US crude settled near $98 on hopes for a de-escalation in strikes that have prompted Iran to keep the Strait of Hormuz largely blocked.
President Donald Trump said he was “very optimistic” about a deal with Iran, though issues such as Israel’s offensive in Lebanon and the opening of Hormuz remain unresolved.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to hold direct talks with Lebanon, with the focus on disarming Tehran- aligned Hezbollah.
Trump has asked him for a scale-back in strikes to ensure the success of negotiations with Iran, NBC News reported.
“Not much matters for the market other than the durability of the ceasefire, shipping volume through the Strait of Hormuz and ultimately, whether a bona fide permanent deal is struck,” said Bradford Smith at Janus Henderson Investors.
That’s all happening at a time when data showed the US economy expanded at a slower pace than previously estimated in the final months of 2025.
Consumer spending barely rose in February amid persistent inflation that’s set to accelerate due to the war.
“Even before the war, inflation pressures were especially acute in health care and financial services,” said Jeff Roach at LPL Financial.
“We are a long way off from material improvement.”
The latest figures don’t reflect the recent surge in energy prices, but Friday’s consumer price index will capture some of that impact, noted Bret Kenwell at eToro.
Economists project a 0.9% increase in CPI — the sharpest one-month advance since 2022.
A separate report Thursday showed recurring applications for US jobless benefits fell to the lowest level in almost two years, adding to evidence of stabilization in the labor market.
“We still see low numbers of those filing for unemployment benefits,” Roach said.
“The labor market is holding steady amid a slowdown, which gives the Fed some time to wait.”
Corporate Highlights:
* A $7 billion private credit fund managed by Carlyle Group Inc. capped redemptions after investors asked to pull 15.7% of theshares in the first quarter.
* CoreWeave Inc. has struck another, much larger $21 billiondeal to supply computing power to Meta Platforms Inc. through 2032, deepening its business with the social media giant that’s trying to catch up in the race to build more powerful artificial intelligence models.
* Intel Corp., trying to promote the use of its technology in data centers, said Alphabet Inc.’s Google has committed to using future generations of its Xeon processors and other chips.
* Pacific Investment Management Co. is looking to sell a portion of the $14 billion of debt financing it’s providing for a massive Oracle Corp. data center in Michigan, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
* Chevron Corp. said its production fell as much as 6% in the first quarter due in part to the Iran war, echoing a similar disclosure from Exxon Mobil Corp. earlier this week.
What Bloomberg Strategists say…
“The 6,800 level on the S&P 500 is again the battleground zone as the market weighs the credibility of conciliatory headlines against lingering skepticism.”
—Michael Ball, Macro Strategist, Markets Live.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.6% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.7%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.3%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%
* The euro rose 0.3% to $1.1699
* The British pound rose 0.3% to $1.3436
* The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 159.10 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 1% to $72,115.91
* Ether rose 0.4% to $2,217.92
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.29%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 2.99%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 4.75%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 5.1% to $99.21 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 1.1% to $4,771.03 an ounce
Have a lovely evening.
Be magnificent!
As ever,
Carolann
You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help enough other people get what they want. –Zig Ziglar, 1926-2012.
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 (Text Only)
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828