Dear Friends,
Tangents: Happy Friday Eve. Full moon tonight.
It is traditionally called the Sturgeon Moon — named after the giant sturgeon fish that were most easily caught from the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain at this time of year by Native American tribes
And there is something even more spectacular happening:
This month is exceptionally big for the Moon — it is the second eclipse season of 2026. On August 12, the New Moon created a total solar eclipse visible across Russia, Greenland, Iceland, and Spain — the first total solar eclipse mainland Europe had seen since 1999. Then on August 28, the Full Moon will bathe in Earth’s dark shadow, creating a deep partial lunar eclipse — a Blood Moon.
The partial lunar eclipse will last 3 hours and 18 minutes of partiality, reaching its greatest point at 4:12 AM GMT on August 28.
So tonight — Thursday August 27th — step outside around 9 PM Pacific time and look to the southeast. If you are in Victoria, you will see the Sturgeon Moon rising over Victoria Harbour, and by early morning on the 28th it will be deep in Earth’s shadow turning a dramatic coppery red. A spectacular late summer sky show.
August 27, 1859 Edwin L. Drake drilled the first successful U.S. oil well near Titusville, Pa.
⛏️🛢️The first Canadian oil well, and first on the continent was drilled and struck by James Miller Williams, a carriage maker from Hamilton, Ont. and the founding father of Canada’s petroleum industry, a year earlier, while he was drilling for water in 1858 when he struck oil at a site known as Black Creek in southern Ontario. The discovery became North America’s first oil well and the area was renamed Oil Springs. Williams went on to found The Canadian Oil Company, creating facilities for petroleum production, refining and marketing — the first integrated petroleum company on the continent. Go to article.
August 27, 1979:Lord Mountbatten assassinated.
Georg W.F. Hegel, philosopher, b.1770.
Mother Theresa, saint, b. 1910.
Peewee Herman, actor, b. 1952.
Octopuses have three hearts and blue blood. Two hearts pump blood to the gills, while the third pumps it around the body.
The hidden dangers of rollercoasters 🚨🎢
Thrill-seekers braved a world-famous Six Flags rollercoaster. Then they were rushed to the hospital for emergency brain surgery.
| FDA approves groundbreaking pancreatic cancer drug
A once-a-day pill could offer new hope to patients battling pancreatic cancer. Photos: Incredible shortlisted images from Wildlife Photographer of the Year These images were chosen from more than 65,000 entries submitted from around the world.
|
The straight line is a dangerous, comfortable hallucination which is bringing us to ruin. -Friedensreich Hundertwasser.
| Rare red northern lights may be visible alongside red moon during tonight’s partial lunar eclipse |
Moderate G1 and G2 geomagnetic storms are forecast during the Aug. 27-28 partial lunar eclipse, with the northern lights potentially visible across several northern U.S. states and parts of Canada alongside the reddened full moon.
| ‘Unlike anything seen before’: Archaeologists unearth a unique, 11,000-year-old statue of a person riding a leopard from one of the world’s earliest settlements |
Archaeologists in southern Turkey discovered a unique statue of a person on the back of a leopard.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
West Bay, England
Competitors show off their sheep at the Melplash Agricultural Society show
Photograph: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images
Reading, England
A group of young people arrive for the town’s music festival
Photograph: Geoffrey Swaine/Shutterstock
London, England
People cross the River Thames during a downpour
Photograph: Tolga Akmen/EPA
Market Closes for August 27th, 2026
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| Dow Jones |
53569.44 | +105.56 |
| +0.20% | ||
| S&P 500 | 7730.99 | +55.29 |
| +0.72% | ||
| NASDAQ | 26541.35 | +411.15 |
| +1.57% | ||
| TSX | 36834.25 | +20.60
+0.06% |
International Markets
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| NIKKEI | 66131.98 | -130.18 |
| -0.20% | ||
| HANG SENG |
25565.74 | -87.23 |
| -0.34% | ||
| SEN SEX | 76933.59 | -539.35 |
| -0.70% | ||
| FTSE 100* | 10792.54 | -85.58 |
| -0.79% |
Bonds
| Bonds | % Yield | Previous % Yield |
| CND. 10 Year Bond |
3.711 | 3.656 |
| CND. 30 Year Bond |
4.136 | 4.086 |
| U.S. 10 Year Bond |
4.6762 | 4.6465 |
| U.S. 30 Year Bond |
5.1931 | 5.1671 |
| BOC Close | Today | Previous |
| Canadian $ | 0.7218 | 0.7208 |
| US $ |
1.3853 | 1.3874 |
| Euro Rate 1 Euro= |
Inverse | |
| Canadian $ | 0.6144 | 1.6194 |
| US $ |
0.8580 | 1.1654 |
Commodities
| Gold | Close | Previous |
| London Gold Fix |
4599.17 | 4621.77 |
| Oil | ||
| WTI Crude Future | 82.23 | 82.23 |
Market Commentary:
| On this day in 1878, Thomas Alva Edison began experimenting with electric light in his laboratory in Menlo Park, N.J. By the middle of September (the final date is uncertain), Edison had solved the problem of creating incandescent electric light. |
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite advanced slightly to 36,834.25 in Toronto.
The move follows the previous session’s decrease of 0.4%.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 2.5%.
BlackBerry Ltd. had the largest increase, rising 10.8%.
Today, 124 of 217 shares rose, while 91 fell; 2 of 11 sectors were higher, led by information technology stocks.
Insights
* This month, the index rose 4.6%
* So far this week, the index rose 0.6%
* The index advanced 30% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 20% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.6% below its 52-week high on Aug. 26, 2026 and 29.9% above its low on Aug. 28, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 1.3% in the past 5 days and rose 3.6% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.5 on a trailing basis and 18 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$5.8t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 10.40% compared with 10.46% in the previous session and the average of 10.17% over the past month
Index Points
Information Technology | 76.0760| 2.6| 9/0
Materials | 68.4978| 1.0| 48/11
Energy | -0.2675| 0.0| 27/10
Health Care | -1.5919| -1.4| 0/5
Real Estate | -1.8932| -0.4| 9/8
Communication Services | -2.0076| -0.3| 1/4
Utilities | -9.0560| -0.8| 3/10
Industrials | -9.8064| -0.3| 16/14
Consumer Discretionary | -11.0558| -1.0| 3/5
Consumer Staples | -11.4576| -1.1| 3/7
Financials | -76.8389| -0.6| 5/17
Shopify | 44.1600| 2.5| 78.0| -3.3
TD Bank | 23.0500| 1.2| -10.2| 29.7
Celestica | 11.8700| 3.2| -20.2| 8.3
TC Energy | -9.1180| -1.4| -42.3| 13.7
CIBC | -30.0300| -2.8| 81.0| 27.9
RBC | -45.4100| -1.6| 9.4| 21.1
MT Newswires:
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed slightly higher on Thursday as gains in information technology, energy and base metals offset weakness in healthcare, while investors assessed fresh Canadian economic data and the Bank of Canada’s monetary policy outlook.
The index closed up 20.60 points, or 0.1%, at 36,834.25, hovering below Tuesday’s record high.
Information Technology led gainers, up 2.7%, while shares in energy and base metals were up 0.8% and 0.6%, respectively.
Healthcare led decliners, down 1.5%.
In commodities, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude rose as hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough between the US and Iran faded, renewing concerns over Middle East oil supplies.
Prices had fallen earlier on expectations that diplomatic efforts involving Iran, Oman and Qatar could help restore shipping through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
October WTI crude oil contract settled up $1.30, or 1.6%, at $83.53 per barrel, while October Brent oil was last seen up $2.14, or 2.4%, at $89.98 per barrel.
Meanwhile, December Comex gold futures gained 0.2%, or $9.70, to $4,663.00 per ounce at last look.
In currencies, the US dollar edged down 0.2% against the Canadian dollar, with USD/CAD at 1.3854 at last look.
In economic news, Canada’s seasonally adjusted current account swung to a C$8.8 billion surplus in the second quarter from a C$8.3 billion deficit in the prior quarter, marking its first surplus since the second quarter of 2022 and the largest since the last quarter of 2005, according to the country’s statistical agency.
The turnaround, which was more than double the Bloomberg survey consensus for a C$3.9 billion surplus, was driven by a sharp improvement in the goods trade balance, as exports surged.
Meanwhile, Canadian payroll employment, measured in the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours, was broadly unchanged in June, edging up by 4,800 on the month following a monthly increase of 45,000 in May, according to StatsCan.
On the monetary policy front, Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem is likely to strike a balanced tone at next Wednesday’s rate decision as renewed Canada-US trade tensions pose risks to both economic growth and inflation, according to Nomura.
The bank expects the BoC to hold its policy rate at 2.25%, with contained core inflation, a stabilizing labor market and improving growth giving policymakers room to remain patient.
In stocks, CIBC (CM.TO) and RBC (RY.TO) closed down 2.8% and 1.6%, respectively.
Both reported Q3 earnings beats earlier in the day.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A blockbuster outlook from Nvidia Corp.
spurred gains in technology stocks, bolstering confidence in the artificial-intelligence trade that has powered the bull market.
The world’s most valuable company jumped 8.7% after saying revenue will grow about 70% in the next fiscal year.
A key exchange-traded fund tracking software firms climbed the most since April 2025 on solid forecasts from Salesforce Inc. and CrowdStrike Holdings Inc.
The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.4%.
The advance in tech lifted the S&P 500 even as most of its shares fell.
While concerns over the sustainability of AI spending may continue to inject periodic tech volatility, the second-quarter earnings season has shown that fundamentals remain robust, according to Mark Haefele at UBS Global Wealth Management.
“It is clear the AI wave is far from over as demand continues to expand more and more,” said Ryan Detrick at Carson Group.
Aside from parsing tech earnings, investors are also bracing for Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s speech Friday at the Economic Policy Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
With Treasury yields still elevated by sticky inflation and fiscal deficit concerns, he’s under pressure to act more like his predecessors and give clearer guidance of how the Fed might react over the remainder of the year.
“Clear policy signal will likely be scarce given Warsh’s reluctance to provide forward guidance,” said Elias Haddad at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.
“Instead, Warsh may preview the Fed five task forces’ early findings on communications, the balance sheet, economic data, productivity and jobs, and the inflation frameworks.”
Warsh is likely to deliver an economic outlook with a “hawkish flavor” in a bid to keep long-term yields in check when he speaks Friday, Torsten Slok at Apollo Global Management told Bloomberg Television.
Fed Bank of Kansas City President Jeff Schmid told Bloomberg Television the central bank’s rate setting isn’t restraining the economy, with inflation above the target.
In an interview with CNBC, his Cleveland counterpart Beth Hammack said now is the time for officials to act to contain price pressures.
“I continue to see rates as mildly restrictive,” Fed Bank of Boston President Susan Collins said.
Elsewhere, oil rose on signs that diplomatic efforts toward an agreement over the Strait of Hormuz hit stumbling blocks.
The Wall Street Journal reported the Trump administration has told mediators it’s uninterested in returning to the terms of the memorandum of understanding reached with Iran in June.
Corporate Highlights:
* Nvidia Corp. is nearing an agreement to acquire Hugging Face in a deal that would value the AI startup at roughly $13 billion, according to news reports.
* Best Buy Co. fell as an increase in its outlook failed to impress investors, a sign that Wall Street is looking for stronger signs of recovery.
* Dollar Tree Inc. mostly met expectations last quarter and left its sales growth outlook for the year unchanged. Dollar General Corp. lifted its view for annual revenue after a sales beat.
* Moderna Inc. plans to raise $2 billion from selling notes that can be exchanged for shares, which it will use to invest in its cancer vaccine business and repay debt.
* Wendy’s Co. sank as Reuters reported that Nelson Peltz’s Trian Fund Management has no plans to make a bid to take the fast-food chain private.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.7% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.4%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.4%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
* The euro was unchanged at $1.1651
* The British pound was little changed at $1.3590
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 159.41 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 1.9% to $79,912.43
* Ether rose 1% to $2,495.58
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced two basis points to 4.67%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 3.25%
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 5.03%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.8% to $83.67 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,604.93 an ounce
Have a lovely evening.
Be magnificent!
As ever,
Carolann
The most important conversations you’ll ever have are the ones you’ll have with yourself. -David Goggins, b.1975.
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