August 28, 2018 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On Aug. 28, 1963, 200,000 people participated in a peaceful civil rights rally in Washington, D.C., where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
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In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. -Martin Luther King Jr.

Tom Clark, a prolific and empathetic lyric poet who hitchhiked across England with Allen Ginsberg, wrote a biography of Jack Kerouac, served as the poetry editor of The Paris Review and wrote verse about baseball died on August 18 after being struck by a car while crossing a street in Oakland, California.  He remains immortal through his poems.  RIP-from The Edge of the Forest:
“Poems ought to have memories…”

They should remember other poems.
At this moment the noisy city
has fallen quiet, and the edge
of the forest is abuzz with voices,
the voices of poems beneath old trees
talking quietly about the poems that were
once here but are not here any longer,
remembering each other.

He wrote from Nocturnal Resolutions:
Be kind to animals no matter what
Listen to the angel
Try to look upon death as a friend
Accept pain as the condition
Be more patient
Don’t turn on the light.
-from the NYTimes obituary by Richard Sandomir.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A man rides a scooter with his two Yorkshire Terrier dogs wearing helmets and glasses, in a street of Marseille, southern France. Credit: Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images

Parade participants and revellers enjoy themselves along the route on the second day of Notting Hill Carnival in London. Notting Hill Carnival, London. Credit: Imageplotter/Rex/Shutterstock

Players from Bourton Rovers compete against each other during the annual Bourton-on-the-Water Football March played on the River Windrush in Bourton-on-the-Water. Credit: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
Market Closes for August 28^th, 2018

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Tatiana Darie
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell for the first time in three sessions as investors awaited developments in trade negotiations after the country’s foreign minister traveled to Washington for talks.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index declined 0.5 percent to 16,355.54 in Toronto. Most sectors were weak, with health-care and energy leading losses. Cannabis shares are giving up recent gains driven by reports of more potential investment in the industry.
     The Canadian dollar climbed to the strongest in more than two months as investors are optimistic that Canada will reach a deal on trade with its two southern neighbors. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he’s been encouraged by the progress made by Canada’s Nafta partners.
     In other moves:
                            Stocks
* Canadian auto-parts makers Linamar Corp. and Magna International Inc. extended gains, rising 3.3 percent and 1.4 percent respectively on Tuesday, signaling a bet Canada will make the cut on a final deal.
* Detour Gold Corp fell 2.3 percent as Paulson & Co. said the board’s decision to force shareholders to wait until Dec. 11 before being able to vote on a new independent board is “inexcusable,” following the company’s unveiling of an “unrealistic plan” to deliver long-term value.
* Lydian International Ltd fell 6.7 percent after Scotia Capital analyst Trevor Turnbull downgraded shares to sector underperform from sector perform.
                            Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $27.25 discount to WTI
* Aeco natural gas traded at a $2.26 discount to Henry Hub
* Gold fell 0.7 percent to $1,207.40 an ounce
                            FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar strengthened 0.3 percent to C$1.2934 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield gained 0.9 percent to almost 2.318 percent
US
By Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks eked out a gain to claim a fresh closing record, while Treasury yields climbed as investors assessed the latest developments from the Trump administration’s trade policies.
     The S&P 500 fluctuated throughout the day, rising past 2,900 for the first time before slipping back below that level. Technology stocks paced the advance, giving the Nasdaq indexes new records. Rate-sensitive shares retreated as the 10-year Treasury yield moved toward 2.90 percent. The Mexican peso failed to hold onto Monday’s gains as investors clamored for details and clarity on where a new trade agreement with the U.S. leaves Canada.
     Carmakers and miners were the biggest winners in the Stoxx Europe 600 Index. Equities in Japan rose while those in China slipped. The yuan climbed after the country’s central bank strengthened the daily fixing against the greenback by the most in more than 14 months.
     Optimism around the U.S.-Mexico deal is helping shift the news agenda in markets in the wake of Trump’s legal woes last week, while the Federal Reserve’s outlook has also boosted sentiment. Gains for risk assets remain fragile, however, as hopes for a similar trade breakthrough between America and China fade and a host of threats remain, from U.S. relations with Russia and North Korea to Chinese growth prospects.
     “On a broad sense, if markets were worried about trade tensions and trade talks escalating into full-blown wars at least this is one sign that there is a cooling off period and that some parts of the global trade space will still be connected and as free markets would hope,” said Nandini Ramakrishnan, global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management. “Another good example: European discussions this summer came down to a very conciliatory, almost non-issue.”
     Here are some key events coming up this week:
* Earnings are due from companies including Canada’s largest banks and China Construction Bank Corp., Pernod Ricard and Dollar General.
* China’s official factory PMI are due Friday.
* The U.S. economy probably grew in the second quarter at a slightly slower pace, economists predict ahead of Wednesday’s report.
* The Bank of Korea sets policy on Friday. Weak jobs growth has cooled speculation of an interest-rate increase.
     These are the main moves in markets:
                            Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose less than one point to a record 2,897.53 at 4 p.m. in New York.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.1 percent to the highest in almost three weeks.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index advanced 0.1 percent.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.4 percent to the highest in almost three weeks.
                            Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2 percent.
* The euro climbed 0.1 percent to $1.1694.
* The Japanese yen slipped 0.1 percent to 111.210 per dollar.
* The Mexican peso dropped 1.7 percent to 19.0985 per dollar.
                            Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries three basis points to 2.88 percent, the highest in more two weeks.
* Germany’s 10-year yield rose less than one basis point to 0.38 percent.
                            Commodities
* Gold futures fell 0.7 percent to $1,207.60 an ounce.
* Brent crude dropped 0.3 percent to $75.96 a barrel.
–With assistance from Andreea Papuc and Eddie van der Walt. 

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the men of old; seek what they sought
                                                    -Matsuo Chuemon Munefusa, 1644-1694

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