Dear Friends,
Tangents:
Carolann is away from the office today; I will be writing the newsletter on the behalf of her.
August 5, 1858: The first transatlantic telegraph cable landed at Trinity Bay, Newfoundland, spearheaded by Cyrus West Field, though it failed after three weeks .
August 5, 1861: š°Abraham Lincoln signed the Revenue Act introducing the first U.S. federal income tax.
August 5, 1914: The first electric traffic signal in the United States was installed in Cleveland, Ohio .
August 5, 1930: Nelson Mandela was arrested on August 5, 1962.
August 5, 1962: šļø movie actress Marilyn Monroe is found dead in her home in Los Angeles.On this day 1969 The U.S. space probe Mariner 7 flew by Mars, sending back photographs and scientific data.
š¬ John Huston, filmmaker, b. 1906.
š Neil Armstrong, astronaut, b. 1930.
š Patrick Ewing, basketball player, b. 1962.
ā¾ John Olerud, baseball player, b. 1968.
A team of telescopes around the world, including the newly activated Vera C. Rubin Observatory, joined forces to observe the first shocking moments of a supernova explosion in unprecedented detail.
Why the Aug. 12 total solar eclipse appears to move backward on maps
While eclipse paths always move from west to east, this one seems to reverse direction on maps as it crosses the Arctic. Here’s the geometry behind the illusion.
Using advanced neutron imaging, researchers scanning fossils from Queensland uncovered clues about the complex food chain of prehistoric Earth.
A camera drone captured extraordinarily rare footage of a humpback whale giving birth off the Australian coast.
A global analysis shows how antibiotic resistance has been increasing among childhood infections.
Summer Stargazing 2026: The best celestial events this season (and how to see them)
Explore the wonders of the Northern Hemisphereās night sky from June to August 2026, including a total solar eclipse, Perseids and a morning planetary lineup.
What college football and horse racing have in common: Greed wrecking a good thing
On their face, they would seem as far apart on the sporting spectrum as tiddlywinks and shot put.
Swedish mountain biker Alma Wiggberg, 23, maneuvers her bike up some winding stairs and onto a roof of a building in Groningen in the Netherlands. The roar of 20,000 spectators rises from the Dutch market square 50 feet below her.
Large cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to lettuce now includes cases in 15 states
A large multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis that has been tied tolettuce sold at restaurants such as Taco Bell and some grocery stores now accounts for cases across 15 states, according to federal health officials.
AI agents fake identities, target real people in new security incident
Anthropicās most advanced artificial intelligence model used fake identities to deceive real people and try to plant malicious code during testing by Britainās AI Security Institute (AISI) āā the latest example of an AI model going rogue.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Nusa Lembongan, Bali
Tourist developments on one of the islandās bays.
Photograph: ANP/Shutterstock
Yangzhou, China
Tourists visit a āwater forestā at the Luyanghu wetland park
Photograph: Meng Delong/Getty Images
Shenyang, China
People cool off in a swimming pool as authorities issue a red alert for high temperatures
Photograph: VCG/Getty Images
Market Closes for August 5th, 2026
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| Dow Jones |
54349.12 | +263.24 |
| +0.49% | ||
| S&P 500 | 7723.55 | -12.97 |
| -0.17% | ||
| NASDAQ | 26363.44 | -221.55 |
| -0.83% | ||
| TSX | 36146.42 | +344.83
+0.96% |
International Markets
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| NIKKEI | 66300.44 | +2342.91 |
| +3.66% | ||
| HANG SENG |
25915.82 | +62.90 |
| +0.24% | ||
| SEN SEX | 78581.00 | +152.05 |
| +0.19% | ||
| FTSE 100* | 10888.30 | +8.92 |
| +0.08% |
Bonds
| Bonds | % Yield | Previous % Yield |
| CND. 10 Year Bond |
3.559 | 3.549 |
| CND. 30 Year Bond |
3.972 | 3.957 |
| U.S. 10 Year Bond |
4.6127 | 4.6126 |
| U.S. 30 Year Bond |
5.1680 | 5.1743 |
| BOC Close | Today | Previous |
| Canadian $ | 0.7136 | 0.7110 |
| US $ |
1.4012 | 1.4064 |
| Euro Rate 1 Euro= |
Inverse | |
| Canadian $ | 0.6177 | 1.6188 |
| US $ |
0.8655 | 1.1553 |
Commodities
| Gold | Close | Previous |
| London Gold Fix |
4248.83 | 4077.86 |
| Oil | ||
| WTI Crude Future | 75.22 | 80.34 |
Market Commentary:
On this day in 1997, the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 became federal law, 136 years after Congress first created income taxes. Unlike most laws with similar names, it did contain at least one provision that gave real relief to taxpayers: the Roth IRA, a new way for middle-class Americans to accumulate tax-free savings.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the second day, climbing 1%, or 344.83 to 36,146.42 in Toronto.
Today, materials stocks led the market higher, as 6 of 11 sectors gained; 102 of 218 shares rose, while 113 fell.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain and had the largest move, increasing 16.5%.
Insights
* The index advanced 31% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 23% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is at its 52-week high and 32.6% above its low on Aug. 5, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 1.1% in the past 5 days and rose 2.5% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.4 on a trailing basis and 17.6 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.1% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$5.66t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 10.81% compared with 10.53% in the previous session and the average of 10.78% over the past month
Index Points
Materials | 325.3507| 5.6| 51/7
Information Technology| 211.5533| 7.8| 1/8
Financials | 45.2450| 0.4| 14/9
Consumer Discretionary| 14.2488| 1.3| 8/0
Real Estate | 3.5808| 0.8| 10/5
Communication Services| 2.4813| 0.4| 1/4
Health Care | -0.4197| -0.4| 3/2
Consumer Staples | -17.6828| -1.5| 0/10
Utilities | -23.1003| -1.8| 0/14
Industrials | -57.6087| -1.5| 9/21
Energy | -158.8283| -2.6| 5/33
Shopify | 244.0000| 16.5| 127.2| -8.6
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd | 72.7400| 9.6| 117.8| -0.2
Barrick Mining | 45.6500| 7.2| 32.8| -3.6
RB Global | -28.7200| -14.1| 348.3| -5.1
Canadian Natural Resources | -30.3900| -3.2| -47.2| 35.2
Enbridge | -36.4000| -3.2| 176.0| 10.7
(MT Newswires)
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed at another record high for the second-straight session on Wednesday, topping the 36,000 marks for the first time as gains in battery metals and base metals stocks outweighed weakness in energy shares amid lower crude oil prices.
The index closed up 344.83 points, or 1.0%, at 36,146.42, with mixed sectors.
Battery Metals Index led gainers, up 9.3%, while Base Metals was up 2.7%.
Energy led decliners, down 3.0%.
In commodities, WTI crude oil extended its decline on Wednesday as hopes for a de-escalation in the Iran conflict and a potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz eased supply concerns.
The September WTI crude oil contract closed down $0.55, or 0.7%, and settled at $75.22 per barrel, while October Brent oil was last seen down $0.1, or 0.1%, at $79.3 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold rallied, with spot gold last up 4.2%, or $171.3, at $4,249.3 per ounce, while December Comex gold futures gained 3.8%, or $156.2, to $4,308.8 per ounce.
Separately, BMO Capital Markets forecasts Canada’s second-quarter GDP growth at 3.8% annualized, up from an earlier 3.0%, raising its full-year 2026 growth forecast to 1.0% from 0.8%, according to a Wednesday note.
Government spending is expected to contribute to overall growth, added the bank. "This mutes the recession talk in Canada."
The Canadian government sold C$5.5 billion of two-year bonds on Wednesday, with investor demand strong as it attracted bids almost three times the amount on sale, according to data published by the Bank of Canada.
The bond’s maturity is Aug.1, 2028, and the auction received C$15.0 billion in total submitted bids out of the C$5.5 billion on offer, resulting in a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.73 times.
Additionally, the federal government on Wednesday announced C$2.7 billion in funding to support the construction of thousands of rental homes in Toronto, reported CP24.
Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled the investment alongside Housing and Infrastructure Minister Gregor Robertson and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
The funding will support 18 planned rental housing projects expected to deliver more than 5,600 new homes, including nearly 2,000 affordable or deeply affordable units. Nine of the 18 developments will be built on city-owned land.
In stocks Shopify (SHOP.TO) closed up C$28.56, or 16%, to hit a six-month high of C$201.97, after it reported a second-quarter revenue beat early Wednesday.
Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.TO) closed up C$0.61, or 0.8%, to C$73.77, after reporting Q2 net income of $0.56 per diluted share from $0.38 in the previous year.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Wall Streetās blistering run took a breather, with traders digesting the recent stock gains and monitoring any signs of progress toward a deal to revive the Strait of Hormuz.
Signs of exhaustion emerged after a $3.7 trillion S&P 500 rally in just four days.
A gauge of chipmakers fell 1.4%, though Nvidia Corp. climbed.
Despite strong results, SpaceX sank 14% as $101 billion worth of stock becomes available for trading Thursday.
The morning exuberance in equities was followed by a pullback, with investors waiting for a follow-through on the Middle East situation, according to Jose Torres at Interactive Brokers.
āIt makes sense for Wall Street to pause,ā he said.
Iran said it reached an agreement with Oman on a proposed route for shipping through Hormuz, a potential step toward a reopening of the critical waterway for energy supplies.
US oil settled around $75.
The weight of the evidence continues to support giving the bull market in stocks the benefit of the doubt, even as we experience more bumps along the way, according to Keith Lerner at Truist Advisory Services Inc.
āEarnings remain our north star, the economy continues to show resilience, market participation has broadened, and valuation excesses have largely been worked off,ā he said.
On the economic front, the US service sector expanded at a steady pace in July, but rising costs for services and materials continued to weigh on firms. Companies added fewer jobs than expected.
If confirmed in the governmentās monthly jobs report on Friday, the recent employment trend suggests Federal Reserve officials can keep their focus on still-elevated prices.
Fed Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari told CNBC the central bank should start raising rates incrementally right now to curb inflation that remains too high.
Corporate Highlights:
* Alphabet Inc.ās Google is losing some of its most prominent artificial-intelligence veterans in a seismic overhaul that is casting doubt over leadership of a critical area of growth right as competition intensifies.
* Meta Platforms Inc. Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg announced the release of the companyās first AI coding agent, known as Muse Code, stepping up competition with OpenAI and Anthropic PBC.
* Microsoft Corp. generates most of its artificial intelligence revenue from OpenAI, according to new disclosures from the company.
* Advanced Micro Devices Inc. sank after the company gave an underwhelming sales outlook, a sign shareholders expected more of a return from the global expansion of AI data centers.
* Eli Lilly & Co. boosted its 2026 sales guidance after its weight-loss drug franchise performed far better than expected in the second quarter, helping to counter investor concerns that the obesity drug boom is starting to slow.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 0.2% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.8%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%
* The MSCI World Index was little changed
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%
* The euro rose 0.2% to $1.1552
* The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3466
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 157.71 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 0.7% to $64,772.62
* Ether rose 2.2% to $1,916.32
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.61%
* Germanyās 10-year yield was little changed at 3.11%
* Britainās 10-year yield was little changed at 4.89%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.1% to $74.90 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 4.2% to $4,248.08 an ounce
Have a wonderful evening everyone.
Be magnificent!
As ever,
Shima
"There are only two options regarding commitment. You’re eitherin or out. There’s no such thing as a life in between." — Patrick Riley "Pat"–1952, 2024
Shima Zangeneh
Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff
Queensbury Securities Inc.
340A – 730 View Street
Victoria BC V8W 3Y7
Tel: 778-430-5851
Fax: 778-430-5828