November 6, 2024 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Gustavus Adolphus Day, Swedish King killed in 1632.

November 6, 1861:  James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, was born in Ontario, Canada. Go to article 
November 6, 1898: the Philippines gains independence from Spain through the Treaty of Paris, marking the end of over three centuries of Spanish rule and the start of U.S. sovereignty.

Adolphe Sax, Saxophone inventor,  b. 1814.
Sally Field, actress, b. 1946.

Maria Shriver, TV reporter, b. 1955.
Binge-worthy YouTube series that are worth spending hours watching
Have you run out of things to watch on your go-to streaming platforms? If so, check out these binge-worthy YouTube series.

The world’s only Michelin-starred ice cream shop
Minimal, a luxe venue in Taiwan, has become the world’s first ice cream establishment to receive a Michelin star.

The skyscrapers where nobody lives
Some elevator test towers around the world have become local landmarks. Read about these peculiar buildings where nobody lives.

Origins of world’s earliest writing point to symbols on ‘seals’ used in Mesopotamian trade
Researchers investigating how the first writing arose identified the motifs on preliterate “cylinder seals” used in the trade of agricultural products and textiles.  Read More.

James Webb telescope spots ‘feasting’ black hole eating 40 times faster than should be possible
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have spotted a feeding black hole in the early universe that seems to be eating 40 times faster than is theoretically possible.  Read More.

India targets 2028 for Chandrayaan-4 sample-return mission to moon’s south pole
India is eyeing a 2028 launch for its Chandrayaan-4 moon sample-return mission, followed by an uncrewed lunar lander and rover in collaboration with Japan.  Read More.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Lewes, UK

Revellers carry torches through the streets of east Sussex during the traditional bonfire night celebrations
Photograph: Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images

Mount Fuji, Japan
The top of the mountain covered in a light dusting of snow
Photograph: Kyodo/Reuters

​​​​​​​Newbridge, UK
Surfers test out Lost Shore Surf Resort, set in a 60-acre country park, that generates up to 1,000 waves an hour
Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images
Market Closes for November 6, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
43729.93 +1508.05
+3.57%
S&P 500  5929.04 +146.28
+2.53%
NASDAQ  18983.46 +544.29
+2.95%
TSX  24637.45 +249.55
+1.02%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  39480.67 +1005.77
+2.61%
HANG
SENG
20538.38 -468.59
-2.23%
SENSEX  80378.13 +901.50
+1.13%
FTSE 100* 8166.68 -5.71
-0.07%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.311 3.247
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.330 3.274
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.4315 4.2708
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.6095 4.4350

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7173 0.7223
US
$
1.3941 1.3844

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.4967 0.6681
US
$
1.0736 0.9315

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2742.55 2742.60
Oil
WTI Crude Future  71.69 71.99

Market Commentary:

📈 On this day in 1851, Charles Henry Dow was born on his family’s farm in Sterling, Conn. After toiling as a reporter, he founded Dow, Jones & Co. in 1882 and devised the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 1896.

Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the fourth day, climbing 1%, or 249.55 to 24,637.45 in Toronto.
The move was the biggest since rising 1.2% on Sept. 19.
Today, financials stocks led the market higher, as 5 of 11 sectors gained; 126 of 221 shares rose, while 94 fell.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 3.7%.
IA Financial Corp. had the largest increase, rising 16.2%.
Insights
* In the past year, the index had a similar or greater gain 18 times. The next day, it advanced 12 times for an average 0.4% and declined six times for an average 0.7%
* This year, the index rose 18%, heading for the best year since 2021
* The index advanced 25% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 35% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 1.1% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 26.5% above its low on Nov. 8, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 0.5% in the past 5 days and rose 2% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.5 on a trailing basis and 17 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.86t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 8.14% compared with 7.67% in the previous session and the average of 7.83% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | 129.7771| 1.6| 23/4
Energy | 68.2399| 1.6| 37/4
Information Technology | 63.1793| 3.1| 10/0
Industrials | 46.9433| 1.5| 22/5
Consumer Staples | 20.3178| 2.1| 9/2
Consumer Discretionary | -1.0219| -0.1| 5/6
Health Care | -2.4515| -3.0| 0/4
Real Estate | -4.5412| -0.9| 3/16
Communication Services | -7.6775| -1.1| 2/3
Utilities | -11.9646| -1.3| 4/11
Materials | -51.2527| -1.7| 11/39
================================================================
| | |Volume VS |
| Index | | 20D AVG |YTD Change
Top Contributors |Points Move| % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Shopify | 34.5500| 3.7| -5.1| 10.7
Manulife Financial | 25.8700| 5.0| 62.0| 48.8
Brookfield Corp | 23.5700| 3.0| 33.1| 49.4
Intact Financial | -8.4710| -2.5| 70.8| 30.0
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd | -9.3530| -2.3| 44.7| 59.8
Wheaton Precious Metals | -9.8360| -3.4| 27.9| 34.1
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks hit all-time highs, US yields jumped and the dollar saw its best day since 2022, with investors mapping out Donald Trump’s return to presidency and the potential for Republicans to win both houses of Congress.
The S&P 500 climbed 2.5% on bets the newly elected president will enact pro-growth policies that will boost Corporate America.
The benchmark had its best post-Election Day in history, according to data compiled by Birinyi Associates Inc. and Bloomberg.
A gauge of small caps rallied 5.8% amid speculation they will benefit from Trump’s protectionist stance, while wagers on lower taxes and reduced regulation lifted banks.
Insurers focused on the Medicare market jumped on expectations the government will pay higher rates to companies that provide private versions of the US health program for seniors.
Wall Street’s “fear gauge” — the VIX — tumbled the most since August. Trading volume on stocks spiked.
The Dow Jones Transportation Average jumped to a fresh high after a three-year drought of records, finally confirming the strength of its industrial counterpart.
The breakout is a bullish sign to followers of an investing framework known as Dow Theory that says synchronized gains in both gauges portend better times ahead for the broad market.
“For now, investor sentiment is pro-growth, pro-deregulation, and pro-markets,” said David Bahnsen, chief investment officer at The Bahnsen Group.
“There is also an assumption that M&A activity will pick up and that more tax cuts are coming or the existing ones will be extended. This creates a strong backdrop for stocks.”
Treasury yields climbed across the curve, with the move led by longer-term bonds as traders slashed wagers on the scope of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Investors have doubled down on bets for policies such as tax cuts and tariffs that could trigger price pressures.
The moves also signal worries that Trump’s proposals will fuel the budget deficit and spur higher bond supply.
US 10-year yields advanced 17 basis points to 4.44%.
A dollar gauge added 1.3%, with the yen leading losses in major currencies and the euro down 1.8%.
The Mexican peso was almost flat after sinking as much as 3.5%.
Bitcoin, viewed by many as a so-called Trump trade after he embraced digital assets during his campaign, hit a record high.
Commodities came under pressure, with gold and copper tumbling.
Oil edged lower.
“The biggest takeaway from last night is that we received certainty that the market craves,” said Ryan Grabinski at Strategas.  “This will allow both business and consumer confidence to improve. Attention now should shift to the Fed meeting tomorrow. The 10-year is approaching the 4.5% level, that’s the level risk assets ran into some trouble in the last 24 months.”
The S&P 500 hovered near 5,930, notching its 48th record this year.
The Nasdaq 100 added 2.7%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 3.6%.
A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” mega caps hit a fresh all-time high, led by Tesla Inc.’s 15% surge.
Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. jumped 5.8%.
In late hours, Qualcomm Inc., the world’s biggest seller of smartphone processors, gave a bullish sales forecast.
With many investors braced for a prolonged period of uncertainty, simply gaining some clarity on the outcome is providing a sigh of relief, according to Keith Lerner at Truist.
He says the market currently appears more focused on the positive aspects of Trump’s agenda with less emphasis on the potential of tariffs and wider policy outcomes.
“Markets are pricing in most of the positives today, though the backdrop is complex, and rates, deficit concerns, the potential for fewer Fed rate cuts, and tariffs could eventually provide a counterbalance to today’s upside price shock, he noted. “Still, the weight of the evidence in our work indicates the bull market still has some longevity left, and we are sticking with the primary market uptrend.”
At Macquarie, Thierry Wizman says traders have to be mindful about pushing the “yield story much further.”
“If there’s a surprise coming from Trump in the next few months (at least relative to hyped-up expectations), it will be about fiscal restraint — rather than fiscal irresponsibility. When the market realizes this, long-term UST yields could stabilize or decline.”
To Mark Haefele at UBS Global Wealth Management, the bond selloff has gone too far. He expects the Fed to stay on a path toward lower rates.
Fed officials are widely expected to lower their benchmark interest rate on Thursday by a quarter percentage point, a move that will come on the heels of a half-point cut in September.
They have projected one more quarter-point cut this year, in December, and an additional full point of reductions in 2025, according to the median estimate released in September.
“The Fed is still likely to cut by 25 basis points at Thursday’s meeting and likely to cut again in December,” said Yung-Yu Ma at BMO Wealth Management. “As we move into 2025, we believe it’s possible that we only see two or three cuts for the year depending on the mix of policy and growth that plays out.”
The makeup of Congress will also be key going forward.
Democrats’ hopes to control the US House are fading, with Republicans increasingly confident they will hold unified control in Washington ahead of next year’s big fights over tax cuts and spending.
Democrats need a net gain of just four House seats to wrest the slim majority from Republicans, but GOP gains in races in Pennsylvania, Michigan and North Carolina have offset losses in New York, putting the party ahead in its bid to retain control of the chamber.
A “Red Wave,” consisting of Republican control of the executive and legislative branches, has occurred only eight times since World War II, according to Sam Stovall at CFRA.
Under this scenario, the S&P 500 posted its highest average annual price increase for a Republican President at 12.9%, accompanied by a 75% frequency of advance, he said.
The best return under a Democratic President occurred just six times under a split-Congress scenario, during which the S&P 500 gained an average 16.6% in price and rose 83% of the time.
“Assuming the House goes Republican, we expect that a Red Sweep outcome will play out in a similar fashion to the 2016 playbook but to a lesser degree given a more mature economic backdrop and higher equity valuations,” said Jeff Schulze at ClearBridge Investments. “Business animal spirits could be rekindled once again from Trump’s pro-business approach.”
Schulze says that which could lead to a more robust capital expenditures and investment environment.
A more favorable corporate tax regime, full extension of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and a lighter regulatory touch should outweigh the potential headwinds from increased tariffs and reduced immigration on corporate profits.
“We expect cyclical leadership to continue in the coming months as the market anticipates stronger economic growth and better earnings delivery from this cohort than is currently priced,” Schulze noted.
“Favorable macro drivers still dominate, and the prospect of a Republican sweep and lower taxes is adding to the market enthusiasm,” said Ma at BMO. “That may get tempered in the coming weeks by more details regarding tariff policy or a continued rise in long-term Treasury yields, but for the past two years we’ve said that the environment is favorable for risk- taking and that remains the case.”
In addition, the potential for extension of personal tax cuts under a Republican sweep are only marginally positive for the equity markets, he noted.
Corporate tax cuts are much more significant, and while there have been promises to do more on this front, they come with unclear stipulations, including requirements that companies keep manufacturing operations in the US,” Ma concluded.
The stock-market surge unleashed by Trump’s presidential victory is triggering buy signals for rules-based investment funds, adding fuel to the rally.
“The year-end rally starts today and may be higher than investors were expecting,” Scott Rubner, a tactical specialist at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., wrote in a note to clients Wednesday.
Behind it, he cited “unwinds of election hedges, re-levering, Buybacks, FOMO, Vanna,” a type of buying tied to the periodic expiration of option contracts.
“Markets hate uncertainty and now that the election is officially over, stocks are soaring today,” said Ryan Detrick at Carson Group. “Optimism over tax cuts, a still dovish Fed, and a potentially better economy are part of it, but the reality is the economy has been quite solid all year, so this really isn’t anything new. Back to your regularly scheduled bull market is how we see it.”
At Ameriprise, Anthony Saglimbene says animal spirits through year-end could push major averages higher as the overhang of the election is removed and investors look to put excess cash to work in equities “Finally, US stocks may see tailwinds from not only the election results but a retreat in volatility hedging, corporations moving out of their buyback blackout periods as the earnings season winds down, and strong fourth-quarter seasonality factors (particularly in election years).”
The surge in small caps suggests the performance of the US stock market will broaden from the big-tech cohort following Trump’s re-election, according to Vincent Juvyns at JPMorgan Asset Management.
Chris Senyek at Wolfe Research says he remains bullish on stocks into year-end.
“With Donald Trump winning the 47th Presidency of the United States, we believe that markets will heavily favor financials, US-based industrials (transports), energy, and crypto today and into year-end, he said. “We think more offensive tech outperforms as well with semis outperforming. By style, we’d own value, equal weight, small-cap and year-to-date laggards.”

Key events this week:
* China trade, forex reserves, Thursday
* UK BOE rate decision, Thursday
* Fed rate decision, Thursday
* US University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 2.5% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 2.7%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 3.6%
* The MSCI World Index rose 1.6%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 4.2%
* The Russell 2000 Index rose 5.8%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 1.3%
* The euro fell 1.8% to $1.0735
* The British pound fell 1.2% to $1.2886
* The Japanese yen fell 1.9% to 154.57 per dollar
* The Mexican peso was little changed at 20.1071
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 10% to $76,115.17
* Ether rose 11% to $2,692.21
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced 17 basis points to 4.44%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 2.40%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 4.56%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.2% to $71.87 a barrel
* Spot gold fell 3% to $2,661.25 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Lu Wang, Elena Popina and Matt Turner.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. -Chinese Proverb.

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

November 5, 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Election Day USA.

Guy Fawkes Day, England.
November 5, 1605: The Gunpowder Plot fails as Guy Fawkes is discovered guarding explosives meant to blow up the English Parliament, leading to the annual “Bonfire Night” celebration in the UK.

November 5, 1935: Parker Brothers began marketing the board game “Monopoly.” Go to article 

Art Garfunkel, musician, b. 1941, in Forest Hills, Queens.
Will Durant, historian, author, b. 1885.
Sam Shepard, actor, playwright, b. 19473

When did plate tectonics begin?
Earth surface is covered with rigid plates that move, crash into each other and dive into the planet’s interior. But when did this process begin?  Read More.

Will we ever have quantum laptops?
Quantum computers are here. But could we ever build a quantum laptop?  Read More.

Indonesia volcano eruption kills at least 10
An eruption of Indonesia’s Lewotobi Laki-laki stratovolcano rained debris and ash on villages on the island of Flores.  Read More.

‘An offering to energize the fields’: 76 child sacrifice victims, all with their chests cut open, unearthed at burial site in Peru
An analysis of previous sacrifices at the same site suggests the victims were conquered people brought to work on the land.  Read More.

Eco-friendly satellite
The first wooden satellite was launched into space today and will later be released into orbit. Researchers are testing the cosmic potential of the renewable material as humans explore living in space.

Italian souven-air
Wishing you were on the shores of Lake Como, Italy, but can’t quite afford the plane ticket? Now you can pop open a can of air captured from the popular tourist spot for just $11.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Narayanganj, Bangladesh
Hindu worshippers pray with oil lamps during the Rakher Upobash festival
Photograph: Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters

Brülisau, Switzerland
A paraglider descends into a sea of fog in eastern Switzerland
Photograph: Gian Ehrenzeller/EPA

​​​​​​​Cluj, Romania
‘An ant on a zucchini plant leaf. I liked how the leaves filtered the intense light of day.’
Photograph: Magda Iftene
Market Closes for November 5, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42221.88 +427.28
+1.02%
S&P 500  5782.76 +70.07
+1.23%
NASDAQ  18439.17 +259.19
+1.43%
TSX  24387.90 +131.84
+0.54%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  38474.90 +421.23
+1.11%
HANG
SENG
21006.97 +439.45
+2.14%
SENSEX  78782.24 -941.88
-1.18%
FTSE 100* 8172.39 -11.85
-0.14%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.247 3.235
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.274 3.279
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2708 4.2867
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.4350 4.4681

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7223 0.7185
US
$
1.3844 1.3919

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5115 0.6616
US
$
1.0919 0.9158

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2742.60 2744.30
Oil
WTI Crude Future  71.99 71.47

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1626, an official of the Dutch West India Co. reported that settlers bought the island of Manhattan for 60 guilders, later estimated to be around $24.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the third day, climbing 0.5%, or 131.84 to 24,387.90 in Toronto.
The move was the biggest since rising 0.7% on Oct. 11.
Brookfield Corp. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 2.9%.
TransAlta Corp. had the largest increase, rising 6.9%.
Today, 146 of 221 shares rose, while 69 fell; 8 of 11 sectors were higher, led by financials stocks.
Insights
* This year, the index rose 16%, heading for the best year since 2021
* The index advanced 23% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 32% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 2.1% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 25.2% above its low on Nov. 8, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 0.7% 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 19.4 on a trailing basis and 16.9 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.84t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 7.67% compared with 7.55% in the previous session and the average of 7.82% over the past month
================================================================
|Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | 61.7924| 0.8| 23/4
Industrials | 23.8642| 0.8| 24/3
Utilities | 15.3174| 1.6| 13/2
Materials | 15.1555| 0.5| 25/23
Information Technology | 12.7369| 0.6| 7/2
Consumer Staples | 12.1891| 1.3| 9/2
Health Care | 1.1397| 1.4| 2/2
Energy | 0.5826| 0.0| 22/18
Real Estate | -1.4279| -0.3| 12/6
Communication Services | -3.6114| -0.5| 3/2
Consumer Discretionary | -5.8999| -0.7| 6/5
================================================================
| | |Volume VS |
| Index | | 20D AVG |YTD Change
Top Contributors |Points Move| % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Brookfield Corp | 21.7500| 2.9| 53.2| 45.0
Sun Life Financial | 10.0600| 3.2| 127.3| 16.3
Shopify | 9.1440| 1.0| -51.9| 6.8
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd | -2.3120| -0.6| -35.6| 63.4
BCE | -3.5100| -1.4| 195.9| -23.5
Restaurant Brands | -6.7160| -3.1| 97.8| -8.9
US
By Rheaa Rao and Andre Janse van Vuuren
(Bloomberg) — Stocks climbed Tuesday while Treasuries were mixed and the dollar fell in the last trading session before votes are tallied in a US presidential race with far-reaching implications for the economy.
Neither the size of the moves nor volume indicated strong conviction on the outcome of a contest that polls continue to put at a dead heat.
The world’s largest tech companies led gains, with the S&P 500 up 1.2% and a measure of the “Magnificent Seven” mega caps climbing 1.8%.
The rally was partly fueled by a surge in Palantir Technologies Inc. after the company signaled “unwavering demand” for artificial intelligence.
Nvidia Corp. became the largest company in the world, surpassing Apple Inc.
Shorter-term Treasuries underperformed after a solid report on US services.
Election-day markets were notably calm.
Earlier moves that bore the imprint of positioning known informally as the Trump trade, including a runup in Treasury rates and the Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. stock, unwound as the session progressed, though crypto held on to gains.
The broad rally in stocks was consistent with votes past: the S&P 500 has gained on nine of the last 11 election days with a median return of 0.8%, according to Carson Group strategist Ryan Detrick.
“Regardless of who wins tonight or whenever we get those results, it effectively is going to be a surprise,” Cameron Dawson at NewEdge Wealth told Bloomberg Television.
“Those polls are so very tight, which means that it could be volatility-inducing event.”
Investors are reluctant to commit to sizable positions until at least the release of the initial exit polls, said Matthew Ryan, head of market strategy at global financial services firm Ebury.
“The US election rests on a knife-edge as Americans head to the polls, with the outcome now seemingly anyone’s guess,” he said.
Wall Street was preparing for a long night of potentially contentious ballot counting and sharp swings no matter the outcome.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategists said there’s a possibility of a burst of volatility in the aftermath of the election, but also pointed to the resilient US economic backdrop as likely to support equities in the long run.
The team of strategists led by Andrea Ferrario said there’s just an 18% chance of a bear market in the next 12 months — even when taking into account the risks posed by Tuesday’s presidential election.
“Equities should be able to digest higher bond yields as long as they are driven by better growth,” the Goldman strategists wrote in a note.
Markets are awaiting the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision on Thursday, and Jerome Powell’s press conference, where he’ll give details on the path for interest rates.
“The market is longing for the election to be over so that the focus can return to earnings and monetary policy,” said Susana Cruz, a strategist at Panmure Liberum.
All of that adds up to a market primed for volatility this week.
Options data suggests a 1.8% move in either direction for the S&P 500 on Wednesday, according to Citigroup’s head of equity trading strategy Stuart Kaiser.

Key events this week:
* Eurozone HCOB Services PMI, PPI, Wednesday
* China trade, forex reserves, Thursday
* UK BOE rate decision, Thursday
* US Fed rate decision, Thursday
* US University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 1.2% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.3%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1%
* The MSCI World Index rose 1.1%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 1.8%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%
* The euro rose 0.4% to $1.0924
* The British pound rose 0.5% to $1.3026
* The Japanese yen rose 0.4% to 151.54 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 3.6% to $69,482.85
* Ether rose 2.4% to $2,427.95
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.28%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 2.42%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced seven basis points to 4.53%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.8% to $72.07 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 0.2% to $2,743.08 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
Love is blind, but marriage restores its sight. –George C. Lichtenberg, 1742-1799.

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

November 4, 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Monday.

November 4th, 1922: Howard Carter rediscovers the intact tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in Egypt, inspiring a new generation of archaeologists worldwide.
November 4th, 1979: The Iranian hostage crisis began as militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.  Go to article 

1946: UNESCO founded.

Walter Cronkite, journalist, b. 1916.
Will Rogers, humorist, b. 1879.
Sean “Puffy” Combs, rapper, b. 1969

‘God of chaos’ asteroid may be transformed by tremors and landslides during 2029 flyby of Earth, study finds
When the ‘God of chaos’ asteroid Apophis makes an ultra close flyby of Earth in 2029, our planet’s gravity may trigger tremors and landslides that totally change the asteroid’s surface. Read More.

‘Mind-blowing’ discovery reveals 5,000-year-old cultic building in Israel
The remains of a 5,000-year-old structure that likely had cultic purposes is one of the oldest public buildings ever found in Israel.  Read More.

Natural selection is unfolding right now in these remote villages in Nepal
Physiological traits that help Tibetan women survive at high altitudes are being selected for within the population, meaning they may be becoming more common, new research hints. Read More.

Chemists broke a 100-year-old rule to make extremely unstable molecules
Scientists have just broken a 100-year-old chemistry rule and synthesized a type of 3D, unstable molecule called an anti-Bredt olefin. Read More.

Why do scientists want to develop quantum computers?
Quantum computers will one day outpace the fastest supercomputers on the planet, but what will they be used to accomplish? Read More.

Watch this terrifying robotic torso spring into life.  Startup Clone Robotics has created an ultra-creepy humanoid torso with artificial muscles that are activated through a battery-powered hydraulic system and covered in ghostly-white “skin.”  Full Story: Live Science (11/1)

Voyager blackout fixed
A technical issue recently cut NASA’s communication with Voyager 1, but a creative solution involving 1981 technology reconnected the aging spacecraft, which is 15 billion miles away.

Starbucks order for ‘Air-Inn’
Remember when the Starbucks barista would strangely misspell even the most common names in large black ink on the coffee cups? Well those days are returning thanks to the company’s new initiative to win back customers.

Amazing survival story
A missing hiker somehow managed to stay alive for days in the Australian bush with an injured ankle and potentially venomous snake bite. She might not have been found if her rental car hadn’t been reported missing.

Legalized jaywalking
It’s been illegal to cross the street in New York without adhering to traffic signals for more than 65 years. Not anymore – and part of the reason for the change is who was overwhelmingly being cited for jaywalking.

RIP Quincy Jones.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Frankfurt, Germany
The sun rises over the city of Kronberg
Photograph: Michael Probst/AP

Beijing, China
People visit Zhongshan Park as trees take on the colours of autumn
Photograph: Adek Berry/AFP/Getty Images

​​​​​​​Cairo, Egypt
An installation by the visual artist Jean-Marie Appriou, titled Vessel of Time, during the fourth edition of Forever is Now, an international art exhibition by Art D’Egypte that reimagines Egypt’s ancient civilisation through contemporary art around the Giza pyramids
Photograph: Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters
Market Closes for November 4, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
41794.60 -257.59
-0.61%
S&P 500  5712.69 -16.11
-0.28%
NASDAQ  18179.98 -59.94
-0.33%
TSX  24256.06 +0.90

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  38053.67 -1027.58
-2.63%
HANG
SENG
20567.52 +61.09
+0.30%
SENSEX  78782.24 -941.88
-1.18%
FTSE 100* 8184.24 +7.09
+0.09%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.235 3.288
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.279 3.352
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2867 4.3836
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.4681 4.5782

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7193 0.7185
US
$
1.3902 1.3919

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5118 0.6615
US
$
1.0875 0.9196

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2744.30 2734.15
Oil
WTI Crude Future  71.47 69.49

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1929: In an attempt to calm panicking investors, the New York Stock Exchange said it would be open for trading only three hours a day. Investors took no comfort, trading more than twice the level of a normal full day’s trading.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite advanced slightly to 24,256.06 in Toronto.
Bank of Nova Scotia contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 1.8%.
Tilray Brands Inc. had the largest increase, rising 4.8%.
Today, 119 of 222 shares rose, while 102 fell; 5 of 11 sectors were higher, led by energy stocks.
Insights
* This year, the index rose 16%, heading for the best year since 2021
* The index advanced 22% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 30% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 2.7% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 24.5% above its low on Nov. 8, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 1.3% in the past 5 days and rose 0.4% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.2 on a trailing basis and 16.8 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.84t
* 30-day price volatility little changed to 7.55% compared with 7.55% in the previous session and the average of 7.90% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Energy | 28.1121| 0.7| 31/10
Financials | 7.2101| 0.1| 15/12
Consumer Discretionary | 5.6019| 0.7| 6/5
Real Estate | 4.6404| 0.9| 19/1
Industrials | 3.3162| 0.1| 16/11
Health Care | -1.0430| -1.3| 1/3
Consumer Staples | -2.2541| -0.2| 6/5
Utilities | -3.1709| -0.3| 6/9
Materials | -7.0292| -0.2| 11/40
Information Technology | -8.5074| -0.4| 5/4
Communication Services | -25.9665| -3.7| 3/2
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Bank of Nova Scotia| 11.1700| 1.8| 31.8| 14.3
Nutrien | 10.5800| 4.5| -3.7| -5.5
Brookfield Corp | 7.0460| 0.9| 47.7| 40.9
Shopify | -10.1500| -1.1| 29.3| 5.7
Fairfax Financial | -10.9100| -3.9| 42.5| 48.5
BCE | -27.6800| -9.7| 625.7| -22.4
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks failed to gain traction and bonds climbed, with polls continuing to depict a tight race in the US presidential election ahead of the Federal Reserve rate decision.
In the run-up to Tuesday’s vote, equity traders decided to stay on the sidelines as a flurry of polls showed Americans remain narrowly split between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.
The likelihood of a disputed result could eventually drag the vote count out for weeks or even months. For many, that means one thing — a potential increase in volatility.
Treasuries rose across the curve and the dollar dropped the most in over a month.
Another factor that’s preventing traders from making riskier bets is the number of additional catalysts surrounding the vote.
Election Day will quickly be followed on Thursday by the Fed decision and Jerome Powell’s press conference, where he’ll give details on the central bank’s interest-rate path.
And a big chunk of US companies are still due to report their earnings.
“Normally, the Fed rate announcement would dominate the week’s discussion, but this isn’t just any week,” said Chris Larkin at E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley. “Traders and investors who have been waiting for the outcome of the election have to prepare themselves for the possibility of a delayed outcome, and the potential impact of that.”
Regarding equity performance, the S&P 500 tends to see positive returns to close out the year after Election Day, according to Bespoke Investment Group.
For all years since 1990, the median gain has been 3.3%.
For election years, performance has tended to be modestly stronger, with a median gain of 3.9%.
The S&P 500 fell 0.3%.
The Nasdaq 100 dropped 0.3%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.6%.
In late hours, Palantir Technologies Inc. rallied on an earnings beat, while citing “unwavering” artificial-intelligence demand.
NXP Semiconductors NV tumbled after giving a disappointing forecast.
Treasury 10-year yields declined nine basis points to 4.29%.
Bitcoin fell 2.6%.
Oil climbed after OPEC+ agreed to push back its December production increase and Iran outlined a possible response to Israel’s recent bombardment.
From stocks and Treasuries to currencies and commodities, rarely has anxiety been as pronounced at this point of the cycle.
A gauge of cross-asset risk kept by Bank of America Corp. jumped to the highest point of any pre-election week outside of the financial crisis.
“Investor sentiment could take a turn for the worse over the very short-term, especially if there is uncertainty over the winner of the presidential election or if it takes longer-than- expected to declare a winner,” said Carol Schleif at BMO Family Office. “Sooner or later, the election result will be finalized, and any volatility from this is an opportunity in our view.”
Commodity trading advisers, or CTAs, are expected to sell US and global stocks no matter which direction the market goes, according to the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. trading desk.
“Our models assume that over the week CTAs are going to be material sellers in any market scenario,” it said.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategist Dubravko Lakos-Bujas expects US equities will climb into the final stretch of 2024 once the results of the US presidential election are declared, particularly if the outcome is political gridlock.
“Under either gridlock scenario, we think equities reprice higher as we clear the uncertainty, volatility decreases and hedges unwind, with investors refocusing on the Federal Reserve at a time when the economy and corporate earnings remain resilient,” he wrote.
The S&P 500 can keep climbing into the final stretch of 2024 as investors exhale after the US presidential election passes and year-end FOMO kicks in, according to Morgan Stanley’s Mike Wilson.
But with no clear catalysts in sight, that enthusiasm is likely to fade as the calendar turns to 2025, the strategist warns.
“I think we could see 6,000, potentially, in some sort of a clearing event, where there’s not a lot of consternation and people feel good about things,” Morgan’s chief US equity strategist said Monday in an interview with Bloomberg Television.
The gauge closed at 5,712.69 Monday.
The sustainability of any upward move in equities if Trump wins the election is likely to depend on the magnitude of bond yields’ response, according to JPMorgan strategists led by Mislav Matejka.
A Trump win and a positive market reaction are widely expected at this point, and investors are already long equities “which could lead to travel and arrive at some point,” they said.
If Harris wins, the uncertainty over the path of corporate taxes would increase near term.
Over the medium term, equities might see some support from the reduced tariffs risk, the strategists noted.
While volatility has been elevated, it’s pointing to about a 1.7% move for the S&P 500 the day after the election — not an outrageous swing.
The implied move has fallen steadily from a peak of around 2% in early October to be about in line with the long-term average for past elections, according to Stefano Pascale, head of US equity-derivatives strategy at Barclays Plc.
Beyond the general indexes, some sectors, such as crypto and clean-energy stocks, are seeing a surge in volatility well above their medians.
Crypto stocks are pricing almost 10% moves, Morgan Stanley’s trading desk said last week, and those for renewable firms around 6%.
That’s playing out in positioning, where, for example, more than 20,000 November call spreads were bought last week in Sunrun Inc.
To Dan Wantrobski at Janney Montgomery Scott, US equities remain largely in consolidation mode ahead of this potentially historic week.
Investors should expect “more choppy trading in sessions ahead, he noted.
“Depending on how things develop, the markets themselves are teed up for either new highs (the primary trend is still bullish) or bigger drawdowns (overbought conditions remain, with some recent support levels broken),” Wantrobski said.
The year-to-date gains through October are the strongest for any election year going back to at least the 1950s, according to Keith Lerner at Truist Advisory Services Inc.
These gains are supported by an economy that remains resilient and forward earnings that reached yet another record high, he said.
“Two pillars of this market also remain intact: 1) Don’t fight the trend, and 2) Don’t fight the Fed,” Lerner noted.
US equity markets performed relatively well during the past month in comparison to steeper declines during the period just ahead of past presidential races.
That suggests optimism about the economy and further Fed rate cuts is outweighing worry about the US election, according to strategists at Citigroup Inc.
“Of course, the US election will play a prominent role in moving financial markets around this week,” said Anthony Saglimbene at Ameriprise.
“However, a Federal Reserve policy decision on Wednesday, some light economic releases throughout the week, and roughly 20% of the S&P 500 scheduled to report third quarter results should also have their fair share of sway on directing stock traffic.”
With both US presidential candidates at a “dead heat” heading into next week’s election, markets are bracing for a result that could lead to a wide range of policy outcomes.
Yet, it is notable that, since 1933, equities have almost always risen by double-digits by the end of a president’s term, regardless of their party affiliation according to Seema Shah at Principal Asset Management.
“Investors should take caution. Those who allow their political opinions to cloud their investing decisions could miss out on the potential rewards that come with staying invested in the market over the long-term,” she noted.
Against the uncertain electoral backdrop, it might make sense to look at areas that have bipartisan support rather than industries that benefit from one party or the other, according to Scott Helfstein at Global X.
“For example, themes tied to U.S. competitiveness like infrastructure, defense technology, and nuclear energy are central to both party platforms,” he said. “Private investment in areas like AI, data centers, and robotics is likely to remain elevated as US companies look to sustain high margins in an environment with either higher tariffs or taxes.”
Financial markets are starting their final sprint into year-end and conditions are aligning for the normal seasonal rally, though one is far from assured, according to Jason Draho at UBS Global Wealth Management.
“The election should be a risk-clearing event, while economic fundamentals, policy, and investor positioning lean in favor of markets grinding higher,” he said. “For equities, this could also mean a further broadening out of performance that began earlier in the fall. Even if such a year-end rally doesn’t materialize, these conditions, along with the AI theme, give us confidence that the markets will move higher over the next year.”

Corporate Highlights:
* Shares of nursing home operator PACS Group Inc. tumbled after Hindenburg Research released a short report alleging that the company has been — among other things — “systematically scamming taxpayers.”
* Franklin Resources Inc. sank on news that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating trades at Western Asset Management Co., and that $18 billion of long-term cash had flowed out of that unit last month.
* Obesity pill data released by Viking Therapeutics Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc at a big conference foreshadowed an increasingly competitive landscape for weight-loss therapies, sending down shares of drugmakers in the field.
* Peloton Interactive Inc. picked up rare buy rating Monday as Bank of America Corp. upgraded the fitness company by two notches, touting its profit outlook and a positive view of its new chief executive.
* French grocer Carrefour SA is in the early stages of studying ways to boost its valuation, more than three years after talks to sell itself to an industry rival fell apart, people with knowledge of the matter said.
* Commerzbank AG Chief Executive Officer Bettina Orlopp is seeking to unlock more capital to pay out or invest, as she makes the case for an independent bank in the face of a potential takeover by rival UniCredit SpA.

Key events this week:
* China Caixin Services PMI, Tuesday
* US ISM services, Tuesday
* US presidential election, Tuesday
* Eurozone HCOB Services PMI, PPI, Wednesday
* China trade, forex reserves, Thursday
* UK BOE rate decision, Thursday
* US Fed rate decision, Thursday
* US University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 0.3% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.3%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6%
* The MSCI World Index fell 0.2%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%
* The euro rose 0.4% to $1.0875
* The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.2953
* The Japanese yen rose 0.6% to 152.15 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 2.6% to $67,317.27
* Ether fell 1.9% to $2,422.05
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined nine basis points to 4.29%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined one basis point to 2.39%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced one basis point to 4.46%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 3.2% to $71.70 a barrel
* Spot gold was little changed

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,
All men age, as all men die.  The thing is not to die too soon, Seῇora, and to live wisely.  To life a long time is nothing, to live a long time wisely is something. –Louis L’Amour, 1908-1988.

Carolann

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

November 1, 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday.  Diwali/Deepavali.  All Saints Day.

On Nov. 1, 1952, the United States exploded the first hydrogen bomb, in a test at Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands.  Go to article 
November 1, 1993: The Maastricht Treaty establishes the European Union (EU), creating a closer political and economic alliance and introducing the euro, reshaping European governance and relations.
November 1, 1994: Nirvana releases their MTV Unplugged in New York album.

Time to switch the clocks t standard time on Sunday morning – one hour back.
Even if you sleep more, time changes can be rough on your body.
Why do we do this? For more morning daylight. But many people don’t like clock switches. The idea has been around since 1784, when Benjamin Franklin suggested it as a joke

Daylight Savings Time significantly impacts heart attack rates: in Autumn, when clocks go back and people gain an hour f sleep, heart attacks decrease by 21%.  In Spring, when clocks go forward and an hour of sleep is lost, heart attacks rise by 24%.

Father-daughter team decodes ‘alien signal’ from Mars that stumped the world for a year
A father and daughter team based in the U.S. have decoded a mock “alien signal” beamed from ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter a year ago — but the meaning of the extraterrestrial message remains a mystery.
Read More.

Earth is racing toward climate conditions that collapsed key Atlantic currents before the last ice age, study finds
Global warming during the Last Interglacial period caused so much Arctic ice to melt that Atlantic currents collapsed — and scientists say these are the conditions we could be heading toward. Read More.

What is DANA, the strange weather phenomenon that has caused deadly flooding in Spain?
With record-high Mediterranean temperatures and a year’s worth of rain falling in mere hours, Spain has been devastated by the weather phenomenon known as DANA. Read More.

(Andy Ryan)

Boston Dynamics’ robot dog Spot can now ‘play fetch’ — thanks to MIT breakthrough
The future of smarter robots may lie in combining neural networks with advanced computer vision.  Read More.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Beijing, China
A man looks out from a container restaurant near a sculpture depicting a sleeping Chinese astronaut in the art district of Songzhuang
Photograph: Andy Wong/AP

A swan swims in Swan Lake in Stryiskyi Park, Lviv, western Ukraine
Photograph: Ukrinform/Rex/Shutterstock

A polar bear and a cub search for scraps in a large pile of bowhead whale bones left from the village’s subsistence hunting near Kaktovik, on the northern coast of Alaska, US
Photograph: Lindsey Wasson/AP
Market Closes for November 1, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42052.19 +288.73
+0.69%
S&P 500  5728.80 +23.35
+0.41%
NASDAQ  18239.92 +144.77
+0.80%
TSX  24255.16 +98.29
+0.41%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  38053.67 -1027.58
-2.63%
HANG
SENG
20506.43 +189.10
+0.93%
SENSEX  79724.12 +335.06
+0.42%
FTSE 100* 8177.15 +67.05
+0.83%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.288 3.219
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.352 3.288
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.3836 4.2844
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.5782 4.4750

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7185 0.7178
US
$
1.3919 1.3931

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5132 0.6609
US
$
1.0872 0.9198

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2734.15 2777.80
Oil
WTI Crude Future  69.49 68.61

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1998, the Dow Jones Industrial Average replaced four stodgy old companies–Chevron, Goodyear, Sears and Union Carbide–with four growth stocks: Home Depot, Intel, Microsoft and SBC Communications.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose 0.4% at 24,255.16 in Toronto.
The move follows the previous session’s decrease of 1.4%.
Today, financials stocks led the market higher, as 6 of 11 sectors gained; 110 of 222 shares rose, while 110 fell.
Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 9.1%.
Air Canada had the largest increase, rising 14.0%.

Insights
* This year, the index rose 16%, heading for the best year since 2021
* So far this week, the index fell 0.9%
* The index advanced 27% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 35% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 2.7% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 28.3% above its low on Nov. 1, 2023
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.3 on a trailing basis and 17 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.83t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 7.55% compared with 7.47% in the previous session and the average of 8.15% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | 65.9359| 0.8| 21/6
Information Technology | 25.8391| 1.3| 8/2
Industrials | 21.4587| 0.7| 22/5
Consumer Discretionary | 14.5328| 1.8| 9/2
Consumer Staples | 5.6071| 0.6| 8/3
Health Care | 1.6262| 2.0| 2/2
Communication Services | -2.5484| -0.4| 0/5
Real Estate | -4.1568| -0.8| 4/16
Materials | -5.4589| -0.2| 24/25
Utilities | -8.8798| -0.9| 1/14
Energy | -15.6762| -0.4| 11/30
================================================================
| | |Volume VS |
| Index | | 20D AVG |YTD Change
Top Contributors |Points Move| % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Fairfax Financial | 23.6400| 9.1| 123.9| 54.4
RBC | 17.1100| 1.0| -27.4| 27.0
Shopify | 11.3400| 1.2| -18.1| 6.9
Barrick Gold | -3.7980| -1.2| -21.4| 11.1
Cenovus Energy | -4.5420| -2.2| -6.0| -0.4
Imperial Oil | -6.1600| -5.1| 83.7| 30.6

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks staged a late-week rebound, with traders looking past noisy economic data and uncertainties about one of the most closely contested elections in US history to focus on Corporate America’s strength.
The S&P 500 halted a two-day rout amid solid signals from industry bellwethers.
Tech megacaps, which bore the brunt of the recent selling, led gains on Friday.
Amazon.com Inc. surged 6.5% after strong results.
Intel Corp. rallied 8.5% on a bullish outlook.

Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. beat profit, output and sales estimates.
Boeing Co. rose 3.5% on optimism that a lengthy strike is nearing an end.
Apple Inc. fell 1.2% after a tepid forecast.
Wall Street tried not to read too much into data showing US hiring advanced at the slowest pace since 2020 in October while the unemployment rate remained low.

The numbers were distorted by severe hurricanes and a major strike.
The jobs report is the last major data point before next week’s Federal Reserve meeting and the Nov. 5 presidential election.
“We’re in the midst of a hectic stretch with economic data, earnings, the Fed, and the US election,” said Bret Kenwell at eToro.
“There’s been some additional volatility around these events, but so far nothing has changed the big-picture view. Until that changes, the long-term drivers of the bull market remain intact.”
In fact, the S&P 500 rally of roughly 20% in 2024 through the end of October was the strongest in a presidential election year since 1936, according to Bespoke Investment Group strategists.
Historically, gains of that magnitude in such a span have been followed by stronger-than-normal finishes to the year, they said.
The S&P 500 rose 0.3%, trimming this week’s losses.
The Nasdaq 100 added 0.6%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.6%.
A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps rallied 1%.
Treasury yields rose, reversing an earlier slide.
Traders held tight to expectations that that policymakers will cut rates by a quarter-point on Nov. 7 and again on Dec. 18, pricing in 44 basis points by year’s end.
They see less than 60 basis points of cumulative easing by the end of January, implying the potential that officials pause early next year.
Treasury 10-year yields advanced nine basis points to 4.37%.
The dollar rose.
A sharp selloff in UK bonds that sent borrowing costs to their highest in a year abated Friday as a weak jobs report in the US boosted demand for global debt.
Oil edged higher on a report that Iran may be preparing to attack Israel from Iraqi territory in the coming days, though crude still finished the week lower amid skepticism that the war will disrupt supplies.
The muddied jobs report provides more evidence that the labor market is still down-shifting from the overheated levels seen a few years ago, supporting the case for Fed officials to keep dialing back the restrictive rates they put into place to quash inflation.
“We still think the Fed will follow a gradual pace of policy rate cuts, including 25 basis points next week and likely, but not a done deal another 25 bps in December,” said Tiffany Wilding at Pacific Investment Management Co.
“While the US economy has been very resilient overall, we think today’s softer jobs report was a good reminder that markets are not priced for a potential downside scenario for the economy that requires the Fed to cut rates more aggressively.”
To Ian Lyngen at BMO Capital Markets, it was a disappointing employment update that was noisy enough to prevent a rethink of the state of the labor market.
“While the Fed will likely attribute some of the weakness in today’s data to one-off factors, the softness in today’s data argues for the Fed to continue its easing cycle at next week’s meeting,” said Lindsay Rosner at Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
“Stormy numbers, but sky clearing for November 25 basis-point cut.”
Seema Shah at Principal Asset Management says markets can “likely park” the data to the side due to the hurricane impact that clouded the picture of labor market strength.
“It reaffirms that the Fed must persist with its easing cycle, even in the face of surprisingly strong economic activity data in recent weeks,” Shah said.
“In the end, we think the Fed will cut rates 25 basis points next week, and probably also in December, but we are also ready to engage with the slew of further data and information over the coming days and weeks,” said Rick Rieder at BlackRock.
US mutual funds’ cash holdings have fallen to the lowest level in Bank of America Corp.’s records going back to 2015, suggesting increasingly bullish equity sentiment that coincides with the start of the Fed’s easing cycle, according to strategists led by Savita Subramanian.
The bank’s “sell side indicator” — which tracks the average Wall Street strategist’s allocation to equities in a balanced fund — has also ticked up this year. In a contrarian signal, “sentiment indicators are turning increasingly bullish, suggesting potentially limited upside at the index level,” the strategists wrote.
“Equity and bond fund inflows have been remarkably strong over the last year, with over $500 billion going into equities and $700 billion into bonds,” said Deutsche Bank strategists including Parag Thatte and Binky Chadha.
“Amidst widespread concerns about the cycle, low confidence, and perceptions of stretched household budgets, a frequent question has been ‘where is all this money coming from’?”
They say part of the puzzle is explained by large upward revisions to household income and savings.
Another part is explained by massive cash holdings built up around the pandemic.
However, while the capacity to invest is clearly helpful, it is not by itself sufficient to drive inflows, they noted.
“For equities, booming inflows are tied to strong growth but also to rising risk appetite, which is now very elevated,” they said. “Given our view that the business cycle has plenty of legs, we see strong equity inflows continuing.”

Corporate Highlights:
* Dish Network Corp. creditors plan to reject the US satellite-television provider’s revised bond-exchange offer, approval of which is needed for the company’s proposed acquisition by rival DirecTV to occur.
* B. Riley Financial Inc. agreed to sell a portion of its wealth-management business to Stifel Financial Corp. for as much as $35 million, the latest in a series of asset deals aimed at stabilizing the money-losing investment firm.
* BYD Co. kicked off the final quarter of the year with record monthly sales, continuing its strong performance in what is typically a peak season for auto purchases in China.
* Charter Communications Inc. shares surged after the cable and internet giant reported losing fewer broadband subscribers than analysts expected in the third quarter despite the end of a federal internet subsidy program.
* Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc jumped following a US jury verdict that cleared it and Abbott Laboratories over claims they hid potential risks of their premature-infant formulas.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.3% as of 3:54 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.6%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.3%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 0.9%

Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.4%
* The euro fell 0.4% to $1.0836
* The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.2921
* The Japanese yen fell 0.6% to 152.96 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 1.2% to $69,086.23
* Ether fell 0.3% to $2,509.53

Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced nine basis points to 4.37%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.41%
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.44%

Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.2% to $69.40 a barrel
* Spot gold fell 0.4% to $2,734.23 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
Industry, thrift and self-control are not sought because they create wealth, but because they create character. – Calvin Coolidge, 1872-1933.

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

October 31, 2024 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday Eve & Happy Halloween!
Samhain: Wiccan New Year.

On October 31st, 1973, the United States ended its worldwide military alert called during hostilities in the Middle East.  Go to article 

John Keats, poet, b. 1795.
Helmut Newton, photographer, b. 1920.
Harry Houdini, magician, b. 1926.
Dan Rather, TV journalist, b. 1931.

Archaeologists discover 4,000-year-old Bronze Age settlement hidden in Saudi Arabian oasis
A Bronze Age settlement hidden on the Arabian Peninsula reveals secrets about the slow growth of urbanization in the region.  Read More.

‘We are teetering on a planetary tightrope’: Cut emissions in half right now to prevent climate catastrophe, UN warns
A new U.N. report has found the world will warm by twice the 1.5-degree-Celsius target adopted in the Paris Agreement by 2100 if countries fail to slash greenhouse gas emissions right now. Read More

Voyager 1 loses contact with NASA, turns on retro transmitter not used since 1981
NASA lost contact with the interstellar Voyager 1 spacecraft for nearly a week after a technical glitch shut off the probe’s main transmitter. Using Voyager’s weaker backup transmitter, engineers are assessing the problem from 15 billion miles away. Read More.

How to get better faster when you have the flu, according to science
Are there any scientifically proven ways to shorten a flu infection? Live Science spoke with two experts to find out. Read More.

King Charles and Queen Camilla take private trip to India
Britain’s King Charles III and Queen Camilla made a surprise pitstop in India as they returned from their royal tour to Australia and Samoa.

A refreshing change: Starbucks to make popular add-on free of charge
Starting next week, Starbucks customers will no longer pay more for adding soy, oat, almond or coconut milk to their orders. Read about the new pricing.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A female Allen’s hummingbird rests on the leaf of an amaryllis plant in a suburban garden of Orange County, California, US. She is less than 3.5in (89mm) long, and weighs about the same as a sheet of A4 paper
Photograph: Bruce Chambers/Zuma Press Wire/Rex/Shutterstock

Right under his nose … a monkey climbs on a statue at the entrance to the Golden Temple of Dambulla, Sri Lanka
Photograph: Ishara S Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images

​​​​​​​Coventry, UK
‘The coloured glass windows in the cathedral are amazing, but looking up from the base shows sunlight spilling over the concrete.’
Photograph: Simon White
Market Closes for October 31st, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
41763.46 -378.08
-0.90%
S&P 500  5705.45 -108.22
-1.86%
NASDAQ  18095.15 -512.78
-2.76%
TSX  24156.87 -380.92
-1.43%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  39081.25 -196.14
-0.50%
HANG
SENG
20317.33 -63.31
-0.31%
SENSEX  79389.06 -553.12
-0.69%
FTSE 100* 8110.10 -49.53
-0.61%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.219 3.262
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.288 3.340
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2844 4.3004
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.4750 4.5035

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7178 0.7190
US
$
1.3931 1.3909

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5164 0.6595
US
$
1.0885 0.9187

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2777.80 2769.15
Oil
WTI Crude Future  68.61 68.61

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1933, Albert Wiggin, the former president of the Chase National Bank, testified that his personal investment companies had borrowed money from Chase to short-sell Chase’s own stock. Congress then added a provision to the Securities Exchange Act, banning corporate officers from short-selling their own shares.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell for the third day, dropping 1.4%, or 350.92 to 24,156.87 in Toronto.
The move was the biggest since falling 2.2% on Aug. 2.
Today, financials stocks led the market lower, as 10 of 11 sectors lost; 182 of 222 shares fell, while 37 rose.
Royal Bank of Canada contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 2.0%.
Veren Inc. had the largest drop, falling 14.4%.

Insights
* In the past year, the index had a similar or greater loss four times. The next day, it declined twice for an average 1.6% and advanced twice for an average 1.1%
* This year, the index rose 15%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index rose 0.7%
* So far this week, the index fell 1.3%
* The index advanced 28% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 36% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 3.1% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 28.3% above its low on Oct. 31, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 1.6% in the past 5 days and rose 0.7% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.3 on a trailing basis and 16.8 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.9% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.88t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 7.47% compared with 6.68% in the previous session and the average of 8.24% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | -111.7783| -1.4| 1/26
Materials | -77.2207| -2.4| 2/49
Information Technology| -55.5918| -2.7| 1/9
Industrials | -36.5673| -1.2| 5/22
Energy | -34.1274| -0.8| 14/26
Consumer Staples | -18.1242| -1.8| 0/11
Real Estate | -8.7440| -1.7| 0/19
Consumer Discretionary| -7.6479| -0.9| 3/8
Communication Services| -2.5355| -0.4| 2/3
Utilities | -1.4778| -0.2| 7/7
Health Care | 2.9138| 3.8| 2/2
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points| | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move |% Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
RBC | -34.1300| -2.0| -18.9| 25.7
Shopify | -19.7200| -2.1| 61.4| 5.6
Constellation Software | -18.2600| -3.1| 49.2| 27.8
South Bow | 1.4790| 3.0| -52.0|n/a
Capital Power | 1.9710| 4.0| 61.1| 49.2
Bausch Health | 3.0300| 12.7| 213.4| 20.5

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks got hit as disappointing outlooks from Microsoft Corp. and Meta Platforms Inc. fueled concern that a nearly 45% surge in the megacaps that have powered the bull market might have gone too far.
Oil jumped on a report Iran is planning a fresh attack on Israel.
A 1.5% slide in the S&P 500 Thursday wiped out the gauge’s advance for October, halting a streak of monthly gains that would have been the longest since 2021.
The Nasdaq 100 dropped 2.2%. All megacaps retreated amid concerns on whether the cohort can sustain massive profit growth while investing billions of dollars in artificial intelligence.
Those worries hit a market showing signs of exhaustion near record highs ahead of next week’s US election and the Federal Reserve decision.
Another pair of tech titans — Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. — will report results after the close.
“Halloween is bringing tricks, not treats to many investors,” said Steve Sosnick at Interactive Brokers. “The market’s mindset seems to be switching from one where anything AI-related was a reason for enthusiasm towards one where investors are looking for some returns on their massive spending.”
Moreover, there’s a nearly palpable narrative taking hold that the election – rather than offering a sense of certainty -will cause volatility to spike, noted Quincy Krosby at LPL Financial.
That’s not to mention the jobs report on Friday.
In the run-up to the figures, data showed unemployment claims fell to their lowest since May while a key inflation gauge picked up.
Treasuries didn’t do much on Thursday, but finished lower for the month on bets the Fed won’t be too aggressive with rate cuts amid a strong economy.
The dollar is seeing its best month since 2022.
Traders are preparing for a surge in global currency volatility after the cost of hedging dollar moves over the next week climbed to the most expensive since 2020.
The yen jumped as much as 1%, extending gains seen after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said that currency markets have had a major impact on the economy, pointing to another potential rate hike in coming months.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves sought to reassure the financial markets after her budget on Wednesday triggered a selloff in UK bonds.
Gold retreated as some investors booked profit after the metal’s rally to a fresh record.
The guidance out of Microsoft and Meta raise some of the same questions that we heard during the last earnings season, according to Matt Maley at Miller Tabak + Co.
“Thankfully, Alphabet did show some signs that their ROI on the AI phenomenon is bearing some fruit,” Maley said.
“However, last night’s results do seem to indicate that it could still be a much longer time for these returns to build up in a significant way for many companies — at least when you compare it to the timeframe investors have been assuming for much of this year.”
If that is indeed the case, it’s going to be much tougher for the investors to justify today’s very expensive stock market which is especially true given that longer-term yields have been rising at a steady and material pace over the past six weeks, Maley noted.
Investors need to make sure they have diversification within tech and that they are not solely invested in the parts of the AI trade that have worked such as semiconductors, according to Michael Landsberg, chief investment officer, Landsberg Bennett Private Wealth Management.
“It makes some sense to trim some from those names that have worked so well over the past 12-18 months and look for AI laggards as well as other tech themes like cybersecurity, robotics and automation, and smart homes and cities,” he said.
Equity bulls bracing for a string of market-moving events in the next couple of days have favorable seasonality on their side.
The S&P 500 has historically posted a 1.56% return in November, CFRA’s data going back to 1945 show, in what’s been the second-best month of the year for the index.
This century, the gauge was down in November just on six occasions.
“The S&P 500 is slightly lower in October, but luckily, November seasonality is a big tailwind,” said Bespoke Investment Group strategists.
Over the past 100 years, November has ranked as the fourth-best month with an average gain of 1.3% and positive performance 63% of the time, they said.
More recently in the past 50 years, it is one of two months (the other being April) in which the index has averaged a gain of more than 2%.
In that timeframe, it also traded higher more consistently than any month.
Looking only at the past twenty years, November’s 2.43% average gain is only edged out by July’s 2.45% gain for the best month of the year, Bespoke concluded.

Corporate Highlights:
* OpenAI is adding a new set of search features to its flagship product ChatGPT, escalating the artificial intelligence startup’s challenge to Alphabet Inc.’s Google.
* Waymo, Alphabet Inc.’s autonomous driving unit, was valued at more than $45 billion, including its latest round of financing, according to people familiar with the matter.
* Root Inc. shares are having their best day ever on Thursday after the auto insurance platform announced that it had turned profitable for the first time in its history.
* Mastercard Inc. reported profit that beat analysts’ estimates, helped by a boost in cross-border transactions.
* Merck & Co. lowered the top end of its full-year sales guidance after demand for its HPV vaccine fell for a second straight quarter in China.
* Uber Technologies Inc. reported weaker-than-expected ride bookings and issued a middling forecast for the holiday quarter, even as it delivered record operating profit.
* ConocoPhillips raised its production forecast for the year after surpassing output expectations in the third quarter.
* Estée Lauder Cos. pulled its guidance for the year, citing uncertainty over a new chief executive and weak demand in China.
* Roblox Corp., a video-game company, reported third-quarter bookings that beat analysts’ expectations and boosted its guidance for the full year, as the platform’s user base surged.
* Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. boosted its profit outlook for a fourth time this year as demand for sailings remains high, defying fears a slowdown in the wider leisure travel industry.
* MetLife Inc. tumbled after the insurer reported third-quarter private equity returns that weighed on variable investment income.
* Peloton Interactive Inc. shares soared after the fitness company named Ford Motor Co. executive Peter Stern as its next chief executive officer and delivered improving profitability.
* Carvana Co. surged after the online used-car retailer reported higher-than-expected results for the most recent quarter, as growing sales and cost cutting brought about stronger profits and a better outlook for the rest of the year.
* Comcast Corp. said it’s considering spinning off its cable networks into a new company as it grapples with the continuing industry-wide decline in subscribers.
* DoorDash Inc. beat Wall Street’s expectations on virtually every key earnings metric, allowing the delivery service to post its first operating profit since the start of the pandemic.
* Robinhood Markets Inc. fell after the brokerage reported revenue that missed analyst estimates because of a customer promotion program that required the firm to offset a portion of the haul.
* Roku Inc., a manufacturer of set-top boxes used to stream TV,  said it will no longer report the number of households that use its products each quarter, starting next year.
* Cigna Group jumped after Chief Executive Officer David Cordani signaled the company is focused on returning cash to shareholders through buybacks rather than a possible deal with Humana Inc.
* Clorox Co. raised its annual profit guidance after increased advertising helped the bleach maker fully regain the market share that it lost when a cyberattack disrupted production last year.
* Bristol Myers Squibb Co. raised its 2024 earnings guidance after reporting better-than-expected revenue and profit, fueled by demand for the blood-thinner Eliquis and several newer treatments.
* Altria Group Inc. kicked off a plan to cut at least $600 million of costs over the next five years as the tobacco group maintained its outlook for the year.
* MicroStrategy Inc. has hired banks to help it raise $42 billion through the sale of new shares and fixed income to buy more Bitcoin after a flurry of deals over the past year.
* Coinbase Global Inc., the largest US crypto exchange, posted results below Wall Street expectations even though revenue almost doubled.
* Samsung Electronics Co. declared progress in supplying its most advanced AI memory chips to Nvidia Corp., seeking to reassure to investors who fear the company is falling further behind SK Hynix Inc. in a red-hot market.

Key events this week:
* China Caixin manufacturing PMI, Friday
* US employment, ISM manufacturing, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 1.5% as of 3:39 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 2.2%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.7%
* The MSCI World Index fell 1.3%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index fell 3.1%

Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%
* The euro rose 0.1% to $1.0872
* The British pound fell 0.6% to $1.2883
* The Japanese yen rose 0.9% to 152.04 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 3.5% to $70,286.1
* Ether fell 5.9% to $2,519.34

Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 4.28%
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.39%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced nine basis points to 4.45%

Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.9% to $70.58 a barrel
* Spot gold fell 1.5% to $2,746.77 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Robert Brand.
Have a lovely evening .

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
Live as if you were to die tomorrow.  Learn as if you were to live forever. -Mahatma Gandhi, 1869-1948.

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

October 30, 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

October 30, 1938: Orson Welles airs his famous radio adaptation of The War of the Worlds, causing widespread panic as listeners believe an alien invasion is actually happening.

October 30, 2000: After beating the Mets in the first Subway Series in forty-four years, the Yankees are given a ticker tape parade.
2003: Lebron James made his NBA debut with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Go to article 

John Adams, 2nd President, b. 1735.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky, writer, b. 1821.
Emily Post, writer, b. 1872.
Ezra Pound, poet, b. 1885.

1,200-year-old Viking cemetery with ‘stone ship’ burials discovered in Sweden
Archaeologists in Sweden were expecting to find an ancient settlement, but they were surprised to discover a Viking Age cemetery with boat-shaped burial outlines. Read More.

James Webb telescope finds 1st possible ‘failed stars’ beyond the Milky Way — and they could reveal new secrets of the early universe
The James Webb Space Telescope may have found dozens of elusive brown dwarfs — strange objects larger than planets but smaller than stars — beyond the Milky Way for the first time ever. Read More.

New app performs motion capture using just your smartphone — no suits, specialized cameras or equipment needed
Motion capture requires special equipment and infrastructure that can cost upward of $100,000 — but scientists have created a smartphone app and AI algorithm to do the same job. Read More.

New York Yankees stave off World Series elimination
The Yankees beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-4 in Game 4, spoiling a historic night for the Dodgers who had hoped for a clean 4-0 sweep in the series. The two teams will face off later today in a high-stakes Game 5.

TikTok’s founder is now China’s richest person
China has a new richest person — and it’s the entrepreneur behind the wildly popular, and controversial, app TikTok.

Gate lice: What they are and why they’re a problem
Some airlines are cracking down on “gate lice,” a not-so-flattering term for those who swarm around airport gates before their designated boarding time.

Oasis is canceling reunion tour tickets sold by resellers
The band is canceling around 50,000 tickets for its British tour dates that were resold on secondary websites like StubHub and Viagogo.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Vancouver, Canada
‘Taken from Grouse Mountain chair lift. The city was shrouded in smoke from distant wildfires.’
Photograph: Andy Ireland

Hustai national park, Mongolia
‘Three friends and I rode up a hill on tired and reluctant horses and were greeted by this view.’
Photograph: Janis Michael

​​​​​​​Norfolk, UK
‘The dawn in Cromer looked promising, except for the cloud on the horizon, but that cleared to give some wonderful colours.’
Photograph: David Eberlin
Market Closes for October 30th, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42141.54 -91.51
-0.22%
S&P 500  5813.67 -19.25
-0.33%
NASDAQ  18607.93 -104.82
-0.56%
TSX  24507.79 -54.76
-0.22%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  39277.39 +373.71
+0.96%
HANG
SENG
20380.64 -320.50
-1.55%
SENSEX  79942.18 -426.85
-0.53%
FTSE 100* 8159.63 -59.98
-0.73%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.262 3.246
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.340 3.357
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.3004 4.2541
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.5035 4.4985

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7190 0.7187
US
$
1.3909 1.3914

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5104 0.6621
US
$
1.0860 0.9208

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2769.15 2741.80
Oil
WTI Crude Future  68.61 67.21

Market Commentary:
You should give your kids enough money to do anything but not enough money to do nothing. – Warren Buffett.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell for the second day, dropping 0.2%, or 54.76 to 24,507.79 in Toronto.
Waste Connections Inc. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 1.6%.
Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. had the largest drop, falling 3.9%.
Today, 121 of 222 shares fell, while 97 rose; 7 of 11 sectors were lower, led by materials stocks.

Insights
* This year, the index rose 17%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index rose 2.1%
* The index advanced 30% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 39% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 1.7% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 30.6% above its low on Oct. 30, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 0.3% in the past 5 days and rose 2.1% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.6 on a trailing basis and 17.1 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.89t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 6.68% compared with 6.76% in the previous session and the average of 8.28% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | -32.8827| -1.0| 8/43
Information Technology | -16.3727| -0.8| 2/8
Industrials | -13.1889| -0.4| 14/13
Financials | -11.0499| -0.1| 16/11
Communication Services | -2.7563| -0.4| 2/3
Consumer Discretionary | -1.9508| -0.2| 3/8
Real Estate | -1.6236| -0.3| 4/13
Health Care | 0.0169| 0.0| 3/1
Utilities | 5.9851| 0.6| 11/4
Energy | 6.6772| 0.2| 26/14
Consumer Staples | 12.3795| 1.3| 8/3
================================================================
| | |Volume VS |
| Index | | 20D AVG |YTD Change
Top Contributors |Points Move| % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Waste Connections | -7.3230| -1.6| 37.9| 24.9
Shopify | -6.7690| -0.7| -17.5| 7.8
Canadian Natural Resources | -5.9500| -0.8| -50.2| 9.4
Capital Power | 3.5330| 7.7| 102.4| 43.5
Couche-Tard | 4.7710| 1.2| -4.4| -4.9
Brookfield Corp | 4.8310| 0.6| -17.1| 41.4

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A rout in chipmakers dragged down stocks, with traders also sifting through corporate results and economic data.
In late hours, Meta Platforms Inc. slid while Microsoft Corp. climbed after earnings.
A $300 billion exchange-traded fund tracking the Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) extended losses after the close of regular trading as Meta’s spending guidance failed to enthuse investors.
That’s even after a sales beat.
Microsoft rose as its cloud-computing business and Office software fueled stronger-than-projected quarterly revenue growth.
eBay Inc. dropped after projecting holiday season sales that fell short of analysts’ estimates.
Equities struggled to gain traction Wednesday as a closely watched gauge of semiconductor companies tumbled.
The rout was driven by a slide in Nvidia Corp. and underwhelming results at Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Server maker Super Micro Computer Inc. plunged 33% as Ernst & Young LLP resigned as its auditor.
Alphabet Inc. jumped on better-than-expected sales.
Traders trimmed bets on policy easing after data showing the US economy expanded at a robust pace in the third quarter as household purchases accelerated ahead of the election and the federal government ramped up defense spending.
A measure of underlying inflation rose 2.2%, roughly in line with the Federal Reserve’s target.
“Solid but not blistering growth fits nicely within the current economic backdrop,” said Bret Kenwell at eToro. “Too hot of a print and investors would likely question the Fed’s decision to cut rates by 50 basis points in September, while a weak print could reignite worries about a deteriorating economy.”
Kenwell says investors should cheer for strong economic data — even if that means slower-than-expected rate cuts from the Fed.
“It’s far better to have a strong economy and earnings driving stocks higher rather than hopes of easing monetary policy from the Fed,” he said.
The S&P 500 fell 0.3%.
The Nasdaq 100 slid 0.8%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.2%.
Homebuilders rallied as pending home sales in the US saw their biggest gain since 2020.
Visa Inc. climbed on solid results.
Eli Lilly & Co. got hit after lowering its guidance amid lackluster sales of its weight-loss drug.
Treasury two-year yields, which are more sensitive to imminent Fed moves, rose seven basis points to 4.16%.
UK bonds fell as investors balked at the new government’s plan for historically high debt issuance to help fund investment and stimulate the economy, which could mean higher for longer rates.
Oil rebounded.
The US stock market’s fundamental flows are turning increasingly bullish, which should give equities a fresh jolt once the US election is out of the way.
The elements of a rally are building up — stocks are entering a historically strong season and companies are starting to buy back shares.
Investors may be over-hedged for the series of earnings, US election and central bank risks looming through early November.
And with market volatility declining from the early-August high, systematic investors and options desks may be forced to snap up stocks.
Selling by mutual funds — typically the biggest off loader of stocks — is fading into the end of the month.
That’s set to reverse, with November typically seeing inflows into equities, while at the same time the corporate buyback window is re-opening with an estimate of $6 billion of buying every single day in November, according to Scott Rubner, a managing director
for global markets and tactical specialist at Goldman Sachs.
“Animal spirits” could return to markets in the wake of the US election, Barclays Plc strategists led by Emmanuel Cau wrote in a note, saying as investors appear to be in “wait-and-see” mode into the vote.
Equity inflows were steady in October with caution remaining under the hood and volumes low.
The strategists say that hedge funds and systematic strategies added to their equity positions in October, after largely being on the sidelines in September.
While US stocks may be rising ahead of a potential victory for Donald Trump in next week’s US election, strategists at Citigroup Inc. say a clean sweep for the Republican party will be a signal to sell.
A Trump win is generally seen as good news for stocks because his proposals to lower corporate taxes would likely benefit company earnings. The Citi strategists argue, however, that the “near-euphoric sentiment” that’s driving the S&P 500 toward a sixth straight month of gains is leaving it ripe for a pullback.
Meantime, JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists said earnings downgrades are dominant across the world, a backdrop that would rarely support equity prices.
Strategists led by Khuram Chaudhry noted that while global equity indexes continue to trade near all-time highs, equity sentiment seems to have peaked and is now mean-reverting, with positive sentiment very likely to dwindle as global consensus earnings downgrades increase.
An earnings sentiment downturn is also evident, showing that the percentage of US stocks with positive earnings revisions has been receding from its April high, according to Tim Hayes at Ned Davis Research.
“Earnings beat rate momentum peaked and is now negative,” said Hayes. “The breadth of positive earnings revisions has weakened. US revisions have declined, with negative implications for future earnings.”
If the earnings sentiment trends continue, they will warn not to ignore indications of significant tape deterioration, especially with other sentiment indicators confirming that peak optimism is behind us, he added.
“In terms of US equities ahead of elections next week, we are still watching the 5,750-5,800 zone for the S&P 500,” said Dan Wantrobski at Janney Montgomery Scott.
“Measuring implications from recent bullish patterns still imply a target range of 6,200. However, we remain concerned regarding stubborn overbought/extended conditions on the longer-term charts.”
He says the index is still vulnerable to a “bigger correction” heading into year-end or (more likely) in the first quarter of 2025.
Companies looking to go public in the US this year have seemingly given up on the traditional window after the Labor Day holiday in September, dashing hopes for a rush of deals ahead of the presidential election.
Proceeds from inaugural share sales on the public markets have brought in $7.7 billion since Sept. 2, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
That’s about one-fifth of total volume so far and significantly lower than this time last year, when Arm Holdings Plc and others raised$9.6 billion.
Meanwhile, this month’s rout in Treasuries is hammering trend-chasing quant investors who had built up bullish positions in bonds, the latest setback for a strategy that has misfired badly at times this year amid market convulsions.
The quants, known as commodity trading advisers, seek to profit from momentum in assets such as bonds, stocks and currencies.
Most recently, they piled into wagers that US government debt would keep rallying as the Fed launched interest-rate cuts, amassing the largest long positions in three years as of late September, according to data compiled by Deutsche Bank AG.
And the price to hedge against swings in the US dollar surged to the highest in nearly two years as traders prepare for the risk of big market moves after next week’s presidential election.
A measure of one-week implied volatility on the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose on Wednesday to the highest since December 2022, when recession fears briefly raced through financial markets.
That indicates traders are preparing for large swings in the currency against major peers like the euro, yen, Chinese yuan and Mexican peso, pushing up the cost of options that protect against such moves.

Corporate Highlights:
* Carvana Co. reported higher-than-expected results for the most recent quarter, buoyed by resilient used-car demand and pricing, and sounded a bullish note for its full-year earnings outlook.
* Clorox Co. raised its annual profit guidance after increased advertising helped the bleach maker fully regain the market share that it lost when a cyberattack disrupted production last year.
* MGM Resorts International reported lower-than-expected sales and profit for the third quarter amid a slowdown in Las Vegas betting.
* DoorDash Inc. beat Wall Street’s expectations on virtually every key earnings metric, allowing the delivery service to post its first operating profit since the start of the pandemic.
* Caterpillar Inc., the maker of iconic yellow bulldozers, reduced its sales outlook from a slowdown in construction activity around the world.
* AbbVie Inc. raised its full-year profit forecast as demand for its top-selling anti-inflammatory drugs, Rinvoq and Skyrizi, exceeded expectations.
* Humana Inc. issued a more optimistic 2024 forecast after third-quarter profit exceeded expectations, breaking with larger peers that have struggled to contain medical costs.
* Walt Disney Co. won the rights to broadcast the annual Grammy music awards in a 10-year deal that wrests the show from its longtime home on Paramount Global’s CBS.
* Bitcoin hedge-fund proxy MicroStrategy Inc. posted a third consecutive quarterly loss after taking an impairment charge against the value of its roughly $18 billion stockpile of the cryptocurrency.
* Airbus SE will replace the head of its commercial aircraft business and stick with a goal to deliver about 770 aircraft this year, underscoring the plane maker’s focus on ironing out supply-chain glitches that have hampered production plans.

Key events this week:
* China Manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMI, Thursday
* Bank of Japan rate decision, Thursday
* Eurozone CPI, unemployment, Thursday
* US personal income, spending and PCE inflation data, initial jobless claims, Thursday
* Amazon, Apple earnings, Thursday
* China Caixin manufacturing PMI, Friday
* US employment, ISM manufacturing, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 0.3% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.8%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%
* The MSCI World Index fell 0.3%

Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.1%
* The euro rose 0.4% to $1.0861
* The British pound fell 0.4% to $1.2969
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 153.29 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 0.7% to $71,824.88
* Ether rose 1.3% to $2,655.02

Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced three basis points to 4.28%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 2.39%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 4.35%

Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.5% to $68.92 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 0.5% to $2,787.59 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Robert Brand and Rheaa Rao.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them. –James Baldwin, 1924-1987.

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

October 29, 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
October 29, 1969: Internet created between Stanford & UCLA.
October 29, 1863: The Red Cross is founded.  As of today, the humanitarian institution has been a three-time recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
On Oct. 29, 1929, stock prices collapsed on the New York Stock Exchange amid panic selling. Thousands of investors were wiped out.  Go to article 

October 29, 1859: Charles Ebbets, co-owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, is born in Greenwich Village.
Richard Dreyfuss, actor, b 1947.
Winona Ryder, actress, b. 1971.

Anticipation builds for World Series Game 4 today
The Los Angeles Dodgers are just one win away from the franchise’s eighth World Series championship. The team could potentially clinch the title today in Game 4 against the New York Yankees.

Dwyane Wade’s new statue has people talking
A statue in honor of basketball Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade has gone viral, with many fans saying it doesn’t resemble the NBA legend. Here’s are six other sports statues that drew attention for the wrong reasons.

Apple debuts AI on the iPhone
The tech giant on Monday unveiled the initial features of Apple Intelligence — its suite of AI tools. Here’s what to look out for.

Japan’s iconic Mount Fuji has yet to see snow this winter
The peaks of Japan’s highest mountain are still snowless, marking the latest date without a snowcap since records began 130 years ago.

What’s the difference between a tsunami and a tidal wave?
Tsunamis and tidal waves are the powerful types of wave on Earth, but very different processes are involved in their formation. Read More.

Our brains can understand written sentences in the ‘blink of an eye,’ study reveals
Language processing happens at speeds significantly faster than it takes to speak one word aloud. Read More.

1,200 years ago, a cat in Jerusalem left the oldest known evidence of ‘making biscuits’ on a clay jug
Around 1,200 years ago, a cat “made biscuits,” kneading on a drying clay jug in Jerusalem, leaving behind the oldest evidence of this feline behavior on record. Read More.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

New York, US
The New York City department of transportation unveils three sculptures in Times Square in celebration of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)
Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

A bee collects pollen from a dahlia flower at the National Trust property Greys Court, Oxfordshire, UK
Photograph: Geoffrey Swaine/Rex/Shutterstock

​​​​​​​Handan, China
A woman arranges persimmons in special racks for drying
Photograph: Costfoto/NurPhoto/Rex/Shutterstock
Market Closes for October 29th, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42233.05 -154.52
-0.36%
S&P 500  5832.92 +9.40
+0.16%
NASDAQ  18712.75 +145.56
+0.78%
TSX  24562.55 -3.11
-0.01%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  38903.68 +298.15
+0.77%
HANG
SENG
20701.14 +101.78
+0.49%
SENSEX  80369.03 +363.99
+0.46%
FTSE 100* 8219.61 -66.01
-0.80%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.246 3.270
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.357 3.398
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2541 4.2821
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.4985 4.5292

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7187 0.7197
US
$
1.3914 1.3894

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5056 0.6642
US
$
1.0821 0.9242

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2741.80 2731.45
Oil
WTI Crude Future  67.21 71.99

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1929, panicked selling continued to sweep Wall Street, sending the Dow down more than 18% in intraday trading. The multiday market selloff ushered in the Great Depression
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite declined slightly to 24,562.55 in Toronto.

The move follows the previous session’s increase of 0.4%.
Today, energy stocks led the market lower, as 8 of 11 sectors lost; 111 of 222 shares fell, while 103 rose.
Brookfield Corp. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 1.7%.
Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. had the largest drop, falling 4.3%.

Insights
* This year, the index rose 17%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index rose 2.3%
* The index advanced 31% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 41% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 1.4% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 31.4% above its low on Oct. 27, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 0.6% 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 19.5 on a trailing basis and 17 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.89t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 6.76% compared with 6.79% in the previous session and the average of 8.36% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Energy | -31.1120| -0.7| 10/27
Utilities | -16.8979| -1.8| 0/15
Financials | -15.2184| -0.2| 15/11
Communication Services | -6.5350| -0.9| 0/5
Consumer Staples | -5.9954| -0.6| 3/8
Consumer Discretionary | -5.6161| -0.7| 3/8
Real Estate | -1.9336| -0.4| 3/15
Health Care | -0.4950| -0.6| 0/3
Industrials | 13.6760| 0.4| 17/10
Information Technology | 20.3826| 1.0| 9/1
Materials | 46.6253| 1.5| 43/8
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Brookfield Corp | -12.6800| -1.7| 71.4| 40.5
TD Bank | -10.0100| -1.1| -45.4| -9.7
Enbridge | -8.3710| -1.0| -33.0| 17.9
Shopify | 9.1390| 1.0| -20.1| 8.6
Waste Connections | 9.8490| 2.2| 77.6| 27.0
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd | 11.2700| 2.7| 16.1| 70.3

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A rally in some of the largest tech companies pushed stocks higher, with Alphabet Inc. rallying in late hours as earnings beat estimates.
The Nasdaq Composite hit an all-time high, while the S&P 500 saw a mild gain.
Between Tuesday and Thursday, big techs with a combined market value of more than $12 trillion report their quarterly results.
Shares of Google’s parent climbed 3.5% after the close of regular trading.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. sank 6% amid a lackluster revenue forecast.
“Investors will need to see bigger revenue and earnings surprises for the group to outperform,” said Chris Senyek at Wolfe Research. “Our sense is a solid earnings season could once again put the group on a path to outperform into year-end.”
Just about a week away from the Federal Reserve decision, data showed US job openings fell to the lowest since early 2021.
The figures run counter to the September employment report that pointed to a still-strong labor market, which prompted traders to trim bets on another big rate cut.
A separate reading showed consumer confidence hit the highest since the start of the year.
The S&P 500 rose 0.2%.
The Nasdaq 100 added 1%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4%.
Bitcoin’s rally put the cryptocurrency on the verge of topping a record high of almost $74,000 reached in March.
Treasury 10-year yields declined two basis points to 4.27%.

Corporate Highlights:
* Reddit Inc. beat sales expectations for the third quarter and projected a strong holiday season as the newly public company continues to see its investments in advertising technology pay off.
* Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. reported third-quarter sales that fell just short of Wall Street’s expectations, highlighting the high bar investors are holding the chain to after strong performance earlier this year.
* Visa Inc. reported adjusted earnings per share for the fourth quarter that beat the average analyst estimate.
* Homebuilder stocks are tumbled after industry bellwether D.R. Horton Inc. delivered a 2025 revenue forecast that failed to meet Wall Street’s expectations.
* Broadcom Inc. rallied after Reuters reported that OpenAI is working with the company on a new artificial-intelligence chip.
* Pfizer Inc. Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said he’ll do “whatever it takes” to keep profits growing, including further cost cuts, as he seeks to fend off allegations of mismanagement from activist investor Starboard Value LP.
* McDonald’s Corp. sales fell short of Wall Street’s expectations in the third quarter following weakness in international markets such as France, China, the UK and the Middle East.
* Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. raised its earnings outlook for a fourth time this year and said it expects strong demand to continue.
* JetBlue Airways Corp.’s worse-than-expected sales forecast suggested a recovery will take some time.

Key events this week:
* Eurozone consumer confidence, GDP, Wednesday
* US GDP, ADP employment, pending home sales, Wednesday
* Meta Platforms, Microsoft earnings, Wednesday
* US Treasury Department holds quarterly refunding announcement of bond-auction plans, Wednesday
* China Manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMI, Thursday
* Bank of Japan rate decision, Thursday
* Eurozone CPI, unemployment, Thursday
* US personal income, spending and PCE inflation data, initial jobless claims, Thursday
* Amazon, Apple earnings, Thursday
* China Caixin manufacturing PMI, Friday
*US employment, ISM manufacturing, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.2% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 1%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4%
* The MSCI World Index was little changed
* The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8%

Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
* The euro was little changed at $1.0813
* The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.3004
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 153.44 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 4.2% to $72,510.01
* Ether rose 4.3% to $2,624.19

Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 4.27%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 2.34%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced six basis points to 4.32%

Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.2% to $67.24 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 1.1% to $2,772.44 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
Have a lovely evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann
What we do now echoes in eternity. -Marcus Aurelius, 121 AD-180 AD.

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
www.carolannsteinhoff.com

October 28,2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Monday!
Carolann is away from the office for a conference, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

October 28, 1538 The first university in the New World, the Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino, is established on Hispaniola.
October 28, 1636 Harvard University, Cambridge, founded by a vote of the Massachusetts General Court.
October 28, 1886 Statue of Liberty is dedicated by President Grover Cleveland, celebrated by the first confetti (ticker tape) parade in New York City.

Will Mount Everest always be the world’s tallest mountain?
The Himalayas’ massive heights result from a unique combination of geologic factors. To answer this question, Read more.

AI ‘can stunt the skills necessary for independent self-creation’: Relying on algorithms could reshape your entire identity without you realizing
“If you constantly use an AI to find the music, career or political candidate you like, you might eventually forget how to do this yourself.” Ethicist Muriel Leuenberger considers the personal impact of relying on AI.

James Webb Space Telescope sees lonely supermassive black hole-powered quasars in the early universe
The James Webb Space Telescope has discovered lonely quasars in the early universe, with “empty larders” that defy theories surrounding their growth to monster sizes.

1,300-year-old throne room of powerful Moche queen discovered in Peru
Archaeologists in Peru have unearthed the throne room of a powerful queen from the Moche culture, and detailed murals of the female ruler decorate its walls.

‘We don’t really consider it low probability anymore’: Collapse of key Atlantic current could have catastrophic impacts, says oceanographer Stefan Rahmstorf
The Atlantic Ocean’s most vital ocean current is showing troubling signs of reaching a disastrous tipping point. Oceanographer Stefan Rahmstorf tells Live Science what the impacts could be.

PICTURES OF THE DAY

Toulouse, France
Spectators watch a creature called Lilith, the Guardian of Darkness, during a street show by La Machine
Photograph: Matthieu Rondel/AFP/Getty Images

Bangkok, Thailand
A royal barge carrying Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana takes part in a procession in front of the Grand Palace on the Chao Phraya river
Photograph: Manan Vatsyayana/AFP/Getty Images

​​​​​​​Sheffield Park, East Sussex
Visitors enjoy the autumn colours
Photograph: David Levene/The Guardian
Market Closes for October 28th, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42387.57 +273.17
+0.65%
S&P 500  5823.52 +15.40
+0.27%
NASDAQ  18567.19 +48.58
+0.26%
TSX  24565.66 +101.99
+0.42%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  38605.53 +691.61
+1.82%
HANG
SENG
20599.36 +9.21
+0.04%
SENSEX  80005.04 +602.75
+0.76%
FTSE 100* 8285.62 +36.78
+0.45%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.270 3.257
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.398 3.390
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2821 4.2399
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.5292 4.4995

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7197 0.7199
US
$
1.3894 1.3890

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5023 0.6656
US
$
1.0812 0.9249

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2731.45 2732.00
Oil
WTI Crude Future  71.99 71.99

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1976, Alice Jarcho became the first woman to work full-time as a broker on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose 0.4% at 24,565.66 in Toronto.
The move was the biggest since rising 0.5% on Oct. 18 and follows the previous session’s decrease of 0.4%.
Today, financials stocks led the market higher, as 8 of 11 sectors gained; 117 of 222 shares rose, while 105 fell.
Royal Bank of Canada contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 1.2%.
Algoma Steel Group Inc. had the largest increase, rising 7.5%.
Insights
* This year, the index rose 17%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index rose 2.4%
* The index advanced 31% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 41% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 1.4% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 31.4% above its low on Oct. 27, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 0.6% 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 19.6 on a trailing basis and 17.1 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.88t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 6.79% compared with 6.86% in the previous session and the average of 8.44% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | 74.8897| 1.0| 24/3
Consumer Staples | 19.0369| 2.0| 7/4
Industrials | 18.9299| 0.6| 18/9
Information Technology | 17.6114| 0.9| 8/2
Consumer Discretionary | 9.2844| 1.1| 9/2
Communication Services | 3.8073| 0.5| 2/3
Materials | 2.1621| 0.1| 18/33
Health Care | 0.6119| 0.8| 3/1
Real Estate | -0.3084| -0.1| 13/7
Utilities | -1.0189| -0.1| 9/6
Energy | -43.0046| -1.0| 6/35
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
RBC | 20.8700| 1.2| 36.0| 28.6
Brookfield Corp | 16.2100| 2.2| 25.9| 42.9
Couche-Tard | 15.1400| 3.9| 57.5| -4.9
TC Energy | -4.8590| -1.0| -47.9| 37.9
Suncor | -6.4830| -1.4| 28.2| 25.9
Canadian Natural Resources | -17.4000| -2.4| -36.2| 11.1
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks rose at the start of the busiest week for corporate earnings, with traders also gearing up for the US election and key economic data that will set the stage for the next Federal Reserve decision.
Most major groups in the S&P 500 gained, though energy shares joined a slide in oil.
Crypto companies surged, with Bitcoin up about 3%.
Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. soared 22% as retail traders touted the stock after Donald Trump’s high-profile event in New York Sunday.
The company has traded like a proxy for sentiment of his perceived chances of returning to the White House, with recent moves more correlated with betting markets as opposed to actual polling.
Conservative video network company Rumble Inc. climbed 14%.
In late hours, Ford Motor Co. dropped after trimming its profit forecast.
A victory for Trump would be more beneficial for stocks and Bitcoin relative to his Democratic opponent, while a Kamala Harris presidency would bring slightly more relief to housing costs, according to a Bloomberg Markets Live Pulse survey.
Some 38% of respondents see equities accelerating a year from now under the Republican candidate, versus 13% under the Democrat.
“Markets have been extremely active over the past month as traders have juiced up the already ebullient scenario baked into equity valuations, adding improved odds of a Republican sweep to the list of goodies discounted,” said Lisa Shalett at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.
Callie Cox at Ritholtz Wealth Management says the pre-election jitters still haven’t shown up in the stock market.
The S&P 500 hasn’t had a 1% up or down day this month.
If that continues to be the case, it will be the first October without a move that big since 2017, she said.
It’d also be the first October of an election year without a 1% move since 1968.
“We’re heading into a busy two weeks,” Cox said.
“The election conversation will be the loudest, but the packed slate of earnings and economic data could be what markets care about the most. And the results could be noisy, especially from the jobs side.”
A week before Fed gathers to reflect on the appropriate tempo of rates cuts, data is set to show underlying resilience in the US economy and a temporary hiccup in jobs growth.
Investors are also awaiting results from firms accounting for nearly 42% of the S&P 500’s market capitalization, including several big techs like as Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Meta Platforms Inc.
The S&P 500 rose 0.3%.
The Nasdaq 100 was little changed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6%.
The Russell 2000 of small caps climbed 1.6%.
Bonds fell amid weak demand for a pair of US note sales.
Treasury 10-year yields advanced three basis points to 4.27%.
Oil tumbled as Israel limited Iran strikes to military targets.
“This week’s megacap tech earnings and jobs data will provide plenty of potential fuel for near-term market momentum, but it remains to be seen whether investors will want to sit on their hands until after next week’s election, especially given the volatility around the past two,” said Chris Larkin at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley.
Equities sold off the week before the 2016 and 2020 elections and rallied sharply after them, he noted.
To Saira Malik at Nuveen, it is critical to remain focused on long-term investment goals and attentive to the broader economic backdrop and company fundamentals, as election-driven volatility has historically been short-lived.
“With that in mind, corporate earnings, inflation and the direction of interest rates should continue to be the structural drivers of financial markets,” she said. “This was evident in the recent backup in US Treasury yields after they bottomed in mid-September following the Fed’s rate cut. Since then, the uptick in yields, paired with underlying fundamentals, may have created another attractive entry point for one of our favored fixed-income sectors.”
Although the polls are extremely tight, and it’s anyone’s race to win, the stock and bond markets have shown recent momentum that appears to favor a result that puts former President Trump back in the White House, according to Anthony Saglimbene at Ameriprise.
“Government bond yields have risen, the US dollar has strengthened, and areas of the stock market that would benefit from less regulation and lower taxes have ground higher,” he said. “Some of this is related to a strong economy and growing profits, while some of this momentum may be attributed to investors increasingly discounting a Trump victory.”
“In our view, the market can perform well through year-end whether Vice President Harris or former President Trump wins in November,” he said. “We believe fundamental conditions in the US are solid, seasonality factors/historical trends are favorable for stocks, and known election results, which let investors finally move on from the election, could see major equity averages press higher into the end of the year.”
Investors expect large caps to lead under all election outcomes except a Republican sweep, according to a survey conducted by 22V Research.
“Under a Republican sweep, investors think small caps will lead. Protectionist tariffs, and friendlier tax policies for US earnings, may help explain the dynamic of expectations for higher rates and small cap outperformance under a Republican sweep,” th firm said.
Based on the firm’s client interactions, investors are focused on the implications for tariffs under Trump more so than deficit spending, for which there are safeguards, 22V said.
And under a Trump presidency, investors expect 10-year yields to increase.
More if there is a Republican sweep. Expectations for those bonds are split between higher and lower under a Harris presidency.
US stocks are broadly leaning toward the playbook seen during the 2016 presidential elections, although the signals are more mixed this time around against a different economic backdrop, according to Morgan Stanley strategists.
The team led by Michael Wilson says that an outperformance in financials and industrials stocks shows market moves are directionally similar to those seen in 2016 to some extent.
Materials and small caps — which were relative outperformers around the 2016 election — have modestly trailed since Oct. 1, when the probability of a Trump win began to rise more materially in betting markets, they said.
While so-called “Trump trades” have gained popularity as odds in favor of the former President winning the election rise, Citigroup Inc. says the vote is a close call and some rotation may be seen in the run-up to Nov. 5.
Strategists including David Groman and Beata Manthey said popular Trump trades such as long dollar, short rates, long US vs rest-of-the-world equities have rallied, as consensus leans toward a red sweep — limiting further upside in near term.
Meanwhile, a global strategy betting on a Harris victory is premised on a weaker dollar, lower nominal yields, potential tax hikes, and a general tilt toward climate-friendly policies, implying favoring rest-of-the-world equities vs US, non-US industrials vs energy and health care, as well as emerging-market stocks sensitive to a weaker dollar.
“With a week to go to the election and polls indicating a dead heat, investors are unlikely to take on much new risk, and may even prefer to de-risk until the outcome is known,” said Jason Draho at UBS Global Wealth Management. “Once the dust settles and the outcome is clear, the macro fundamentals should reclaim their spot in the driver’s seat, determining the market direction.”
“Have you heard the one about the markets preferring divided government?” said Brian Levitt at Invesco. “Of course you have. Is it true? Admittedly, the numbers do bear it out although I would argue the analysis isn’t statistically significant. Rather, the returns in most instances tend to be driven by a handful of notable years.”
Levitt looks at two potential 2024 divided-government outcomes:
1) Republican President, Republican Senate, Democratic House (which has resulted in the second-best outcome for stocks)
and 2) Democratic President, Republican Senate, Democratic House (this combination hasn’t happened since 1886-1889, leaving it out of the period of the analysis.)
“For what it’s worth, the US stock market posted positive strong returns in recent examples of single-party rule, including under Democrat Bill Clinton (1993-1994), Republican George W. Bush (2005-2006), and Democrat Barack Obama (2009-2010),” he said. “Everyone may ‘know’ that the market does best under a divided government, or everyone might just be confusing correlation with causation.”
Wall Street veteran Ed Yardeni says the approaching US election could augur the return of the market’s bond vigilantes as the Treasury Department readies new debt issuance plans.
It’s a call the founder of Yardeni Research, who famously coined the phrase in the 1980s to describe investors selling bonds to set the US government back on a course of fiscal restraint, has made before.
“It’s a conceivable scenario that the bond vigilantes are definitely mounting up,” Yardeni told Bloomberg Television on Monday. “There’s no discussion by either candidate about doing anything to reduce the deficit to deal with the debt, to deal with the exploding net interest expense of the government.”

Corporate Highlights:
* Apple Inc., heralding a “new era” for its devices, started rolling out its first set of Apple Intelligence features and introduced a new 24-inch iMac desktop with an AI-focused M4 processor.
* Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc. is working on developing a search engine that crawls the web for information to provide to people using its AI chatbot, the Information reported.
* McDonald’s Corp. sales plummeted following news of E. coli infections linked to the chain’s Quarter Pounders.
* Boeing Co. launched a nearly $19 billion share sale, one of the largest ever by a public company, to address the troubled planemaker’s liquidity needs and stave off a potential credit rating downgrade to junk.
* Estée Lauder Cos. has picked longtime executive Stéphane de La Faverie to take over as chief executive officer, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
* Volkswagen AG plans to close at least three factories, eliminate thousands of jobs and slash wages for tens of thousands of German workers as Europe’s biggest automaker tries to halt its tailspin.
* The fate of Johnson & Johnson’s latest push to use bankruptcy courts to end thousands of cancer lawsuits tied to its iconic baby powder now hinges on a high-stakes trial in January.

Key events this week:
* US job openings, Conference Board consumer confidence, Tuesday
* Alphabet earnings, Tuesday
* Eurozone consumer confidence, GDP, Wednesday
* US GDP, ADP employment, pending home sales, Wednesday
* Meta Platforms, Microsoft earnings, Wednesday
* US Treasury Department holds quarterly refunding announcement of bond-auction plans, Wednesday
* China Manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMI, Thursday
* Bank of Japan rate decision, Thursday
* Eurozone CPI, unemployment, Thursday
* US personal income, spending and PCE inflation data, initial jobless claims, Thursday
* Amazon, Apple earnings, Thursday
* China Caixin manufacturing PMI, Friday
* US employment, ISM manufacturing, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.3% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 was little changed
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.3%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index fell 0.1%
* The Russell 2000 Index rose 1.6%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
* The euro rose 0.2% to $1.0817
* The British pound was little changed at $1.2974
* The Japanese yen fell 0.6% to 153.23 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 2.8% to $69,606.32
* Ether rose 0.7% to $2,506.74
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced three basis points to 4.27%
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.29%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.25%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 5.3% to $68.01 a barrel
* Spot gold fell 0.2% to $2,742.75 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Shab
” The human being is born with an incurable capacity for making the best of things.” — Helen Keller

Shab Mohammadpour
Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff
Queensbury Securities Inc.

340A – 730 View Street
Victoria BC  V8W 3Y7
Tel: 778-430-5851
Fax: 778-430-5828

October 25, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday!
Carolann is away from the office for a conference, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

October 25, 1861: Toronto Stock Exchange created.
October 25, 2001: Microsoft releases Windows XP for retail sale
October 25, 2021 NASA scientists announce they may have detected the first planet outside our galaxy, in Whirlpool Galaxy (M51), 28 million light-years away

Scientists launch amazing ‘atlas’ of embryos, showing how cells move and develop through time
“Zebrahub” is an atlas of cells in developing zebrafish embryos, and scientists say it will help us learn about our own biology, too. Read more.

Parents who have this gene may be more likely to have a girl
A large new analysis suggests that some people carry genetic variants that make them more likely to have female than male offspring. Read more.

New device ‘zaps’ bacteria on the skin, potentially preventing infections
Early experiments suggest a patch that delivers harmless electric currents into the skin can thwart certain bacterial infections. However, it has not yet been tested in humans. Read more.

Perseverance rover watches a solar eclipse on Mars
NASA’s Perseverance rover turned its eyes toward the sky and photographed a solar eclipse from Mars, capturing the tiny moon Phobos crossing the sun’s face.

PICTURES OF THE DAY

Makow Podhalanski, Poland
An aerial view of trees under a morning fog and lit by the sunrise of a golden autumn morning
Photograph: Omar Marques/Anadolu/Getty Images

Nanjing City, China
Tourists enjoy the blooming of pink muhly grass in the eastern province of Jiangsu
Photograph: Rex/Shutterstock

​​​​​​​California, US
Californians are welcome to try one of the world’s largest corn mazes, which is open in Dixon until 31 October
Photograph: Fred Greaves/Reuters
Market Closes for October 25th, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42114.40 -259.96
-0.61%
S&P 500  5808.12 -1.74
-0.03%
NASDAQ  18518.61 +103.12
+0.56%
TSX  24463.67 -87.88
-0.36%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  37913.92 -229.37
-0.60%
HANG
SENG
20590.15 +100.53
+0.49%
SENSEX  79402.29 -662.87
-0.83%
FTSE 100* 8248.84 -20.54
-0.25%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.257 3.240
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.390 3.369
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2399 4.2118
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.4995 4.4739

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7199 0.7217
US
$
1.3890 1.3855

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.5002 0.6666
US
$
1.0800 0.9259

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2732.00 2736.45
Oil
WTI Crude Future  71.99 71.26

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1907: As the year’s financial panic continued, J.P. Morgan raised still more cash to prop up struggling brokerage firms, this time flushing up $10 million to lend at the New York Stock Exchange. Brokers shouted with joy on seeing the cigar-chomping Morgan barging back to his office to announce that he had raised the money.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell for the fifth day, dropping 0.4%, or 87.88 to 24,463.67 in Toronto.

The index dropped to the lowest closing level since Oct. 15.
Barrick Gold Corp. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 3.2%.

Storage Vault Canada Inc. had the largest drop, falling 6.9%.
Today, 136 of 223 shares fell, while 84 rose; 9 of 11 sectors were lower, led by financials stocks.

Insights
* This year, the index rose 17%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index rose 1.9%
* So far this week, the index fell 1.4%, heading for the biggest decline since the week ended Sept. 6
* The index advanced 29% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 38% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 1.8% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 30.9% above its low on Oct. 27, 2023
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.5 on a trailing basis and 17 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.89t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 6.86% compared with 6.73% in the previous session and the average of 8.71% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | -39.1817| -0.5| 6/21
Materials | -23.0742| -0.7| 18/34
Industrials | -18.6556| -0.6| 9/18
Information Technology | -14.8415| -0.7| 2/8
Consumer Discretionary | -8.0061| -1.0| 2/8
Consumer Staples | -6.0264| -0.6| 4/7
Communication Services | -5.7261| -0.8| 1/4
Real Estate | -4.8502| -0.9| 3/16
Utilities | -1.0964| -0.1| 6/9
Health Care | 0.2990| 0.4| 2/2
Energy | 33.2928| 0.8| 31/9
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Barrick Gold | -10.9000| -3.2| 27.8| 13.9
Canadian Pacific Kansas | -10.3000| -1.5| -34.4| 2.2
RBC | -9.6890| -0.6| 36.1| 27.0
TC Energy | 4.3490| 0.9| -70.9| 39.3
Suncor | 7.0120| 1.5| -57.4| 27.6
Canadian Natural Resources | 11.6000| 1.6| -71.2| 13.8

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A rally in stocks faded as banks dragged down the broader market despite gains in tech shares.

Bitcoin slumped after a news report that federal investigators are probing cryptocurrency firm Tether.
The S&P 500 was little changed after climbing almost 1%.
Banks got hit as New York Community Bancorp tumbled 8.3% on a weaker outlook.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. dropped 2.3% and JPMorgan Chase & Co. lost 1.2%. Crypto shares sank as the Wall Street Journal said the US is investigating Tether for possible violations of sanctions and anti-money-laundering rules.
A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps notched its best back-to-back jump since February.
Treasuries wrapped up a tumultuous week with saw small moves as caution prevailed ahead of key events.
As the earnings season rolled in, traders also braced for the US presidential election and key economic data — including next week’s jobs report — for clues on the scope for Federal Reserve rate cuts.
“Investors are still very cautious as we approach a pivotal couple of weeks,” said Henry Allen at Deutsche Bank. “So there’s been a reluctance to push the rally much further before we get some clarity on those, all of which will play a crucial role in shaping the outlook as we move into next year.”
The S&P 500 saw its first down week since early September.
The Nasdaq 100 added 0.6% Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6%.
The KBW Bank Index dropped 1.4%.
A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” rose 1.3%.
Bitcoin fell 2%.

Treasury 10-year yields rose three basis points to 4.24%.
Oil climbed as traders kept an eye on the risk of escalation in the Middle East conflict and a deluge of other potentially pivotal market drivers.
Five of the “Mag Seven” report earnings next week, with Alphabet Inc., Meta Platforms Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. poised for double-digit earnings growth fueled by ad spending.

Apple Inc. could get a fillip from Chinese sales of its latest iPhones, while Microsoft Corp. may use its earnings call to address concerns that it’s lagging rivals in artificial intelligence.
“These reports will likely be critical in shaping how investors view the overall third quarter earnings season,” said Anthony Saglimbene at Ameriprise. “As long as fundamental conditions remain firm, the bull market should continue to ride the near-term ups and downs in sentiment.”
Tech behemoths have driven the bulk of the equity-market advance this year, but they trailed last quarter as the Fed cut interest rates for the first time since 2020, supporting sectors like financials and utilities.
The latest Bloomberg Markets Live Pulse survey published earlier this week showed takers anticipate the tech giants will take the lead again.

A combined 75% expect the “Magnificent Seven” to either beat or perform in line with the rest of the market this quarter.
One reason investors remain bullish is that the bulk of the S&P 500’s earnings growth still comes from big tech.
“Expectations for the next few quarters still favor technology driving the earnings growth bus, and the ‘Mag Seven’ is obviously driving technology earnings,” said Nancy Tengler at Laffer Tengler Investments.
“Overall, we expect big tech earnings next week will display a mix of steady operational performance, AI-led revenue acceleration, and resilient advertising that signals ongoing health and innovation,” said Ido Caspi at Global X.

“More so, we expect to see further evidence of generative AI moving along its growth curve and continued shift from experimentation to widespread monetization.”
One event that tech-stock watchers will be focusing on is Nvidia Corp.’s earnings, to be released in November.

The company’s last report drove the chipmaker’s shares down in the following days.
This time around, the biggest group of Markets Live Pulse survey respondents, 45%, see the results pushing the stock up.
Nvidia has been the poster child for the boom in AI technology, with its stock almost tripling this year.
“Earnings season is heating up and we will soon hear from big tech companies and the latest on their artificial intelligence spend,” said David Laut at Abound Financial.

“For big tech, this is the show me the money quarter, as investors are becoming impatient with AI spend that may or may not yield extra profits.
Tech valuations are priced for perfection and any disappointment could spark a pullback.”
From a fundamental standpoint, sales growth for the “Big Three” — Nvidia, Microsoft and Apple — is expected to lag the rest of the tech sector — but seen accelerating though the end of 2025, with the rest of the industry expected to decelerate, according to Ryan Grabinski at Strategas Securities.
“However, the acceleration the ‘Big Three’ group is expected to see in net income is likely to keep a bid toward the names compared to the rest of the index,” he noted.

Grabinski also said that perhaps most interesting is that the margin expansion expected to occur for the tech sector is not heavily concentrated in the “Big Three”.
In fact, the contribution for them is expected to remain static at about 45% through the end of 2025, he noted.
While most of this year’s S&P 500 record highs occurred during low VIX Index readings, all-time highs set in recent weeks have accompanied wider price swings.

This isn’t necessarily something to worry about.
“Periods of rising volatility within bull markets are not necessarily cause for concern but rather an indication of a maturing rally,” note strategists at Tier 1 Alpha.
Risk assets remain in the throes of a powerful year-end rally consistent with our 6,200 S&P 500 target, according to Rich Ross at Evercore.

The gauge closed around 5,808 on Friday.
He noted that advance would be driven by a bullish expansion of breadth across “Big Tech, Banks, Bullion and Bitcoin” and set against a Goldilocks macro backdrop.
On the economic front, data Friday showed sentiment among US consumers increased in October to a six-month high as households grew more upbeat about buying conditions.

They expect prices will climb at an annual rate of 2.7% over the next year, unchanged from the prior month.
And see costs rising 3% on average over the next five to 10 years, down from 3.1% in the prior month.
“Certainly better news for Jerome Powell and Company,” said Jeff Roach at LPL Financial. “Consumers feel confident that inflation is easing.

Investors are anticipating next Friday’s employment release as the Fed attempts to stick the soft landing.”
Treasury traders are wrapping up a wild week in which a gauge of bond-market volatility soared to a new high for the year, suggesting more upheaval to come.
The severity of this week’s back and forth suggests even greater volatility in coming days, when the US bond market must weather a myriad of events — from key jobs data, to the US election, to a meeting by the Fed.

The ICE BofA Move Index, which tracks expected swings in Treasuries in the coming month, climbed to the highest level this year on Tuesday.
October’s jobs report will likely register the first negative payroll print in about four years, according to Anna Wong at Bloomberg Economics.

While analysts may discount the weakness due to transitory weather effects, she says cyclical factors will also play a substantial role.
“We look for a downshift in payroll growth to 120,000 in October and a steady unemployment rate,” said BNP Paribas economists.

“We expect Fed officials to look through the weak number given negative storm and strike effects.”
“If the report proves surprisingly strong on all key dimensions though, we expect it would add to murmurs of a Fed pause as early as December. Even so, a near-term pivot could prove difficult given inflation progress and the consensus Fed view that policy rates are still restrictive,” they said.

Corporate Highlights:
* Donald Trump’s social media venture has more than tripled in the five weeks since they bottomed out after the expiration of a lockup period that prevented insiders from selling the stock.
* Capri Holdings Ltd. plunged after a federal judge blocked the company’s planned $8.5 billion acquisition by Tapestry Inc., which rallied.
* Boeing Co. is exploring a sale of its space division as the troubled planemaker’s new leader looks to streamline and focus the company on its core operations, according to the Wall Street Journal.
* Apple Inc. was downgraded to underweight at KeyBanc Capital Markets, which questioned the company’s lofty growth expectations.
* Capital One Financial Corp. posted a profit that beat Wall Street estimates on strength in its credit-card and auto-lending businesses.
* Centene Corp. jumped after the health insurer’s third-quarter profits exceeded Wall Street’s expectations, a relief for investors braced for a tough quarter.
* Deckers Outdoor Corp. rallied after the maker of Hoka running shoes and UGG boots posted sales that beat the average analyst estimate and boosted its sales forecast for the year.
* Western Digital Corp. reported adjusted first-quarter earnings that beat expectations. Analysts note that the company’s NAND flash memory segment is holding up better than expected.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 was little changed as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.6%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6%
* The MSCI World Index fell 0.1%
* KBW Bank Index fell 1.4%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 1.3%

Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.3%
* The euro fell 0.3% to $1.0796
* The British pound fell 0.1% to $1.2960
* The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 152.24 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 2% to $66,773.01
* Ether fell 2.5% to $2,473.72

Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced three basis points to 4.24%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 2.29%
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.23%

Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.1% to $71.67 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 0.2% to $2,742.86 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

Have a lovely weekend.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Shab
” Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity.” — Louis Pasteur
 

Shab Mohammadpour
Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff
Queensbury Securities Inc.

340A – 730 View Street
Victoria BC  V8W 3Y7
Tel: 778-430-5851
Fax: 778-430-5828

October 24, 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Carolann is away from the office for a conference, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

October 24, 1861: First US transcontinental telegram is sent (from San Francisco to Washington, D.C.)
October 24, 1901: First woman to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel (Anna Taylor)

How old is planet Earth?
Our planet’s age is known from a variety of sources, from rocks on our own planet to ones from the moon. Read more.

Scientists build the smallest quantum computer in the world — it works at room temperature and you can fit it on your desk
The smallest machine of its kind in the world uses a single photon as its qubit and it can perform calculations without needing the cumbersome equipment to cool it down to near absolute zero.

Watch huge fireball blaze over Lake Erie in stunning videos
A fiery meteor shot across the sky above the Great Lakes just after sunset, stunning witnesses from Michigan to New York, Kentucky and North Carolina.

4 large asteroids, including a skyscraper-size ‘city killer,’ will zoom past Earth in a 12-hour span today (Oct. 24)
Four “potentially hazardous” space rocks, which are between 100 and 580 feet across, will all make their closest approaches to Earth within less than 12 hours of one another on Thursday (Oct. 24). Two of them were only discovered earlier this month. Read more.

What is the largest known prime number?
There are infinitely many prime numbers, but the biggest one we know of goes by the name M136279841 and contains more than 41 million digits. Read more.

PICTURES OF THE DAY

Brasília, Brazil
An Indigenous person leaves after the signing ceremony for a decree demarcating new lands, in front of the ministry of justice. The Brazilian government signed a directive to delimit seven new Indigenous lands of the Guarani in the industrialised state of São Paulo, which together add up to an area of nearly 20,000 hectares
Photograph: André Borges/EPA

Panama City, Panama
The minister of culture of Panama, Maruja Herrera (R), appears in the ballet Giselle. Herrera returned to the stage as a dancer, performing in the classic ballet as part of two special galas of the National Ballet of Panama to raise funds for charity
Photograph: Bienvenido Velasco/EPA

County Wicklow, Ireland
‘Autumn leaves signal the end of the summer season at Mount Usher Gardens.’
Photograph: Ann Egan
Market Closes for October 24th, 2024

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
Dow
Jones
42374.36 -140.59
-0.33%
S&P 500  5809.86 +12.44
+0.21%
NASDAQ  18415.49 +138.84
+0.76%
TSX  24551.55 -22.07
-0.09%

International Markets

Market
Index 
Close  Change 
NIKKEI  38143.29 +38.43
+0.10%
HANG
SENG
20489.62 -270.53
-1.30%
SENSEX  80065.16 -16.82
-0.02%
FTSE 100* 8269.38 +10.74
+0.13%

Bonds

Bonds  % Yield  Previous % Yield
CND.
10 Year Bond 
3.240 3.264
CND.
30 Year
Bond 
3.369 3.413
U.S.
10 Year Bond
4.2118 4.2456
U.S.
30 Year Bond
4.4739 4.5182

Currencies

BOC Close  Today  Previous  
Canadian $   0.7217 0.7227
US
$
1.3855 1.3837

 

Euro Rate
1 Euro= 
  Inverse   
Canadian $   1.4997 0.6668
US
$
1.0824 0.9239

Commodities

Gold Close  Previous  
London Gold
Fix 
2736.45 2736.45
Oil
WTI Crude Future  71.26 71.26

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1929: Stocks plunged in morning trading before a group of Wall Street bankers attempted to stem panic by buying stocks. The day became known as Black Thursday and marked the beginning of a multiday market crash that preceded the Great Depression.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite declined slightly to 24,551.55 in Toronto.
Teck Resources Ltd. contributed the most to the index decline and had the largest move, decreasing 5.4%.
Today, 107 of 223 shares fell, while 114 rose; 7 of 11 sectors were lower, led by materials stocks.

Insights
* This year, the index rose 17%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index rose 2.3%
* So far this week, the index fell 1.1%, heading for the biggest decline since the week ended Sept. 6
* The index advanced 29% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 36% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 1.5% below its 52-week high on Oct. 21, 2024 and 31.3% above its low on Oct. 27, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 0.6% 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 19.5 on a trailing basis and 17 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.89t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 6.73% compared with 7.29% in the previous session and the average of 8.86% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | -21.1981| -0.7| 27/25
Industrials | -15.8798| -0.5| 9/18
Consumer Staples | -10.4272| -1.1| 3/8
Communication Services | -7.2330| -1.0| 1/4
Utilities | -5.7472| -0.6| 2/13
Consumer Discretionary | -2.4292| -0.3| 5/6
Health Care | -0.2251| -0.3| 2/2
Real Estate | 3.7954| 0.7| 8/11
Financials | 5.6015| 0.1| 16/11
Energy | 12.8030| 0.3| 33/7
Information Technology | 18.8798| 0.9| 7/3
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Teck Resources | -12.0000| -5.4| 77.0| 16.7
Couche-Tard | -8.0570| -2.0| 31.5| -7.7
Barrick Gold | -7.5920| -2.2| 56.9| 17.6
Brookfield Corp | 4.5270| 0.6| -1.2| 41.6
Brookfield Asset Management | 6.9550| 3.8| 38.3| 36.7
Celestica | 12.0100| 18.3| 282.2| 142.2

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks rose for the first time this week, with traders parsing a slew of corporate earnings for clues on the health of the world’s largest economy.

Treasuries rebounded after days of losses.
A gauge of the “Magnificent Seven” hit a three-month high, with Tesla Inc. up 22% in its biggest rally since May 2013.

Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle giant reported strong earnings and forecast as much as 30% growth in car sales next year.
United Parcel Service Inc. — an economic barometer — jumped 5.3% after returning to sales and profit growth.
International Business Machines Corp. and Honeywell International Inc.’s results failed to inspire.
“Despite the possibility of more volatility as we get deeper into earnings season and close in on the November election, the market’s longer-term outlook remains solid,” said Daniel Skelly at Morgan Stanley’s Wealth Management Market Research & Strategy team.
The market barely budged after Thursday’s economic data, with new home sales beating estimates, initial jobless claims dropping and business activity expanding at a solid pace.
“Goldilocks data that’s in-line with expectations (so not too good or too bad) is the best outcome for a continued rebound in stocks and bonds,” said Tom Essaye at The Sevens Report.
The S&P 500 rose 0.2%, reclaiming its 5,800 mark.

The Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.8%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.3%, posting a fourth consecutive day of losses — the longest losing streak since June.
In late hours, Tapestry Inc. — the maker of Kate Spade handbags — rallied as a judge blocked the planned acquisition of rival Capri Holdings Ltd.
US 10-year yields fell four basis points to 4.20%.

A $24 billion five-year TIPS auction drew the lowest yield this year as inflation-protected Treasuries have outperformed since the Federal Reserve cut rates last month.
Oil dropped as oversupply concerns overshadowed the risks from Israel’s potential retaliatory strike on Iran.
“The market appears to be driven by the projected outcome of the earnings reporting period, the presidential election, and the bond market’s interpretation of future monetary actions by the Federal Reserve,” said Sam Stovall at CFRA. “Investors see the resiliency of the economy and employment forcing the Fed to be ‘slower to lower’ on rates.”
He still sees two 25 basis-point rate cuts in 2024.

Money markets are currently pricing about an 85% chance the Fed will cut rates by a quarter-point next month, and around 135 basis points of easing by the end of 2025.
While the equity market is still down for the week, the slide did little to dent the wall of bullish technical signals built up around the S&P 500.

The US stock benchmark continues to trade comfortably above its 200-day moving average, clocking more than 240 straight days above the closely watched long-term line.
In the prior 13 instances when the S&P 500 closed above its 200-day average for at least 242 consecutive days, with the index less than 3% below a record, the gauge proceeded to post a median gain of 7.2% in the next six months, advancing in all but two cases, SentimenTrader’s analysis found.
“Near term, pullbacks/profit-taking should be expected given the uncertainties around the upcoming US presidential election, geopolitical uncertainty, and the earnings parade,” said Craig Johnson at Piper Sandler.

“No change to our 2024 year end S&P 500 price objective of 6,100.”
“We see room for US stocks to move higher. We hold an attractive view on the IT sector, as well as the utilities, financials, consumer discretionary, and communication services sectors,” said Solita Marcelli at UBS Global Wealth Management.
Chris Senyek at Wolfe Research notes that market concentration is at the highest levels since the 1960’s “Nifty Fifty” era — with the top seven companies accounting for about 30% of the market weight and the top 25 companies at 48%.
During the 1960’s and 1970’s, these market darlings were characterized by their consistent earnings growth and highprice- to-earnings ratios similar in respects to the “Magnificent Seven”, he said.

Ultimately, what broke the trend was the inflationary environment of the 1970’s and the ensuing mid-70’s and early 80’s recessions.
“In a similar vein, we don’t see current trends breaking until the next recession and/or when AI enthusiasm substantially wanes,” Senyek added.

“With that said, we remain bullish on the market broadening out consistent with our call to own earlier cyclical stocks (FINs is our favorite).”

Corporate Highlights:
* Boeing Co. Chief Executive Officer Kelly Ortberg’s quest to stabilize the struggling US planemaker suffered a stinging setback after factory workers rejected a new labor contract that would have increased their wages by 35% over four years.
* American Airlines Group Inc. boosted its full-year profit guidance, highlighting progress rebuilding from a failed sales strategy while it grapples with persistently high costs.
* Southwest Airlines Co. reported third-quarter profit more than double Wall Street’s estimates, a needed boost as the carrier tries to shore up financial results following a bruising fight with activist Elliott Investment Management that came to an end Thursday.
* ServiceNow Inc. reported strong third-quarter sales and bookings as the software company expands its suite of AI tools.
* Whirlpool Corp., the owner of Maytag, reported better than expected earnings, and reaffirming its full-year sales forecast.
* Harley-Davidson Inc.’s motorcycle shipments fell in the latest quarter on lower demand for its high-margin bikes, prompting a downward revision in its full-year forecast.
* Greenlight Capital founder David Einhorn said there’s “a lot to like” about fitness company Peloton Interactive Inc., despite the stock’s plunge over the past three years.

Key events this week:

* US durable goods, University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.2% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.8%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3%
* The MSCI World Index rose 0.3%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index rose 3.2%
* The Russell 2000 Index rose 0.2%

Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%
* The euro rose 0.4% to $1.0829
* The British pound rose 0.4% to $1.2976
* The Japanese yen rose 0.6% to 151.84 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 2.5% to $68,258.43
* Ether rose 1% to $2,537.84

Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined four basis points to 4.20%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 2.27%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 4.24%

Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.4% to $70.51 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 0.8% to $2,736.73 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Shab
” Keep true to the dreams of your youth.”– Friedrich Von Schiller

Shab Mohammadpour
Assistant to Carolann Steinhoff
Queensbury Securities Inc.

340A – 730 View Street
Victoria BC  V8W 3Y7
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