December 13, 2016 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Full moon tonight!

HOLIDAY TODAY: Saint Lucia Day/Luciadagen
Lucia was a Sicilian girl caught up in the persecutions of Diocletian c. 304. One legend relates that a nobleman wanted to marry her for the beauty of her eyes, so she tore them out and gave them to him, saying “Now let me live to God.”  Her name derives from Latin lux, or light; she is the patron saint of sufferers of eye trouble (as well as writers, known to be susceptible to eye strain!).
In Sicily, Lucia is still honored by bonfires and torchlight parades.  In Sweden the observance of her day begins before sunrise.  The eldest daughter of the house is the Lussibruden, or Lucia Bride.  She wears a white dress with a red sash, and an evergreen wreath with lighted candles atop her head. She serves saffron buns and coffee to the household.  She is followed by her sisters, carrying candles, and by her brothers – all decorated.   All sing carols offering thanks to the Queen of Light.
Lucia’s attributes may derive from pagan traditions.  The feminine elements of midwinter and night are complemented by the starboys who follow her.  Like the moon, she brings radiance amidst the darkness.  Her evergreens are proof of life amidst winter’s bleakness.  She wears white to show the virtue becoming a bride.  But, as the eldest girl, she is ready for marriage and childbearing, hence her red sash.  Her gifts of food and drink give evidence of earth’s abundance.
However one may understand Luciadagen, the spectacle is breathtaking and the ritual is particularly joyful for children.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

The ‘Kongl. Teknologkoren’ choir performs in Seglora church, at the open-air museum Skansen, on Saint Lucy’s Day in Stockholm, Sweden on Tuesday. Henrik Montgomery/News Agency/Reuters

Villagers wait to take part in the Divina Pastora procession, as part of a festival to honor the Virgin of Los Rondeles, in the southern Spanish village of Casarabonela, near Malaga, late Monday. Villagers celebrate the festival on the eve of St. Lucia’s Day and hold torches during the procession to represent light and vision. St. Lucia is the patron saint of vision. Jon Nazca/Reuters

A Nepalese Buddhist woman lights butter lamps on full moon day at the Boudhanath Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal on Tuesday. The Boudhanath Stupa is an important pilgrimage site for Buddhists. Niranjan Shrestha/AP
Market Closes for December 13^th, 2016

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Eric Lam
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose for the seventh time in eight days, resuming their climb after a pause on Monday, as big banks and energy producers helped push the benchmark index to the highest close since April 2015.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 0.6 percent to 15,385.27 at 4 p.m. The gauge has risen 18 percent in 2016, the top performer among developed markets tracked by Bloomberg, ahead of No. 2 market Norway’s 15 percent advance.
     Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank each added at least 0.9 percent as financial services stocks hit a fresh record. Seven of 11 industries in the S&P/TSX advanced, with utilities, consumer staples and information technology shares also climbing.
     Canadian equities joined a rally in U.S. markets amid anticipation of increasing Federal Reserve interest rates and greater economic growth under President-elect Donald Trump’s policies. Traders are pricing in a 100 percent chance of a Fed rate hike Wednesday, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
     Energy producers climbed 1.9 percent, to the highest since June 2015, as oil closed at a 17-month high. In the U.S., crude stockpiles probably fell last week, a Bloomberg survey showed.
     Raw-material stocks are the top industry among 11 in the S&P/TSX this year with a 38 percent advance, followed by a 33 percent gain in energy shares. The rallies have been driven by rebounding gold and crude prices in 2016. Teck Resources Ltd., Canada’s largest diversified mining company, is up more than five-fold on a resurgence in commodities from metallurgical coal to zinc.
     In other moves:
* Canopy Growth Corp. rose 7.9 percent, the most since Nov. 23, after the government released a highly anticipated report providing a road map for legalizing and regulating marijuana, including more than 80 recommendations
* Husky Energy Inc. ended down 1.3 percent, reversing an earlier gain, after the company said it plans to conduct a partial turnaround for its Lima, Ohio refinery that will last five weeks, CFO Jonathan McKenzie said in a 2017 guidance conference call.
US
By Oliver Renick
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rallied to new highs as investors turned their focus to the Federal Reserve’s first policy decision and outlook since the U.S. elections due on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed for a seventh straight session and is fewer than 90 points from crossing 20,000.
     The S&P 500 Index added 0.7 percent at 2,271.72 at 4 p.m. in New York. The Dow rose 0.6 percent to 19,911.21 while the Nasdaq 100 jumped 1.3 percent to 4,935.84, the highest ever. Small-cap shares were little changed, trailing S&P 500 for the second day in a row.
* Nine of 11 S&P 500 industry groups rose, with industrial and materials shares down no more than 0.2%
* Tech companies up 1.3%, with gains of at least 2.1% in Facebook Inc. (FB), Intel Corp. (INTC), Red Hat Inc. (RHT), CA Inc. (CA) and Seagate Technology Plc (STX)
* High-dividend groups including phone and utility companies gained at least 0.6%; consumer staples reversed earlier losses to add 0.4%
* WTI crude futures were little changed after rallying earlier.
Contracts at the U.S. equity close traded around $52.81 a barrel, as the International Energy Agency said global oil markets will swing from surplus to deficit in the first half of 2017 as OPEC and other producers follow through on an accord to cut supply
* A U.S. interest-rate increase is seen as a virtual certainty by traders, with market-implied probabilities standing at 100% for the decision Wednesday and all 77 Bloomberg-surveyed economists expecting a 25 basis-point increase
* Investors will focus on how policy makers may change their 2017 forecasts, and what Fed Chair Janet Yellen will say about the economic outlook
* EARNINGS:
** Before market Wednesday: Joy Global Inc (JOY)
** After market Wednesday: Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Inc (ARWR), Ocean Rig UDW Inc. (ORIG), Civitas Solutions Inc. (CIVI), Pier 1 Imports Inc. (PIR), Apogee Enterprises Inc. (APOG), Empire Co Ltd (EMP/A CN)

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

What is the object of jnâna yoga?  Freedom.
Freedom  from what?  Freedom from our imperfections, freedom from the suffering of life.
Why are we unhappy?  We are unhappy because we are enslaved.  And what are we enslaved by?
The enslavement of nature.   Who enslaves us?
We do, ourselves.
Swami Vivekananda

As ever,

Carolann

Nothing is more responsible for the good old days than  a bad memory.
                                                    -Franklin P. Adams, 1881-1960

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

Queensbury Securities Inc.,
St. Andrew’s Square,
Suite 340A, 730 View St.,
Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

Tel: 778.430.5808
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