December 2, 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
December 2, 1969~1969 The Boeing 747 jumbo jet debuted.  Go to article »

December 2, 2020~The UK licenses the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use.
1823~ Monroe Doctrine declared.
Britney Speares, singer, b. 1981.
George Seurat, painter, b. 1859.

Today’s date is a palindrome and an ambigram; you can read it upside down. (h/t Scott Kominers) 

Look back at the year 2021 in pictures.  You’ll gasp, you’ll laugh, you’ll cry … and then cry a little more …

Astronauts celebrate record-breaking chile harvest in space with taco night.  Space tacos! Space tacos!
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
The Rockettes perform at the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting ceremony
CREDIT: NBC/Getty Images
A man fishes at North Lake in Irvine. Dense fog covered much of Orange County
CREDIT: Paul Bersebach/AP
People visit Antony Gormley’s Angel of the North after overnight snowfall
CREDIT: Lee Smith/Reuters

Market Closes for December 2^nd, 2021

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1941, Theodore Benna, the future creator of the 401(k), was born in Manns Choice, Pa.
Canada
By Stefanie Marotta
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities surged as investors bought the dip after a two-day plunge. S&P/TSX Composite rose 1.5 percent to 20,762.03 in Toronto. The move was the biggest gain since April 1 and follows the previous session’s decrease of 0.9 percent. Today, financial stocks led the market higher, as 10 of 11 sectors gained; 177 of 233 shares rose, while 55 fell. Toronto-Dominion Bank contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 4.9 percent. Bombardier Inc. had the largest increase, rising 8.4 percent.
Insights
* In the past year, the index had a similar or greater gain two times. The next day, it advanced after both occasions
* This year, the index rose 19 percent, poised for the best year since 2019
* This quarter, the index rose 3.4 percent
* So far this week, the index fell 1.7 percent
* The index advanced 20 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 23 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 4.7 percent below its 52-week high on Nov. 16, 2021 and 20.6 percent above its low on Dec. 2, 2020
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 3.9 percent in the past 5 days and fell 1.9 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.7 on a trailing basis and 15.8 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.6 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.23t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 14.09 percent compared with 13.29 percent in the previous session and the average of 10.06 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
* Financials | 141.8309| 2.2| 25/3
* Industrials | 47.2973| 2.0| 27/3
* Energy | 32.8865| 1.2| 21/2
* Consumer Staples | 19.3130| 2.7| 13/0
* Consumer Discretionary | 18.9955| 2.6| 11/2
* Communication Services | 13.3037| 1.3| 7/0
* Real Estate | 12.1232| 1.9| 23/1
* Information Technology | 5.0505| 0.2| 12/3
* Health Care | 4.3114| 2.6| 9/0
* Utilities | 2.3527| 0.3| 9/6
* Materials | -0.0404| 0.0| 20/35
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points| | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move |% Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
* TD Bank | 57.1500| 4.9| 51.3| 34.2
* Royal Bank of Canada | 23.7400| 1.9| 48.8| 22.5
* Brookfield Asset | | | |
* Management | 21.2700| 3.0| -24.3| 40.2
* Franco-Nevada | -4.0730| -1.8| 11.9| 4.7
* CIBC | -12.4300| -2.8| 155.6| 26.3
* Shopify | -15.1600| -1.0| 12.4| 29.0

US
By Rita Nazareth and Peyton Forte
(Bloomberg) — Stocks notched their biggest advance since October as dip buyers scooped up some of the hardest-hit shares during a two-day selloff. Treasuries retreated. Companies that stand to benefit the most from economic growth drove gains in the S&P 500, with small caps and travel stocks surging.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed almost 2%, led by aerospace giant Boeing Co.  Tech shares underperformed. The U.S. is inching ahead on efforts to boot Chinese firms off stock exchanges for not complying with disclosure requirements. Volatility has gripped financial markets this week, stirred by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s hawkish tone and the spread of the omicron coronavirus strain. The turmoil may offer investors a chance to position for a trend reversal in reopening and commodity trades, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists.
While it’s likely that the variant is more transmissible, early reports suggest it may also be less deadly, they added. “What we’re seeing is the propensity to buy the dip,” said Aoifinn Devitt, chief investment officer at Moneta Group. “And why are we buying the dip? Because there’s just so much money sitting on the sidelines. Even though these short bouts of volatility are surprising and certainly have sent a chill through markets, we still have a significant bank of equity returns to enjoy year to date.” Applications for U.S. state unemployment benefits rose by less than forecast last week, suggesting additional progress in the job market. The figures came a day before the monthly employment report, which is projected to show payrolls increased by 550,000 in November. Fed Governor Randal Quarles, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic and his San Francisco counterpart Mary Daly laid out the case for speeding up the removal of policy support amid higher inflation — adding their voices to the message delivered by Powell this week. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said sheunderstands the “reasoning” behind the central bank’s plans to reduce asset purchases.

Some other corporate highlights:
* Apple Inc. told its component suppliers that demand for the iPhone 13 lineup has weakened, people familiar with the matter said.
* U.S. antitrust officials sued to block Nvidia Corp.’s proposed $40 billion takeover of Arm Ltd., saying the deal would harm competition in the semiconductor market.
* Exxon Mobil Corp. will award U.S. employees below-inflation pay increases in early 2022. The oil giant will boost salaries by an average of 3.6% for those who performed with “merit,” according to a company document seen by Bloomberg.
* Grab Holdings Ltd., Southeast Asia’s biggest ride-hailing and delivery company, sank in its first day of trading after completing its merger with Altimeter Growth Corp., the largest deal yet for a special-purpose acquisition company.

Oil prices are primed for gains as Thursday’s decision by OPEC+ to proceed with planned production increases won’t derail an ongoing structural bull market, according to analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. The investment bank sees “very clear upside risks” to its forecast for Brent to average $85 a barrel in 2023.
Key events to watch this week:
* U.S. jobs report, factory orders, durable goods on Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 1.4% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.7%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.8%
* The MSCI World index rose 0.7%
* The Russell 2000 Index rose 2.7%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
* The euro fell 0.2% to $1.1300
* The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.3299
* The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 113.17 per dollar
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced three basis points to 1.43%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined three basis points to -0.37%
* Britain’s 10-year yield declined one basis point to 0.81%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2% to $66.90 a barrel
* Gold futures fell 0.8% to $1,769.30 an ounce
–With assistance from Andreea Papuc, Robert Brand, Vildana Hajric and Sophie Caronello.
Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Intuition is perception via the unconscious. –Carl Jung, 1875-1961.

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Senior Investment Advisor

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

Tel: 778.430.5808
(C): 250.881.0801
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com