December 22, 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
December 22, 2005 Astronomers announced the discovery of two more rings encircling the planet Uranus.  Go to article »
12/22/1989: Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate re-opens after nearly 30 years, effectively ending the division of East and West Germany.

Giacomo Puccini, composer, b.1858
Ralph Fiennes, actor, b. 1962

Scientists find an intact dinosaur embryo inside a fossilized egg. 

To cope with modern life, try embracing the original tenets of stoicism, skepticism, cynicism and epicureanism. — Andreas Kluth.

Scientists find a family tree in a 5,700-year-old tomb.

Scientists find a 50,000-year-old social network.

Why Finnish babies sleep in cardboard boxes.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Geometric neon snowflakes created by the artist Hannah Ayre surround the Scottish city’s Christmas tree on the Mound
CREDIT: Jane Barlow/PA
Derek Yung, an artist, creates a sand drawing on Sai Wan beach
CREDIT: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images
An ancient figurine of a Roman pantomimus that was recovered off the coast of Caesarea is displayed at the Israeli Antiquities Authority laboratory. Maritime archaeologists found several precious artefacts off the coast of Caesarea, including hundreds of silver coins from two shipwrecks dating over a millennium
CREDIT: Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images

Market Closes for December 22^nd, 2021

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
     On this day in 1973, meeting in Tehran, the oil ministers of OPEC’s six Persian Gulf member countries said they would unilaterally raise the price of crude oil to $7 per barrel—and that it would go up again, to $11.65, on Jan. 1, 1974. In two-and-a-half months, OPEC had raised the price of oil by 128%.
Canada
By Geoffrey Morgan
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities climbed for the second straight day in Toronto, led higher by real estate, materials and financial stocks. The S&P/TSX Composite climbed 0.7%, or 145.18 to 21,070.05, to its highest closing level since Dec. 8. Royal Bank of Canada contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 0.8%. Bank of Montreal and TD Bank were also among the top three contributors to the index move. Tech company Dye & Durham Ltd. had the largest percentage increase Wednesday, rising 11.3%. Today, 199 of 241 shares rose, while 36 fell; all sectors were higher, led by financial stocks.
Insights
* This year, the index rose 21%, heading for the best year in at least 10 years
* This quarter, the index rose 5%
* This month, the index rose 2%
* The index advanced 20% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 24% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 3.3% below its 52-week high on Nov. 16, 2021 and 21.8% above its low on Jan. 29, 2021
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 1.4% in the past 5 days and fell 1.6% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.1 on a trailing basis and 16 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.5% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.35t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 15.44% compared with 15.38% in the previous session and the average of 13.08% over the past month
================================================================
|Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
* Financials | 56.3220| 0.8| 25/3
* Materials | 23.5081| 1.0| 45/7
* Energy | 18.5321| 0.7| 25/5
* Industrials | 12.2595| 0.5| 26/4
* Information Technology | 12.2060| 0.5| 12/4
* Real Estate | 7.2573| 1.1| 22/0
* Consumer Staples | 5.3946| 0.7| 7/5
* Utilities | 3.5066| 0.4| 15/1
* Consumer Discretionary | 3.0226| 0.4| 13/1
* Communication Services | 2.9365| 0.3| 6/1
* Health Care | 0.2294| 0.1| 3/5
================================================================
| | |Volume VS |
| Index | | 20D AVG |YTD Change
Top Contributors |Points Move| % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
* Royal Bank of Canada  9.9570| 0.8| -38.9| 26.8
* Bank of Montreal  9.8110| 1.7| -26.0| 39.9
* TD Bank  8.8650| 0.8| 3.0| 32.7
* Canopy Growth  -0.7640| -3.6| -15.2| -61.6
* WSP Global  -1.3150| -1.4| 78.0| 48.4
* Lightspeed Commerce Inc  -1.3880| -2.8| -54.2| -41.6

US
By Namitha Jagadeesh
(Bloomberg) — Stocks closed near session highs on speculation that the omicron coronavirus variant won’t derail the economic recovery. The S&P 500 climbed for a second day, the dollar fell and bonds were little changed. Pfizer Inc. advanced as its Covid-19 pill gained clearance for emergency use in the U.S. Amazon.com Inc. rebounded, following a drop of more than 1% after Bloomberg News reported the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is pushing forward with antitrust scrutiny of the company’s cloud computing business. Sales of previously owned U.S. homes increased for a third consecutive month in November, while consumer confidence rose in December by more than expected as Americans’ outlook for employment and the economy improved. Omicron may be less likely to land patients in the hospital than the delta strain, according to a trio of studies of preliminary data. “Many investors believe that omicron would only have a temporary impact on the economic activity and should not be a problem for the overall positive trend in equities,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Group.

What to watch this week:
* Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda speaks Thursday
* U.S. initial jobless claims, personal income, durable goods, University of Michigan consumer sentiment, new home sales on Thursday
* Friday: U.S. markets are closed. European markets close earlier

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 1% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.2%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7%
* The MSCI World index rose 1%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%
* The euro rose 0.4% to $1.1334
* The British pound rose 0.7% to $1.3359
* The Japanese yen was unchanged at 114.10 per dollar
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 1.45%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced one basis point to -0.29%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced one basis point to 0.89%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.5% to $72.93 a barrel
* Gold futures rose 0.9% to $1,805.30 an ounce
–With assistance from Andreea Papuc.
Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Talent hits a target no one else can hit; Genius hits a target no one else can see. –Arthur Schopenhauer, 1788-1860.

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