December 27, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Louis Pasteur, chemist, b. 1822

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

The Poem:

Ligament
By Charif Shanahan

Even after she cut into my shoulder

Coldly, with a  scalpel, resetting my clavicle.

Tying it down with borrowed ligament and screwing it

Into place, even after she sutured me shut,

Sewing the two banks of skin across the thin blood river,

Watching me sleep the chemical sleep

Until tender and hazy I awoke – Even after all that,

What seems the least plausible is how

She had known, walking into that white room,

To put her hand for just a second in my hand.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Harrods butlers entertain shoppers as they queue outside the store in Knightsbridge, London ahead of the launch of its winter sale.

Theresa Kingston takes her dog for a walk in winter wonderland conditions near Alston, Cumbria following heavy snowfall across northern England.

It all got too much for one lazy 2,200-pound walrus as it lies flat out on an ice floe covering its eyes with its flipper as if avoiding the camera in Svalbard, Norway.
Market Closes for December 27^th, 2017

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose as as California rolls toward recreational legalization of marijuana, while the energy sector experienced a strong session despite oil falling.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 38 points or 0.2 percent to 16,203.13. The health care index led the way given marijuana- exposure, followed by the energy sector.
     In other moves:
                       Stocks
* Nutritional High International Inc. rose 136 percent after reporting Calyx Brands Inc. has received a Medicinal – Distributor Temporary License from the California Bureau of Cannabis Control
* Future Farm Technologies Inc. rose 63 percent after announcing it has set a closing date of January 4 on its previously announced 10-acre operating greenhouse acquisition
* Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP rose 3.3 percent
* Centerra Gold Inc. fell 10.3 percent as the company’s mill processing operations at the Mount Milligan mine in British Columbia have been temporarily suspended
                      Commodities
* Gold rose 0.4 percent to $1,292 an ounce
                      FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar strengthened 0.3 percent to $1.26438 per U.S. dollar
US
By Randall Jensen and Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks edged higher and Treasuries rose amid trading thinned by a holiday-shortened week. The dollar weakened against most peers.
     The S&P 500 Index halted a two-day slump as data showed American consumers remain upbeat about the economy. Trading was almost 40 percent below the 30-day average. Stocks in Europe ended slightly higher following a mixed session in Asia. Ten- year Treasury yields headed for a fourth day of declines, while the dollar traded near month lows.
     Meanwhile, the euro and pound gained, while bonds in Europe were mixed. West Texas crude retreated after breaching $60 a barrel for the first time since June 2015 on Tuesday. Bitcoin fell below $15,000 after its biggest gain in two weeks took it above $16,000.
     The best year for U.S. equities since 2013 is ending with a bit of a whimper after stocks soared in the week before the holidays as Republicans passed a major overhaul of the tax code. Investors will now turn attention to 2018 for clues on whether corporations will plow some of the savings into investments that will bolster earnings at the same time central banks around the world are dialing down stimulus or actively tightening.
     Among the key events remaining for investors this week:
* Italy’s parliament is expected to be dissolved ahead of elections in 2018.
* Egypt decides on interest rates.
     And here are the main moves in markets:
                            Stocks
* S&P 500 Index rose 0.1 percent as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.1 percent.
* Emerging market shares jumped 0.5 percent.
                            Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index lost 0.3 percent near the lowest in more than three weeks.
* The euro gained 0.3 percent to $1.1895, the strongest in almost four weeks on the biggest rise in more than a week.
* The British pound increased 0.2 percent to $1.3404.
* The Japanese yen increased less than 0.05 percent to 113.28 per dollar.
                            Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell seven basis points to 2.41 percent, the most since September.
* Germany’s 10-year yield lost four basis points to 0.385 percent.
                            Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude lost 0.7 percent to $59.57 a barrel, the first retreat in more than a week.
* Gold futures increased 0.4 percent to $1,292.30 an ounce.
* LME copper advanced 1.1 percent to $7,206.00 per metric ton, reaching the highest in about four years on its ninth consecutive advance.

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Adversity does teach you who your real friends are.
                        -Lois McMaster Bujold, b. 1949

Carolann

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
(C): 250.881.0801
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com