December 5th, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Walt Disney, b. 1901.
Joan Didion, writer, b. 1934
Christina Rosetti, poet, b. 1830
Jose Carreras, singer, b. 1946

-from The New York Times:
His name is Bond. James Bond. But as the trailer for the latest Bond movie comes out today, we wondered about the name’s origins. The writer behind the super spy, Ian Fleming, was also an avid bird watcher. On a trip to Jamaica after World War II, he spotted a book, “Birds of the West Indies,” by an ornithologist from Philadelphia, who happened to be named James Bond. “It struck me that this brief, unromantic, Anglo-Saxon and yet very masculine name was just what I needed,” Mr. Fleming once wrote in a letter to the ornithologist’s wife. But as in any good spy story, there’s a twist: Last year, the BBC reported that newly released records showed that an intelligence officer named James Bond had served under Fleming in a secret elite unit that led a guerrilla war against Hitler. That Bond, a metal worker from Wales, had taken his spy past to the grave, his family said — and they suspected that Fleming had used the bird-watching Bond as a “classic red herring” to keep his identity a secret.

Twenty-two things happened for the first time in 2019

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Actor Daniel Craig holds a Leica camera during a promotional appearance on TV in Times Square for the new James Bond movie “No Time to Die”
CREDIT: CARLO ALLEGRI/REUTERS

People attend the ‘Fesiluz’ International Chinese Lantern Festival in Santiago de Chile. The show is in Latin America for the first time and will be open to public until 28 February 2020.
CREDIT: ALBERTO VALDES/EPA-EFE/REX

HMS Queen Elizabeth returned to Portsmouth today after a landmark deployment to the United States. The aircraft carrier spent three months off the east coast, carrying out operational tests with UK F-35 Lightning jets. She has now returned to her home port where she was greeted by sister ship HMS Prince of Wales.
CREDIT: KYLE HELLER/ROYAL NAVY

Market Closes for December 05^th, 2019  

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
The British pound rose to a seven-month high against the dollar Wednesday as polls suggested that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party would win a majority in next week’s general election—a victory that could end the political uncertainty over Brexit. The pound bought $1.310 on Wednesday, its highest level against the dollar since May this year.

Canada
By Kristine Owram
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell to the lowest in four
weeks after earnings disappointments from two of the country’s biggest banks. The S&P/TSX Composite Index slid 0.3% to 16,854.92 even as U.S. stocks rose. Toronto-Dominion Bank lost 3.5%, the most since 2017, and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce tumbled 5.2%, the most since 2009, after both lenders missed analysts’ estimates. Today, 93 of 233 shares fell, while 136 rose; 5 of 11 sectors were lower, led by technology stocks.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $20.00 discount to WTI
* Spot gold rose 0.1% to 1,481.10
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar strengthened 0.2% to C$1.3172 per U.S. dollar, the strongest in a month
* The 10-year government bond yield rose 7 basis points to 1.61%

================================================================
| Index Points | |Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | -41.7502| -0.8| 19/8
Information Technology | -12.1110| -1.3| 0/9
Energy | -2.1049| -0.1| 19/10
Materials | -0.1494| 0.0| 24/24
Industrials | -0.1353| 0.0| 14/18
Consumer Discretionary | 0.5233| 0.1| 8/8
Health Care | 0.8306| 0.4| 7/3
Utilities | 1.0657| 0.1| 11/5
Consumer Staples | 1.2754| 0.2| 6/4
Communication Services | 4.3882| 0.5| 6/1
Real Estate | 5.7621| 1.0| 23/2

US
By Rita Nazareth and Claire Ballentine
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks advanced as investors speculated the Trump administration won’t move forward with a tariff hike on Chinese goods scheduled for Dec. 15. Bonds and the dollar fell. The S&P 500 Index continued to rebound from a sell-off sparked by a spike in trade tensions that many investors now view as negotiating bluster. Treasury yields climbed after data showed jobless claims slumped to a seven-month low, signaling resilience in the labor market ahead of Friday’s jobs report. Oil closed flat in a very volatile session as OPEC failed to impress traders with what appeared to be a cosmetic revision to output quotas. Investors watched for signs the world’s two largest economies will reach a truce in a dispute that’s led to the biggest volley of tariffs since the 1930s. Equities rebounded after President Donald Trump’s remarks that negotiations were “moving along well.” Gains were briefly capped by a news report that the U.S. and China remained at odds over the value of farm purchases. “Things are looking modestly positive, but that can change on a dime,” Michael Reynolds, investment strategy officer at Glenmede Trust Co. “We’re expecting trade to dominate the narrative for the next week and a half as we approach that December 15 deadline.”
Traders also awaited Friday’s U.S. jobs report, which may signal that both the labor market and consumers remain buoyant enough to sustain the expansion. That would validate Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s view that rates can stay on hold following three cuts. But it could also reduce the urgency for a deal with China, given that escalating levies have so far failed to significantly dent employment. Elsewhere, oil prices sputtered as OPEC reached an agreement that adjusts its official production targets, but removes few barrels from a market that’s forecast to return to surplus early next year.
On corporate news:
* Nike Inc. rallied after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. recommended buying the shares.
* Apple Inc. rose as its price target was raised at Citigroup Inc.
* Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc. soared on promising data from its dementia drug trial.
* Energy Fuels Inc. and Ur-Energy Inc. jumped as a White House report recommended ways to revive the uranium industry.
* Biogen Inc. climbed after initially dropping on plans to resume studies of its once-abandoned drug for Alzheimer’s disease.
* Sage Therapeutics Inc. sank as a key depression study failed to show benefit.
* At Home Group Inc. tumbled as its forecast disappointed investors.

Here are some key events coming up this week:
* U.S. Labor Department figures are expected to show Friday that 184,000 workers were added to nonfarm payrolls last month — one of the highest estimates this year ahead of a jobs report.

These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.2% to 3,117.43 at 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.1%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index advanced 0.7%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index lost 0.2%.
* The euro increased 0.3% to $1.1107.
* The Japanese yen added 0.1% to 108.78 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed three basis points to 1.80%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to -0.29%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield increased three basis points to 0.773%.
Commodities
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index gained 0.3%.
* West Texas Intermediate crude was unchanged at $58.43 a barrel.
* Gold rose 0.2% to $1,483.10 an ounce.
–With assistance from Cormac Mullen, Adam Haigh, Sam Potter,
Todd White, Claire Ballentine and Vildana Hajric.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Beware of little expenses.  A small leak could sink a great ship.
                                         -Benjamin Franklin, 1706-1790

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