Dear Friends,
Tangents: Happy Friday.
December 5th:
1905: Mark Twain celebrates his seventieth birthday at Delmonico’s in NYC with 170 guests.
1933: Prohibition of alcohol ends in the United States with the ratification of the 21st Amendment, repealing the 18th Amendment.
1996: Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan questioned whether the stock market was overvalued due to investors’ "irrational exuberance." Go to article.
Christina Rossetti, poet, b.1830.
Walt Disney, animator, b. 1901.
Calvin Trillin, author, b.1925.
Joan Didion, writer, b. 1934.
Little Richard, singer, b.1935.
Jose Carreras, singer, b.1946.
| Volcanic eruption triggered ‘butterfly effect’ that led to the Black Death, researchers find |
| A volcanic eruption in 1345 may have kicked off a series of events that led to the Black Death sweeping through medieval Europe. Read More. |
| Collapse of key Atlantic current could bring extreme drought to Europe for hundreds of years, study finds |
Scientists modeled Europe’s future if a key Atlantic current were to collapse and found that the continent faces a much drier future. Read More.
| Geminids 2025: The year’s best meteor shower is coming, with a second shower hot on its tail |
The Geminid meteor shower has begun. The Geminids peak overnight on Dec. 13 and 14, when up to 150 "shooting stars" per hour will rain down on Earth in a moonless night sky. Read More.
| 18,000 dinosaur tracks discovered along ancient Bolivian coastline — and they set a new record |
Researchers have counted 16,600 fossilized dinosaur footprints and 1,378 swim tracks at a site in Bolivia that showcase a variety of behaviors and different theropods from the Cretaceous period. Read More.
| MIT invention uses ultrasound to shake drinking water out of the air, even in dry regions |
A new device cuts down the time it takes to harvest water from the atmosphere from days to minutes, MIT researchers say. Read More.
LeBron James’ scoring streak comes to an end after more than 18 years
Instead of extending his streak Thursday, Lakers star LeBron James chose to set up Rui Hachimura for an epic game-winning shot. See the video.
Ballroom shuffle
President Trump has hired a new architect for his $300 million White House ballroom amid clashes over the project.
Phones might get pricier next year
Thanks to the AI boom, smartphones keep getting smarter — and the costs are climbing right along with them.
Who will be named the 2025 CNN Hero of the Year?
Get ready to be inspired! CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute airs this Saturday at 8pm ET, hosted by Anderson Cooper and Laura Coates. Several celebrities will join the broadcast to help honor the Top 5 CNN Heroes for 2025, and the CNN Hero of the Year will be revealed.
Creepy robot human dogs
These bizarre creatures are causing a scene at Art Basel in Miami. Watch the video here.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Seoul, South Korea
Visitors wearing traditional hanbok dresses walk on the grounds of Gyeongbokgung Palace after the season’s first snowfall
Photograph: Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images
Yancheng, China
People visit the Yellow Sea forest park as the leaves of dawn redwoods turn red and yellow
Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
London, England
Maintenance workers cross Richmond lock and footbridge on a foggy winter morning on the River Thames
Photograph: Toby Melville/Reuters
Market Closes for December 5th, 2025
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| Dow Jones |
47954.99 | +104.05 |
| +0.22% | ||
| S&P 500 | 6870.40 | +13.28 |
| +0.19% | ||
| NASDAQ | 23578.13 | +72.99 |
| +0.31% | ||
| TSX | 31311.41 | -166.16 |
| -0.53% |
International Markets
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| NIKKEI | 50491.87 | -536.55 |
| -1.05% | ||
| HANG SENG |
26085.08 | +149.18 |
| +0.58% | ||
| SENSEX | 85712.37 | +447.05 |
| +0.52% | ||
| FTSE 100* | 9667.01 | -43.86 |
| -0.45% |
Bonds
| Bonds | % Yield | Previous % Yield |
| CND. 10 Year Bond |
3.415 | 3.256 |
| CND. 30 Year Bond |
3.854 | 3.741 |
| U.S. 10 Year Bond |
4.1351 | 4.0981 |
| U.S. 30 Year Bond |
4.7918 | 4.7547 |
| BOC Close | Today | Previous |
| Canadian $ | 0.7237 | 0.7163 |
| US $ |
1.3816 | 1.3958 |
| Euro Rate 1 Euro= |
Inverse | |
| Canadian $ | 0.6215 | 1.6088 |
| US $ |
0.8588 | 1.1644 |
Commodities
| Gold | Close | Previous |
| London Gold Fix |
4243.00 | 4210.30 |
| Oil | ||
| WTI Crude Future | 60.08 | 59.67 |
Market Commentary:
On this day in 1856, Jacob Little, one of Wall Street’s biggest speculators, went bust with unfunded liabilities of $10 million.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 0.5% at 31,311.41 in Toronto.
The move follows the previous session’s increase of 1%.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 1.7%.
Orla Mining Ltd. had the largest drop, falling 11.1%.
Today, 141 of 212 shares fell, while 67 rose; 8 of 11 sectors were lower, led by materials stocks.
Insights
* This year, the index rose 27%, heading for the best year in at least 10 years
* This quarter, the index rose 4.3%
* So far this week, the index was little changed
* The index advanced 22% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 13% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is at its 52-week high and 40.9% above its low on April 7, 2025
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.3 on a trailing basis and 19.5 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.3% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$4.99t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 14.53% compared with 14.44% in the previous session and the average of 15.03% over the past month
Index Points
Materials | -60.5416| -1.1| 9/41
Energy | -51.7049| -1.1| 14/22
Information Technology | -35.5611| -1.1| 4/4
Industrials | -27.4465| -0.8| 10/19
Utilities | -8.5508| -0.8| 1/13
Real Estate | -2.2282| -0.5| 4/15
Consumer Staples | -2.0968| -0.2| 2/8
Health Care | -1.2849| -1.5| 2/2
Communication Services | 0.3861| 0.1| 3/2
Consumer Discretionary | 5.2124| 0.5| 5/4
Financials | 17.6620| 0.2| 13/11
Shopify | -33.2000| -1.7| -35.1| 45.6
Agnico Eagle Mines | Ltd | -20.8100| -2.5| -13.1| 107.7
Cameco | -15.5000| -3.9| -30.1| 70.8
Bank of Montreal | 7.1130| 0.8| 9.7| 27.7
Scotiabank | 8.0800| 1.0| -20.1| 28.6
TD Bank | 25.3100| 1.8| -12.2| 59.7
MT Newswires:
The Toronto Stock Exchange closed lower for a second straight day Friday as stronger-than-expected employment gains last month firmed expectations that the Bank of Canada will pause interest-rate cuts when it meets next week.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 166.16 points to 31,311.41, remaining below Wednesday’s record close of 31,477.57.
Statistics Canada’s November Labour Force Survey showed an unexpected increase of 54,000 jobs, compared with a consensus estimate for a decline of 2,500 positions.
"Several jaws dropped this morning when the labour market data came out …
The picture painted by the LFS was not only spectacular in November, it also builds on solid performances over the previous two months.
Over three months, the labour market added 180K jobs (a cumulative surprise of 183K compared to consensus expectations).
If we exclude the post-pandemic data (reopening of the economy and strong population growth), such a sequence in the Canadian job market had only been seen in 2002.
As a result, the unemployment rate has fallen sharply from 7.1% to 6.5% thanks to a spectacular surge in part-time jobs that has benefited young people," National Bank Financial wrote.
However, the positive job numbers may convince the Bank of Canada to hold off on another interest-rate cut when it meets on Wednesday.
Some recent data, including a strong rise in third-quarter gross domestic product, show the economy is holding up well despite the Trump administration’s tariff battles, though other reports have been more mixed.
"We expect a clear hold at 2.25% from the BoC at the final meeting of the year next week.
The October cut was accompanied by clear conditional pause language that made another cut unlikely at subsequent meetings.
Until today, data had not given a clear lean either way, with mixed results across labour market, output and inflation readings in the inter-meeting period.
Today’s jobs report (third straight gain >50K, unemployment rate down to 6.5%) does leave a hawkish tilt from the data, though the underlying details were not as strong," said Simon Deeley, Canada Rates Strategist at RBC Dominion.
Also, on Friday Prime Minister Mark Carney shared a stage with U.S. President Donald Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum for the draw for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, which will be shared between the three countries.
Reports said Trump planned to discuss trade issues in meetings following the event, but no official notice of any talks was given.
US
By Cristin Flanagan
(Bloomberg) — The stock market crept higher, but stopped short of records Friday, as traders refrained from making big bets ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate cut decision next week.
Treasuries are on track for their worst week since June.
The S&P 500 rose 0.2%, paring back from an earlier 0.6% jump that put it within a whisker of October’s all-time high.
The Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.4% while the Russell 2000 gauge of smaller companies slipped after closing at a record on Thursday.
Treasuries extended losses with the yield on the 10-year climbing to 4.14%.
A dated reading of the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge did little to shift Wall Street’s expectations of a rate cut next week with swaps bets pointing to further easing into 2026.
The core personal consumption expenditures price index, a measure that excludes food and energy, rose 0.2% in September, in line with economists’ expectations for a third-straight 0.2% increase in the Fed’s favored core index.
That would keep the year-over-year figure hovering a little below 3%, a sign that inflationary pressures are stable, yet sticky.
“Overall, the data was consistent with another 25 basis point Fed cut next week, but it doesn’t suggest any urgency for the Fed to accelerate the pace of cuts in 2026,” said BMO’s Ian Lyngen.
A December rate cut is a not given for every Fed watcher.
BlackRock CIO of Global Fixed Income Rick Rieder told Bloomberg Television before the data that he is expecting some dissents and disagreement at the next meeting.
Meanwhile, sentiment toward technology stocks got a boost after Nvidia Corp. partner Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. reported strong sales.
Moore Threads Technology Co., a leading Chinese AI chipmaker, jumped 425% in its Shanghai trading debut.
Shares of Netflix Inc. slid after agreeing to a tie-up with Warner Bros.
Discovery Inc. In a sign that institutional appetite for the world’s largest cryptocurrency remains subdued, BlackRock Inc.’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) recorded its longest streak of weekly withdrawals since debuting in January 2024.
Investors pulled more than $2.7 billion from the exchange- traded fund over the five weeks to Nov. 28, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
With an additional $113 million of redemptions on Thursday, the ETF is now on pace for a sixth straight week of net outflows.
A drop in Bitcoin deepened, falling below $90,000 on Friday.
What Bloomberg Strategists say…
There are two things stand in the way of a year-end rally — and both are on display today.
One is the third downdraft in crypto prices in the last two weeks, which has sent Bitcoin back below $90,000.
Such a pullback served to dampen risk sentiment on two previous occasions in November.
—Edward Harrison, Macro Strategist, Markets Live WTI crude steadied around $60 a barrel.
Gold erased earlier gains.
Corporate News:
* SpaceX is preparing to sell insider shares in a transaction that would value Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite maker at a valuation higher than OpenAI’s record-setting $500 billion, people familiar with the matter said.
* SoftBank Group Corp. is in talks to acquire DigitalBridge Group Inc., a private equity firm that invests in assets such as data centers, to take advantage of an AI-driven boom in digital infrastructure.
* Netflix Inc. agreed to buy Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. in a historic combination, joining the world’s dominant paid streaming service with one of Hollywood’s oldest and most revered studios.
* Moore Threads Technology Co., a leading Chinese artificial intelligence chipmaker, soared as much as 502% in its Shanghai debut after raising 8 billion yuan ($1.13 billion) in an IPO.
* Nvidia Corp. would be barred from shipping advanced artificial intelligence chips to China under bipartisan legislation unveiled Thursday in a bid to codify existing US restrictions on exports of advanced semiconductors to the Chinese market.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.2% as of 4:03 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.4%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%
* The MSCI World Index was little changed
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%
* The euro was little changed at $1.1645
* The British pound was little changed at $1.3335
* The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 155.30 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 3% to $89,405.75
* Ether fell 2.9% to $3,033.32
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced four basis points to 4.14%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 2.80%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 4.48%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.8% to $60.12 a barrel
* Spot gold fell 0.2% to $4,200.69 an ounce
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Andre Janse van Vuuren, Levin Stamm, Neil Campling and Sidhartha Shukla.
Have a lovely weekend everyone.
Be magnificent!
As ever,
Carolann
There is an immeasurable distance between late and too late. –Og Mandino, 1923-1996.
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 (Text Only)
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828