February 18, 2022 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday.

1930 Photographic evidence of Pluto was discovered by Clyde W. Tombaugh at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Ariz.  Go to article »

Yoko Ono, artist, b. 1933.

Astronomers discover massive radio galaxy 100 time larger than the Milky Way. 

There’s a downside to living in a happy country. (h/t Ellen Kominers)

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Multiple lights and sound displays create an art installation entitled Space, the Universe and Everything, an artistic collaboration by Luxmuralis in Liverpool Cathedral
CREDIT: Paul Ellis/AFP/Getty Images

Surfer Eric Rebiere is airborne as he exits a wave during the Nazaré Tow Challenge big wave surfing competition at Praia do Norte
CREDIT: Armando Franca/AP

A great tit waits for its chance to pick up crumbs as a red squirrel feeds at RSPB Loch Leven nature reserve in Kinross, Scotland
CREDIT: Ken Jack/Getty Images

Market Closes for February 18^th, 2022

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1688, the London Gazette published the earliest known reference to “Edward Lloyd’s coffee house,” the birthplace of Lloyd’s of London and the insurance industry.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell for the third day, dropping 0.8%, or 168.13 to 21,008.20 in Toronto.
The index dropped to the lowest closing level since Jan. 28.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 3.4%.
Superior Plus Corp. had the largest drop, falling 13.5%.
Today, 198 of 240 shares fell, while 36 rose; all sectors were lower, led by energy stocks.
Insights
* So far this week, the index fell 2.5%
* The index advanced 15% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 8.8% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 3.6% below its 52-week high on Nov. 16, 2021 and 17.2% above its low on Feb. 26, 2021
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.5 on a trailing basis and 14.4 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.6% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.38t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 13.98% compared with 13.77% in the previous session and the average of 12.83% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
* Energy | -48.0143| -1.5| 2/29
* Financials | -35.8537| -0.5| 3/24
* Materials | -30.2364| -1.1| 8/44
* Industrials | -24.7041| -1.0| 4/26
* Consumer Staples | -8.3246| -1.1| 3/7
* Information Technology | -5.3699| -0.4| 3/13
* Health Care | -5.0014| -3.3| 0/8
* Real Estate | -3.6419| -0.6| 5/18
* Utilities | -3.4833| -0.4| 3/13
* Consumer Discretionary | -2.0227| -0.3| 4/10
* Communication Services | -1.4786| -0.1| 1/6
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
* Canadian Natural Resources | -18.5800| -3.4| -27.6| 23.8
* Brookfield Asset Management | -14.2200| -2.1| -7.4| -11.1
* Couche-Tard | -6.5700| -2.2| -35.5| -6.3
* Telus | 1.9600| 0.7| -15.6| 7.9
* Waste Connections | 2.2870| 0.8| 82.3| -10.5
* National Bank of Canada | 2.2940| 1.0| -17.0| 5.4

US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Stocks dropped, while bonds climbed at the end of a jittery week marked by tension between the West and Russia as well as worries about the Federal Reserve’s next policy steps.
Equity swings intensified ahead of the close, with Friday’s $2.2 trillion options expiration exacerbating moves.
The S&P 500 briefly turned positive before resuming its decline, with technology, energy and industrial shares dragging down the gauge.
Traders also took risk off the table ahead of a U.S. holiday on Monday.
Treasury 10-year yields approached 1.9%, while oil pared losses after sinking as much as 3% earlier in the day.
Bitcoin traded near its $40,000 key psychological level.
The U.S. said Russia has massed as many as 190,000 personnel in and around Ukraine, calling it the most-significant military mobilization since World War II.
Russia told the U.S. this week it has no plans to attack.
Citing escalations in the breakaway Donbas region of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Kyiv to “sit down at the negotiating table” with separatist leaders “and agree on political, military, economic and humanitarian measures to end the conflict.”
The government in Kyiv refuses to negotiate with the Russia-backed separatists.
One of the Fed’s most-dovish officials called for a “substantial” policy shift — while playing down the need for aggressive tightening — as a second pushed back against a half-point hike next month.
The remarks on Friday from Chicago Fed President Charles Evans and his New York counterpart John Williams implicitly reinforced the message that the U.S. central bank will raise rates by a quarter point at its March meeting, even as core officials remain open-minded about how high they will ultimately need to go.
Comments:
* “Fear can be a good development for markets,” wrote Callie Cox, U.S. investment analyst at eToro. “When investors get nervous, they tend to add more cash and hedge their positions.
The worst market storms typically happen when investors least expect it. Right now, we’re hedged and ready for a big punch to the stomach, but it may not hurt as badly as we think.
It’s a good recipe for a relief rally when headlines calm down.”
* “The situation remains fluid and we believe markets will remain subject to bouts of risk-on, risk-off in the coming days,” wrote Win Thin, global head of currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman.
* “While there have been some reports of de-escalation in tensions, nothing has changed fundamentally to prevent investors from remaining fearful about a possible Russian invasion,” wrote Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst with ThinkMarkets. “Beyond this, investor sentiment is likely to remain downbeat anyway given concerns about surging inflationary pressures around the world and policy tightening from the Fed.”
After their worst start to a year in decades, Treasuries are reasserting their haven status and eclipsing the appeal of riskier assets — a troubling combination for Bank of America Corp. strategists. U.S. sovereign debt attracted $7.4 billion in inflows, the most since the coronavirus pandemic first struck, according to a BofA note citing EPFR Global data for the week through Wednesday.

Some corporate highlights:
* General Electric Co. warned that supply-chain snags, a labor shortage and material inflation will be a drag on its businesses at least until the middle of this year.
* DraftKings Inc. added fewer new customers in the fourth quarter than Wall Street had expected even after spending hundreds of millions of dollars to lure new bettors.
* Deere & Co., which raised it 2022 forecast on Thursday, injected a note of caution on the outlook as ongoing supply-chain bottlenecks weigh on the farm-machinery maker’s efforts to keep up with robust demand.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 0.7% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.1%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.7%
* The MSCI World index fell 0.9%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%
* The euro fell 0.3% to $1.1326
* The British pound fell 0.1% to $1.3599
* The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 115.10 per dollar
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined four basis points to 1.92%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 0.19%
* Britain’s 10-year yield declined nine basis points to 1.38%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.1% to $91.65 a barrel
* Gold futures fell 0.2% to $1,899 an ounce
–With assistance from Sunil Jagtiani, Abigail Moses, Cecile Gutscher, Sharon Cho, Alex Longley and Emily Graffeo.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann
​​​​​​​
All men should strive to learn before they die what they are running from, and to, and why. –James Thurber, 1894-1961.

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