February 24, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

1946~ General Juan Perón first elected President of Argentina.

-from Bloomberg today:
How deep is the deepest hole in the world?
Divers recover artifacts from the HMS Erebus, which sank while seeking the Northwest Passage.
RIP to NASA mathematician and “Hidden Figures” figure Katherine Johnson.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Skiers take part in the Skicolor event where they are sprayed with biodegradable colour powders as part of the carnival celebrations in the alpine resort of La Tzoumaz, Switzerland.
CREDIT: VALENTIN FLAURAUD/EPA/REX

National Museums Scotland Images show the large painting, The Thin Red Line being re-glazed.
CREDIT: PHIL WILKINSON

Three lost sheep were caught after they wandered away from their farm and ended up on a rooftop in Glenridding, Cumbria.
CREDIT: SWNS

Market Closes for February 24^th, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1784, meeting at the Merchant’s Coffee House in downtown New York City, several prominent businessmen led by a young attorney named Alexander Hamilton founded the Bank of New York “on liberal principles.”
Canada
By Kristine Owram
(Bloomberg) — Canada’s equity benchmark tumbled the most in six months but managed to outperform its U.S. peers as gains in gold stocks helped to offset declines in most other sectors. The S&P/TSX Composite Index slid 1.6% to 17,562.74, the lowest in nearly three weeks. Every sector was in the red except materials, which benefited as investors piled into haven assets, sending gold prices to their highest in more than seven years. Energy stocks tumbled 2.5%, the most since August, and technology shares lost 3.3%, the most since June. In total, 203 of 231 shares fell, while 28 rose.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $16.40 discount to West Texas Intermediate prices
* Spot gold jumped 0.9% to $1,663.20 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar weakened 0.5% to C$1.3289 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield fell 8 basis points to 1.20%, the lowest since September
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | -105.6043| -1.8| 0/26
Energy | -71.3012| -2.5| 0/30
Information Technology| -36.9952| -3.3| 0/10
Industrials | -30.9278| -1.6| 0/31
Consumer Discretionary| -16.9779| -2.4| 2/15
Health Care | -7.8986| -3.8| 0/10
Utilities | -7.3727| -0.8| 2/14
Real Estate | -7.2484| -1.1| 1/24
Communication Services| -5.8174| -0.6| 3/5
Consumer Staples | -5.5251| -0.8| 0/11
Materials | 14.8816| 0.8| 20/27

US
By Vildana Hajric and Claire Ballentine
(Bloomberg) — U.S. equities tumbled, with the S&P 500 dropping the most since February 2018, as authorities struggled to keep the coronavirus from spreading more widely outside China. Havens including Treasuries and gold surged.
 In a dramatic day across markets, these were some of the standout moves:
* All three main U.S. stock benchmarks slumped more than 3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P erased all of their gains for the year. All 11 sectors of the S&P closed in the red.
* The FANG cohort of mega cap tech shares that led the year’s rally plunged more than 4%. AMD Corp. led losses in chipmakers exposed to China, at one point sinking more than 10%. High- flyers Virgin Galactic and Tesla each fell more than 5%. Alpha Pro Tech, maker of protective clothing and masks, surged more than 25%.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slid 3.8% on trading volumes well above average for the largest drop since 2016 as investors fled travel and luxury-goods shares. A gauge of credit risk on the region’s high-yield companies jumped.
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries approached the 2016 record low.
* South Korea’s benchmark dropped 3.9%, leading declines across Asia, though Japan’s markets were shut for a holiday.
* Spot gold approached $1,700, while Brent crude oil tumbled about 5%. The risk-off mood hardened as the epidemic spread to more than 30 countries, with South Korea reporting a jump in infections and Italy locking down an area of 50,000 people near Milan. Finance chiefs and central bankers from the largest economies warned this weekend that they saw the virus bringing downside risks to global growth.
“Stock markets around the world are beginning to price in what bond markets have been telling us for weeks — that global growth is likely to be impacted in a meaningful way due to fears of the coronavirus,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance. Governments and companies are curbing travel and trade in an attempt to contain a novel pathogen that can be transmitted by people without symptoms. Today’s market moves follow on last week’s surge into havens after fresh warnings by companies over the potential impact of the virus on business and global supply chains. Adding to the anxiety Monday was China announcing an easing of the quarantine of Wuhan, only to retract the statement hours later. “Markets hate uncertainty and the coronavirus represents the most uncertain macro risk markets have faced in years,” said Alec Young, managing director of global markets research at FEST Russell. “Investors are also acutely aware that many misjudged the economic severity of the virus early on, making them more open to entertaining worst-case scenarios now.”

Elsewhere, Italian bonds dropped on concern that the spread of the coronavirus may push the economy into a recession. The Australian dollar weakened to an 11-year low and the offshore yuan held most of last week’s decline. Bitcoin slumped.
These are some key events coming up:
* Earnings keep rolling in from companies including: Home Depot Inc. on Tuesday; Peugeot SA on Wednesday; Baidu Inc., Best Buy Co. Inc., Occidental Petroleum Corp. and Dell Technologies Inc. on Thursday; and London Stock Exchange Group Plc on Friday.
* The Democratic presidential debate in South Carolina is on Tuesday.
* The Bank of Korea announces its policy decision on Thursday, with risks to the outlook growing amid a surge in coronavirus cases.
* U.S. jobless claims, GDP and durable goods data are out Thursday.
* Japan industrial production, jobs, and retail sales figures are due on Friday.

These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
*The S&P 500 Index sank 3.4% to 3,225.92 as of 4:03 p.m. New York time, the lowest in more than three weeks on the largest tumble in about two years.
*The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 3.6% to 27,961.28, the lowest in almost 11 weeks on the biggest tumble in about two years.
*The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 3.7% to 9,221.28, the lowest in more than three weeks on the largest tumble in almost 15 months.
*The MSCI All-Country World Index sank 3% to 555.63, the lowest in more than 10 weeks on the biggest tumble in almost four years.
*The Stoxx Europe 600 Index sank 3.8% to 411.86, the lowest in three weeks on the largest tumble in almost four years.
Currencies
*The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed 0.1% to 1,215.78.
*The euro was little changed at $1.0852, the strongest in more than a week.
*The Japanese yen strengthened 0.8% to 110.72 per dollar, the biggest increase in six months.
*The British pound dipped 0.3% to $1.2927.
Bonds
*The yield on 10-year Treasuries decreased 10 basis points to 1.37%, the lowest in more than three years on the biggest tumble in almost 12 weeks.
*The yield on 30-year Treasuries dipped eight basis points to 1.83%, the lowest on record with the largest dip in more than seven weeks.
*Germany’s 10-year yield dipped five basis points to -0.48%, the lowest in almost 20 weeks on the biggest dip in more than seven weeks.
*Britain’s 10-year yield declined three basis points to 0.54%, hitting the lowest in three weeks with its fifth straight decline and the largest drop in more than two weeks.
Commodities
*Gold strengthened 1% to $1,659.63 an ounce, reaching the highest in about seven years on its fifth consecutive advance.
*Copper declined 1.5% to $2.58 a pound, the lowest in two weeks on the largest fall in more than two weeks.
*West Texas Intermediate crude dipped 4% to $51.24 a barrel, the lowest in almost two weeks on the biggest decrease in almost seven weeks.
Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
                                                                        -Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882

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