February 8, 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
February 8, 1672 ~ Isaac Newton reads first optics paper before Royal Society in London.
1971 NASDAQ, the world’s first electronic stock exchange, held its first trading day. Go to article »

Jules Verne, author, b.1828.
Lana Turner, actor, b. 1921.
James Dean, actor b. 1931.

A 3D-printed house is for sale in New York, and it’s the first of its kind.  Start saving up: It’s almost $300,000. 

Harvard astronomer argues that alien vessel paid us a visit.

Last fall, astronomers made the blockbuster claim that they had discovered compelling evidence of phosphine, pointing to the presence of life floating in the clouds above the second planet from the sun.
Even after lowering their estimates of how much phosphine may be present, the researchers are still certain of their findings. Many of their peers, however, remain doubtful, creating a stalemate until further observations can be made.  “There’s nothing you can point to that says, ‘Oh, yeah, we absolutely see phosphine on Venus,’” said Bryan Butler of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Socorro, N.M. But he added that the matter was not settled. “You know, it’s tantalizing,” he said.-NY Times.

Amanda Gorman read a new poem before the game.

Admire stark landscapes in Louisiana, where the Mississippi River meets the Gulf of Mexico.

Hear new tracks by H.E.R., Nile Rodgers and Cardi B
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
A commercial aircraft appearing like a small, black stamp on the surface of the Sun
CREDIT: ANDREW MCCARTHY/SWNS
A person walks through a snow-covered vineyard at the Mainschleife area near Nordheim, Germany.
CREDIT: KARL-JOSEF HILDENBRAND/DPA VIA AP
A bus drives along frozen trees in Oberreifenberg near Frankfurt, Germany
CREDIT: MICHAEL PROBST
Market Closes for February 8^th , 2021

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary: NASDAQ’s fiftieth anniversary.
     On this day in 1971, after nearly a decade of preparation, the Nasdaq market opened for stock trading, as the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation system first displayed the median price for more than 2,500 “over-the-counter” securities. The Nasdaq Composite Index was set at an initial value of 100.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose to a record high Monday, gaining for a sixth-straight session. The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 1%, with ten of eleven sectors higher. Utilities were the only laggard. The Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences ETF rose 7.3% to its highest level since September 13. Oil in London rose above $60 a barrel for the first time in more than a year in a rally that’s dividing the world’s top oil trading houses. Ontario will gradually lift stay-at-home orders across the province, Premier Doug Ford said Monday, and will allow limited in-person shopping at retailers even in zones with the most Covid-19 cases.
Commodities
* Western Canadian Select crude oil traded at a $10.50 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold rose 0.9% to $1,830.07 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar rose 0.1% to C$1.2746 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year Canada government bond yield rose 1.4 basis points to 1.014%

By Bloomberg Automation:
     (Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the sixth day, climbing 1.1 percent, or 194.36 to 18,330.26 in Toronto. Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 4.5 percent. Aurora Cannabis Inc. had the largest increase, rising 15.8 percent. Today, 158 of 220 shares rose, while 61 fell; 10 of 11 sectors were higher, led by information technology stocks.
Insights
* The index advanced 3.8 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI
AC Americas Index gained 19 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0 percent below its 52-week high on
Feb. 8, 2021 and 64.1 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 3.6 percent in the past 5 days and rose 1.6 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of
27 on a trailing basis and 17.4 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.8 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.81t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 14.03 percent compared with
13.73 percent in the previous session and the average of 10.18 percent over the past month
================================================================
|Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Information Technology | 61.3799| 3.1| 8/2
Materials | 41.7463| 1.8| 44/7
Financials | 31.7742| 0.6| 19/6
Energy | 30.0894| 1.4| 21/1
Health Care | 15.9755| 5.3| 7/2
Communication Services | 4.5446| 0.5| 7/0
Industrials | 4.0079| 0.2| 16/13
Consumer Staples | 2.8582| 0.4| 9/2
Real Estate | 1.5335| 0.3| 12/14
Consumer Discretionary | 1.1223| 0.2| 8/5
Utilities | -0.6556| -0.1| 7/9
US
By Adam Haigh and Anchalee Worrachate
(Bloomberg) — Rising prospects for a robust federal spending package, coupled with a slowdown in virus infection rates, sent U.S. stocks higher for the sixth straight session. The S&P 500 Index rose 0.7% to an all-time high, spurred by fresh signs the Biden administration is committed to passing a sizable aid bill to address unemployment. An increase in vaccination numbers boosted optimism that the economy will take off later this year. Treasuries started the day lower, but mostly erased losses on speculation recent declines had gone too far with the latest economic data showing some weakness. Commodities prices pointed to renewed optimism in the global economic recovery. Brent oil advanced above $60 a barrel for the first time in more than a year, while copper climbed for a second day and iron ore prices rebounded.        Bitcoin jumped to a record after Tesla Inc. bought $1.5 billion of the cryptocurrency.
“As people feel safer, investors can expect the economy to experience a rebound that should contribute to revenue and earnings growth as the economy reflates,” John Stoltzfus, chief investment strategist at Oppenheimer, wrote to clients. In Europe, Italian equities outperformed as Mario Draghi set about forming a new national government. Dialog Semiconductor Plc shares jumped after the company agreed to be acquired by Renesas Electronics Corp. In Japan, the Topix index ended Monday at the highest since 1991 amid reports the government may lift its state of emergency early for some areas. Investors are taking comfort from the continued rollout of vaccines and data suggesting a declining trend in infections in countries like the U.S. A Citigroup Inc. gauge of global risk aversion dropped to its lowest since the pandemic first roiled markets last year.
Weaker-than-forecast U.S. jobs data Friday reinforced economic risks as the pandemic lingers, but also highlighted the case for further stimulus. “The vaccine roll-out programs certainly suggest that the reflation trade has legs but central banks seem to want to ensure that expectations are kept in check,” Jane Foley, head of foreign exchange strategy at Rabobank, said on Bloomberg TV. “This suggests a choppy ride.” President Joe Biden is pushing for a mammoth $1.9 trillion economic relief measure. Some commentators, such as former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, have raised questions about the size of the package and risks such as much faster inflation.
Here are some key events coming up:
* Earnings season continues with companies including Honda
Motor, Cisco Systems, Societe Generale and L’Oreal.
* EIA crude oil inventory report comes Wednesday.
* Sweden will set monetary policy on Wednesday.
* Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will speak on a webinar Wednesday.
* The U.S. consumer price index comes Wednesday.
* Lunar New Year public holidays begin in nations across Asia, with China breaking for a week.
* Bank of Russia’s policy decision comes Friday.

These are the main moves in markets
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index increased 0.7% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.3%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.9%.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index climbed 0.3%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.1%.
* The euro was little changed at $1.2051.
* The onshore yuan strengthened 0.3% to 6.4486 per dollar.
* The Japanese yen weakened 0.2% to 105.21 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose one basis point to 1.17%.
* The yield on two-year Treasuries climbed less than one basis point to 0.11%.
* The 30-year rate fell one basis point to 1.96%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at -0.45%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield fell one basis point to 0.47%.
* Japan’s 10-year yield rose one basis point to 0.071%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude gained 2% to $58 a barrel.
* Brent crude gained 2.1% to $60.60 a barrel.
* Gold futures strengthened 1% to $1,831.98 an ounce.
–With assistance from Saket Sundria.
Have  a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent
instantly recognizes genius. –Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1859-1930

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