January 07, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

On Jan. 7, 1979, Vietnamese forces captured the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, overthrowing the Khmer Rouge government. Go to article »

I read the following words today from Vice President Joe Biden and I found them very moving.  I hope you do too:
A tractor trailer broadsides and killed my wife and daughter, and my two sons were badly injured.  As we walked out of the hospital, my mother grabbed my hand and said, “Joey, out of everything horrible, something good will come if you look hard enough for it.”  I thought it was cruel at one point, but that was my mother’s notion.  We were taught just to get up.  When you get knocked down, just get up.  And move forward.  When you think about it, so many people, without the kind of help that I had, do it every day.  Right now, somebody’s gone through something significantly worse than me, and they have nobody behind them, and they’re getting up and they’re moving.  It gives me such overwhelming confidence in people.  The ability to absorb pain and the spiritual reassurance that comes from knowing those we lost are still a part of us.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Polar swimmers wave to onlookers as they join the traditional Three Kings Swimming in the Vltava river in Prague, Czech Republic.
CREDIT: MARTIN DIVISEK/EPA/REX

Brazilian footballer Denilson (C) and French football player Laura Georges (L) vie for the ball during the CAF and FIFA legends football match, part of the CAF celebration of the best players in Africa, at the Giza pyramids plateau on the southwestern outskirts of the Egyptian capital Cairo.
CREDIT: KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/ GETTY IMAGES

Wind turbines stand on a hill and are surrounded by fog and clouds in the Taunus region near Frankfurt, Germany.
CREDIT: MICHAEL PROBST/AP

This family of lion cubs all lock eyes on a photographer after hearing the shutter of his camera click. While their mother was out hunting, the four cubs huddled together and scanned their surroundings for signs of dangers.
CREDIT: OZKAN OZMEN/SOLENT NEWS & PHOTO AGENCY

Market Closes for January 07^th, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1825, the nation’s first great nonfinancial IPO was sold, as the Delaware & Hudson Canal Co. went public at $100 per share.  The stock hit $112 that May, slid to $71 over the next three years, then went on to be a stable growth stock for decades.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the second day, climbing 0.4 percent, or 62.59 to 17,168.06 in Toronto. The move was the biggest since rising 0.8 percent on Dec. 6. Constellation Software Inc/Canada contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 3.1 percent. Lightspeed POS Inc. had the largest increase, rising 8.6 percent. Today, 169 of 234 shares rose, while 62 fell; 9 of 11 sectors were higher, led by materials stocks.

Insights
* The index advanced 18 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 26 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.4 percent below its 52-week high on Dec. 27, 2019 and 19.4 percent above its low on Jan. 7, 2019
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 0.4 percent in the past 5 days and rose 1 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.5 on a trailing basis and 15.2 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 3 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.63t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 5.04 percent compared with 5.02 percent in the previous session and the average of 4.93 percent over the past month
================================================================
|Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | 26.5746| 1.4| 46/2
Information Technology | 11.8698| 1.2| 10/0
Industrials | 9.0548| 0.5| 22/9
Consumer Discretionary | 6.1183| 0.9| 16/1
Consumer Staples | 5.9674| 0.9| 8/3
Communication Services | 5.1032| 0.5| 7/1
Real Estate | 2.7250| 0.5| 23/1
Utilities | 2.0266| 0.2| 15/1
Financials | 1.4033| 0.0| 13/13
Health Care | -2.1257| -1.0| 1/8
Energy | -6.1358| -0.2| 8/23

* The benchmark 10-year bond rose and the yield fell 0.2basis points to 1.585 percent

US
By Claire Ballentine and Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell as investors remained wary of an escalation in tensions with Iran. The dollar advanced, while oil continued its retreat from multi-month highs. The S&P 500 dropped for the second time in three sessions, with investors cautious after Iran threatened a military response to a U.S. airstrike that killed a top general four days ago. Chipmakers buoyed the benchmark. Havens showed little reaction to the bellicose Iranian rhetoric, with West Texas crude falling below $63 a barrel and gold slightly higher. The dollar advanced versus the yen, while the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 1.82% after indicators pointed to a resilient U.S. economy.
“Markets are to some degree calming down from the trash talk that we’ve seen over the last couple of days,” said Matt Forester, chief investment officer at BNY Mellon’s Lockwood Advisors, about the U.S.-Iran conflict. “The issue is whether there will be heightened conflict in the future. I don’t think markets know yet. This could easily flare back up again.” Even as investors appeared to have started the first full trading week of 2020 in a defiantly upbeat mood, the unfolding crisis in the Middle East, which triggered a broad sell-off on Friday, returned to the forefront Tuesday. Traders are now waiting to see how Iran fulfills its threats.

Here are some events to watch for this week:
* Federal Reserve officials Richard Clarida, John Williams, James Bullard and Charles Evans speak on Thursday.
* The U.S. monthly employment report is due Friday.

These are moves in major markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index fell 0.3% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.3%.
* The U.K.‘s FTSE 100 Index was little changed.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.9%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index increased 0.3%.
* The euro declined 0.5% to $1.1147.
* The British pound fell 0.4% to $1.3119.
* The Japanese yen decreased 0.2% to 108.53 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose two basis points to 1.82%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield gained less than one basis point to-0.29%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield added two basis points to 0.792%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude dipped 1% to $62.63 a barrel.
* Gold rose 0.3% at $1,574.00 an ounce.
–With assistance from Cecile Gutscher and Yakob Peterseil.
Have  a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.
-Eleanor Roosevelt, 1884-1962

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