January 16, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

Carolann is out of the office this afternoon, I will be writing the newsletter on her behalf.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A visitor looks at the Shipwiths & CAIS stand at London Art Fair at the Business Design Centre in Islington. Credit:  Julian Simmonds for The Telegraph

A firefighter builds a snowman on a rooftop in the small Bavarian village Wallgau near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany. Credit:  Christof Stache/AFP/Getty Images

Stunt rider Danny MacAskill rides over a bridge in Glencoe, Scotland. Credit: Dave Mackison
Market Closes for January 16^th, 2019

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks extended gains for a ninth consecutive session, the longest winning streak since May 2018.
     The S&P/Toronto Stock Exchange Index closed Wednesday’s session up 0.4 percent. Miners helped lead the advance as metals got a boost from optimism surrounding China’s efforts at economic stimulus. The share moves were supercharged for miners such as First Quantum Minerals Ltd. and Centerra Gold Inc. as they reported preliminary production results and 2019 guidance, which beat analysts estimates. But Iamgold Corp. was among the worst performing miners as its 2019 guidance failed to impress the Street.
     Housing market sales in Vancouver plunged 32 percent last year, driving down prices 6.5 percent over the past six months, according to Canadian Real Estate Association data. Toronto also saw sales fall sharply, but by half as much as Vancouver and with prices in Canada’s biggest city little changed in recent months. While the country’s two most expensive real estate markets have both been hit hard by higher interest rates and tougher mortgage regulations, the data suggest Toronto is faring better and showing signs of stabilizing, while Vancouver continues its slide.
Stocks
* NFI Group Inc. plunged 14 percent after announcing fourth quarter 2018 deliveries, orders and a 2019 outlook 
* First Quantum Minerals gained 15 percent after reporting fourth quarter and 2018 production
* Centerra Gold gained 6.9 percent after a 2019 production outlook beat analyst estimates
* Alamos Gold Inc. rose 7.7 percent in two days after 2018 gold production rose 18 percent 
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $8.00 discount to WTI
* Gold gained about 0.3 percent to $1,293.50 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar rose about 0.05 percent to C$1.3259 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield rose to 1.991%
US
By Randall Jensen and Reade Pickert
     (Bloomberg) — Stocks gained as signs of a better-than-expected start to the earnings season countered concerns about rising U.S.-China tensions. The dollar rose, while Treasuries declined.
     The S&P 500 advanced for a second day to within a whisker of its average price over the past 50 days, a level it hasn’t breached since early December. Financials buoyed major indexes as Goldman Sachs and Bank of America surged following quarterly reports. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 erased gains late in the trading session after a report said U.S. prosecutors are investigating Huawei Technologies for allegedly stealing trade secrets.
     The 10-year Treasury yield rose to around 2.72 percent, while the dollar gained against almost all major currencies. In Europe, Deutsche Bank gained after regulators were said to favor a merger with a European lender. The pound rose versus most peers after Prime Minister Theresa May’s government won a no-confidence vote. West Texas crude rose above $52 a barrel.
    “I think what you’re seeing with the financials and banks in particular is part of just a wider risk-on rally,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at the Independent Advisor Alliance. “I think the financials are benefiting from both being relatively undervalued as well as just getting that cyclical tailwind.”
     The mood in equity markets remains fairly buoyant after China pledged to step up efforts to support growth and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the euro area will avoid a recession even though recent data signaled softening momentum. Bank of America’s Chief Financial Officer Paul Donofrio further reassured investors, saying on an earnings call that he’d seen nothing to suggest an economic slowdown is imminent.
     Still, there are plenty of worries to give investors pause before taking this month’s rally further. The political impasse in Washington continues to leave swathes of the federal U.S. government shuttered, and the U.K.’s Brexit drama threatens to impair business confidence in the second-largest European economy.
Here are some important events coming up:
* A confidence motion vote will take place after 7 p.m. in London as the opposition Labour Party tries to force a general election.
* Alcoa, Indian IT company Mindtree, Netflix, Taiwan Semiconductor are posting results.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index climbed 0.2 percent as of 4 p.m. New York time after rising as much as 0.6 percent.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.5 percent, the highest in five weeks.
* The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index sank 0.5 percent.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index rose 0.5 percent.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed 0.1 percent to the highest in more than a week.
* The euro dipped 0.1 percent to $1.1402.
* The British pound was little changed at to $1.2863.
* The Japanese yen fell 0.2 percent to 108.89 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed one basis point to 2.72 percent.
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 0.22 percent.
* Britain’s 10-year yield gained seven basis points to 1.326 percent, the highest in almost seven weeks.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.5 percent to $52.38 a barrel.
* Gold gained 0.4 percent to $1,293.40 an ounce.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Karen

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” – Nelson Mandela

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