January 27, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

A special day today – Mozart’s birthday.  He was born 264 years ago in 1756.  According to Chamber’s Biographical Dictionary, he “displayed his musical gifts early, playing the keyboard when aged four, composing his first pieces for it at the age of five, and soon mastering the violin.  [His father] Leopold was keen to exhibit his son’s extraordinary talents along with those of his pianist-daughter, Maria-Anna or “Nannerl” (1751-1829), and he undertook a series of tours with them….His experiences on these tours helped mould his style, especially in dramatic music, although he was prolific also in writing sacred vocal pieces and instrumental works: by 1772 he had written about 25 symphonies (some are lost) and his first quartets….His last works were the Masonic Singspiel Die Zauberflöte, and an opera seria, La Clemenze di Tito (also in 1791) and also for Leopold’s coronation in Prague, a clarinet concerto and a requiem.  The last was unfinished when he died.  In many ways, Mozart remained a child, and his irresponsible way of life may have contributed to the troubles of his last years.  But he was not a wicked man; his most grievous vice was probably billiards.  Nor was he an intellectual.  Instead he was quite simply a universal genius of music; his facility, grace and polish, the swiftness and fecundity of his thought, his innate sense for phrasing and gift of melodic  beauty, his mastery of form and the richness of his harmony, all contributing to his excelling in every genre of the music of his day, which he raised to a sublime pitch of perfection.” -Chamber’s.

Mozart toured extensively, being showcased by his father as a prodigy in the courts of Europe.  He soon gained fame for playing the piano blindfolded with his hands tied behind his back, and also for his ability to improvise.  He met many of the most influential composers of western classical music,  including Johann Christian Bach, Joseph Haydn, and Ludwig van Beethoven.  Beethoven said that he would never be able to compose a melody as great as one in the first movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24.

On August 4, 1782, he married Constanze Weber.  They had six children, of whom only two survived infancy.  Neither of these two married or had children.

Later in Mozart’s short life he became a Freemason, like Benjamin Franklin, his contemporary, and Haydn who was in the same Masonic Lodge.  Mozart even composed several pieces of music for Franklin’s glass harmonica and his last opera, The Magic Flute, includes Masonic themes.

Mozart’s life was fraught with financial difficulty and illness, both exacerbated by his extravagant lifestyle.  Mozart died on December 5, 1791, while working on the Requiem, his final composition.  The cause of Mozart’s death is uncertain, but some speculate that a rival composer poisoned him.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Paraglider pilots fly over the mountains in Roldanillo, Valle del Cauca Department, Colombia, during the British Winter Open. The competition is taking place for the second time in Colombia and involves the 130 world’s best pilots from 27 countries.
CREDIT: LUIS ROBAYO/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

A traditional winter festival is held in Nara, western Japan, with burning Mt. Wakakusa and fireworks lighting up the sky.
CREDIT: KYODO

People walk along a beach near the estuary of the river Le Tech in Argeles-sur-Mer, southeastern France, where wood was washed ashore following storm Gloria.
CREDIT: RAYMOND ROIG/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Market Closes for January 27^th, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1938, after a protracted war with the new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the New York Stock Exchange finally recommended an internal reorganization that would install a board of governors, a salaried independent president and a specialized administrative staff. Previously, the exchange had functioned like a private gentleman’s club, with conduct enforced mainly by unspoken codes of honor and a pro-bono president chosen from among his fellow brokers.
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities fell with global shares Monday on intensifying concern over the impact of China’s deadly coronavirus. The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.7% to 17,442.52. The move is the biggest since falling 0.8% on Oct. 8. Health care and tech stocks were the worst performer on Monday, while consumer staples stocks were the best. Aphria had the largest drop, falling 7.7% while OceanaGold had the biggest gain, rising 3.8% as gold prices rose on safe haven demand.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $23.00 discount to WTI
* Spot gold rose 0.7% to $1,582.75 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar weakened 0.3% to C$1.3188 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell 4.3 basis points to 1.303%
US
By Rita Nazareth and Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — Stocks slumped and bonds rallied as concern over the impact of a deadly virus that originated in China rattled global markets. The S&P 500 Index fell the most in almost four months, the Dow Jones Industrial Average erased its 2020 gain and the Nasdaq-100 Index had the biggest drop since August. Chipmakers, cruise lines and casino operators were among the hardest hit as investors fled companies with close links to China. A gauge of U.S. equity volatility surged above its one-year average. European and emerging-market shares slid to the lowest since mid-December. China’s financial markets will remain closed until next Monday after authorities extended the Lunar New Year break by three days as they grapple with the virus crisis. Assets that track the country’s largest stocks took a nosedive, with the iShares MSCI China ETF and Invesco China Technology ETF dropping more than 3.5%. China-based Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Yum China Holdings Inc. also slid. The offshore yuan sank, breaching key technical levels.

The flight to safety, which comes ahead of this week’s Federal Reserve meeting, saw volumes in Treasury futures jump to double their regular levels in Asia. The yield on 10-year U.S. bonds dropped to the lowest since October, while the dollar rose. The Swiss franc, the Japanese yen and gold paced gains in haven assets. Oil slipped to a more than three-month low, copper had its longest slump since 2014 and iron ore tumbled. Fears that China has failed to contain the pneumonia-like virus — which has killed at least 80 people and infected more than 2,700 — roiled markets at the start of a week jam-packed with corporate earnings. The outbreak has shattered a calm in markets that hasn’t seen a 1% up-or-down move in the S&P 500 since early October.

“This is now a sell first, ask questions later situation,” said Alec Young, managing director of global markets research at FTSE Russell. “Markets hate uncertainty, and the coronavirus is the ultimate uncertainty — no one knows how badly it will impact the global economy. China is the biggest driver of global growth, so this couldn’t have started in a worse place.” As global stocks sell off, JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists say this could end up a buying opportunity. They retained a constructive view on world equities, adding that in the past, the more stocks have fallen on similar fears, the more they have rebounded later. Both the S&P 500 and MSCI All-Country World Index surged to records this month as 2020 started on a jubilant note amid optimism over the U.S.-China trade deal. “We thought the markets were overdue for a pullback,” Lori Calvasina, head of U.S. equity strategy at RBC Capital Markets, told Bloomberg TV. “Valuations are extremely stretched right now and positioning is extremely euphoric. We’ve said that if the right catalyst came along, markets would be ripe for a pullback.” Rare VIX Inversion Points to Potential End of U.S. Equity Rout.
Here are some events to watch out for this week:
* Tech giants Apple, SAP, Facebook, Samsung and South Korean chip maker SK Hynix announce earnings, as do Boeing, International Paper, GE, United Technologies, Lockheed Martin, Caterpillar, Unilever, Exxon Mobil, Shell and Chevron.
* The Senate impeachment trial of President Donald Trump continues in Washington Monday.
* Fed policy makers are expected to open 2020 the same way they closed 2019 — by holding interest rates steady Wednesday.
* Goldman Sachs will hold its first-ever Investor Day on Wednesday.
* The BOE meeting is highly anticipated Thursday after a series of dovish comments raised speculation policy makers could lower interest rates.
* The U.S. reports fourth-quarter GDP Thursday.
* The U.K. is scheduled to leave the European Union Friday.

These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 sank 1.6% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slid 2.3%.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 1.6%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%.
* The euro fell 0.1% to $1.1018.
* The Japanese yen appreciated 0.3% to 108.90 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries slid eight basis points to 1.60%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield dipped five basis points to -0.39%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield fell five basis points to 0.508%.
Commodities
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index decreased 1.4%.
* West Texas Intermediate crude dipped to $53.14 a barrel.
* Gold rose 0.3% to $1,583.70 an ounce.
–With assistance from Alfred Cang, Saket Sundria, Cormac
Mullen, Todd White, Yakob Peterseil, Sophie Caronello and Sarah Ponczek.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Ever tried.  Ever failed.  No matter.  Try again.  Fail better.
                                       -Samuel Beckett, 1906-1989

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
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com