January 8, 2021 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:  Happy Friday.

On January 8,1987 The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 2,000 for the first time, ending the day at 2,002.25. Go to article »
1835-US national debt is $0 for the first and only time in history.
1851-Earth’s rotation proven.
Elvis Presley, b. 1935.
Stephen Hawking, physicist, b. 1942
David Bowie, musician, b. 1947

Neil Sheehan, who in 1971 obtained the Pentagon Papers, telling the secret government history of the Vietnam War, has died at 84. Sheehan, who covered the war for The Times, never explained how he got the documents — until a few years ago, when he agreed to an interview on the condition that it not be published until his death

L’Heure exquise:
The first time I heard this work by Reynaldo Hahn, sung here by Susan Graham, I was moved to tears. Here’s hoping it brings you some peace after a difficult week. (Click here to view.) -CNN.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A three minute time exposure shows the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Launch Complex 40 in Floridda, USA. The rocket is carrying the Turksat 5A satellite for Turkey
CREDIT: MALCOLM DENENARK/FLORIDA TODAY VIA AP

Lights twinkle in a valley, seen from high in the Malvern Hills
CREDIT:@JACKBOSKETT

Trees are covered in snow on the Nordhelle mountain near Meinerzhagen, western Germany
CREDIT: INA FASSBENDER/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Market Closes for January 8^th, 2021 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1829, the market was open but it was one of the quietest days in Wall Street history, as not a single share of stock changed hands
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian shares pared early losses on Friday, as U.S. stocks rallied after President-elect Joe Biden said he’ll lay out the details of trillions of dollars in further stimulus.
The S&P/TSX Composite index was mostly unchanged in Toronto, paring an earlier decline of as much as 0.5%. The index
hit an all-time high on Thursday and rose about 3.5% this week, its best week since Nov. 6.
Tech and industrial stocks were the best performers, while materials and energy fared the worst. Miners tumbled after gold dropped below $1,900 an ounce as technical selling took over following a recovery in the dollar and higher Treasury yields.
Silver also fell the most since September.
Meanwhile, WestJet Airlines Ltd. said it would reduce capacity by a further 30% in February and March, affecting the jobs or pay of roughly 1,000 employees and bringing the number of domestic and international flights it operates down to levels not seen in almost 20 years. The cuts come after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government forced travelers to present a recent negative Covid-19 test before being allowed to board flights into Canada. The new rules took effect Thursday.
Commodities
* Western Canadian Select crude oil traded at a $14.70 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold fell 3.4% to $1,848.88 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar fell slightly to C$1.2699 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year Canada government bond yield rose to 0.794%

By Bloomberg Automation:
     (Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite advanced slightly to 18,042.07 in Toronto.
Today, information technology stocks led the market higher, as 9 of 11 sectors gained; 118 of 221 shares rose, while 99 fell.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 3.1 percent. BlackBerry Ltd. had the largest increase, rising 6.4 percent.
Insights
* So far this week, the index rose 3.5 percent, heading for the biggest advance since the week ended Nov. 6
* The index advanced 5.1 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 19 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 0.1 percent below its 52-week high on Jan. 8, 2021 and 61.5 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.5 on a trailing basis and 17.4 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.9 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.78t
* 30-day price volatility little changed to 8.87 percent compared with 8.87 percent in the previous session and the average of 9.60 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Information Technology | 46.9046| 2.6| 9/0
Industrials | 34.4984| 1.5| 23/6
Utilities | 13.0200| 1.4| 13/3
Consumer Discretionary | 8.6885| 1.2| 11/2
Communication Services | 6.3442| 0.7| 7/0
Consumer Staples | 4.2555| 0.6| 10/1
Real Estate | 3.7343| 0.7| 19/6
Financials | 2.8296| 0.1| 11/15
Health Care | 0.7609| 0.3| 5/3
Energy | -19.4449| -0.9| 5/16
Materials | -87.1013| -3.4| 5/47
US
By Rita Nazareth and Kamaron Leach
(Bloomberg) — Stocks climbed to all-time highs after President-elect Joe Biden said he’ll lay out the details of trillions of dollars in further aid to revive the world’s largest economy.
The S&P 500 notched its fourth straight day of gains, led by retailers and real-estate companies. The Nasdaq 100 outperformed, with Tesla Inc. surging for an 11th consecutive session. Meanwhile, the KBW Bank Index halted a rally that drove the gauge up more than 10% in three days. Miners joined a selloff in gold and silver.
In a week marked by a siege of the U.S. Capitol and Democratic sweep of Congress, all major equity benchmarks notched records as investors focused on the prospect for more fiscal aid. Biden made the call for new assistance – including $2,000 stimulus checks — after a dismal December jobs report.
The 140,000 slump in payrolls highlighted how surging coronavirus infections are taking a greater toll on parts of the economy. “Biden was talking about more stimulus,” said Jonathan Boyar, managing director at BoyarValue. “The sooner we see both parties acting together in a constructive manner, the better.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the nation’s top military officer assured her safeguards are in place in case President Donald Trump seeks to initiate a nuclear strike — something he has the sole authority to do. Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer are calling on Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment to have the cabinet remove Trump from office over his encouragement of the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida said he doesn’t expect the central bank to begin tapering its asset purchases this year despite an expected strengthening of the economy as the pandemic fades. A few policy makers, including Chicago Fed President Charles Evans and Atlanta’s Raphael Bostic, said this week they might support reducing the pace of buying by year-end if the economy bounces back strongly enough.

     These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 gained about 0.5% at 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.7%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 2%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained 0.1%.
* The euro decreased 0.4% to $1.2225.
* The Japanese yen depreciated 0.1% to 103.95 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed four basis points to 1.12%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield rose less than one basis point to -0.52%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield rose less than one basis point to 0.288%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 3.5% to $52.60 a barrel.
* Gold fell 3.5% to $1,847.89 an ounce.
–With assistance from Sunil Jagtiani, Cormac Mullen, Yakob Peterseil, Robert Brand, Claire Ballentine and Vildana Hajric.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the morning light, for your life and strength.
Give thanks for your food and the joy of living.  If you see no reason for giving thanks,
the fault lies in yourself. -Tecumseh, 1768-1813

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