July 10, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On July 10, 1940, during World War II, the 114-day Battle of Britain began as Nazi forces began attacking southern England by air. By late October, Britain managed to repel the Luftwaffe, which suffered heavy losses.
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This poem was in the New York Times yesterday.  It was selected by Terrance Hayes because he states, “I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding after I read this poem.  It engenders than bungee-recoil reading wherein your eyes shoot right back up to the title after the last line.  ‘Too Far North.’   How far is too far?  And what does this suggest about the South?  The poem lands somewhere between elegy and battle song.  ‘I build hundreds of my own angels…’  Come on.  That should be every warrior’s motto.”

Too Far North
By Aaron Coleman

in the copse: the sanctuary’s fretwork breaks, burns,
abandoned, up through the ends of stars.  I name each
forest Today and Why and Year and Gone. Blamed
because I trust the wolf, the owl, the cliff, the lip of rock
above the vulture that murmurs look.  I counted.  I took.
I wove myself in with the leaves. My fortune did not
surprise me.  Thought, then forgetfulness – what if

I believe fear is its own low country? I follow
an hour behind an hour and the tower inside
an elegy.  I am anybody helpless, listless, near
as whisper, as prayer.  There is stillness inside every
valley and door. I build hundreds of my own angels
and dare the cold to mold me daily into a bridge
between what I have forgotten and what I owe.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A common kingfisher sits on a branch of a tree after catching an insect in Allahabad, India. The common kingfisher is a highly territorial bird that has to eat nearly sixty percent of its bodyweight every day.
CREDIT: RAJESH KUMAR SINGH/AP

An almost full moon rises over the Temple of Poseidon, the ancient Greek god of the seas, in Cape Sounion, east of Athens, Greece.
CREDIT: COSTAS BALTAS/REUTERS
Market Closes for July 10^th, 2017

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Number of the Day
0
The number of newly purchased Tesla models that were registered in Hong Kong in April after authorities slashed a tax break for electric vehicles.
Canada
By Natalie Wong
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose the most this month as materials and healthcare gains offset a decline in real estate.
     The S&P/TSX composite index gained 0.5 percent to 15,105.28. Material stocks rose 2.8 percent, the most in a month, amid an imminent Bank of Canada rate increase. Potash, copper and gold stocks have recently tended to outperform other sectors of the Canadian market in a rising rate environment. Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. rose as much as 6.9 percent, the most in 11 months, and Agrium Inc. rose 5.4 percent after both were upgraded to sector outperform at Scotiabank.
     Energy gained 0.4 percent after a five-day slump as Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. rose 1.7 percent and Encana Corp went up 4.4 percent, the most in a month. Oil increased 0.4 percent and closed above $44 a barrel as investors weighed the likelihood and potential effectiveness of Libya and Nigeria capping production.
     Real Estate trusts fell 0.2 percent, as 15 of 21 companies suffered losses, with Brookfield Property Partners slipping 0.8 percent and RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust falling 0.6 percent.
     In other moves:
* Health care rose 1.4 percent as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. added 3 percent
* Klondex Mines Ltd. rose 8 percent and Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. jumped 6.5 percent, the top two performing stocks in Canada
* Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers Inc. fell 7.2 percent, the most since April, after being downgraded to neutral at CIBC
* Home Capital Group Inc. dropped 5.1 percent, extending a four- day loss, after being cut to hold at Laurentian Bank Securities.
US
By Natasha Doff
     (Bloomberg) — Technology shares drove gains in U.S. equities, while natural gas and crude lifted commodities. The dollar strengthened with Treasuries as investors prepare to parse second-quarter earnings for more evidence global economic growth is back on track.
     The S&P 500 Index rose for a second day as tech shares rebounded from last week’s selloff. Trading was light, with the volume 15 percent below the 30-day average at this time of day. European equities advanced following a similar climb across much of Asia. The dollar edged higher against most major currencies and bonds recovered after a drop last week. Natural gas futures jumped and crude rose above $44.50 a barrel.
     With global stocks close to all-time highs, investors are shrugging off political uncertainty and placing their faith in a continued earnings expansion on broadening global growth. Germany’s trade surplus was higher than estimated as May exports beat forecasts, while U.S. employers added the most jobs in four months in June. PepsiCo Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. are set to report results this week.
     “Solid employment growth without inflation is the ‘not too hot, not too warm’ mix that keeps the Fed normalizing policy ever so slowly, equity indices marching ever higher and the economic cycle able to trundle on with no recession in sight,” Kit Juckes, a strategist at Societe Generale SA, wrote in a note to clients.
     The G-20 summit made little headway on dominant foreign policy issues such as North Korea’s escalation of tensions. Meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of South Korea, Japan and China ended without a clear consensus about how to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.
     Here’s what investors will be watching:
* Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s testimony before Congress will be in focus later this week as investors look for guidance on when the U.S. central bank could start reducing its balance sheet.
* The U.K. government is due to publish it’s Repeal Bill on membership of the European Union this week.
* European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, Executive Board member Benoit Coeure and Single Supervisory Mechanism Chair Daniele Nouy will participate in a Eurogroup meeting in Brussels.
    
     These are the main moves in markets:
     Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.1 percent to 2,427.54 at 4 p.m. in New York, while the Nasdaq 100 Index added 0.7 percent.
* Materials producers in the S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent as metals advanced.
* Small caps in the Russell 2000 Index dropped 0.5 percent.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.4 percent.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index added 0.7 percent.
     
     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was flat.
* The pound retreated 0.1 percent to $1.2880 and the euro dropped by a similar amount to $1.1385.
     Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries dropped one basis point to 2.37 percent after rising 23 basis points in the past two weeks. 
* In Europe, peripheral nations led a rally with benchmark bonds yields in Italy and Spain shedding six basis points. The yield on 10-year bunds fell three basis points to 0.54 percent.
     Commodities
* WTI crude added 0.4 percent to settle at $44.40 a barrel following its 2.8 percent slide Friday.
* Gold futures climbed 0.3 percent to $1,213.90 an ounce after touching its lowest level since March. Silver futures jumped 1.4 percent.
Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

The true source of rights is duty.
If we discharge our duties, rights will not be far to seek.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,

Carolann

If you could get up the courage to begin, you have the courage to succeed.
                                                             -David Viscott, 1938-1996

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

Queensbury Securities Inc.,
St. Andrew’s Square,
Suite 340A, 730 View St.,
Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

Tel: 778.430.5808
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