July 17, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday.
It’s World Emoji Day. How are we using them to talk about the coronavirus?
Even our emojis mask up!  -CNN.

June 17, 1918: Czar Nicholas II and his family were executed.

1955- Disneyland opened

On July 17, 1975, an Apollo spaceship docked with a Soyuz spacecraft in orbit in the first superpower linkup of its kind. Go to article »

July 17, 2014- Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 is shot down over Eastern Ukraine by a Buk surface-to-air missile launched from pro-Russian separatist-controlled territory, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew on board.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A photo taken with a drone shows an aerial view of the heart of shrubs in a meadow by Lake Myczkowieckie in Solina, south east Poland. The owner of one local resorts, created this heart to commemorate his late wife.
CREDIT: DAREK DELMANIWICZ/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK

A clear night in the New South Wales ski region has allowed visitors to view the Milky Way over consecutive nights in Charlotte Pass, Australia. Charlotte Pass ski resort has been making the most of colder weather by making snow at night to improve conditions for visitors and allowing those who are on school holidays to visit the New South Wales ski region.
CREDIT: BILL BLAIR#JM/GETTY IMAGES

Penguins who couldn’t be entertained properly at a zoo during lockdown have been cheered up with a bubble machine. The birds are usually kept occupied by feeding shows and guests visiting the zoo, but due to coronavirus their daily routine was forced to change. Staff at Newquay Zoo in Cornwall, UK, were trying to find a way to keep them entertained, and then someone kindly donated a bubble machine. Keeper Dan Trevelyan said the penguins, as predators, love chasing the bubbles as it keeps their reflexes sharp.

Market Closes for July 17th , 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1861, the first paper money payable on demand, whose color gave our bills the nickname “greenbacks,” was issued by the U.S. government.
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equity markets climbed on Friday, led by gold and silver miners as the prices for the metals rallied. The S&P/TSX Composite index rose 0.6% in Toronto. The index stayed buoyed above the 16,000 level that hasn’t been seen since March. Gold’s rally is putting miners on track for their longest winning streak in more than a year as investors continue to flock to safe havens due to the coronavirus crisis. Silver spot price also rallied close to $20 an ounce. On the M&A front, TDR Capital is considering teaming up with Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., for a fresh run at U.S. gas station operator Speedway after owner Marathon Petroleum Corp. revived plans for a potential sale of the business that could fetch more than $15 billion, people familiar with the matter said. Meanwhile, Dye & Durham Ltd., a provider of software for legal and business professionals, surged in its Toronto trading debut after raising C$150 million ($110 million) in its initial public offering.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $9.25 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold rose 0.8% to $1,811.02 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was flat around C$1.3583 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield rose 2 basis points to 0.525%
By Bloomberg Automation:
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose 0.6 percent at 16,123.48 in Toronto. The index advanced to the highest closing level since March 6 after the previous session’s decrease of 0.2 percent. Barrick Gold Corp. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 2.2 percent. Silvercorp Metals Inc. had the largest increase, rising 9.7 percent. Today, 138 of 221 shares rose, while 83 fell; 8 of 11 sectors were higher, led by materials stocks.
Insights
* So far this week, the index rose 2.6 percent
* The index declined 2.2 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 7.3 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 10.3 percent below its 52-week high on Feb. 20, 2020 and 44.3 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.2 on a trailing basis and 24.9 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 3.2 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.44t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 19.16 percent compared with 20.04 percent in the previous session and the average of 19.95 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | | Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | 52.5377| 2.2| 47/3
Industrials | 24.3970| 1.3| 18/10
Utilities | 11.5831| 1.4| 13/3
Information Technology | 10.5184| 0.7| 7/3
Consumer Staples | 9.1494| 1.3| 9/2
Communication Services | 5.7883| 0.7| 5/3
Consumer Discretionary | 1.7226| 0.3| 6/7
Real Estate | 0.2301| 0.0| 13/14
Health Care | -0.9548| -0.6| 3/6
Financials | -4.0146| -0.1| 12/13
Energy | -11.9723| -0.6| 5/19
US
By Claire Ballentine and Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose as investors digested this week’s initial burst of corporate earnings, economic data and coronavirus news. The dollar weakened and crude oil declined. The S&P 500 withstood a late session swoon to register its third consecutive weekly gain for the first time since December. Trading volume was about 25% below the average over the prior 30 days. Intel Corp. and Cisco Systems Inc. helped the Nasdaq 100 avoid its first back-to-back daily decline since mid-May. A University of Michigan survey showed U.S. consumer sentiment slumped in July, missing all forecasts, after the resurgent coronavirus nearly wiped out any emerging optimism around reopenings. “This pandemic is still vexing everybody,” said Lori Heinel, deputy global chief investment officer at State Street Global Advisors. “Until we have a clearer path toward more effective treatments or a clearer path to vaccination, we should just expect that we’re going to continue to have volatility.” Investors were closely watching to see how the broader technology sector reacted to Netflix Corp.’s weaker than expected outlook. The Nasdaq Composite has managed to go two months without posting back-to-back declines, but that’s now under threat as investors question the resilience of tech’s searing rally. Netflix Puts a Record Run of Resilience at Risk in Nasdaq  “We’re going to continue to see a bifurcated economy, bifurcated market, unless we get rid of this virus and everything goes away for some reason,” said David Yepez, a money manager at Exencial Wealth Advisors. “If we find a vaccine and, you know, that will be the point where value will start to outperform.”
In Europe, traders are holding out hope for policy makers to conclude a stimulus pact. German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised doubts on Friday that European Union leaders would be able to agree this week on a landmark 750 billion-euro ($855 billion) recovery fund to help their economies heal from the pandemic. Positive earnings from Daimler AG and Ericsson AB pulled carmakers and tech stocks higher. Elsewhere, Chinese shares were steady after a more than 4% slide on Thursday, with investors assessing moves by policy makers to tame signs of exuberance.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 Index gained 0.2% to 3,224.78 as of 4:02 p.m. New York time.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed at 26,672.46.
The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 0.2% to 10,503.19.
The MSCI All-Country World Index rose 0.3% to 548.33.
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.3% to 1,204.30.
The euro gained 0.5% to $1.1439, the strongest in more than four months.
The Japanese yen strengthened 0.2% to 106.94 per dollar.
Bonds
The yield on two-year Treasuries increased less than one basis point to 0.14%.
The yield on 10-year Treasuries increased one basis point to 0.62%.
Germany’s 10-year yield gained two basis points to -0.45%.
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude decreased 0.1% to $40.60 a barrel.
Gold strengthened 0.7% to $1,810.58 an ounce, the highest in almost nine years on the biggest advance in a week.
Copper increased 0.3% to $2.91 a pound.
–With assistance from Amena Saad.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

People living deeply have no fear of death.
                          -Anaïs Nin, 1903-1977

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
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com