June 1, 2018 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: HAPPY FRIDAY!
June 1, 1938 – Toronto-born cartoonist Joe Shuster creates Superman comic book.

On this day in 1980, Ted Turner launched the world’s first round-the-clock TV news service, which he called Cable News Network.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Image released by the European Space Agency (ESA) and taken with the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) and the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), both installed on the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, shows the peculiar galaxy NGC 3256. The galaxy is about 100 million light-years away from Earth and is the result of a past galactic merger, which created its distorted appearance. Credit: The Telegraph

People take a look at the phenomenon known as Manhattanhenge on 42^nd Street in New York City. Manhattanhenge, or the Manhattan Solstice, occurs twice a year when the sun is aligned with the east-west streets of the main street grid of Manhattan. Credit: The Telegraph

People are pictured on the beach at Bygdoy peninsula in Oslo, Norway on a sunny day. Credit: The Telegraph
Market Closes for June 1^st, 2018

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Number of the Day
7.2%
The amount Deutsche Bank shares fell on Thursday after The Wall Street Journal reported the Federal Reserve has designated the German bank’s sprawling U.S. business in “troubled condition.”
Canada
By Kristine Owram
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks kicked off June with a loss after posting their best month in nearly two years, as energy and financials weighed on the benchmark.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 18 points or 0.1 percent to 16,043.54. The launch of U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs appeared to have little impact on stocks, with industrials rising 0.1 percent and consumer discretionary, the index that includes auto suppliers, adding 0.5 percent.
     Energy stocks fell 0.4 percent as crude prices dropped to the lowest level in more than a month amid surging U.S. output. Financials slid 0.3 percent as Bank of Nova Scotia lost 1.6 percent. The bank is buying MD Financial Management in a C$2.6 billion deal that one analyst called “expensive.”
     In other moves:
                          Stocks
* Laurentian Bank of Canada rose 2.9 percent, snapping a four- day streak of declines. Second-quarter earnings beat the highest analyst estimate
* Hudson’s Bay Co. gained 2.8 percent to the highest since February. The retailer reports quarterly results pre-market June 5
* Canopy Growth Corp. added 2.6 percent. The Canadian Senate will vote on legalizing recreational marijuana next week
                          Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $26.00 discount to WTI, the biggest gap since mid-March
* Aeco natural gas traded at a $2.24 discount to Henry Hub
* Gold fell 0.4 percent to $1,294.80 an ounce
                           FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was little changed at C$1.2963 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield was little changed at 2.25 percent
US
By Randall Jensen
     (Bloomberg) — Stocks rallied and Treasuries fell as the latest U.S. jobs data bolstered optimism in the economy, all but solidifying a rate hike later this month. The dollar advanced.
     The S&P 500 Index rose for the second week in a row after the unemployment rate fell to 3.8 percent in May, the lowest in nearly half a century. Technology shares led the rally as the Nasdaq Composite Index closed at an 11-week high. The dollar headed for a seventh straight weekly gain, the longest streak since 2014, while the 10-year Treasury yield rose above 2.89 percent as investor focus turned to the pace of the Federal Reserve’s rate increases.
     The jobs data underscored that the economy is strong enough to withstand another rate hike when the Federal Reserve meets later this month. Investors remain optimistic that threats of more international tariffs will not materialize into an all-out trade war between the U.S. and its key partners.
     “This average hourly earnings report for May kind of puts in play the fact that inflation certainly is headed upward not downward,” Dan Heckman, a fixed-income strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, said by phone. “This cements the June rate hike and if things continue to perform economically at this level and wages continue to move higher, and the unemployment rate drives even lower, I think the Fed, they need to raise rates at least three times this year.”
     In Europe, stocks were set for the largest gain in a month after Italy’s populist parties grabbed power, ending a three- month political gridlock. The latest developments in Spain also removed uncertainty, providing some well-needed relief overseas. The common currency declined.
     Elsewhere, West Texas Intermediate crude declined as rising U.S. output overshadowed a surprise drop in stockpiles, with traders also focused on whether Saudi Arabia and Russia will boost production.
     These are some key events to watch this week:
* Automakers report May U.S. sales the same day.
* Also Friday: some onshore Chinese stocks join MSCI Inc.’s global indexes.
* On Saturday U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross will travel to Beijing for more talks with Vice Premier Liu He on topics including ZTE Corp. and trade.
     These are the main moves in markets:
                           Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index climbed 1.1 percent to 2,734 as of 4 p.m.New York time.
* The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.5 percent to highest since March 13.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 1 percent, the largest increase in eight weeks.
* The MSCI Emerging Markets Index gained 0.9 percent.
                           Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained 0.2 percent.
* The euro fell 0.3 percent to $1.1656.
* The British pound rose 0.4 percent to $1.3346.
* The Japanese yen dropped 0.6 percent to 109.47 per dollar.
                           Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed four basis points to 2.89 percent.\
* Germany’s 10-year yield rose four basis points to 0.39 percent.
* Italy’s 10-year yield fell 11 basis points to 2.689 percent.
* Spain’s 10-year yield decreased six basis points to 1.441 percent.
                           Commodities
* Gold fell 0.4 percent to $1,293.60 an ounce.
* West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 2.1 percent to $65.58 a barrel.
–With assistance from Cormac Mullen, Sarah Ponczek and Joe Easton.

Have a great weekend.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

And say my glory was I had such friends.
        -William Butler Yeats, 1865-1939

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