June 12, 2018 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On June 12, 1987, during a visit to the divided German city of Berlin, President Ronald Reagan publicly challenged Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev to ”tear down this wall.” 
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Anne Frank, b. 1929
George H.W. Bush, 41^st US President, b. 1924

1939: National Baseball Hall of Fame opened.

Baseball is 90% mental, the other half is physical. –Yogi Berra, 1925-2015.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A woman poses for pictures in a digital installation waterfall room, filled with flowers which appears to flow over a hill, at Mori building Digital Art Museum in Tokyo, Japan. Credit: Behrouz Mehri/AFP/Getty Images

Mori building Co. and Japanese collective teamLab, known internationally for their innovative “digital art” that combines projections, sound and carefully designed spaces to create immersive experiences, will launch the Digital Art Museum in Tokyo on June 21. Credit: Behrouz Mehri/AFP/Getty Images

Workers build ‘The Mastaba’, an outdoor work made up of over 7000 stacked barrels by Bulgarian artist Christo Vladimirov Javachef on the Serpentine lake in Hyde Park in London. Credit: Niklas Halle’n/AFP/Getty Images

A pair of European goldfinches squabble over food in a rural garden setting near Hawick on the Scottish Borders. Credit: Ron McCombe/Solent News & Photo Agency
Market Closes for June 12^th, 2018

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Number of the Day
2.6%
The amount shares of Dine Brands Global rose Monday after the IHOP-parent said it would temporarily change the pancake-provider’s name to IHOb, with the “B” standing for “burgers.”
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian rose for a seventh consecutive session, continuing their march toward a new high, as all sectors except energy closed in the green.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index added 26 points or 0.2 percent to 16,288.98, the highest close since Jan. 23 and less than 130 points from its all-time high. Tech stocks led the gains, adding 1.4 percent as Shopify Inc. rose 3.3 percent.
     The consumer-discretionary sector rose 0.9 percent, led by a 6.5 percent gain in Spin Master Corp. Energy stocks lost 0.7 percent after OPEC said there’s significant uncertainty about crude demand in the back half of the year.
     In other moves:
                          Stocks
* Suncor Energy Inc. lost 2.9 percent, the most since March, after AltaCorp Capital cut the stock to sector perform from outperform
* Tahoe Resources Inc. fell 2.8 percent. Chief Executive Officer Ronald Clayton is retiring at the end of this week
* Katanga Mining Ltd. jumped 26 percent, the most in more than 10 months, after reaching a deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo’s state miner on a legal dispute
                          Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at an $18.65 discount to WTI
* Gold fell 0.3 percent to $1,299.70 an ounce
                           FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar weakened 0.3 percent to C$1.3017 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell one basis point to 2.30 percent
US
By Samuel Potter and Sarah Ponczek
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stock indexes finished higher in listless trading Tuesday as investors put the U.S.-North Korea meeting in the rear-view and looked forward to this week’s big central bank decisions.
     Approaching the close, the S&P 500 Index recovered from session lows amid below-average volume. Yields on 10-year Treasuries climbed, while the dollar gained and the euro fell. Safe-haven assets including the yen and gold edged lower after President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un signed a document pledging to work toward peace on the Korean peninsula.
     The summit and last weekend’s rancorous G-7 meeting have yielded the spotlight to central banks, with a seemingly certain Federal Reserve rate increase on Wednesday, plus the prospect of a hawkish European Central Bank tilt on Thursday. The Bank of Japan’s policy decision is due Friday. Tuesday’s U.S. inflation figures — which were in line with estimates — may reignite the four-hikes-in-2018 debate ahead of the Fed’s decision.
     “The main issues are the Federal Reserve, the ECB and the Bank of Japan, not really the tweets regarding trade issues — and that’s what we’re all waiting for,” Derek Green, wealth adviser at Titus Wealth Management in California, said by phone. “Maybe it’s a calm before the storm. Volume will definitely pick up starting tomorrow. You’ve got three press conferences in three days.”
     The Stoxx Europe 600 Index retreated after modest gains for many Asian shares failed to ignite the MSCI Asia Pacific Index. The British pound rose after Prime Minister Theresa May fended off a rebellion by pro-EU Conservatives and won a key Brexit vote, only to give up most of that gain.
     Elsewhere, West Texas crude fluctuated around $66 a barrel after Iraq joined other OPEC members in resisting a push to boost oil supplies. The Turkish lira led decliners in emerging- market currencies ahead of the possible U.S. rate increase, which could suck more cash from developing nations.
     These are some key events to watch this week:
* The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates Wednesday as the U.S. economy remains solid.
* The European Central Bank rates decision comes Thursday with a briefing from President Mario Draghi.
* The Bank of Japan June monetary policy decision and news conference is Friday.
* FIFA expects more than 3 billion viewers for the World Cup that begins this week in Russia.
     And these are the main moves in markets:
                           Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index climbed 0.2 percent as of 4:01 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.1 percent.
* The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index sank 0.4 percent.
* Germany’s DAX Index declined less than 0.05 percent.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index fell 0.1 percent.
                           Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index increased 0.3 percent to its highest in over a week.
* The euro fell 0.3 percent to $1.175.
* The British pound fell less than 0.05 percent to $1.3373.
* The Japanese yen decreased 0.3 percent to 110.35 per dollar, the weakest in almost three weeks.
                           Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries increased one basis point to 2.96 percent.
* Germany’s 10-year yield fell less than one basis point to 0.49 percent.
* Britain’s 10-year yield decreased one basis point to 1.401 percent.
                           Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 0.2 percent to $66.22 a barrel.
* Gold fell 0.3 percent to $1,296.19 an ounce, the largest fall in over a week.
* LME copper fell 0.5 percent to $7,222 a metric ton.
–With assistance from Andreea Papuc and Janine Wolf.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

History is a set of lies agreed upon.
-Napoleon Bonaparte, 1769-1821

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