June 12, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
1929~ Anne Frank, b.
1924~ George H.W. Bush, b.
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.” Go to article »
On June 12, 1944. George Beardmore wrote in his journal:
Other side effects of bombs are the stripping of leaves from wayside trees, the deaths by blast of sparrows, chaffinches etc., and the awful things that happen to cats and dogs.  We had a man complain that thirty of his forty-odd small birds in a backyard aviary had been killed by blast, half a mile or so away from where the bomb had landed.

It is like clouds rising in the sky: suddenly there, gone without a trace.
And it is like drawing a pattern on water: it is neither born nor passes away.
This is cosmic peace and eternal rest.
When it is enclosed, it is called the matrix of the realization of suchness;
When it emerges from the enclosure, it is called the cosmic body of reality.
                                         -Ma-tsu

A 900-year-old grape variety is still used to make wine in France.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Lighting flashes through the sky over Dresden, Germany during a thunderstorm on Monday night.
CREDIT: ROBERT MICHAEL/AFP/GETTY IMAGES IMAGE TITLE

Sunrise in the West Bank City of Nablus
CREDIT: ALAA BADARNEH/EPA-EFE/REX

A man with an umbrella walks past the Old Opera after a rainy night in Frankfurt, Germany
CREDIT: MICHAEK PROBST/AP

A cyclist rides past the brightly lit financial district casting skyglow in Singapore as the country with the highest level of light pollution in the world, adding that it was ‘not possible to view the Milky Way Galaxy anywhere in the country.’
CREDIT: WALLACE WOON/EPA-EFE/REX
Market Closes for June 12th, 2019

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike priced its IPO above the expected range. The company priced its initial public offering above its expected price range, raising $612 million and valuing the company at $6.8 billion, if underwriters exercise all their options.
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities fell alongside U.S. equities as both the loonie and crude oil weakened in the wake of American crude stockpiles climbing and the U.S.-China trade war continuing to put pressure on demand.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index dropped 0.1% to 16,227 in Toronto, pulled down by three of the 11 sectors. Energy, financials and health care were the worst performing sectors, while materials were the best.
Meanwhile, a Canadian program designed to speed up the hiring of foreign talent is attracting thousands of tech workers and other skilled employees, many of whom are unhappy with restrictive U.S. immigration policies.
In other moves:
Stocks
* Cascades rallied 13% after TD upgraded the stock, citing “compelling value”
* Lumber companies including Canfor, Interfor, West Fraser were among the outperformers within the group, after lumber prices rose after a Canfor output cut
* Precision Drilling, Encana, Kelt were among the worst performing energy stocks as oil prices declined
* Norbord rose 4.1% after company said it will indefinitely curtail production at OSB mill in B.C.
Ratings
* ABCS CN: Abacus Health Products Rated New Buy at Haywood
* CAS CN: Cascades Upgraded to Buy at TD; PT C$11.50
* CIX CN: CI Financial Cut to Underweight at Barclays; Price Target C$21
* GWO CN: Great-West Lifeco Downgraded to Underweight at Barclays; PT C$32
* IFC CN: Intact Financial Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays; PT C$130
* POW CN: Power of Canada Downgraded to Underweight at Barclays; PT C$29
* PWF CN: Power Financial Downgraded to Equal-weight at Barclays; PT C$32
* QSR CN: Restaurant Brands Rated New Outperform at Evercore ISI
* SLF CN: Sun Life Financial Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays; PT C$57
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $12.00 discount to WTI
* Gold spot price rose 0.5% to $1,333.06 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was little changed at C$1.3337 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell to 1.497%
US
By Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — U.S. tech shares slumped as concern about trade tensions blunted optimism that slower-than forecast inflation would allow the Federal Reserve to cut rates. Oil plunged to a four-month low.
Chipmakers were among the worst performers as the S&P 500 Index slipped, with defensive sectors like utilities faring the best. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 declined the most in a week as Facebook fell. Crude dropped to the lowest since January on concern the trade dispute between the U.S. and China could trip up the global economy. The dollar strengthened and Treasuries climbed.
Just as investor concern over protectionism and global growth seemed to be easing, a fresh wave of uncertainty followed President Donald Trump’s announcement that he is personally delaying a trade deal with China and won’t complete the accord unless Beijing returns to terms negotiated earlier this year.
The monthly inflation numbers released Wednesday supported the idea the Fed can cut borrowing costs after the president scowled at “way too high” interest rates. “We have total opposing forces at play: trade and the Fed,” Jennifer Ellison, principal at San-Francisco based BOS, said in an interview at Bloomberg’s New York headquarters. “They’re balancing each other out, which is perhaps a good thing. But it’s not a time to just be exuberant and assume things will continue the way they have.”
Elsewhere, the Stoxx Europe 600 index posted its first drop in four sessions. That followed losses across Asia, where Hong Kong’s gauge underperformed as police used tear gas in an attempt to disperse protesters who have closed roads in the financial district. Gold rose as appetite grew for havens. Here are some key events coming up:
* The race to succeed Theresa May heats up with the first Conservative Party leadership ballot Thursday.
* Euro-area finance ministers meet in Luxembourg Thursday. On the agenda: financial penalties for Italy over its debt load, and the euro-area budget.
* China and the U.S. release industrial production, retail sales data Friday.
And these are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index fell 0.2% at the close of trading in New York.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dipped 0.3%, the biggest decrease this month.
* The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index decreased 0.4%, the first retreat in more than a week.
* The MSCI Emerging Markets Index sank 0.7%, the biggest dip in almost three weeks.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.3%.
* The euro weakened 0.3% to $1.1289.
* The British pound fell 0.3% to $1.2688.
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 108.51 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries decreased two basis points to 2.12%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at -0.24%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield rose one basis point to 0.87%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 4.2% to $51.01 a barrel, the lowest since January.
* Gold gained 0.5% to $1,333.14 an ounce.
–With assistance from Cormac Mullen, Adam Haigh, Todd White and Robert Brand.

Have a great night!

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Ambition can creep as well as soar.

        -Edmund Burke, 1729-1797

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