Dear Friends,
Tangents: Happy Monday.
June 15, 1215: King John seals the Magna Carta after rebel barons force him to accept limits on royal power. The agreement collapses almost immediately, but later becomes one of history’s most famous symbols of the idea that even a king is not above the law.
June 15, 1844: Charles Goodyear received a patent for a process to strengthen rubber. Go to article.
Edvard Grieg, composer, b. 1843.
Helen Hunt, actress, b. 1963.
Courteney Cox Arquette, actress, b. 1964
| Bow-Wow, Ding-Dong, Pooh-Pooh: Expert explains early theories of how human language evolved — and their silly names |
There are many theories as to how human language first evolved. But none completely explains why it happened. Read more.
| Famous child mummies in Andes may belong to kids who were sacrificed to ‘ritually anchor’ the Inca’s presence as their empire expanded |
An analysis of corn, cassava and coca plants discovered with sacrificed Inca children reveals they died during the reign of one of the last Inca emperors. Read more.
| World’s rarest great ape decimated by 4 days of extreme rain, with 7% of population lost to cyclone |
Around 58 of Indonesia’s Tapanuli orangutans were crushed or buried alive by landslides brought on by the climate-change-fueled Cyclone Senyar. Read more.
| NASA’s experimental X-59 jet breaks sound barrier for 1st time in step toward ‘quiet supersonic’ technology |
NASA and Lockheed Martin’s experimental X-59 aircraft has broken the sound barrier, achieving a speed of Mach 1.1. The feat could set the stage for "quiet" supersonic flight. Read more.
| ‘I was really amazed’: On the edge of the Milky Way, a dwarf galaxy is being ripped in half by its big sibling |
A new study shows that the Small Magellanic Cloud is being pulled apart by its larger sibling on the Milky Way’s periphery, upending our understanding of our cosmic neighbor. Read more.
| Neuroscientists are searching for the ‘cellular substrate of loneliness’ |
Neuroscientists are discovering that spending time with others may be a basic biological necessity, like need for food or water. Read more.
If I must fall, may it be from a high place. -Paulo Coelho.
China didn’t qualify for the World Cup
But a referee has emerged as a star among its fans.
Paris holds first sumo wrestling tournament in 30 years
A rare sumo wrestling tournament in Paris drew crowds — and plenty of curiosity. See the video.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Yangzhou, China
Farmers transplant rice seedlings in a field in Jiangsu province. Farmers have been taking advantage of recent sunny weather to do the transplanting
Photograph: Meng Delong/VCG/Getty Images
London, UK
Anish Kapoor poses with Ha Makom, 2026, at an exhibition of his work at the Hayward Gallery in London
Photograph: Nicky J Sims/Getty Images
Pestani, North Macedonia
Children plunge into the waters of Lake Ohrid to cool off on a warm day
Photograph: Robert Atanasovski/AFP/Getty Images
Market Closes for June 15th, 2026
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| Dow Jones |
51671.03 | +468.77 |
| +0.92% | ||
| S&P 500 | 7554.29 | +122.83 |
| +1.65% | ||
| NASDAQ | 26683.94 | +795.10 |
| +3.07% | ||
| TSX | 35275.64 | +337.78
+0.97% |
International Markets
| Market Index |
Close | Change |
| NIKKEI | 69317.50 | +3297.46 |
| +4.99% | ||
| HANG SENG |
24842.67 | +124.57 |
| +0.50% | ||
| SEN SEX | 76264.33 | +736.38 |
| +0.98% | ||
| FTSE 100* | 10430.62 | -41.10 |
| -0.39% |
Bonds
| Bonds | % Yield | Previous % Yield |
| CND. 10 Year Bond |
3.413 | 3.401 |
| CND. 30 Year Bond |
3.840 | 3.815 |
| U.S. 10 Year Bond |
4.4730 | 4.4789 |
| U.S. 30 Year Bond |
4.9785 | 4.9664 |
| BOC Close | Today | Previous |
| Canadian $ | 0.7146 | 0.7149 |
| US $ |
1.3992 | 1.3986 |
| Euro Rate 1 Euro= |
Inverse | |
| Canadian $ | 0.6165 | 1.6219 |
| US $ |
0.8662 | 1.1591 |
Commodities
| Gold | Close | Previous |
| London Gold Fix |
4185.95 | 4074.85 |
| Oil | ||
| WTI Crude Future | 80.75 | 84.88 |
Market Commentary:
On this day in 1911, financier Charles Flint merged Tabulating Machine Co., run by U.S. Census Bureau statistician Herman Hollerith, with Computing Scale Co. of America and International Time Recording Co. to form Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co. It was the ancestor of today’s IBM.
👒Canada 🏖
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the third day, climbing 1%, or 337.78 to 35,275.64 in Toronto.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 3.8%. G.
Mining Ventures Corp. had the largest increase, rising 13.4%.
Today, 132 of 220 shares rose, while 86 fell; 5 of 11 sectors were higher, led by materials stocks.
Insights
* This quarter, the index rose 7.7%
* The index advanced 33% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 26% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is at its 52-week high and 33.4% above its low on June 19, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 2.3% in the past 5 days and rose 4.3% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.8 on a trailing basis and 16.8 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.1% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$5.51t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 14.50% compared with 14.52% in the previous session and the average of 13.38% over the past month
Index Points
Materials | 302.7530| 5.2| 57/3
Information Technology | 54.5182| 2.2| 4/5
Financials | 49.0455| 0.4| 18/5
Consumer Discretionary | 6.9185| 0.6| 5/4
Utilities | 6.6635| 0.5| 10/4
Health Care | -0.1670| -0.2| 1/3
Industrials | -2.7426| -0.1| 18/11
Consumer Staples | -3.6834| -0.3| 5/5
Real Estate | -3.9522| -0.8| 6/13
Communication Services | -5.0010| -0.8| 1/4
Energy | -66.5647| -1.1| 7/29
Shopify | 49.8100| 3.8| -11.4| -28.8
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd | 45.0200| 5.6| 35.3| 3.2
Wheaton Precious Metals | 35.2400| 6.8| 10.8| 7.5
Enbridge | -9.1690| -0.8| 7.1| 19.3
Suncor | -21.8400| -3.1| -0.2| 36.9
Canadian Natural Resources | -24.9300| -2.7| 59.3| 32.7
MT Newswires:
The Toronto Stock Exchange posted a fresh record close Monday, its third-straight gain, even with mixed commodity prices, as investors continue to see strong market fundamentals and resilience in the economy.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed was up 337.79 points, or 1%, to 35,275.64, beating the prior record close of 35217.06 hit on June 4.
According to FactSet the TSX going in to today was month-to-date up 0.49% and year-to-date up 3,225.09 points or 10.17%.
Not only were commodity prices mixed, but sectors were too.
The Battery Metals Index was the biggest mover and gainer in rising 4.7%, followed by Base Metals up 2%.
Energy was the biggest loser, down 2.7% as West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed sharply lower Monday after the United States and Iran reached a truce in the war that has blocked off the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint for a fifth of the daily oil demand supplied by Persian Gulf nations.
WTI crude oil for July delivery closed down US$4.13 to settle at US$80.75 per barrel, the lowest since March 4, while August Brent oil was down US$4.12 to US$83.21.
According to Thierry Wizman, Global FX & Rates Strategist at Macquarie Group, traders are cheering the news of an agreed-to US-Iran MoU, and that its key condition is the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz from both sides.
On the Iran side because of threats to shipping and on the U.S. side related to a naval blockade.
"For markets, the Strait is the only thing that matters, because its blockage was most pernicious for the global economy.
The importance of its re-opening swamps that of other things, such as what central banks will do or say now that they need to consider the MoU itself in their deliberations," Wizman said.
But in the spirit of temperance, some caveats are in order, Wizman added.
"The MoU is not a permanent peace deal; its details have not yet emerged; it has yet to be signed; there may be domestic opposition to abiding by its terms in the U.S., especially if the U.S. is seen to have made unnecessary concessions; Israel may not be a party to any deal, especially if Iran is able to re-arm its ‘axis of resistance’."
Still, as reflected in gains for Base Metals, gold was higher by midafternoon Monday, climbing for a second day as the U.S. dollar and yields fell after Iran and the United States agreed to a truce in their war, pushing oil prices lower and easing inflation fears that have pushed investors away from the precious metal.
Gold for July delivery was up US$114.30 to US$4,353.10 per ounce.
On economics, RBC Economics may have captured investor sentiment in a note entitled ‘The economy is bruised, not broken’ in which the bank said Canada’s economy has proven resilient through early 2026, "bending, not collapsing despite significant headwinds".
According to RBC, a second consecutive gross domestic product decline in Q1 sparked recession concerns, but it added the underlying data tells a more encouraging story: Per-capita growth shows Canada is in an early-stage recovery rather than a contraction.
RBC said: "To be clear, the economy is not strong yet.
Unemployment is still too high.
Population declines will continue to limit the underlying growth rate that can be generated.
Sectors directly targeted by U.S. tariffs continue to underperform, and high fuel costs are cutting into household purchasing power.
"But headline growth numbers mask an important shift: Slowing population growth is depressing aggregate GDP while measures that reflect how households experience the economy show signs of improvement."
On a per-person basis, the economy is still growing, RBC said, while noting the unemployment rate also edged lower; to 6.6% in May from 6.8% at end of 2025, "a seemingly contradictory outcome that makes sense only when accounting for the contraction in the available workforce".
"We remain cautiously optimistic that enough support remains in place to sustain gradual improvement in those per-person and per-worker economic indicators this year with further tailwinds building into 2027," RBC added.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz spurred a rally in riskier corners of Wall Street, with stocks climbing alongside cryptocurrencies as oil sank on hopes the war that has jolted markets is close to an end.
The advance in equities drove the S&P 500 higher by 1.7% on Monday.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 added 3.1% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit all-time highs.
US crude settled below $81, easing inflation concerns.
Treasury two-year yields fell as bets on Federal Reserve rate hikes receded.
Bitcoin topped $66,000.
The dollar barely budged.
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance signed an electronic copy of a memorandum of understanding with Iran, a senior US official said in a call with reporters.
Hormuz “is already partially opened,” and “it’ll be completely opened” Friday, Trump noted during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.
“The agreement between the US and Iran is a major breakthrough and a positive for markets as the back and forth in the negotiations has only caused additional uncertainty and volatility,” said Michael Landsberg at Landsberg Bennett Private Wealth Management.
While the nature of the deal could bring about further breakdowns between the sides — especially surrounding the major sticking point of removing Iran’s nuclear material — the reopening of the Strait will help push oil prices down, he added.
“Volatility may persist in the near term as markets assess the implementation and durability of the deal, but we maintain our view that resilient growth and robust earnings should continue to drive stocks higher,” said Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi at UBS Chief Investment Office.
US stocks could get an additional boost from a rotation into economically sensitive sectors that have lagged during thewar, according to Morgan Stanley strategists led by Michael Wilson.
JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s Mislav Matejka said the move into cyclicals is “on track to remain a winning strategy” through year-end, provided geopolitical tensions ease and earnings and inflation remain stable.
“We believe easing geopolitical tensions could help alleviate inflation pressures and help reduce bond yields, potentially driving a rotation into cyclical sectors and previously lagging areas of the market,” said Angelo Kourkafas at Edward Jones.
After starting the week with a boost from the US-Iran deal, the equity market will quickly search for a new source of momentum, noted Chris Larkin at E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley.
While that won’t come in the form of a Fed cut, this week’s meeting will be an opportunity to get a read on how new Chair Kevin Warsh may pursue his longer-term agenda, he said.
With the drop in oil, swap traders priced in lower chances of rate hike by December.
The Fed is due to announce its next policy decision Wednesday, with economists expecting the central bank to keep its benchmark rate in a range of 3.5% to 3.75% as
it waits to see how the war’s energy-price shock ripples through the economy.
Corporate Highlights:
* SpaceX shares jumped in their second day of trading, adding to gains following a blockbuster debut that instantly vaulted it into the ranks of the world’s most-valuable public companies.
* Nvidia Corp. is set to raise $25 billion from a high-grade bond sale that received more than three times that amount in demand, underscoring relentless investor appetite for exposure to the artificial-intelligence boom.
* Fox Corp. agreed to acquire Roku Inc. in a deal valued at about $22 billion including debt, creating a new television juggernaut and marking a big push into ad-supported streaming.
* Salesforce Inc. has agreed to buy Fin, a firm that develops artificial intelligence-powered customer agents, for about $3.6 billion as the software company works to win new business for enterprise AI.
* Fiserv Inc. shares sank after the surprise departure of Chief Executive Officer Michael Lyons, who quit to take the top job at Truist Financial Corp.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 1.7% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 rose 3.1%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9%
* The MSCI World Index rose 1.5%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
* The euro rose 0.2% to $1.1587
* The British pound was little changed at $1.3411
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 160.36 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 4% to $66,558.76
* Ether rose 9.1% to $1,820.89
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined one basis point to 4.47%
* Germany’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 2.95%
* Britain’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 4.81%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 4% to $81.49 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 2.4% to $4,321.13 an ounce
Have a lovely evening.
Be magnificent!
As ever,
Carolann
The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook. –William James, 1842-1910.
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 (Text Only)
Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895
Fax: 778.430.5828