June 19, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Norwegian island wants to get rid of time. (h/t Scott Kominers)

On June 19, 1964, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was approved after surviving an 83-day filibuster in the United States Senate.  Go to article »

From today’s New York Times:
52 Places traveler: In his latest dispatch, our columnist takes a midnight train to Aberdeen, Scotland, where he finds an underappreciated city that’s quietly exploding with creativity.

 Juneteenth
Today, the U.S. celebrates a day that has come to be known for the end of slavery.

June 19, 1865, was the day that enslaved Texans got the news that President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation. It declared the freedom of the enslaved in rebelling states — two and a half years after its signing, and a few months before the 13th Amendment abolished slavery.

Juneteenth is now celebrated around the country with cookouts, music and dancing.

But African-Americans in Houston who wanted to commemorate the occasion shortly after emancipation ran into a problem: There were few, if any, public spaces where they could gather.

So a group led by the Rev. Jack Yates, a formerly enslaved Baptist minister, pooled together $1,000 in 1872 to purchase 10 acres of land for annual Juneteenth celebrations.

Those 10 acres are called Emancipation Park. The park, which completed a $33 million renovation two years ago, is considered Houston’s oldest.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

June’s full moon, knowns as the Strawberry Moon, rises above the Apollo Temple in ancient Corinth, Greece
CREDIT: VALERIE GACHE/ GETTY IMAGES

Ladies of the parish decorate the central aisle with a carpet of flowers for the annual Feast of Corpus Christi, taking place on Thursday at Arundel Cathedral, West Sussex
CREDIT: ANDREW HASSON/ GETTY IMAGES

The Duchess of Cambridge arrives on day one of Royal Ascot.
CREDIT: GEOFF PUCH FOR THE TELEGRAPH

Racegoers brave the rain on day one of Royal Ascot
CREDIT: REUTERS MATTHEW CHILDS
Market Closes for June 19th, 2019

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
4.5 MILLION: Record-breaking bid (in US dollars) on eBay for a lunch date with billionaire Warren Buffet.  In 2001, the winning bid was $20,000.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian equities gained for a fifth straight session as Shopify Inc. rallied 6.8% after plans to spend $1 billion for a network of fulfillment centers in the U.S.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index added 0.1% to 16,511.79. Information technology and communication services led the way.
     Meanwhile, Canadian inflation quickened in May, while Veritas Investment Research double upgraded Canadian auto suppliers.
In other moves:
Stocks
* Charlottes Web Holdings Inc. rose 9.6% after hemp plant update
* CannTrust Holdings Inc. jumped 6.8% after California hemp update 
* Torex Gold Resources Inc. gained 3.7% 
* Zymeworks Inc. dropped 10% after filing preliminary prospectus for share offering
* Hudbay Minerals Inc. fell 4% 
Ratings
* ALS CN: Altius Minerals Rated New Buy at Laurentian Bank Securities
* APC: Trudeau’s Pipeline, Anadarko’s Mozambique LNG: N.A. Energy Wrap
* FFH CN: Fairfax Financial Holdings Rated New Outperform at Raymond James 
* FM CN: First Quantum Minerals Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan; PT C$11 
* LNR CN: Linamar Upgraded to Buy at Veritas; PT C$50
* LUN CN: Lundin Mining Rated New Overweight at JPMorgan 
* MG CN: Magna International Upgraded to Buy at Veritas
* MRTX: Mirati Therapeutics Cut to Neutral at B Riley FBR, Inc.; PT $92 
* MRE CN: Martinrea Upgraded to Buy at Veritas; PT C$12
* PL CN: Pinnacle Renewable Energy Rated New Buy at Cormark Securities
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $13.95 discount to WTI
* Gold spot price gained 0.6% to $1,355.15 an ounce 
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar strengthened about 0.7% to C$1.3288 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield rose to 1.438%
US
By Sarah Ponczek and Vildana Hajric
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rallied for a third day and yields on shorter-maturity Treasuries tumbled after the Federal Reserve struck a dovish tone in its latest policy statement. The dollar weakened against almost all its major peers.
     The benchmark S&P 500 pushed within striking distance of an all-time high set April 30, led by gains in the health care, real estate and utilities sectors. The yield on the U.S. two- year note fell by as much as 12 basis points to 1.74% after the central bank kept rates steady and signaled a readiness to cut interest rates for the first time in more than a decade. “We’re definitely hearing a decidedly more dovish Fed,” said Mike Loewengart, vice president of investment strategy at E*TRADE Financial. “While you could point the finger at pressure from the White House, it’s key to remember that the Fed’s focus has always been on two things and two things only: Jobs and inflation.”
     Chairman Jerome Powell and colleagues dropped a reference in their statement to being “patient” on borrowing costs and forecast a larger miss of their 2% inflation target this year. Policy makers kept their key rate in a range of 2.25% to 2.5%. Bond traders are virtually certain that the Fed will ease policy as soon as next month. The rate implied for the July 31 Fed decision dropped by 7 basis points to about 2.06%. That suggests about 31 basis points of rate cuts by then. The January 2020 fed funds futures contract implies close to 75 basis points of easing by the end of 2019.
     As many of the world’s biggest central banks signal a shift to easier policy, traders are weighing that against trade war fears and signs of cooling global growth. U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he had a “very good” phone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two leaders will hold an “extended meeting” at the G-20 summit on June 28-29 in Osaka. “Members of the Fed handed the markets what they were looking for by now predicting rate cuts,” said Bryce Doty, senior vice president at Sit Investment Associates. “I can’t help feeling that many will see that a precedent has been set: Higher trade tariffs bring rate cuts.” 
    Elsewhere, the peso strengthened versus the greenback late in the trading session after Mexico’s Senate ratified a trade deal with U.S. and Canada that will replace Nafta. These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index rose 0.3% as of 4:02 p.m. New York time, while the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.4% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.2%.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 was little changed.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index climbed 1.6%, the biggest increase in more than a week.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index surged 2%, the highest in six weeks on the largest jump in more than five months. 
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index declined 0.4%, the most since May 3.
* The euro rose 0.3% to $1.1228, while the yen strengthened 0.3% at 108.10 per dollar.
* The British pound rose 0.7% to $1.2645, the biggest rise since May.
* The MSCI Emerging Markets Currency Index rose 0.5%.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell 3 basis points to 2.03%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield climbed 3 basis points to -0.29%. 
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate rose 0.9% to $54.37 a barrel. Gold rose 0.4% to $1,352 an ounce. * The Bloomberg Commodity Index dropped 0.6%.

 Have a great night.

 Be magnificent!

As ever,

 Carolann

I never learn anything talking.  I only learn things when I ask questions.

                                                                  -Lou Leo Holtz, b. 1937

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