June 2, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On June 2, 1953, Queen Elizabeth II of Britain was crowned in Westminster Abbey, 16 months after the death of her father, King George VI.
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PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A capsule carrying Russian astronauts from the international space station returns to earth near Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan. SHAMIL ZHUMATOV/ASSOCIATED PRESS

An artist’s impression of NASA’s solar Probe Plus spacecraft approaching the sun.  On Wednesday, NASA announced it will launch the probe in summer 2018 to explore the solar atmosphere.  I will be subjected to brutal heat and radiation like no other man-made structure before.
CREDIT: JOHN HOPKINS UNIVERSITY APPLIED PHYSICS LABORATORY.  VIA/AD
Market Closes for June 2^nd, 2017

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1985, R.J. Reynolds agrees to buy Nabisco Brands for $4.9 billion, making it at the time the largest takeover on record outside the oil industry.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks closed lower amid oil’s biggest weekly drop in a month as investors continue to question whether OPEC will successfully find a way to reduce a supply glut.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 27 points or 0.2 percent to 15,442.75 even as global stocks rallied. The benchmark gained 0.2 percent for the week. Energy shares tumbled 0.9 percent Friday as crude prices fell 1.5 percent to $47.66 a barrel. Cenovus Energy Inc. fell 5.3 percent and Bonterra Energy Corp. lost 5.7 percent.
     The raw-materials index lost 0.3 percent as a drop in copper prices more than offset a gain in gold. Semafo Inc. rose 9.4 percent.
     In other moves:
* Canada Goose Holdings Inc. jumped 16 percent after its first quarterly earnings report as a public company showed surprising strength in direct-to-consumer sales despite a tough retail environment
* Asanko Gold Inc. added 5 percent, its first gain in five trading days. The stock fell 22 percent on the week after it was targeted by short seller Muddy Waters LLC
* Saputo Inc. rose 2.9 percent, retracing some of Thursday’s 3.8 percent loss. The stock was upgraded to buy at Desjardins despite a fourth-quarter earnings miss
US
By Jeremy Herron
     (Bloomberg) — The dollar weakened and Treasuries advanced with gold after the latest jobs report offered mixed signals on the strength of the American labor market, while U.S. stocks pushed to fresh records as technology shares extended a rally.
     The Nasdaq 100 Index jumped more than 1 percent to an all- time high as Microsoft Corp. surged the most in six months to a record. Gains in rate-sensitive shares drove the S&P 500 Index to a new high after the 10-year Treasury yield slumped to the lowest level of the year following wage growth and hiring that was below forecasts. The Bloomberg dollar index fell to the lowest since November. Gold jumped and oil capped its worst week in a month.
     The latest jobs report likely won’t deter the Federal Reserve from increasing interest rates in two weeks as the economy continues to grind higher even as Washington shows few signs of moving forward with tax and spending reforms. Global equities have advanced more than 10 percent this year to set fresh records as data showed growth in the world’s largest economy is intact.
     “The unemployment number that came out was well below expectations, and we have a market that’s starting to rethink the Fed’s strategy. There’s a lot of stuff going on,” said Andrew Brenner, head of international fixed income for National Alliance Capital Markets.“But we’re still in a flows market. We’re getting closer to a correction every day, but I think you’re going to have a melt-up first.”
     Here are the main moves in markets:
     Stocks
* The S&P 500 climbed 0.3 percent to a record 2,438.38 as of 4 p.m. in New York.
* The measure rose 0.9 percent in the week, led by gains of at least 2 percent in phone and health-care share. Energy producers slumped 2.4 percent and banks lost 0.9 percent.
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 percent to 21,190, and briefly climbed above 21,200 for the first time.
* The Nasdaq Composite Index extended its record. The technology-heavy index jumped 1.5 percent in the week.
* The Russell 2000 added 1.7 percent in the four days.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index increased 0.2 percent, to cap a 0.3 percent advance in the week.
* Emerging-market equities rose 0.6 percent, paring a loss in the five days to 0.2 percent. The MSCI index is up 18 percent so far in 2017.
     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index retreated 0.4 percent to the lowest level since November. It fell 0.5 percent in the week.
* The British pound was little changed at $1.2887, while the euro strengthened 0.6 percent to $1.1283.
* The yen gained 0.9 percent to 110.40 per dollar, after falling 0.5 percent on Thursday.
     Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell six basis points to 2.1487, the lowest level of the year.
* The data had only a marginal impact on the odds of the Fed tightening, with the likelihood for a June hike holding around 86 percent.
     Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 1.5 percent to settle at $47.66 a barrel. Prices fell 4.3 percent in the week, the most since May 5, as U.S. crude production expanded to the highest level since August 2015, countering a slide in stockpiles.
* Gold futures rallied as the jobs data weakened the case for the Fed to move aggressively. Bullion for delivery in three months added 0.8 percent to settle at $1,280.20 an ounce after falling as much as 0.7 percent earlier. The metal posted a fourth straight weekly gain.
     Asia
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.9 percent to the highest since April 2015. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rallied 1.6 percent and topped 20,000 for the first time since December 2015.
* China’s offshore yuan tumbled the most since February amid signs that a funding crunch is beginning to abate. The onshore currency slipped 0.2 percent, breaking a four-day rally.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

No one can understand the sound of a drum,
without understanding both the drum and the drummer.
No one can understand the sound of  a conch shell,
without understanding the shell and the one who blows it.
No one can understand the sound of a lute,
without understanding both the lute and the one who plays it.
As there can be no water without the sea, no touch without the skin,
no smell without the nose, no taste without the tongue, no sound without the ear,
no thought without the mind, no work without hands, and no walking without feet,
so there can be nothing without the soul.
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad

As ever,

Carolann

May you live every day of your life.
       -Jonathan Swift, 1667-1745

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM
Portfolio Manager &
Senior Vice-President

Queensbury Securities Inc.,
St. Andrew’s Square,
Suite 340A, 730 View St.,
Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7

Tel: 778.430.5808
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