June 22, 2015 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: 

Summer is officially here!  🙂

Driving trip planned this summer?  Take the Slow Road:

Roadtrippers provides a different kind of driving directions.  Rather than charting the fastest path from Point A to Point B, this free iPhone and Android app suggests the most entertaining route.  It points out local attractions, restaurants, and scenic detours along your journey.  If a recommendation appeals to you, a single tap adds the new waypoint to your directions.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Spanish architects Jose Selgas (l.) and Lucia Cano view the Serpentine Summer Pavilion in Hyde Park in London, Monday. The 15th annual architectural commission is a double-skinned polygonal translucent structure designed by the pair, and will be open to the public until Oct. 18. Toby Melville/Reuters

Team SCA, skippered by Samantha Davies of Britain (2nd l.), celebrates after finishing the prestigious nine-month sailing race in Gothenburg, Sweden, Monday. The nine-leg race started in Alicante, Spain, on Oct 11, 2014, and finished in Gothenburg on Monday. Bjorn Larsson Rosvall/Reuters

Market Closes for June 22^nd, 2015

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

 The experience of being disastrously wrong is salutary; no economist should be denied it, and not many are.  –John Kenneth Galbraith.

Market Commentary:

Canada

By Eric Lam

     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks rose, with the benchmark index gaining the most since February, as equities joined a global rally amid optimism as euro area leaders sought a solution to the Greek debt impasse.

     Royal Bank of Canada and Bank of Nova Scotia rose at least 0.9 percent to pace gains among the nation’s largest banks. Air Canada climbed 4.1 percent to snap three days of losses after an analyst at Beacon Securities rated the stock a buy. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., the nation’s largest drugmaker, advanced 2.2 percent. Energy producers jumped 1.5 percent as crude advanced.

     The Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index rose 137.36 points, or 0.9 percent, to 14,790.48 at 4 p.m. in Toronto. The gauge is up 1.1 percent for the year, after almost erasing its 2015 advance on Friday.

     Bank of Nova Scotia rallied 1.2 percent and Toronto- Dominion Bank increased 1 percent as financial-services companies gained 0.7 percent as a group. The industry makes up about a third of the benchmark S&P/TSX. All 10 industries advanced on trading volume 12 percent lower than the 30-day average.

     Stock markets around the world advanced on optimism Greece will negotiate a deal with its creditors to avoid a default at the end of the month. The MSCI World Index of developed markets jumped 1.1 percent to a May high as the S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent and the Stoxx Europe 600 jumped 2.3 percent.

     Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who chairs meetings of his euro-area counterparts, said there’s an “opportunity” for a deal this week after a fresh set of proposals from the Greek government earlier on Monday.

     Telus Corp. increased 2.4 percent for a third straight day of gains and Rogers Communications Inc. increased 2 percent. The two companies are vying to acquire Mobilicity, the Canadian wireless carrier currently in creditor protection, according to people familiar with the matter.

     UrtheCast Corp., which markets imagery of the Earth taken from its camera on the International Space Station, surged 13 percent. The company has soared 37 percent over three days to a 2011 high. It announced plans last week to build and deploy a network of Earth observation satellites.

     Resverlogix Corp., a drug developer, increased 4.9 percent after receiving phase 3 testing approval for its RVX-208 cardiovascular treatment in Europe.

US

By Callie Bost

     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks advanced, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rising near a record, as Cigna Corp. and Williams Cos. jumped on merger news amid optimism over Greece debt talks.

     Cigna climbed 4.7 percent after rejecting a $47 billion takeover bid from Anthem Inc. Williams surged 26 percent after turning down a $48 billion buyout offer. Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. increased more than 1.2 percent as banks rebounded. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. slumped 12 percent after Sequential Brands Group Inc.’s takeover bid was below investors’ expectations.

     The S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent to 2,122.85 at 4 p.m. in New York, after rallying as much as 0.9 percent to within one point of its closing high set a month ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 103.83 points, or 0.6 percent, to 18,119.78. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 0.7 percent to an all-time high. About 5.7 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, 9 percent below the three-month average.

     “I’m pretty optimistic about this week with the recent developments in Greece,” said Paul Zemsky, the head of multi- asset strategies at Voya Investment Management LLC, which oversees $218 billion. “There were also better existing home sales data, showing the housing market is healthy. Last week we got better news from the Fed.”

     European policy makers expressed confidence that a deal with Greece was within reach after Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s government submitted a last-minute set of proposals. Euro-area leaders are meeting in Brussels, where Tsipras has a chance to put his case to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande.

     The S&P 500 Friday posted its best weekly gain since April, after signals from the Federal Reserve that the central bank won’t be raising rates quickly as officials hold out for more decisive evidence of an economic rebound.

     The equity benchmark fell as much as 2.4 percent from its May record as the threat of tighter monetary policy spooked investors amid data showing the U.S. economy contracted in the first quarter. Three rounds of Fed bond purchases and borrowing costs near zero have propelled the gauge up by more than 200 percent during the six-year bull market.

     Data today showed previously owned homes in May sold at the fastest pace since November 2009, adding to evidence the economy will be strong enough to withstand the first rate increase since 2006. Closings on existing properties rose 5.1 percent to a 5.35 million annualized rate, above the 5.26 million median forecast in a Bloomberg survey.

     Investors and the Fed will also assess reports this week on durable goods orders, first-quarter economic growth, personal income and spending and consumer sentiment.

     “The consumer is two thirds of the economy, so they need housing to do well,” said Patrick Spencer, equities vice- chairman at Robert W. Baird & Co. in London. “The housing number will continue to be reasonably buoyant and that will underpin the market.”

     The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index fell 8.7 percent Monday to 12.74, closing at its lowest level in a month. The gauge, known as the VIX, rose 1.3 percent last week.

     Nine of the S&P 500’s 10 main groups climbed, with energy, health-care and financial companies rising the most. Cigna, Anthem and Aetna Inc. added at least 3.2 percent after Cigna rejected Anthem’s takeover bid. Shares of all three also closed at all-time highs. The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index rose 1.5 percent to a record.

     Williams’s 26 percent rally after a buyout offer paced gains in energy. Oneok Inc., Apache Corp. and Southwestern Energy Co. gained at least 1.7 percent.

     Banks in the benchmark index jumped 1.4 percent, the best performance out of 24 industry groups, after Friday falling the most in two months. Fifth Third Bancorp gained 2.8 percent to an 11-month high after a plan to consolidate or sell 100 branches and 30 other properties. Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase & Co. advanced more than 1.2 percent.

     Home Properties Inc. added 1.8 percent after a Lone Star Funds affiliate agreed to buy the U.S. apartment landlord in a transaction valued at about $7.6 billion, including debt.

     A Bloomberg index of U.S. airlines climbed for a fourth straight session, the best stretch in six weeks. JetBlue Airways Corp., American Airlines Group Inc. and United Continental Holdings Inc. added at least 2.9 percent.

     Technology companies advanced, led by gains in software shares. Adobe Systems Inc. rose 3.2 percent to a record, while Facebook Inc. increased 2.7 percent to a three-month high. Piper Jaffray Cos. analyst Gene Munster raised his price target on the social media company’s shares to $120 from $92, saying the long- term value of its Oculus virtual-reality business isn’t reflected in the stock price.

     International Paper Co. lost 2.9 percent, closing at its lowest level since October. Macquarie Group said in a note it sees more downside risk for containerboard companies amid price cuts. MeadWestvaco Corp. and Rock-Tenn Co. slipped more than 0.8 percent.

     Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia tumbled 12 percent, the most in more than six years after Sequential Brands Group Inc. offered to buy the home-decor company for $6.15 a share, below its closing price on Friday. Investors had anticipated a higher price. Through Friday, Martha Stewart shares had jumped 37 percent over two days amid reports of an imminent takeover.

     Polycom Inc. fell 8.5 percent, the biggest drop since July 2013, after William Blair & Co. downgraded shares of the communications-equipment manufacturer to underperform.

     Utility companies in the S&P 500 slipped as the yield on the 10-year Treasury note increased the most in six weeks. Higher bond yields make utilities’ dividend payout less attractive to investors. The group is coming off its best weekly gain since April, after the 10-year yield last week declined the most in more than two months.
 

Have a wonderful evening everyone.

Be magnificent!

Do men fear sleep?

One prepares the bed for sound sleep.

Sleep is temporary death.  Death is longer sleep.

If the man dies while yet alive, he need not grieve over others’ death.

One’s experience is evident with or without the body, as in waking, dream, and sleep.

Then why should one desire continuance of the bodily shackles?

Let man find out his undying Self and die and be immortal and happy.

Sri Ramana Maharshi

As ever,

Carolann

Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present.

                                                    -Albert Camus, 1913-1960

Carolann Steinhoff, B.Sc., CFP®, CIM, CIWM

Senior Portfolio Manager &

Senior Vice-President

Queensbury Securities Inc.,

St. Andrew’s Square,

Suite 340A, 730 View St.,

Victoria, B.C. V8W 3Y7