March 24, 2017 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
On this day in 1765, Britain’s parliament passes the Quartering Act, requiring American colonists to provide temporary housing to British soldiers.
Also on this day, on March 24, 1989, one of the nation’s worst oil spills occurred as the supertanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on a reef in Alaska’s Prince William Sound and began leaking 11 million gallons of crude.
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Be as you wish to seem. –Socrates.

PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE DAY

Race official Graham Warren wears a cat mask and 3D sunglasses trackside during the first Formula One practice session at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on Friday. Jason Reed/Reuters

The Southern Lights are seen from a chartered plane over the Southern Ocean near Antarctica on Friday. The plane that left Dunedin, New Zealand, flew close to the Antarctic Circle to give passengers an up-close view of the Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights. Ian Griffin/AP

Participants of a so-called ‘Mirror March’ (Spiegelmarsch) art performance carry flags and giant mirrors in the old town of Dresden, eastern Germany, on Friday. The performance is a project by artist Svea Duwe. It is said to be a concrete artistic reflection of social movements that are currently taking place in Germany and other European countries. Jens Meyer/AP

More than 500,000 sandhill cranes stop over on the Platte River near Fort Kearny State Historical Park in Kearny, Neb., on Friday. The cranes fly from southern wintering grounds to northern breeding grounds in Canada, Alaska, and Siberia. Nick Ut/AP
Market Closes for March 24^th, 2017

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Number of the Day
1,057
The number of hedge funds that closed down in 2016, the most in a year since 2008, dropping the number of operating firms to 8,326, the lowest since 2013.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks closed slightly higher as oil prices notched their first gain this week and investors shrugged off a canceled vote on U.S. President Donald Trump’s health-care bill.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index added nine points or 0.1 percent to 15,442.67 as Republican lawmakers indicated that they’ll tackle Trump’s planned pro-growth policies next no matter what becomes of his health-care bill. The Canadian benchmark was down 0.3 percent on the week.
    Consumer discretionary stocks gained 0.7 percent, led by Amaya Inc., which added 3.8 percent after the online gaming company’s CEO said he’s on the hunt for deals. Energy stocks added 0.1 percent after West Texas Intermediate climbed 1 percent to $48.14, its first gain this week.
     In other moves:
* Detour Gold Corp. jumped 6.9 percent following Thursday’s 5.9 percent loss. BMO analyst Brian Quast said the selloff was overblown.
* Klondex Mines Ltd. tumbled 6 percent after the company missed fourth-quarter earnings expectations. The materials index fell 0.2 percent.
US
By Jeremy Herron and Julie Verhage
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rose from session lows to end little changed as investors assessed the fallout from a failed health-care vote that has raised questions on Trump administration’s ability to push its pro-growth agenda through Congress. Treasuries rose and the dollar slipped.
     The S&P 500 Index capped its worst week since the election as political wrangling in Washington dominated sentiment. Banks sank 3.8 percent in the week, though losses were limited Friday after Donald Trump suggested to the Washington Post that he will turn his attention to tax reform. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes fell to 2.40 percent, while the dollar fell for a second week.
     Investors were left assessing the impact of the failed vote on the future of Trump’s pro-growth agenda after the battle captivated Wall Street for most of the week. The White House had threatened to move on to other policy priorities, including tax reform, though its ability to sail its agenda through Congress was thrown into doubt. The reflation trades sparked by Trump’s election have faltered in March, with the dollar down 1.6 percent and the S&P 500 headed for its worst month since October.
     “Whatever the case may be, tax reform was always second on the agenda. What may have changed is that now they’ll go to tax reform next and not come back to this,” Joe LaVorgna, Deutsche Bank AG chief U.S economist, said in a phone interview.
     Read our Markets Live blog here.
     Here are the main moves in markets:
     Stocks
* The S&P 500 ended 0.1 percent lower at 2,343.98 at 4 p.m. in New York. The index fell 1.4 percent in the five days, its worst week since Nov. 4.
* Banks led losses in the week with a 3.8 percent rout that was the biggest since January 2016. Health-care shares slid 1.3 percent in the week.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.2 percent to cap a 0.5 percent drop in the year.
* Japan’s Topix trimmed some losses for a week that included the biggest one-day drop since Trump’s election. The index finished with a 1.4 percent decline for the week. The MSCI Asia Pacific fared better, with a 0.1 percent decrease.

     Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Index lost 0.1 percent as it heads for a weekly slide of 0.7 percent. The measure Thursday eked out a gain to snap a six-day losing streak.
* The British pound weakened 0.3 percent to $1.2479, while the euro added 0.1 percent to $1.0797.
* The Mexican peso has rallied about 9 percent versus the dollar this year, setting up for the best first quarter performance in more than two decades.

     Bonds
* U.S. Treasuries rose, pushing the 10-year yield down to 2.41 percent.
* Ten-year yields remained pinned between the average price over the past 50 days and the 100-day moving average for a third straight day.
* European bonds shrugged off stronger-than-expected purchasing managers data out of Germany and France. French 10-year yields dropped six basis points to 0.982 percent.
* The yield on bund benchmarks fell three basis points to 0.40 percent.

     Commodities
* Crude capped a weekly loss as OPEC and its market allies prepared to review cuts, while rising U.S. inventories indicated the measures aren’t working yet.
* West Texas Intermediate rose 27 cents Friday to settle at $47.97 a barrel, trimming the weekly loss to 1.7 percent.999
* Gold futures were little changed near $1,250, holding the week’s gain at 1.4 percent.
* Iron ore futures in China posted an unprecedented weekly loss; the most-active contract in Singapore is lower for a sixth day; and spot prices had the biggest slump since November.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Be magnificent!

You have to stand against the whole world although you may have to stand alone.
You have to stare the world in the face although the world may look at you with a bloodshot eye.
Do not fear.
Trust that little thing in you which resides in the heart and says:
forsake friends, wife, all, but testify to that for which you have lived and for which you have to die.
Mahatma Gandhi

As ever,
 

Carolann

One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.
                                                      -Malala Yousafzai, b. 1997

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
(C): 250.881.0801
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com