March 28th , 2024, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday Eve.
March 28, 1910: The first seaplane in history takes off.  French inventor Henri Fabre’s Canard (Fabre Hydravion)was the first floatplane to take off from the water under its own power.  The first flight measured 457 meters.
On March 28, 1979, America’s worst commercial nuclear accident occurred inside the Unit Two reactor at the Three Mile Island plant near Middletown, Pa.   Go to article >>

Ötzi the Iceman used surprisingly modern technique for his tattoos 5,300 years ago, study suggests
The researchers compared Ötzi’s ancient tattoos with modern tattoos made using different techniques on the skin of one of the authors. Read More

Baltimore bridge collapse: an engineer explains what happened, and what needs to change
Why did the bridge collapse, and what can we do to make other bridges more safe against such collapse? Read More

1st detection of ‘hiccupping’ black hole leads to surprising discovery of 2nd black hole orbiting around it
Scientists found a monster black hole that “hiccups” every 8.5 days, and a smaller black hole that keeps punching through its accretion disk may be to blame. Read More.

Polar vortex is ‘spinning backwards’ above Arctic after major reversal event
Earlier this month, a sudden atmospheric warming event caused the Arctic’s polar vortex to reverse its trajectory. The swirling ring of cold air is now spinning in the wrong direction, which has triggered a record-breaking “ozone spike” and could impact global weather patterns. Read More.

Controversial ‘Titanic’ prop sells at auction
One of the most iconic and hotly-debated props in cinematic history — the floating wood panel from James Cameron’s 1997 movie “Titanic” — recently sold at auction for more than $700,000.

Tiger sharks wearing cameras reveal world’s largest seagrass ecosystem
Scientists fixed tags equipped with cameras onto tiger sharks so that they could view the ocean floor from a new perspective. See the footage here.

The way NFL games start is drastically changing
NFL kickoffs will look dramatically different next season after NFL owners approved new rules that are set to change the way special teams are played.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Les Sables d’Olonne, France
Waves crash against a lighthouse during Storm Nelson
Photograph: Stéphane Mahé/Reuters

Ankara, Turkey
Squirrels scramble up a tree branch at a park as temperatures rise with the arrival of spring
Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

​​​​​​​London, UK
‘The Millennium Bridge on London’s South Bank looking towards St Paul’s Cathedral.’
Photograph: Nick Baldwin
Market Closes for March 28^th, 2024

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1979, a minor malfunction occurred in a cooling mechanism at a nuclear-power plant called Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. One technical error followed another until the malfunction escalated into a “meltdown.”
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose for the second day, climbing 0.3%, or 59.95 to 22,167.03 in Toronto.
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 2.9%.
Seabridge Gold Inc. had the largest increase, rising 9.2%.
Today, 130 of 224 shares rose, while 92 fell; 5 of 11 sectors were higher, led by materials stocks.
Insights
* This quarter, the index rose 5.8%
* This month, the index rose 3.8%
* So far this week, the index rose 0.8%
* The index advanced 13% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 32% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is at its 52-week high and 18.6% above its low on Oct. 27, 2023
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 0.4% 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 18.5 on a trailing basis and 15.2 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 3% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.5t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 7.05% compared with 8.25% in the previous session and the average of 11.26% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | 50.5873| 2.1| 40/10
Energy | 30.1264| 0.8| 32/8
Financials | 19.7774| 0.3| 14/12
Utilities | 6.6390| 0.8| 10/5
Health Care | 0.0866| 0.1| 3/1
Real Estate | -0.5205| -0.1| 12/9
Consumer Discretionary | -0.7643| -0.1| 7/6
Consumer Staples | -3.0437| -0.3| 3/8
Communication Services | -3.7062| -0.5| 1/4
Industrials | -15.6096| -0.5| 5/22
Information Technology | -23.6059| -1.2| 3/7
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Agnico Eagle Mines | 7.9340| 2.9| -4.5| 11.2
Teck Resources | 7.6650| 4.0| 45.7| 10.7
Bank of Montreal | 7.5050| 1.1| 12.6| 0.9
Canadian Pacific Kansas | -4.2360| -0.5| 72.7| 13.9
TD Bank | -6.4520| -0.6| 48.5| -4.5
Shopify | -18.5800| -2.1| -41.6| 1.3
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — A stellar quarter for stocks ended on a positive note amid speculation the Federal Reserve will be able to achieve a soft landing that will keep powering Corporate America.
Wall Street traders sent the S&P 500 to its 22nd record this year after data showed the economy is in good shape, offsetting the latest Fedspeak that reinforced bets officials will be in no rush to cut rates. A $4 trillion surge in US equity values in just three months has startled doomsayers, while leaving a host of strategists scrambling to update their 2024 targets.
“We think the market’s view of where economic fundamentals are heading, rather than any one economist’s or strategist’s view, is what ultimately drives stock market pricing,” said Lori Calvasina at RBC Capital Markets.
Stocks edged up after spending most of the day struggling for direction, with investors digesting Fed Governor Christopher Waller’s remarks that he’d like to see “at least a couple months of better inflation data” before slashing rates. Traders also remained reluctant to make any big bets before the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge and Jerome Powell’s remarks Friday —when markets will be closed.
The S&P 500 topped 5,250, ending with a quarterly rally of over 10%.
The equity benchmark has only seen double-digit gains for two quarters in a row in five instances since 1950, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Two-year yields, which are more sensitive to imminent Fed moves, climbed five basis points to 4.62% in a shortened session ahead of the holiday.
The dollar extended its quarterly advance.
“Right or wrong, expectations for a June rate cut probably won’t shift unless inflation continues to rise and the labor market appears to be a major contributor to the increase,” said Chris Larkin at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley.
In economic data, the government’s two main measures of activity — gross domestic product and consumer spending — posted strong advances at the end of last year.
Consumer sentiment rose markedly toward the end of March, supported by strong stock-market gains and expectations that inflation will continue to ease.
To Chris Zaccarelli at Independent Advisor Alliance, a solid economy — driven by a resilient consumer — sets the table for another strong earnings season.
“For those that are still holding onto the idea that the much-forecasted 2023 recession is right around the corner, they’ve missed an excellent 15 (if not 17) months in the stock market,” Zaccarelli noted.
The S&P 500 will end the year at 5,300 as the consensus real US GDP forecast has climbed in a positive sign for stocks, according to RBC Capital Markets’ Calvasina, who raised her target from 5,150.
The S&P 500 is blowing past milestones this year, even as the rally leads some to worry about the market running too hot.
But now a technical indicator that has an “undefeated” record suggests the momentum isn’t going to fade any time soon.
The relative strength index of the benchmark gauge — which measures price momentum — has closed above a value of 50 for 100 straight trading sessions as of Wednesday’s close, data compiled by SentimenTrader showed.
After a similar show of strength in its price momentum, the S&P 500 was higher every time over the ensuing two, three, six-, and twelve-months periods, the analysis found.
“For now, do not fight the trend — but continue to keep at least one eye on the exits as inflation remains stubborn, macro uncertainty remains elevated, and equity markets remain stretched (overbought) heading into a potentially volatile
election season,” said Dan Wantrobski at Janney Montgomery Scott.
Since World War II, two straight quarters of double-digit S&P 500 gains would be followed by some weakness in the following month — with the gauge climbing by an average of 12.27% one year later, according to Bespoke Investment Group.

* Apple Inc.’s overseas suppliers have ramped up production of the company’s long-anticipated new iPads and a launch is planned for early May, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
* Home Depot Inc. told investors it expects to take on $12.5 billion of debt to help fund its planned purchase of building-products distributor SRS Distribution Inc.
* Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. narrowed its fiscal 2024 guidance citing a challenging retail environment, including reduced consumer spending.
* B. Riley Financial Inc., the boutique investment bank facing questions about its dealings with a former business partner, gained extra time to supply missing financial data to its lenders.
* Palantir Technologies Inc. was cut to sell at Monness, Crespi, Hardt & Co., which cited  “egregiously rich” valuation.
* Estee Lauder Cos. was raised to buy at Bank of America Corp., which said the company’s earnings have now bottomed.
* Country Garden Holdings Co., one of China’s biggest property developers, warned it will miss a deadline for reporting annual results, further complicating plans to restructure its debt following a default last year.

Key events this week:
* Good Friday. Exchanges closed in US and many other countries in observance of holiday. US federal government is open.
* US personal income and spending, PCE deflator, Friday
* San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly speaks, Friday
* Fed Chair Jerome Powell speaks, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 rose 0.1% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.1%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1%
* The MSCI World index was little changed
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%
* The euro fell 0.4% to $1.0788
* The British pound fell 0.2% to $1.2621
* The Japanese yen was little changed at 151.39 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 2.9% to $70,872.76
* Ether rose 1.6% to $3,565.65
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced one basis point to 4.20%
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.30%
* Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 3.93%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2% to $82.99 a barrel
* Spot gold rose 1.2% to $2,221.19 an ounce
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Esha Dey, Jessica Menton and Farah Elbahrawy.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.  Happy Easter J!

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann
You never realize how short a month is until you pay alimony. -John Barrymore, 1882-1942.

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
Fax: 778.430.5828
www.carolannsteinhoff.com