May 23, 2023, Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Tuesday.
May 23, 1430: Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to relieve Compiègne.
On May 23, 1934, bank robbers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were shot to death in a police ambush as they were driving a stolen Ford Deluxe along a road in Bienville Parish, La.  Go to article > 

1895: New York Public Library founded.
These museums showcase the future, not the past.  It appears a different kind of museum is gaining popularity. More people are expressing interest in exhibitions that show what the future may look like.

Supreme Court ducks fight over foie gras.  The controversial delicacy is quite common in France but will remain banned in California.

All butterflies evolved from ancient moths in North America 100 million years ago.  Scientists have painstakingly constructed the world’s biggest butterfly tree of life and discovered that the first butterflies evolved in what is now Central and North America. Read More

Mysterious white, powdery substance found inside 3,000-year-old ruins in Armenia isn’t what it seems .  `Piles of a mysterious white, powdery substance found inside the ruins of a 3,000-year-old building in Armenia are a culinary historian’s dream — the remnants of ancient flour. Read More

Spanish Civil War soldier saw the world ‘backward’ after bullet pierced brain, historic case report reveals.  After being shot in the head in 1938 during the Spanish Civil War, a soldier began seeing the world backward and upside down. Read More

A sanctuary dedicated to psychedelic art opens-up in the Hudson Valley.
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Versailles, France: A guest wearing a baroque-style costume walks through the Hall of Mirrors during the fête galante at the Palace of Versailles. The annual fancy dress ball recreates the splendour of Louis XIV’s dazzling court feasts, which were held to show off the wealth and power of France’s longest-reigning monarch. Photograph: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images

Canudos, Brazil: Lear’s macaws fly over a reserve near a biological station that is close to a wind energy complex. The windfarm, in north-east Brazil, is causing concern because of its impact on the endangered bird species. Photograph: Rafael Martins/AFP/Getty Images

Newbury, UK: A plane flies west over Berkshire beneath a new moon.  Photograph: David Hartley/Shutterstock
Market Closes for May 23^rd, 2023

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
📈 On this day in 1995, Sun Microsystems launched Java, the universal internet programming language that brought “white space” and greater interactivity to millions of websites and internet users.
Canada
By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 1% at 20,146.01 in Toronto.
The index dropped to the lowest closing level since March 31 after the previous session’s increase of 0.3%.
Today, industrials stocks led the market lower, as 9 of 11 sectors lost; 146 of 232 shares fell, while 85 rose.
Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 4.3%.
Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd. had the largest drop, falling 6.2%.
Insights
* This month, the index fell 2.4%
* The index declined 0.3% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 3.5% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 4.2% below its 52-week high on June 2, 2022 and 12.7% above its low on Oct. 13, 2022
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 1.9% in the past 5 days and fell 2.6% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.2 on a trailing basis and 13.6 times estimated earnings ofvits members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 3.3% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$3.24t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 9.91% compared with 9.69% in the previous session and the average of 9.13% over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Industrials | -69.0912| -2.4| 7/20
Materials | -50.2554| -2.0| 15/35
Information Technology | -48.8664| -3.2| 1/11
Consumer Staples | -15.3166| -1.8| 1/10
Communication Services | -12.1965| -1.4| 0/5
Consumer Discretionary | -11.9887| -1.6| 4/11
Financials | -11.1600| -0.2| 14/15
Utilities | -6.1071| -0.7| 4/11
Real Estate | -1.4467| -0.3| 9/12
Health Care | 0.2050| 0.3| 2/4
Energy | 21.1728| 0.6| 28/12
================================================================
| | |Volume VS| YTD
|Index Points | | 20D AVG | Change
Top Contributors | Move | % Change | (%) | (%)
================================================================
Canadian Pacific Kansas | -31.2800| -4.3| 99.4| 5.7
Canadian National | -22.1900| -3.3| 79.2| -2.9
Shopify | -21.1000| -3.1| 47.8| 67.6
Cameco | 5.6220| 5.1| 77.9| 24.6
Brookfield Corp | 7.8400| 1.9| 32.3| -0.4
Canadian Natural Resources | 10.6900| 1.8| 97.8| 4.3
US
By Emily Graffeo and Cristin Flanagan
(Bloomberg) — US stocks fell and short-dated Treasury bills extended losses as negotiations over raising the US debt ceiling remained at an impasse.
Negotiations continued on Tuesday.
However, progress appeared limited, with some House Republicans questioning the urgency imposed by a deadline from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for when the government will start missing some debt
payments.
Investors have been demanding higher premiums to hold US debt, especially those at the highest risk of default, with little time left for politicians to find an agreement.
Yields on securities maturing June 8 are holding above 5.7% compared to bills maturing May 30 that are yielding roughly 2%.
“The fact that some of these politicians are contemplating default publicly is a bad sign,” said Mike Zigmont, head of trading and research at Harvest Volatility Management.
The S&P 500 fell 1.1%, led lower by industrials and communication stocks. Lowe’s Cos. cut its sales outlook, citing a slowdown in consumer spending.
Broadcom Inc. signed a multibillion-dollar deal with Apple Inc. to develop 5G radio frequency components.
And a rout in luxury-goods makers including Hermes International wiped out more than $30 billion in value.
President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy called their discussions on Monday productive.
But an agreement on the debt limit remains elusive, with McCarthy pleading with Republicans to stay united on their demands in order to avert a US default.
“As investors, it’s really hard to price the debt ceiling,” said Remi Olu-Pitan, head of multi-asset growth and income at Schroders. “We have nothing to hold onto. We know that it’s a big risk, but it’s really hard to quantify and position for in advance.”
Invesco Chief Global Market Strategist Kristina Hooper said she sees a brief technical default as a real possibility, which is more likely to be reflected in bond prices, rather than stocks.
“The negotiating parties have gotten more pessimistic,” she said. “And it suggests to me that we’ll see more market turbulence in coming days.”
In economic news, US new-home sales unexpectedly rose to a more than one-year high, and US business activity grew in May by the most in over a year.
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said Tuesday that if inflation were to become more entrenched, the Federal Reserve could keep interest rates elevated for longer.
Minutes expected Wednesday from the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting will offer traders the latest insights into whether interest rates will be paused at the Fed’s next meeting in June.
Key events this week:
* Fed issues minutes of May 2-3 policy meeting, Wednesday
* Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey speaks, Wednesday
* US initial jobless claims, GDP, Thursday
* Interest rate decisions in Turkey, South Africa, Indonesia, South Korea, Thursday
* Tokyo CPI, Friday
* US consumer income, wholesale inventories, durable goods, University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 1.1% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.3%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.7%
* The MSCI World index rose 0.2%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2%
* The euro fell 0.4% to $1.0768
* The British pound fell 0.2% to $1.2410
* The Japanese yen was unchanged at 138.60 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin rose 1.1% to $27,189.22
* Ether rose 1.8% to $1,851.79
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined one basis point to 3.70%
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced one basis point to 2.47%
* Britain’s 10-year yield advanced nine basis points to 4.16%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.5% to $73.10 a barrel
* Gold futures were little changed
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Cecile Gutscher, Tassia Sipahutar, Robert Brand, Jason Scott, Ishika Mookerjee and Allegra Catelli.
Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s life
sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility. -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1807-1882.

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