November 12, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Age is just a number. Japanese multimedia artist Yayoi Kusama isn’t slowing down at age 90. Her latest exhibition could have New Yorkers waiting up to 2 hours to spend a single minute in one of her famous infinity mirror rooms. Her work is displayed this month at the David Zwirner Gallery, in a show entitled “Every Day I Pray for Love.” –Bloomberg.
The following excerpt, long a favourite of General Douglas MacArthur, is taken from the book, “From the Summit of Years, Four Score” by Samuel Ullman.  It first appeared in December, 1945:
Youth is not a time of life.  It’s a state of mind.  It’s a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a vigor of the emotions, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over love of ease.

“Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years.   People grow old only by deserting their ideals.  Years wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.

Worry, doubt, self-distrust, fear and despair – these bow the head and turn the growing spirit back to dust.  Whether 60 or 16, there is in every being’s heart the love of wonder, the sweet amazement at the stars and star-like things and thoughts, the undaunted challenge of events, the unfailing childlike appetite for what-next, and the job of the game of living.

You are as young as your faith , as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope, as old as your despair.

So long as your heart receives messages of beauty, cheer, courage, grandeur and power from earth, from man and from the infinite, so long are you young.

When the wires are all down, and all the central places of your heart are covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then, and only  then, are you grown old indeed, and may God have mercy on your soul.

Live every day of your life as though you expect to live forever.”

Ah but I was so much older then.  I’m younger than that now. -Bob Dylan, My Back Pages.

1840- Auguste Rodin, French sculptor born.
1929- Grace Kelly was born.
On Nov. 12, 1942, the World War II naval Battle of Guadalcanal began. The Americans eventually won a major victory over the Japanese. Go to article »

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

The Turner Prize-winning artist and Oscar-winning filmmaker, Steve McQueen has created one of the most ambitious visual portraits of citizenship ever undertaken in one of the world’s largest cities. Using the medium of the traditional school class photograph, this installation brings together images of tens of thousands of Year 3 pupils from across London. It offers us a glimpse of the city’s future – a hopeful portrait of a generation to come.
CREDIT: ELLIOTT FRANKS

U.S singer Taylor Swift performs at a show to mark Alibaba’s 11.11 Singles’ Day global shopping festival in Shanghai, China.
CREDIT: REUTERS/STRINGER 

Passengers are seen silhouetted by the moon as they rise on the Emirates Air Line cable car over the River Thames in London, Britain.
CREDIT: REUTERS/TOBY MELVILLE

Market Closes for November 12^th, 2019  

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1999, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, or the “Financial Services Modernization Act,” was signed into law by President Bill Clinton—essentially repealing the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which banned banks from the brokerage business. From then on, banking, insurance and brokerage could all be conducted under one giant roof.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci and Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks advanced Tuesday while U.S. shares eked out small gains as investors studied the likelihood of a partial trade deal between the U.S. and China. The S&P/TSX Composite rose for an eighth day, climbing 26.62, or 0.2%, to 16,909.38 in Toronto. 117 of 233 shares rose Tuesday, while 107 fell; 6 of 11 sectors were higher, led by materials producers. Meanwhile, Canada Goose Holdings Inc. reports second- quarter results pre-market on Wednesday, and analysts are betting the upscale coat maker’s revenue grew about 16%, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $19 discount to WTI
* Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,458.35
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was little changed at C$1.3238 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield rose 1.6 basis points to 1.597%
Insights
* This year, the index rose 18%, heading for the best year in at least 10 years
* The index advanced 12% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 13 percent in the same period
================================================================
|Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | 12.4098| 0.7| 33/13
Energy | 9.3005| 0.3| 10/22
Financials | 5.0223| 0.1| 17/9
Communication Services | 2.9551| 0.3| 4/2
Information Technology | 2.1801| 0.3| 4/5
Utilities | 0.4800| 0.1| 11/5
Consumer Discretionary | -0.1417| 0.0| 9/6
Consumer Staples | -0.6253| -0.1| 3/6
Real Estate | -0.9986| -0.2| 9/15
Health Care | -1.7990| -0.8| 4/6
Industrials | -2.1609| -0.1| 13/18
US
By Randall Jensen and Claire Ballentine
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks edged higher as investors measured the likelihood of a partial trade deal between America and China. The dollar and Treasuries advanced. The S&P 500 eked out a gain after retreating from a record as remarks by President Donald Trump didn’t add much insight into negotiations between the world’s two largest economies. He did say a deal could happen soon, but he also said no agreement would mean significant tariff increases. Earlier, the benchmark pushed through 3,100 for the first time partly on hopes the president would make positive comments on trade. In company news, Facebook Inc. surged as it announced a new payment feature, and Walt Disney Co. rose after its much- anticipated streaming service debuted. Health care shares paced the advance as drugmaker AbbVie Inc. gained amid what may be the largest bond sale of the year. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 1.91% before Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell addresses Congress Wednesday. The dollar rose for the sixth time in seven sessions, testing its moving average of the last 100 days. Crude edged lower.
“The rough edges of a deal are there, I think the market understands that. I didn’t see anything in the speech that would make me change my mind on that,” said Michael Antonelli, managing director and market strategist at Robert W. Baird & Co. “Optimism over some bigger deal is probably cooling off at the margin.” With most earnings now out of the way and major central banks thought to be on hold, investor focus has turned firmly to trade. Hopes for a first-phase deal between the U.S. and China fueled a risk rally and bond sell-off last week, before Trump’s comments over the weekend cooled some of the optimism. Elsewhere, the yen rose along with gold. Nickel headed for its longest run of losses in almost a year.
Here are some key events coming up this week:
* Earnings season is slowing. Reports are due this week from companies including Tencent, Japan Post Bank, Walmart, Cisco and Mitsubishi UFJ.
* A New Zealand rate decision is due Wednesday, with market pricing tilting in favor of a cut.
* Fed Chairman Jerome Powell addresses the Joint Economic Committee of Congress in Washington Wednesday.
* Thursday brings China retail sales and industrial production data.
* U.S. retail sales on Friday are forecast to rebound in October after unexpectedly falling the prior month.

These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 Index rose 0.2% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.4%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.4%.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index climbed 0.1%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gained 0.2%.
* The euro decreased 0.2% to $1.1009.
* The British pound fell less than 0.1% to $1.2851.
* The Japanese yen rose at 109.08 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries fell three basis points to 1.91%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield fell less than one basis point to -0.252%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield was unchanged at 0.807%.
Commodities
* Gold gained 0.2% at $1,459.17 an ounce.
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.1% to $56.80 a barrel.
–With assistance from Sophie Caronello.
Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naïve forgive and forget;
the wise  forgive but do not forget.
-Thomas Szasz, 1920-2012

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