November 14, 2018 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
1666: first blood transfusion.
1948: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, b.
1840: Claude Monet, b.

ICYMI (in today’s New York Times):

Would you order books, clothing and appliances from a company whose name accidentally evoked a mortuary? Or, deliberately, ruthless persistence? 

Ina Fassbender/DPA, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images 

In 1994, Jeff Bezos considered many potential names before choosing Amazon, referencing one of the world’s longest rivers. Now, 24 years later, his bookseller has expanded into one of the world’s largest retailers, and it’s splitting its second headquarters between a Washington suburb and a New York neighborhood. 

Would it have been as successful had Mr. Bezos stuck with Cadabra? He liked the echo of magic — but people tended to hear it as “cadaver.” 

He hasn’t ever fully given up on Relentless.com, which still forwards to Amazon. (The company’s naming is recounted in “The Everything Store,” by Brad Stone, and was confirmed by Allison Flicker, an Amazon spokeswoman.) 

Worth noting: Amazon’s corporate arrival in New York City, confirmed this week, is something of a homecoming for Mr. Bezos, who was working at a New York hedge fund when the idea for Amazon was born. 

Andrea Kannapell wrote today’s Back Story, NY TIMES, November 14^th, 2018.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

This is the dramatic moment a lightning storm struck five miles out to sea off to create a spectacular night sky. Photographer Jamie Russell took the snap which shows a menacing storm cloud being lit by the moon. In the foreground the lights of Isle of Wight coastal town of Sandown can be seen, just before it is hit by the squall. Credit: Islandvisions/BNPS

Aerial picture shows traffic on an elevated intersection in downtown Shanghai. Credit: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images

An aircraft passes the half moon over Frankfurt, Germany. Credit: AP Photo/Michael Probst
Market Closes for November 14^th, 2018

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Canada
By Tatiana Darie
     (Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks bucked Wednesday’s global losing trend to close mainly flat thanks to a rally in gold miners and stellar results from luxury parka maker Canada Goose Holdings. U.S. peers, however, saw a fifth straight loss as investors remained on edge amid ongoing concerns over trade, political turmoil and economic growth.
     The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed up 0.01 percent, rising for the first time in five sessions. Gold miners rose as precious-metal prices got a boost from investors seeking shelter from Brexit turmoil. Meanwhile, pot stocks, real estate and industrials were the session’s laggards.
Stocks
* Tahoe Resources Inc. surged 49 percent after Pan American Silver agreed to buy the company for “base purchase price” of $1.07 billion. Analysts said Pan American’s offer is unlikely to see rival bid.
* CAE Inc. jumped 8.5 percent after a Macquarie analyst upgraded the maker of flight simulators, citing M&A, stronger organic outlook and valuation.
* Stelco Holdings Inc. surged 9.7 percent a day after reporting higher-than-expected profit and projecting stable prices.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $40.50 discount to WTI
* Gold gained 0.9 percent to $1,212.0 an ounce FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar is little changed at C$1.3237 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield fell 3 basis points to 2.423%
US
By Jeremy Herron and Vildana Hajric
     (Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell for a fifth straight day as investors remained on edge over trade, political turmoil and economic growth. Crude halted its longest losing streak on record. The S&P 500 Index slumped to the lowest in two weeks after a key Democrat raised questions about the revamped Nafta deal and selling in Apple Inc. rekindled worry that mega cap tech earnings have peaked. An afternoon respite from the selling sparked by U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May clinching a Brexit deal with her cabinet gave way to a tumble into the close.
     Goldman Sachs’s woes continued, with the bank down 13 percent in four days to the lowest since November 2016. Treasuries rose with gold as investors sought out havens ahead of comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell at 6 p.m. New York time. West Texas crude climbed above $56 a barrel after plunging for a record 12 straight days. Natural gas surged as unseasonably cold weather threatens the U.S. Northeast. Bitcoin tumbled to the lowest level of the year. PG&E Corp. plummeted as much as 32 percent after the company said it had exhausted its revolving credit lines to deal with wildfires.
     “There’s a lot of different factors that are weighing on risk assets,” said Mark Heppenstall, chief investment officer, Penn Mutual Asset Management. “From individual company concerns, to wildfires in California, to some very odd behavior in the price of oil and natural gas. The other thing is the Fed is probably going to be put to its real first test where the markets may begin to question how wise it is.”
     Comments from a key Democrat rekindled concern that the revamped Nafta deal won’t end tensions among North American partners at the same time that negotiations with China remain fraught. Trade has weighed on equity markets since the U.S. began slapping tariffs on goods as a key part of the agenda to revamp deals. Markets got a reprieve from the rout in crude, but questions remain about the sharp downturn in the tech sector and the future of interest rates. Brexit and Italian risks linger, and key reports on the crude market are also imminent.
Focus will turn this evening to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, with some observers expecting him to calm worries about the central bank pushing its interest rate-hike cycle too far. That comes after the latest read on China’s economy, where retail sales missed estimates, though industrial production held up.
     In Europe, the Stoxx 600 was dragged down by sectors including mining and energy, though good news for autos helped offset the slide. The pound had weakened after inflation undershot estimates, but trimmed the drop as traders wait to see if Theresa May can persuade colleagues to back her Brexit deal. Italy’s 10-year bonds slipped after the government submitted a defiant budget to the European Commission on Tuesday.
Coming Up
* Powell discusses national and global economic issues with Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan at an event hosted by the Dallas Fed. 
* Theresa May will ask her divided Cabinet ministers to back her Brexit deal or quit at a meeting on Wednesday.
* Policy decisions are coming from central banks in Mexico, Philippines, and Thailand.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 0.8 percent at 4:04 p.m. New York time. 
* The Nasdaq 100 lost 0.8 percent. The Russell 2000 slid 0.8 percent.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 0.6 percent.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dipped 0.2 percent to the lowest in two weeks.
* The MSCI Emerging Market Index advanced less than 0.1 percent, the first advance in a week.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was flat.
* The euro gained less than 0.1 percent to $1.1285.
* The British pound fell 0.5 percent to $1.291.
* The Japanese yen added 0.1 percent to 113.65 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries slid three basis points to 3.11 percent.
* The two-year rate slipped three basis points to 2.85 percent.
* Germany’s 10-year yield fell less than one basis point to 0.41 percent.
* Britain’s 10-year yield dipped two basis points to 1.501 percent.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 1 percent to $56.26 a barrel, the first advance in almost three weeks and the largest surge in six weeks.
* Gold futures rose 0.8 percent to $1,211.40 an ounce.
* Natural gas futures surged 17 percent.
–With assistance from Sophie Caronello, Adam Haigh and Samuel Potter.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.
                                -Margaret Thatcher, 1925-2013

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
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www.carolannsteinhoff.com