Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Friday Eve.

Nov. 20, 1945: The Nuremberg Trials begin, establishing the precedent for prosecuting crimes against humanity and war crimes under international law. 24 Nazi leaders went on trial before an international war crimes tribunal in Nuremberg, Germany. Go to article.

November 20th: Mexico Revolution Day.

Edwin Hubble, American astronomer, b.1889.

Robert F. Kennedy, senator, b.1925.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest turned 50 yesterday.

NASA teams capture images of interstellar comet
This rare comet is only the third observed interstellar object, or ISO, to originate outside of our solar system and pass through it.

Cruise ship death
The mysterious death of a high school cheerleader on a Carnival cruise ship earlier this month is drawing international attention.

What is the K-shaped economy?
In this short video, CNN’s David Goldman shows how a $12 Chipotle burrito and a tube sock can explain the entire US economy.

Behind the effort to save Africa’s ‘cryptic’ golden cat
A Ugandan conservationist is using camera traps and AI algorithms to save the African golden cat, one of the least studied big cats on the continent.

Sunken city discovered in Kyrgyzstan lake was a medieval hotspot on the Silk Road — until an earthquake wiped it out

Archaeologists in Kyrgyzstan have discovered the remains of a drowned medieval city that was once a Silk Road hotspot. Read More.

‘Impossible’ black hole collision pushed relativity to its breaking point — and scientists finally understand how

In 2023, scientists detected the gravitational waves from a black hole collision that seemed impossible. New research finally explains how this "forbidden" black hole came to be, and what it can teach us about these extreme objects. Read More.

Kissing goes back 21 million years, to the common ancestor of humans and other large apes, study finds

Scientists traced kissing back to a primate ancestor that lived around 21 million years ago. Read More.

Human trash is ‘kick-starting’ the domestication of city-dwelling raccoons, study suggests

Raccoons that live near humans had shorter snouts than rural raccoons, a trait that tends to arise in the early stages of domestication. Read More.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Seaham, England

People pass the Tommy statue, officially named 1101, on Terrace Green by the seafront, which is covered in snow
Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA

Newtonmore, UK

A Robin perches on an icy tree in the Cairngorms
Photograph: Jane Barlow/PA

Suqian, China

Farmers feed crabs under Metasequoia trees at the Sihong county ecological breeding base in Jiangsu province
Photograph: Costfoto/NurPhoto/Shutterstock

Market Closes for November 20th, 2025

Market Index	Close	Change
Dow Jones	45752.26	-386.51
		-0.84%
S&P 500	6538.76	-103.40
		-1.56%
NASDAQ	22078.05	-486.18
		-2.15%
TSX	29906.55	-371.86
		-1.23%

International Markets

Market Index	Close	Change
NIKKEI	49823.94	+1286.24
		+2.65%
HANG SENG	25835.57	+4.92
		+0.02%
SENSEX	85632.68	+446.21
		+0.52%
FTSE 100*	9527.65	+20.24
		+0.21%

Bonds

Bonds	% Yield	Previous % Yield
CND. 10 Year Bond	3.223	3.256
CND. 30 Year Bond	3.674	3.707
U.S. 10 Year Bond	4.0845	4.1425
U.S. 30 Year Bond	4.7229	4.7577

BOC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.7093	0.7118
US $	1.4097	1.4047

Euro Rate 1 Euro=		Inverse
Canadian $	1.6251	0.6153
US $	1.1528	0.8674

Commodities

Gold	Close	Previous
London Gold Fix	4126.95	4060.85
Oil
WTI Crude Future	59.14	59.44

Market Commentary:

On this day in 1991, Cascade International, a fashion chain ranked No. 26 on BusinessWeek’s 1990 list of “hot growth companies,” said its chairman had disappeared—as had more than 200 stores. He had claimed that Cascade had between 255 and 400 outlets. In reality, there were fewer than 30. They were later sold for a fraction of the chain’s peak value.

Canada

By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 1.2% at 29,906.55 in Toronto.
The index dropped to the lowest closing level since Nov. 6 after the previous session’s increase of 0.8%.
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 5.2%.
Energy Fuels Inc/Canada had the largest drop, falling 14.6%.
Today, 163 of 212 shares fell, while 47 rose; 9 of 11 sectors were lower, led by materials stocks.
Insights
* In the past year, the index had a similar or greater loss 15 times. The next day, it advanced nine times for an average 1.5% and declined six times for an average 1.8%
* This year, the index rose 21%, heading for the best year since 2021
* This month, the index fell 1.2%, heading for the biggest decline since March
* So far this week, the index fell 1.4%, heading for the biggest decline since the week ended Oct. 10
* The index advanced 19% in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 11% in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 3.1% below its 52-week high on Nov. 12, 2025 and 34.5% above its low on April 7, 2025
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 1.1% in the past 5 days and fell 1.7% in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.3 on a trailing basis and 18.8 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 2.4% on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$4.81t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 16.17% compared with 15.91% in the previous session and the average of 13.83% over the past month
Index Points
Materials | -229.0408| -4.5| 2/48
Energy | -45.9389| -0.9| 5/32
Information Technology| -45.0903| -1.5| 3/6
Industrials | -26.7851| -0.8| 6/23
Financials | -24.3864| -0.2| 8/16
Utilities | -6.5652| -0.6| 4/10
Communication Services| -2.6732| -0.4| 2/3
Real Estate | -1.7080| -0.4| 5/14
Health Care | -1.2574| -1.6| 1/3
Consumer Discretionary| 1.8717| 0.2| 5/4
Consumer Staples | 9.7238| 0.9| 6/4
Agnico Eagle Mines | Ltd | -42.7800| -5.2| -30.7| 98.9
Celestica | -33.6400| -9.5| 24.3| 200.0
Barrick Mining | -27.2200| -4.3| 30.9| 127.9
Loblaw | 3.3490| 1.4| -24.1| 31.5
Couche-Tard | 4.3990| 1.2| -26.3| -12.2
Dollarama | 6.3430| 1.7| -21.3| 41.4
MT Newswires:
The Toronto Stock Exchange slumped again Thursday as investors remain jittery about big tech’s huge artificial intelligence spending commitments, even after Nvidia (NVDA) posted strong results yesterday, and this is seen leading to a correction in technology valuations across North America.
The resources-heavy TSX closed down 371.86 points, or 1.2%, at 29,906.55, not helped by lower commodity prices and with most sectors lower.
The index here was actually up over 300 points in early trade but then swung nearly 700 points through the rest of the session as first AI fears resurfaced and then took over market sentiment.
Among sectors, Base Metals was down 4% and Info Tech down 2.55%.
But the Battey Metals Index did manage to achieve gains of 2.9%.
Veteran economist David Rosenberg said it has been many decades since one stock could move the market like Nvidia.
Then again, he noted, it is a near-US$5 trillion mega cap that accounts for 8% of the S&P 500, and the company did indeed deliver across the top line, bottom line, and forward guidance after the bell yesterday.
"The results kyboshed the malaise in the growth arena of the past several weeks," he added.
Still, Rosenberg said valuations "look excessive" even with strong AI Growth.
He added: "This remains a bubble of epic proportions, keep that in mind, and while not in the same league as the late 1990s, a 38x P/E multiple for the Tech sector is about 60% above the two-decade average of 24x.
Do the discounted cash flow assumptions really make sense even in the aftermath of Nvidia’s results? Color me a skeptic that the total size of the AI market is going to swell eightfold in the next half-decade, which is what is currently being priced in."
Rosenberg noted the S&P 500 has become "concentrated like never before", with the top 10 companies comprising 40% of the total market capitalization.
And he noted, even within that group the concentration has really narrowed to a Mag Three; Nvidia, Microsoft, and Alphabet, the only three of the Magnificent Seven that have managed to outperform the index this year.
"What was not resolved in Nvidia’s results were all the issues still overhanging the rest of the Tech sector — the circularity of the deals being announced, the debt binge, the strains on the energy grid, and the intensifying competition coming out of China," Rosenberg added.
Of commodities, gold prices eased Thursday even as the dollar and treasuries weakened as hopes for a December interest-rate cut from the Federal Reserve continue to fade.
Gold for December delivery was down $16.30 to US$4,066.50 per ounce.
Also, West Texas Intermediate oil closed lower, a day ahead of the start of U.S. sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil producers as rising supply offsets strong demand for refined products.
WTI crude oil for December delivery closed down $0.30 to settle at US$59.14 per barrel, while January Brent oil was last seen down $0.23 to US$63.28.
US
By Rita Nazareth
(Bloomberg) — Volatility resurfaced on Wall Street in a session that saw tech stocks falling alongside cryptocurrencies amid an unwinding in speculative areas of the market just as worries grow about the Federal Reserve’s ability to cut interest rates.
Thursday was a session in which assets favored by retail momentum traders got hammered, among them crypto and the artificial-intelligence space.
Amid the de-risking, the S&P 500 erased its rally, falling 1.6%.
Nvidia Corp. tumbled 3% as questions lingered about elevated valuations and investments despite a strong outlook.
Bitcoin sank below $87,000 for the first time since April.
Shortly before 11 a.m. New York time, Steve Sosnick was on a call being asked about the rebirth of equity-market enthusiasm in the wake of a good report from Nvidia.
His counterpart asked if he really thought that a break in Bitcoin could affect the entire US stock market.
And he said, “unfortunately, yes.”
“It’s become such a proxy for speculation that I can’t be the only person using it as a signal,” the Interactive Brokers strategist noted.
“For better or worse, I was proven correct. As a long-time systematic trader, it tells me that algorithms are acting upon the relationship between stocks and Bitcoin.”
Meantime, investors remained unsure about the Fed’s scope for policy easing after a mixed — and stale — jobs report.
That’s not to mention the continued raft of Fed speakers showing apprehension about further rate cuts.
To be fair, bond traders slightly boosted bets that the Fed will lower borrowing costs after the data. But the odds remain slim.
Treasury two-year yields slid five basis points to 3.54%.
The dollar hit a six-month high.
The Nasdaq 100 lost 2.4%.
Nvidia erased an over 5% advance.
Wall Street’s closely watched gauge of stock volatility — the VIX — topped 26.
The heightened swings came just ahead of Friday’s expiration of an estimated $3.1 trillion of notional options.
“Macro headwinds haven’t magically disappeared,” said Fawad Razaqzada at City Index.
“With earnings season essentially behind us, investors don’t have many fresh catalysts to prove that tech demand outside Nvidia is equally resilient. That limits the upside for broader indices.”
To Adam Phillips at EP Wealth Advisors, investors are becoming reacquainted with the laws of gravity after enjoying a sustained rally in equities over the past several months.
“We may have further to go, but we view this as a healthy retracement that suggests investors are paying attention to the risks in the current environment,” he said.
Phillips doesn’t see signs of an AI bubble forming, though he’s mindful of the “lofty expectations” now embedded in many AI names with stretched valuations and heavy infrastructure spending.
“Our overall stance on equities remains neutral, and we’re positioned for broader market participation in the coming months,” he noted.
The renewed tech slide comes at a time when investors have grown concerned about valuations, the circular nature of financing on AI deals and the vast sums being spent on infrastructure without much to show for it.
“Let’s face it, most of the recent consternation surrounding the AI industry has little (if anything) to do with demand for AI chips,” said Matt Maley at Miller Tabak.
“The concerns have really surrounded the question about whether the buyers of these chips are going to make the kind of profits from their massive spending, which the stock market has been pricing in for many months now.”
“Nvidia delivered what the market needed, but the deeper questions haven’t gone away — from whether mega caps can monetize their massive AI capex to how sustainable debt-fueled spending really is,” said Dilin Wu at Pepperstone Group.
To Adam Crisafulli of Vital Knowledge, everything comes back to AI. “AI is the single most-powerful force in the entire market,” he said.
“And the poor price action in AI-linked stocks over the last 2.5 weeks was NOT because of any doubt about near- term data center trends – everyone knew infrastructure spending is still extreme.
Therefore, Nvidia’s report was hardly dispositive as far as quieting the skeptics.”
Even Nvidia’s upbeat report has not been enough to reverse recent market headwinds, noted Dennis DeBusschere at 22V Research.
“Over the past two weeks, internals have been tilted risk- off with low volatility taking leadership across all market caps,” he said.
At Citadel Securities, Scott Rubner pointed to a key group These funds, which adjust exposure mechanically based on price trends and volatility, have “clearly entered a de-risking phase,” reducing their equity holdings into the recent weakness.
To Rubner, those mechanical outflows are likely to stay heavy over the next few days, then fade away completely.
It’s not the time to bet against the biggest US technology names, according to short-seller Carson Block, even as warnings rise about a potential bubble in artificial intelligence.
“I would much rather be long than be short in this market,” Block, chief executive officer of Muddy Waters Capital, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television.
“If you’re out there trying to short Nvidia or any of these big tech names, you’re not going to be in business very long.”
“With Nvidia earnings now behind us and the Fed unlikely to cut in December, investors are left questioning what remains to drive a year-end rally,” said Chris Murphy at Susquehanna International Group.
“High-valuation leaders from earlier this quarter” retraced alongside Bitcoin “underscoring a risk-off tone in speculative assets.”
Jack Janasiewicz at Natixis Investment Managers Solutions is also keeping a close eye on Bitcoin.
“It just kept heading south and then stocks eventually caught the downdraft as well,” he said.
“The fact that bonds are rallying is maybe a good sign too. So perhaps we are seeing a little risk on, risk off rotation.”
Also not helping sentiment was a dated snapshot of the labor market that likely doesn’t change much for Fed officials, many of whom were already leaning away from cutting rates again next month.
US job growth topped expectations in September but the unemployment rate continued its march higher, underscoring the lingering fragility of the labor market. Separate data showed US initial jobless claims fell to 220,000 last week, indicating that employers are largely still holding onto current workers despite economic uncertainty.
To Kay Haigh at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, a December cut remains possible given continued labor market softness as expressed by the unemployment rate.
Meantime, David Russell at TradeStation says that with November’s jobless claims showing the labor market is still healthy, it suggests the Fed has little reason to cut rates next month.
The jobs report is a “non-event to markets given how stale the data is, but not to the Fed – this report is yet another call for a status quo period for the US central bank,” said Florian Ielpo at Lombard Odier Asset Management.
While better than expected, the September jobs report doesn’t signal an “all clear” for the jobs market, said Jim Baird at Plante Moran Financial Advisors.
“The September jobs report – along with any other data that suggests that the labor economy may be stabilizing – should buy additional time for policymakers, potentially until there’s greater clarity on the near-term inflation path and reassurance that further easing won’t ignite another round of excessive pressure on consumer prices,” said Baird.
“September’s payroll numbers may have surprised to the upside, but in terms of the Fed’s December interest rate decision, October is what mattered,” said Ellen Zentner at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.
“With that data now delayed until after the FOMC meeting, the Fed’s rate-cut path has more question marks.”
Overall, the available economic data has supported a December cut, but given the Fed’s cautious bent, she said officials may choose to wait until it has more numbers in hand.
Although the September numbers were stronger than expected, the overall state of the US labor market remains weak, according to Eugenio Aleman at Raymond James.
“We expect the number of jobs for October to be negative due to a large number of federal workers dropping out of the payroll during that month, he said.
“All this will make the December decision by the Federal Reserve even more difficult and thus could push members to pause until they have a clearer view on the labor market.”
To Krishna Guha at Evercore, the next two months’ employment reports will be weak.
“Step back and the takeaway is the data will not decide this,” Guha said.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell “will have to make the call based on his judgment on the right reaction function and committee management,” he said.
Either decision will “fracture” the Committee, Guha noted.
“We weigh the likelihood of a still bigger fracture with a cut against what we suspect is still Powell’s own bias to err in the direction of taking out one final dollop of risk insurance,” he concluded.
“We maintain our call for a Fed rate cut in December, as we think the rising unemployment rate should ease concerns about inadvertently overheating the labor market over the short run,” said James Egelhof and Andrew Husby at BNP Paribas.
Traders also kept a close eye on some officials speaking Thursday.
Fed Governor Michael Barr said the US central bank needs to proceed with caution in considering additional rate cuts with inflation still running above the target. Following fresh jobs data, Barr said he sees the labor market “kind of cooling,” with the economy creating jobs near the so-called break-even pace that keeps unemployment steady.
Fed Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack said lowering rates to support the labor market could extend the period of above-target inflation and increase financial stability risks.
Her Chicago counterpart Austan Goolsbee signaled that he’s still apprehensive about delivering another rate cut at the central bank’s December meeting.
Thursday’s jobs report also showed the monthly gain in average hourly earnings was the smallest since June.
Economists pay close attention to this metric as a driver of household spending, which has become even more bifurcated with the wealthiest Americans propelling nearly half of total spending.
“Wage data will not spook the Fed from an inflation standpoint, yet we remain in ‘data limbo’ and will for some time,” said Steve Wyett at BOK Financial.

Corporate Highlights:
* White House officials are urging members of Congress to reject a measure that would limit Nvidia Corp.’s ability to sell AI chips to China and other adversary nations, according to people familiar with the matter, dimming prospects for legislation opposed by the world’s most valuable company.
* Alphabet Inc.’s Google said it has developed a way for its latest Pixel smartphones to exchange images and other files with iPhones using Apple Inc.’s AirDrop protocol, a bold attempt to undermine the exclusivity of its rival’s closely guarded ecosystem.
* Palo Alto Networks Inc. announced on Wednesday that it was acquiring Chronosphere Inc. for $3.35 billion to boost its AI- enabled cybersecurity offerings.
* Walmart Inc. raised its full-year sales and profit outlook; a sign the world’s biggest retailer is winning over price- sensitive shoppers while absorbing rising costs.
** Walmart said it will move its stock listing to the Nasdaq, marking the largest defection in the New York Stock Exchange’s history.
* Verizon Communications Inc. announced wide-ranging layoffs Thursday morning that will shrink the company by as much as 20% of its non-union workforce, a major step in a turnaround plan led by new Chief Executive Officer Dan Schulman.
* Banks led by Morgan Stanley have finalized the sale of $589 million in data center bonds by ServerFarm, after delaying the deal on concerns over the data centers’ reliance on revenue from Chinese technology giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
* Netflix Inc. has told management of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. that it will keep releasing the studio’s films in theaters if it’s successful in buying the company, people familiar with the matter said.
* Paramount Skydance Corp. has won the bid for the television rights for the Champions League in the UK and Germany, according to a person familiar with the matter, marking the first time the US media group has made a major international sporting push.
* The changes to global trade and supply chains driven by factors including technology and geopolitical risks are likely to persist over the long term, according to FedEx Corp. Chief Executive Officer Raj Subramaniam.
* The United Parcel Service Inc. freighter that crashed this month when the left engine detached just after takeoff showed fatigue cracks in several sections that secured the turbine, a preliminary report into the accident that killed 14 people revealed.
* Abbott Laboratories agreed to acquire cancer-screening company Exact Sciences Corp., in a deal with a total equity value of about $21 billion.
* Moderna Inc. said it had secured a loan for up to $1.5 billion, a move aimed at shoring up the company’s finances as it struggles with the decline of its Covid business.
* Bath & Body Works Inc. cut its full-year outlook and announced a turnaround plan to refocus the home products retailer on its core business.
* Exxon Mobil Corp. lifted a force majeure on its Rovuma liquefied natural gas project in Mozambique as security concerns subside, a key step toward sanctioning the development and committing construction funds.
* Cipher Mining Inc. raised more money for data center construction on Thursday after agreeing to provide additional computing capacity to Fluidstack Ltd. and securing an additional backstop from Alphabet Inc.’s Google.
* Sun Life Financial Inc.’s newly unified asset-management division plans to hire about 20 senior executives as it looks to turn a collection of investment managers into a more coordinated global powerhouse.
* Novartis AG boosted its sales targets for two key cancer drugs, underscoring confidence in its oncology pipeline.
* BNP Paribas SA announced a new buyback and plans to reach a target for capital strength early as Chief Executive Officer Jean-Laurent Bonnafe seeks to reverse a recent slide in the stock price.
* Siemens Energy AG announced its biggest share buyback since the turbine maker went public five years ago amid optimism around surging data-center investments.
* Merck KGaA, a German science group, will use Valo Health Inc.’s AI platform to help discover and develop treatments for Parkinson’s disease and related disorders, in a partnership deal that could be worth more than $3 billion.
* Stellantis NV traded more blows with BYD Co., saying its Chinese partner Leapmotor is selling more electric vehicles in Europe’s biggest EV market.
* Nordic Capital has raised about €6.2 billion ($7.1 billion) at the first close for its latest flagship fund and a companion vehicle, according to a letter sent to investors.
* Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. secured $1 billion from TPG Inc. to speed its push into artificial intelligence data centers, underscoring the outsourcer’s bid to gain ground in one of technology’s fastest-growing arenas.
What Bloomberg Strategists say…
“The decline in stocks seems to be hitting some of the frothiest names, rather than the highest-beta firms or the AI giants.
Breadth is negative, but not the most negative it has been this week.
It doesn’t appear to be a capitulation yet; rather, a correction lower in certain retail-friendly names as uncertainty continues to shake the crypto market.”
—Sebastian Boyd, Macro Strategist, Markets Live.

Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 fell 1.6% as of 4 p.m. New York time
* The Nasdaq 100 fell 2.4%
* The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8%
* The MSCI World Index fell 1.1%
* Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Total Return Index fell 1.7%
* The Russell 2000 Index fell 1.8%
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%
* The euro fell 0.1% to $1.1525
* The British pound was little changed at $1.3070
* The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 157.56 per dollar
Cryptocurrencies
* Bitcoin fell 4.2% to $86,676.92
* Ether fell 4.7% to $2,849.57
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined four basis points to 4.10%
* Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.72%
* Britain’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 4.59%
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.5% to $59.14 a barrel
* Spot gold was little changed

–With assistance from Vildana Hajric, Isabelle Lee and Denitsa Tsekova.

Have a lovely evening.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

Normality is a paved road: It’s comfortable to walk, but no flowers grow. -Vincent van Gogh, 1853-1890.

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 (Text Only)

Toll Free: 1.877.430.5895

Fax: 778.430.5828

www.carolannsteinhoff.com