November 30, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Full Moon tonight – Beaver Moon.

According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, the November full phase is called the Full Beaver Moon, as it is when beavers usually went into their lodges for winter. This beaver moon will undergo a penumbral lunar eclipse, which is when the moon enters the outer part of the Earth’s shadow, called the penumbra.

1016 -Cnut the Great [Canute], King of Denmark, claims the English throne after the death of Edmund, “Ironside”.

Jonathan Swift, b. 1667
Mark Twain, b. 1835
Winston Churchill, b. 1874
Abbie Hoffman, b. 1936
Ben Stiller, b. 1965.

On this day in 1990, after months of joyous destruction by border guards and regular citizens, the Berlin Wall was finally levelled to the ground.

1979 The album “The Wall” by Pink Floyd was released.  Go to article »

That strange silver monolith in Utah that drew otherworldly theories has disappeared.  We really don’t need any more mysteries this year. So, wherever you are, silver monolith, we hope you’re happy. –CNN

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Frozen fog covers the trees in the Taunus region near Frankfurt, Germany.
CREDIT: AP PHOTO/MICHAEL PROBST

Tourists walk amidst fresh snow at the trekking spot named Triund, near Dharamsala, India.
CREDIT: SANJAY BAID/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK

A foggy sunburst through Durdle Door on the Jurassic coast.
CREDIT: RACHELBAKER/BNPS

An Oriental Darter (Anhinga melanogaster) tosses up its catch of a small fish at a lake outside Putrajaya, Malaysia.
CREDIT: AP PHOTO/VINCENT THIAN

Market Closes for November 30^th, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
The S&P 500 hit another record close on Friday, its 26th record close this year. The Nasdaq also hit a record close on Friday, its 45th record close this year.

Canada
By Michael Bellusci
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities slid Monday but still capped off a strong November as vaccine optimism buoyed stocks throughout the month. The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 10.3% in the best monthly gain since April. On Monday, energy shares led the decline while tech was among gainers. OPEC talks ended without an agreement on next year’s oil output, with ministers punting the final decision into a second day of discussions as tensions in the cartel simmered. Private equity firm Sandpiper Group also won its battle to replace the board of Artis Real Estate Investment Trust, taking control of a property portfolio with heavy exposure to oil-producing regions of Canada that have taken a severe economic hit in the pandemic.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $11.35 discount to West Texas Intermediate, as of yesterday
* Spot gold fell 0.7% to $1,775.81 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar rose 0.1% to C$1.2977 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield edged higher to 0.679%
–With assistance from Derek Decloet and Kristine Owram.

By Bloomberg Automation:
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 1.1 percent at 17,205.43 in Toronto. The move was the biggest since falling 2.7 percent on Oct. 28 and follows the previous session’s increase of 0.3 percent. Canadian National Railway Co. contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 3.9 percent. Crescent Point Energy Corp. had the largest drop, falling 9.7 percent. Today, 149 of 222 shares fell, while 70 rose; 8 of 11 sectors were lower, led by financials stocks.
Insights
* This month, the index rose 10 percent, heading for the biggest advance since April
* This year, the index rose 0.7 percent, heading for the best year since 2019
* The index advanced 1 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 16 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 4.3 percent below its 52-week high on Feb. 20, 2020 and 54 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* The S&P/TSX Composite is up 0.6 percent in the past 5 days and rose 10 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.8 on a trailing basis and 23.3 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 3 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.67t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 15.44 percent compared with 14.86 percent in the previous session and the average of 15.36 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | | Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | -104.4387| -2.0| 3/23
Energy | -86.2654| -4.2| 1/22
Industrials | -36.6914| -1.7| 9/19
Real Estate | -7.5435| -1.3| 3/22
Communication Services| -6.7128| -0.8| 1/6
Utilities | -6.4095| -0.7| 5/11
Consumer Discretionary| -6.2573| -1.0| 3/9
Consumer Staples | -0.5816| -0.1| 5/6
Health Care | 1.2276| 0.6| 4/6
Materials | 12.6881| 0.5| 32/19
Information Technology| 34.6716| 2.0| 4/6

US
By Vildana Hajric and Kamaron Leach
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks fell from records as investors assessed the prospects for risk assets after a blistering month long rally. The dollar strengthened. The S&P 500 dropped the most in more than a week, though the benchmark index still registered its best month since April. Global stocks and American small caps posted their best months on record. Broad selling sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average lower. The tech-heavy Nasdaq indexes that trailed in November fared better, briefly touching another record high on Monday. Gold slumped and Bitcoin rallied back to an all-time high. “The market may be getting tired from its very strong November and simultaneous all time highs (DJIA, S&P and Russell 2K), which could push the benchmarks into a traditional mid- December low,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research.
The rapid pace to a coronavirus vaccine has given investors the confidence to price in a return to normalcy and faster economic growth, helping lift shares of companies that were hardest hit by the pandemic. Over the weekend, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said the federal government hopes to quickly review and approve requests from two drugmakers for emergency approval of their Covid-19 vaccines. “November has been such an unbelievable move up,” said Andrew Mies, chief investment officer of 6 Meridian. “All that is being driven by the vaccine.” Shares of Moderna Inc. surged 20% on Monday after the company said it plans to request clearance for its coronavirus vaccine in the U.S. and Europe. The MSCI World Index soared 13% in November, the best performance on record. The risk-on mood across markets has hurt demand for haven assets. Gold posted its largest monthly decline in four years. Even after gaining on Monday, the dollar slumped 2.4% in November.
Oil edged lower in New York. OPEC+ began two days of potentially complicated talks to hash out the size of its oil- production cuts next year, with the group’s president calling for caution in a fragile market. Elsewhere, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index sank 1.6% on Monday, the biggest loss in a month. Bitcoin took less than three years to replicate the euphoric ascent that catapulted the cryptocurrency into the mainstream consciousness. The world’s largest digital-asset gained as much as 8.7% to $19,351, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It traded at a few cents for several years after its late 2008 launch by an unknown software developer in the wake of the global financial crash.
These are some key events coming up:
* The Reserve Bank of Australia holds a policy meeting on Tuesday.
* Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testifies before Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday.
* The U.S. employment report on Friday is expected to show more Americans headed back to work in November, though at a slower pace than last month.

Here are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 Index declined 0.5% to 3,621.82 as of 4:01 p.m. New York time, the lowest in a week on the largest drop in more than a week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 0.9% to 29,643.97, the lowest in a week on the biggest dip in more than a week.
The Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 0.1% to 12,198.74, the first retreat in more than a week.
The MSCI All-Country World Index sank 0.9% to 617.87, the lowest in a week on the biggest dip in a month.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index sank 1% to 389.36, the lowest in a week on the largest decrease in more than a month.
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index jumped 0.3% to 1,144.98, the highest in a week on the biggest increase in three weeks.
The euro decreased 0.3% to $1.1927, the largest decrease in almost three weeks.
The Japanese yen weakened 0.3% to 104.40 per dollar, the biggest fall in a week.
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose one basis point to 0.85%.
The yield on 30-year Treasuries increased one basis point to 1.58%.
Germany’s 10-year yield rose two basis points to -0.57%.
Britain’s 10-year yield climbed two basis points to 0.305%, the biggest surge in almost three weeks.
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude sank 0.7% to $45.19 a barrel, the largest decrease in more than two weeks.
Gold depreciated 0.7% to $1,776.09 an ounce, the weakest in five months.
–With assistance from Claire Ballentine.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!

As ever,

Carolann

Enthusiasm is the most important thing in life.
                -Tennessee Williams, 1911-1983

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