October 13, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:
Paul Simon, b. 1941.
Lenny Bruce, b. 1925
On Oct. 13, 1943, Italy declared war on Germany, its one-time Axis partner. Go to article »

Tourist returns stolen artifacts to Pompeii after suffering ‘curse’ for 15 years; Her troubles were actually pretty serious so, c’mon, you can lay off now, Pompeiian curse. -CNN

Take a virtual tour of the small islands speckling the waters surrounding Britain, preserved by caretakers.-NYT.

The rise and rise of creativity.-Bloomberg.

Black hole “spaghetti-fies” a star. –Mike Smedley

Prehistoric footprints offer a vivid snapshot of daily life. –Ellen Kominers
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A stunning sunset at St. Catherine’s Lighthouse at the most southern point of the Isle of Wight, UK.
CREDIT: BNPS

A baby elephant cuddles up to its mother as she lays on the ground and is treated to a dust shower on a hot day after grazing the planes of Amboseli National Park in Kenya. The pictures were taken by cotton trader Nilesh Shah. The 43 year old said after colossal gazing these elephants found a soft sandy spot, which provided a moment of respite on a hot day. They sprinkle dust on themselves and over others, as it keeps the heat and pests both at bay. Mr Shah added the little ones use this opportunity to cuddle up to their mums. 
CREDIT: NILESH SHAH/SOLENT NEWS

A man rows his boat during sunset at Dal lake in Srinagar, India.
CREDIT: MONEY SHARMA/ AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Market Closes for October 13^th, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1691, Sir Stephen Evance incorporated the Company for Making Hollow Sword Blades in the North of England, one of the earliest companies to issue stock—and the predecessor of the South Sea Co., whose own stock caused a speculative fever that overheated and nearly destroyed the British financial system in 1720.
Canada
By Aoyon Ashraf
(Bloomberg) — Canadian stocks fell with broader markets Tuesday on speculation that recent gains have outpaced prospects for a quick end to the stalemate over fresh economic stimulus in the U.S.
The S&P/TSX Composite index fell 0.3% on Tuesday. Financials, energy and consumer discretionaries were the worst performing sectors, while tech and industrials outperformed.
Within the energy sector, the oil market will suffer a long-lasting blow from the coronavirus, with demand taking years to recover and peaking at a lower level, the International Energy Agency said.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $9.30 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold fell 1.6% to $1,893.02 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar fell 0.2% to C$1.3139 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield fell to 0.587%

By Bloomberg Automation
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite fell 0.3 percent at 16,510.83 in Toronto. The move follows the previous session’s increase of 0.2 percent.
Toronto-Dominion Bank contributed the most to the index decline, decreasing 1.7 percent. Enerplus Corp. had the largest drop, falling 5.6 percent.
Today, 150 of 223 shares fell, while 73 rose; 7 of 11 sectors were lower, led by financials stocks.
Insights
* This year, the index fell 3.2 percent, heading for the worst year since 2018
* The index advanced 0.6 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 18 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 8.1 percent below its 52-week high on Feb. 20, 2020 and 47.8 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 1.8 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.3 on a trailing basis and 23.6 times estimated earnings of its members for the coming year
* The index’s dividend yield is 3.2 percent on a trailing 12-month basis
* S&P/TSX Composite’s members have a total market capitalization of C$2.53t
* 30-day price volatility fell to 15.71 percent compared with 16.07 percent in the previous session and the average of 14.48 percent over the past month
================================================================
| Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Financials | -48.4104| -1.0| 4/22
Materials | -17.8733| -0.7| 11/41
Energy | -14.9425| -0.8| 5/18
Consumer Discretionary | -4.8337| -0.8| 5/8
Real Estate | -3.9856| -0.8| 10/17
Consumer Staples | -3.7882| -0.5| 4/7
Utilities | -0.6499| -0.1| 5/11
Health Care | 0.4054| 0.2| 4/6
Communication Services | 5.4601| 0.6| 3/4
Industrials | 16.2806| 0.8| 16/12
Information Technology | 20.3697| 1.2| 6/4
US
By Rita Nazareth and Claire Ballentine
(Bloomberg) — Stocks fell on speculation that recent gains have outpaced prospects for a quick end to the stalemate over fresh economic stimulus. Treasuries and the dollar climbed.
Banks led losses in the S&P 500, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. sinking as investors worried that third- quarter earnings signaled just a pause in pain from soured loans. Eli Lilly & Co. tumbled after putting its government- sponsored antibody test on hold due to potential safety concerns, hours after Johnson & Johnson paused its Covid-19 vaccine trial. Amazon.com Inc. closed little changed and Apple Inc. slumped after Monday’s surge in big tech. The online retailer kicked off its Prime Day sale event, while the tech giant unveiled its iPhone 12 line with 5G speed. Prospects for U.S. fiscal stimulus before Election Day dimmed on Tuesday, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi demanding the Trump administration revamp its latest offer and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell pushing a smaller-scale strategy that she quickly rejected. His proposal to vote next week on just one provision appeared to stoke opposition even from President Donald Trump, who tweeted “Go big or go home!!”
“It’s been a rollercoaster ride in terms of communication from both sides,” said Mark Heppenstall, chief investment officer at Penn Mutual Asset Management. “There are still going to be significant pockets of stress in the economy,” and a fiscal package could help bridge the gap until we do get a vaccine, he added.
Meanwhile, Democrats grilled U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett for hours about abortion rights, health-care law, guns and election disputes but made little progress derailing her likely Senate confirmation and a strengthened conservative majority on the court.
Here are some key events coming up:
* Results from Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs are due Wednesday; Morgan Stanley’s earnings are scheduled for Thursday.
* U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson set a deadline of Thursday to thrash out the outline of a European Union trade deal.
* European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde leads off the virtual annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group. Through Oct. 18.

These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 dipped 0.6% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index decreased 0.5%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.1%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index jumped 0.5%.
* The euro decreased 0.6% to $1.1747.
* The Japanese yen weakened 0.1% to 105.48 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries slid five basis points to 0.73%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield fell one basis point to -0.56%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield decreased three basis points to 0.239%.
Commodities
* The Bloomberg Commodity Index fell 0.3%.
* West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2% to $40.22 a barrel.
* Gold slid 1.5% to $1,893.74 an ounce.
–With assistance from Andreea Papuc, Joanna Ossinger, Yakob Peterseil, Cecile Gutscher and Lynn Thomasson.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its joy.
                                                       -Leo Buscaglia, 1924-1998

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