September 09, 2019 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents: Happy Monday.
Chrysanthemum Day, Japan.
490 BC ~Battle of Marathon.

William the Conqueror, d.1087.
Leo Tolstoy, writer, b. 1828.
Hugh Grant, actor, b. 1960

Also on this day:
On Sept. 9, 1976, Communist Chinese leader Mao Tse-tung died in Beijing at age 82.  Go to article »

Go: Book your tickets to Belgrade, Lagos, London, Paris and São Paulo: Our art critic recommends 28 shows worth traveling for. -from The New York Times.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A man paddle-boards with his small dog on a very warm September evening in Aberystwyth, Wales.
CREDIT: KEITH MORRIS/ ALAMY LIVE NEWS

A rowing boat depicting Viserion, a Game of Thrones dragon, takes part in Matlock Bath Illuminations and Venetian Nighyts in Derbyshire, which runs until October 27.
CREDIT: CHARLOTTE GRAHAM FOR THE TELEGRAPH

Rowers from the Hondarribia team compete with their ‘trainera’ boat in the traditional “Bandera de la Concha’ traineras race in San Sebastian, Spain.
CREDIT: JAVIER ETXEZARRETA/EPA-EFE/REX

Market Closes for September 09, 2019

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
Even with last week’s 1.5% gain, the S&P 500 is up just 0.83% this summer, on track for its worst summer performance since 2015, when it fell 7.2%. Since 1950, the S&P 500 has averaged a gain of 1.09% in the period from June 21 to September 21, rising 67% of the time, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

On this day in 2008, in the depths of the financial crisis, Lehman Brothers shares fell 45% after Korea Development Bank, which had been in talks with Lehman about providing a capital infusion, said it had closed the door on a possible deal.
Canada
By Kristine Owram
(Bloomberg) — Canada’s equity benchmark fell for a second session as Shopify Inc. slid the most since June and gold stocks retreated alongside weakness in the precious metal. The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 0.2% to 16,495. The technology sector led the decline as Shopify tumbled 5.9%, a victim of broader weakness in software stocks as investors re-evaluate this year’s rally. Materials stocks lost 1.8% as gold prices fell for a third day. The metal, which is considered a safe haven, retreated after U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the U.S. and China have made “a lot of progress” in trade talks.
In other moves:
Stocks
* NuVista Energy Ltd. was the biggest gainer, adding 11%. Energy stocks were strong after Saudi Arabia’s new energy minister indicated that OPEC and its allies will continue production cuts.
* Air Canada fell 1.3%. The stock won’t be added to the S&P/TSX 60 Index when it’s rebalanced on Sept. 23, defying traders’ expectations
* AltaGas Ltd. rose 2.4% after being upgraded to outperform at BMO Capital Markets
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $12.75 discount to WTI
* Gold fell 0.3% to $1,504.50 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar was little changed at C$1.3164 per U.S. dollar
* The Canada 10-year government bond yield rose 6 basis points to 1.34%, the highest in five weeks
US
By Vildana Hajric and Sarah Ponczek
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks were mixed as investors ditched the companies behind the latest risk-on rally, while sovereign bond yields rose in Europe and America. High-flying health-care shares led declines Monday, as some on Wall Street including Goldman’s Asad Haider sounded the alarm to a “potential onslaught of drug pricing headlines in the coming weeks following Congress’s August recess.” Megacap tech names also retreated. Stocks coveted ortheir high dividendyields, including real-estate and utility names, retreated as the 10-year rate topped 1.6%.
“The fact that we’ve had a bit of a reversal in the Treasury market has scared some of the momentum players,” said Charlie Smith, founding partner and chief investment officer at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh. German bunds led the drop in sovereign debt, with yields on longer-dated notes climbing more than shorter-dated securities, as traders pared back expectations that the European Central Bank will unveil a big stimulus package this week. Rates on longer-dated Treasury notes climbed more than those on shorter-dated securities, reversing an inversion in the yield curve. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said earlier that the U.S. and China have made “lots of progress” on trade talks. “Trade sentiment is driving the market movements on the margin up and down,” Aaron Clark, portfolio manager at GW&K Investment Management, said by phone. “The commentary that we’ve heard over the past week or so, clearly markets have taken note of that and already priced some of that in.”
Elsewhere, oil advanced after Saudi Arabia’s new energy minister signaled that OPEC and its allies will continue with production cuts, as the group prepares to gather in Abu Dhabi. A benchmark for emerging-market shares climbed for a fourth straight session, putting it on track for the highest close in five weeks.
Here are some key events coming up this week:
* OPEC’s monthly oil market report, which includes demand forecasts and production estimates, is due Wednesday.
* The ECB policy meeting Thursday is widely expected to see a cut to interest rates and a review of all options, including QE. Policy makers will also publish forecasts for growth and inflation. ECB President Mario Draghi will hold a press conference.
These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
*The S&P 500 Index was little changed at 2,978.10 as of 3:20 p.m. New York time.
*The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2% to 26,843.27, the highest in almost six weeks.
*The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.3% to 8,080.34.
Currencies
*The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.1% to 1,208.18,
*reaching the lowest in more than two weeks on its fifth straight decline.
Bonds
*The yield on two-year Treasuries gained four basis points to 1.58%, the highest in more than two weeks.
*The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose seven basis points to 1.63%, the highest in almost four weeks.
*Germany’s 10-year yield gained five basis points to -0.59%, the highest in a month.
Commodities
*Gold depreciated 0.4% to $1,500.60 an ounce, the weakest in more than two weeks.
*West Texas Intermediate crude gained 2.7% to $58.04 a barrel, the highest in almost six weeks.
–With assistance from Todd White.
Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.
                                                                -Pablo Picasso, 1881-1973

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