September 22, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:  Today is the Autumnal equinox – two moments in the year when the Sun is exactly above the Equator and day and night are of equal length; also, either of the two points in the sky where the ecliptic (the Sun’s annual pathway) and the celestial equator intersect.

“Pi Earth” circles its star once every 3.14 days.

Maybe Nero wasn’t so bad?

One old TV set disrupted a whole village’s broadband service.

Acorn woodpeckers have prolonged wars while other birds spectate.

The first man to climb Everest 10 times has died at 72.  Ang Rita Sherpa was known as the “snow leopard.” –CNN.

On Sept. 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all slaves in rebel states should be free as of Jan. 1, 1863. Go to article »
PHOTOS OF THE DAY

A view of Tu Hwnt I’r Bont Tea Rooms in Llanrwst, North Wales, UK, which is covered in Virginia Creeper that has started its change into autumnal colours.
CREDIT: PETER BYRNE/PA WIRE

A car is silhouetted against the setting sun, in Shawnee, Kasas, USA. Sunsets have been more vibrant than normal recently as smoke from western wildfires drifts across the United States.
CREDIT: AP PHOTO/ CHARLIE RIEDEL

A race horse is sprayed with water to cool it down following a race at Warwick Racecourse, UK.
CREDIT: DAVID DAVIES/PA WIRE

Pod of 250 Pilot whales stranded in Macquarie Harbour on Tasmania’s west cost.
CREDIT: TELEGRAPH, SEPTEMBER 22, 2020
Market Closes for September 22^nd, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1985, finance ministers and central bankers of the U.S., France, Germany, Japan and the U.K., meeting at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, announced coordinated measures to reduce the foreign-currency value of the U.S. dollar, which was near all-time highs. The “Plaza Accord” worked, as the dollar began a decade-long decline, spurring U.S. exports and creating a windfall for U.S. investors in foreign stocks.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities rallied Tuesday after a weak Monday, led by consumer staples and tech shares.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 1%, with all eleven sectors gaining. Toronto’s consumer staples index closed at a record high. Shares including Metro Inc. and Empire Co. both gained more than 3%.
Meanwhile, Transat AT Inc. fell to an eight-year low as investors bet against a travel recovery and the completion of a takeover by Air Canada.
Ford Motor Co. reached a tentative contract agreement with the union representing its Canadian production workers that saves its only vehicle-assembly plant there.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $10.75 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold fell 0.5% to $1,902.50 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar rose 0.01% to C$1.3307 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield advanced to 0.555%

By Bloomberg Automation:
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose 1 percent at 16,142.89 in Toronto. The move was the biggest since rising 1.8 percent on Sept. 9 and follows the previous session’s decrease of 1.3 percent.
Today, information technology stocks led the market higher, as all sectors gained; 152 of 223 shares rose, while 67 fell.
Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 2.7 percent. Aurora Cannabis Inc. had the largest increase, rising 15.2 percent.
Insights
* This month, the index fell 2.2 percent
* This quarter, the index rose 4 percent
* This year, the index fell 5.4 percent, heading for the worst year since 2018
* The index declined 4.5 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 11 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 10.2 percent below its 52-week high on Feb. 20, 2020 and 44.5 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 1.8 percent in the past 5 days and fell 2.3 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.8 on a trailing basis and 23.5 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$2.44t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 13.28 percent compared with 12.95 percent in the previous session and the average of 11.52 percent over the past month
================================================================
|Index Points | |
Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Information Technology | 37.4215| 2.4| 10/0
Energy | 30.5936| 1.7| 19/4
Industrials | 25.6980| 1.3| 21/7
Consumer Staples | 21.9253| 3.2| 11/0
Utilities | 12.4683| 1.5| 16/0
Communication Services | 12.2806| 1.5| 7/0
Materials | 10.5550| 0.4| 25/24
Consumer Discretionary | 7.4294| 1.4| 10/3
Financials | 2.0209| 0.0| 14/12
Real Estate | 0.6810| 0.1| 14/12
Health Care | 0.0439| 0.0| 5/5
US
By Rita Nazareth and Vildana Hajric
(Bloomberg) — Stocks climbed as dip buyers emerged after the market selloff, tempering concern over remarks from Federal Reserve officials that pointed to a slow economic recovery. The dollar rose.
Most groups in the S&P 500 advanced, with retailers and tech companies among the biggest gainers. The Nasdaq 100 notched a back-to-back rally, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average underperformed amid a drop in banks. Equities fell earlier Tuesday as Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the economy has a long way to go before fully recovering and will need further support. Meanwhile, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans noted that rates could rise before the inflation target is reached. Nike Inc. rallied in late trading as the sportswear maker returned to profit and posted far better revenue than predicted.
American stocks are still heading toward their first monthly slide since March on concern Congress hasn’t agreed on another fiscal stimulus package, while an increase in global virus cases has raised the specter of more lockdowns. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced new restrictions that are likely to last six months and told people to work from home if possible, saying the country is at a “perilous turning point” for the virus.
“We think equities will move higher over the medium term, thanks to the likely development of a successful vaccine, an end to election uncertainty, the passage of new U.S. fiscal stimulus, and continued extraordinary global monetary support,” wrote Mark Haefele, chief investment officer of global wealth management at UBS Group AG. “However, the path to ‘more normal’ is likely to be bumpy,” he said, adding that “we therefore expect volatility to persist over the balance of the year.”
These are some events to watch this week:
* Powell appears before the House Select Subcommittee on the coronavirus to discuss the central bank’s response on Wednesday.
* New Zealand rate decision on Wednesday.
* U.S. initial jobless claims are due Thursday.

These are some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 advanced 1.1% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained 0.2%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.8%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index climbed 0.5%.
* The euro decreased 0.5% to $1.1708.
* The Japanese yen depreciated 0.3% to 104.98 per dollar.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced one basis point to 0.67%.
* Germany’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to -0.51%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield gained five basis points to 0.203%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude advanced 0.7% to $39.60 a barrel.
* Gold depreciated 0.5% to $1,902.20 an ounce.
–With assistance from Joanna Ossinger, Andreea Papuc, Todd
White, Yakob Peterseil, Lynn Thomasson, Claire Ballentine and Nancy Moran.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

Life’s a bit like mountaineering – never look down.
             -Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, 1919-2008

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