September 9, 2020 Newsletter

Dear Friends,

Tangents:

490 BC – Battle of Marathon.

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

One of the world’s best restaurants will re-open after all. –Bloomberg.

Cat owners fall into one of five categories, researchers say.  Are you a “conscientious caretaker” or a “tolerant guardian?” –CNN.

Maserati’s rebirth starts with a 630-horsepower supercar. –Bloomberg.

PHOTOS OF THE DAY

The Star Gallery attracts many tourists in Shanghai, China.
CREDIT: TOPPHOTO/ALAMY LIVE NEWS
Palestinian children head to school for Bedouin students on the third day of the school year, at Am Kusa Bedouin community, south of the West Bank city of Hebron.
CREDIT: ABED AL HASHLAMOUN/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK
Dawn over Coquet Island, a small island 1.2 kilometres off Amble on the Northumberland coast.
CREDIT: OWEN HUMPHREYS/PA WIRE

Market Closes for September 9th, 2020 

International Markets

Bonds

Currencies

Commodities

Market Commentary:
On this day in 1974, the day after President Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon for the Watergate scandal, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 2.2% to 662.94 on fears that the pardon would not bring full closure to the scandal. The Dow, however, proceeded to soar by 24.9% over the next year.
Canada
By Michael Bellusci
(Bloomberg) — Canadian equities gained Wednesday after a three-day rout, while the Bank of Canada reiterated its pledge to keep interest rates at historic lows for years to come. The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 1.8%, the most since June 5. Materials and consumer staples led all sectors higher. The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has promoted Edwin Cass to the newly created role of chief investment officer amid a push to more than double its assets under management. Husky Energy Inc. said there is opportunity for a government equity stake in the partly-constructed White Rose platform. Meanwhile, National Bank of Canada is shifting its sector allocation this month, citing a more cautious view given Washington’s “failure” to deploy more coronavirus relief.
Commodities
* Western Canada Select crude oil traded at a $7 discount to West Texas Intermediate
* Spot gold gained 0.8% to $1,947.85 an ounce
FX/Bonds
* The Canadian dollar rose 0.6% to $1.3151 per U.S. dollar
* The 10-year government bond yield rose 2.7 basis points to 0.587%
By Bloomberg Automation:
(Bloomberg) — The S&P/TSX Composite rose 1.8 percent at 16,383.60 in Toronto. The move was the biggest since rising 2.1 percent on June 5 and follows the previous session’s decrease of 0.7 percent. Today, materials stocks led the market higher, as all sectors gained; 179 of 221 shares rose, while 41 fell. Shopify Inc. contributed the most to the index gain, increasing 3.0 percent. Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. had the largest increase, rising 8.1 percent.
Insights
* In the past year, the index had a similar or greater gain 17 times. The next day, it declined 10 times for an average 3.9 percent and advanced seven times for an average 1.7 percent
* This quarter, the index rose 5.6 percent
* This year, the index fell 4 percent, heading for the worst year since 2018
* The index declined 0.7 percent in the past 52 weeks. The MSCI AC Americas Index gained 14 percent in the same period
* The S&P/TSX Composite is 8.8 percent below its 52-week high on Feb. 20, 2020 and 46.6 percent above its low on March 23, 2020
* The S&P/TSX Composite is down 1.6 percent in the past 5 days and fell 1 percent in the past 30 days
* S&P/TSX Composite is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.1 on a trailing basis and 23.8 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$2.45t
* 30-day price volatility rose to 12.82 percent compared with 11.72 percent in the previous session and the average of 10.62 percent over the past month
================================================================
|Index Points | | Sector Name | Move | % Change | Adv/Dec
================================================================
Materials | 92.4566| 3.7| 48/2
Financials | 50.3967| 1.1| 25/0
Information Technology | 41.2776| 2.7| 7/3
Industrials | 28.2628| 1.5| 20/8
Energy | 26.0777| 1.4| 17/7
Consumer Staples | 23.3889| 3.5| 11/0
Utilities | 11.7541| 1.4| 15/1
Communication Services | 4.9572| 0.6| 5/3
Consumer Discretionary | 2.0659| 0.4| 7/6
Health Care | 1.8074| 1.2| 8/1
Real Estate | 1.6445| 0.3| 16/10
US
By Katherine Greifeld and Claire Ballentine
(Bloomberg) — U.S. stocks rebounded from a three-day rout, as dip buyers poured into beaten-down tech shares to send the Nasdaq 100 to its best day since April. The dollar fell versus major peers. The S&P 500 Index rose the most since June, though finished well off its session highs. The Nasdaq gains followed an 11% rout took it down to the average price over the past 50 days. Tesla also bounced off that closely watched level after suffering its biggest selloff. Computer chip and hardware makers rose, led by Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Apple Inc. Shares climbed broadly in Europe. “Dip buyers have been handsomely reward for the last 12 years,” said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading and derivatives at Charles Schwab & Co. “There’s substantial amounts of capital on the sidelines still available to come into the market.”
Treasuries retreated and Bloomberg’s dollar index turned lower. The pound headed for its longest declining streak since March on worries that talks could collapse over changes to the Brexit withdrawal deal. Volatility remains a feature on U.S. equity markets, where a three-day rout plunged the Nasdaq 100 into correction before the Wednesday bounce. Investors will be on guard for any signs the selling may resume. Thursday brings the European Central Bank’s latest policy decision and weekly jobless claims data in the U.S.. “The market was sprinting so fast and it just seemed very reasonable for it to pause and catch its breath and decide what it wants to do next — and that’s where we are today,” said Lawrence Creatura, a portfolio manager at PRSPCTV Capital LLC. Elsewhere, crude oil climbed just above $40 a barrel in London. Yields on New Zealand’s three-year bonds dropped into negative territory for the first time.

Here are some key events coming up:
* The ECB is expected to hold rates steady on Thursday butindicate that downside risks have intensified, suggesting further easing is possible before year-end.
* The U.S. releases initial jobless claims numbers Thursday.
* U.S. CPI data is due Friday, with consumer prices expected to have risen in August.

These are the main moves in markets:
Stocks
* The S&P 500 increased 2% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
* The Nasdaq 100 jumped 3%.
* The Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed 1.6%.
* Germany’s DAX Index rose 2.1%.
* The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.8%.
Currencies
* The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%.
* The euro was gained 0.3% to $1.1809.
* The Japanese yen weakened 0.1% to 106.18 per dollar.
* The British pound rose 0.2% to $1.3008.
Bonds
* The yield on 10-year Treasuries climbed two basis points to 0.695%.
* The two-year rate was little changed at 0.14%
* Germany’s 10-year yield gained three basis points to -0.46%.
* Britain’s 10-year yield gained five basis points to 0.237%.
Commodities
* West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 3.5% to $38.06 a barrel.
* Gold futures rose 0.7% to $1,958 an ounce.
–With assistance from Constantine Courcoulas.

Have a great night.

Be magnificent!
As ever,

Carolann

A person’s greatest virtue is his ability to correct his mistakes and continually make a new person of himself.
                                                                                                             -Yang-Ming Wang, 1472-1529

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