Asian stocks looked set to pull back from an all-time high Friday as investors assessed earnings expectations and the prospect economic growth will be bolstered by more U.S. fiscal spending. The dollar retreated. Futures slipped in Japan, Hong Kong and Australia. The S&P 500 Index eked out another record high Thursday as tech shares advanced. Risk appetite has gotten a boost this week from President Joe Biden’s push for nearly US$2 trillion in additional spending and plans to jump start a federal response to the pandemic. Benchmark Treasury yields remained higher after a small decline in initial jobless claims.
U.S. Stocks Pare Weekly Gain; Dollar Advances: Markets Wrap
Bloomberg 1/22/2021 Lu Wang
(Bloomberg) U.S. stocks slipped from records as investors grew anxious that the virus will hamper growth for longer than expected and Democrats may struggle to get a nearly $2 trillion spending bill through Congress.
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The S&P 500 Index fell for the first time in four days, with losses widening on reports that the new virus strain may be deadlier. It rose 1.9% in the week. Oil’s slump dragged energy companies lower, while Intel Corp. dropped after its new boss recommitted to chipmaking, a move opposed by some investors. Yields on Treasuries edged lower, and crude oil slid below $53 a barrel. Bloomberg’s dollar index rose for the first time in five sessions.
Bitcoin News Roundup for Jan. 22, 2021
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Jan 22, 2021
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With bitcoin back above $30K and analysts calling for a deeper correction, CoinDesk’s Market’s Daily is back with the latest news roundup.
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Bitcoin worries ‘fading’ as crypto goes mainstream, S&P says (CoinDesk)
Guggenheim Chief Investment Officer Scott Minerd, who predicted bitcoin prices would eventually go to $400K, told CNBC Tuesday that he sees a possible retracement to $20K in the near term (CoinDesk)
Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen offers U.S. Senate a more nuanced take (in writing) on cryptocurrencies (CoinDesk)
Regulators may still want to imply Bitcoin is merely a tool for criminals, but for many middle-class users, it’s proving to be a lifeline.
Even as politicians like European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde criticize cryptocurrency for providing “loopholes” used for “funny business,” people like Saeed, an Iranian immigrant to France, see cryptocurrency as a necessity, because of the difficulty using mainstream financial systems.
Until 2020, Saeed, who asked to be identified only by his first name, was a software engineer in Iran whose salary barely reached €300 due to rampant inflation. In 2017, he started freelancing for international clients that paid him in Bitcoin. By September 2020, he’d finally saved enough Bitcoin to go to graduate school in France. However, the pandemic made his immigration process much harder.
Global economy can shake off pandemic in 2021, leaders say
Vaccines and fresh economic stimulus promised by U.S. President-elect Joe Biden will give the global economy a chance to put the coronavirus pandemic behind it in 2021, policymakers and industry leaders told the Reuters Next conference.
Their optimism came despite a resurgence in COVID-19 cases that has prompted the World Bank to downgrade its growth forecast for this year and warn that delays in vaccination programmes could pinch recovery even further.
The head of German engineering giant Siemens AG said China is currently driving the world economy but was optimistic about recovery in the United States, where Biden has promised a faster roll-out of vaccines and more economic stimulus.