Cryptos: All News & Analysis

Oil and bitcoin up, Gold slips amid higher yields

Oil higher as EU nears Russian ban Oil prices are heading higher again, up more than 2%, as reports suggest the EU is nearing a framework for phasing out Russian oil imports. Given how big a market it is for Russia, accounting for roughly half its exports, that will come as a real blow to the Kremlin.

21-04-2022 11:52 GMT by Craig Erlam

Tech glitch after Netflix results

It's been a slightly better day for stock markets in Europe as they continue to fluctuate in the same ranges they've traded in for the last month. US indices are having a mixed start, with the Dow outperforming, up around 1%, while the S&P is managing small gains and the Nasdaq is getting hit in the aftermath of Netflix's results. The tech sector has had a rough year as a result of the drastically changing interest rate environment and results like those from Netflix don't help.

20-04-2022 12:46 GMT by Craig Erlam

A bullard in a China shop

The who can be the most hawkish Federal Reserve President continued overnight as James Bullard came out swinging, suggesting that Fed Funds may need to rise to a “neutral” rate of 3.50%, and suggesting a 0.75% rate hike along the way wasn’t out of the question. The impact of the statements was minimal in the end as it likely doesn’t reflect the views of the FOMC, yet.

19-04-2022 05:34 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Week Ahead -The bond market selloff continues

The bond market selloff did not ease up heading into the long holiday weekend and traders will have to soon decide if they decide to sell in May and go away. The upcoming week is filled with another round of earnings, major economic data out of China, a French debate, and a wrath of commentary from finance ministers and central bankers at the IMF/World Bank spring meetings.

14-04-2022 16:32 GMT by Edward Moya

US Close: Retail Sales weighed by energy price surge, Musk’s calculated Twitter offer, Commodities hit hard by strong dollar, Bitcoin below $40k

Wall Street is ready for a long weekend and stocks are struggling here after mixed bank earnings and a retail sales report that showed the consumer is spending more money on essentials. The second act of bank earnings rewarded Goldman and Morgan Stanley for strong trading revenues, while Citigroup was hampered by their exposure to Russia and Wells Fargo posted disappointing revenue and net interest income.

14-04-2022 14:27 GMT by Edward Moya

ECBs unhelpful ambiguity

European stocks are edging higher ahead of the long bank holiday weekend, ending the week not far from where they started as investors mull the latest policy decisions, inflation data and earnings. There's been a number of interest rate hikes this week, some more expected than others, while the ECB has instead opted for the usual cocktail of unhelpful ambiguity. Anyone hoping for a hawkish hint ahead of its next meeting and forecasts will no doubt be very disappointed, albeit not surprised.

14-04-2022 10:25 GMT by Craig Erlam

Stocks rebound as yields decline, JPMorgan struggles with inflation and suffers Ukraine loss, Delta’s tremendous demand, BOC leading aggressive tightening race, bitcoin holds $40,000

Earnings season is here and so far the takeaway is that the short-term outlook for the economy is pretty good and that the consumer is handling widespread price increases. US stocks are rebounding as the bond market selloff appears to be over for now.

13-04-2022 12:47 GMT by Edward Moya

Tightening continues amid higher inflation

Another mixed session on Wednesday, with Europe edging lower once more and US posting small gains early in the day. There is so much focus on the inflation outlook right now and what policymakers are doing to get to grips with it. Two central banks have raised interest rates by 50 basis points today and the Fed is expected to follow that with a similar move in a couple of weeks' time. The moves from the RBNZ and BoC were not surprising, although the consensus for the former was 25 basis points p

13-04-2022 12:35 GMT by Craig Erlam

Peak inflation is likely here, stocks rebound, bitcoin fights to hold USD 40k

US stocks rallied after a cooler-than-expected consumer price report signaled that the inflation peak could be in place. The rebound in equities did not last long as oil prices rebound back above the USD 100 level.

12-04-2022 15:35 GMT by Edward Moya

Relief as US inflation offers hope

European stock markets are heading for the second day of losses at the start of the week while the US is enjoying a boost following the latest inflation data. I never thought I'd see markets responding positively to inflation rising 1.2% on the month and 8.5% on the year but these are not normal times. The headline numbers still don't make for easy reading, especially for households that are continuing to see real incomes fall as a result of higher prices, particularly for energy and food. But t

12-04-2022 12:45 GMT by Craig Erlam

Equities yield to bonds

US yields hit 3-year high Markets got a case of inflation nerves overnight, with long-dated US yields shooting higher ahead of US inflation data this evening. The US 2-year 10-year curve now has nearly 30 points of positive daylight in it, thankfully removing the “inverse yield curve, we’re all doomed” headlines off the front page for now.

12-04-2022 04:51 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Inflation wall of worry send stocks lower, bitcoin selloff continues

Fed, China weigh on equity markets US stocks declined as the bond market selloff continued as investors fret over aggressive monetary tightening by the Fed and as China continues to struggle with their latest Covid outbreak. Wall Street is worried that inflation will eventually destroy all the growth potential that was supposed to happen this year.

11-04-2022 14:59 GMT by Edward Moya

France outperforms after weekend election

European stocks are slipping again at the start of what is likely to be another very lively week in financial markets. That has very much become the norm this year for obvious reasons but this week has an interesting mix of central bank decisions, the start of earnings season and major data releases which will keep us all on our toes. And then of course there's China, where restrictions are causing concern, property firms are back in the spotlight and policymakers could unleash some support afte

11-04-2022 14:32 GMT by Craig Erlam

US Close - Stocks pare losses on reports ECB working on a tool to tackle yields, Canadian jobs, Oil rebounds, Gold higher, Bitcoin struggles

US stocks pared losses after reports that the ECB is working a crisis tool that could help tackle what seems to be a likely surging bond yield problem for the southern periphery. The ECB has the hardest job of all the other major central banks and this potential tool shows they are trying to get ahead of what will be an unbalanced economic recovery once inflation eases. Wall Street is looking at surging Treasury yields and swapping out tech stocks for more defensive plays such as energy, finan

08-04-2022 14:34 GMT by Edward Moya

Ending a bad week on a positive note

The stock market recovery has stalled this week despite indices ending on a positive note as investors digest the latest speak from central banks. Naturally, front and centre on this is the Fed which has notably become more hawkish, something the minutes confirmed is not just a knee-jerk response to the latest economic reports. We all expect James Bullard at this point to be at the more hawkish end of the spectrum, so his call this week for rates to hit 3.5% this year didn't cause the shock and

08-04-2022 06:50 GMT by Craig Erlam

Market Insights Podcast (Episode 317)

Jonny Hart looks back on the week's business and markets news with OANDA Senior Market Analyst Ed Moya in New York. This week they discuss how financial markets reacted to the Fed Minutes, what happened in the oil markets, and discussed cryptocurrencies. They also discuss what the week ahead has in store for financial markets.

07-04-2022 15:05 GMT by Edward Moya

Bitcoin - A false breakout?

Can it still capitalise on the breakout? Bitcoin appeared to have made a very bullish move last week when it finally broke above $45,500 but since then, it's all been downhill. Sentiment in the broader markets has dipped in recent days and bitcoin has suffered as a result. Even prior to this, it failed to capitalise on the initial breakout which may have been a sign of what was to come. While the trend in the longer term may still be positive, the current environment isn't making life easy.

06-04-2022 17:10 GMT by Craig Erlam

Stocks extend post FOMC minutes, bitcoin lower

US stocks extended losses after the Fed minutes showed they are ready to deliver super-sized hikes and reduce its massive bond holdings at a maximum pace of USD 95 billion a month. Everyone knew the Fed was telegraphing the balance sheet reduction was coming and expectations were for the pace to be around USD 100 billion, so the USD 95 billion amount was initially viewed as dovish. The Fed noted that they preferred to deliver a half-point increase at the March meeting, but the uncertainty from

06-04-2022 15:34 GMT by Edward Moya

Stocks hit ahead of Fed minutes

Stock markets are taking a bit of a beating on Wednesday as investors start to fret again about the pace of monetary tightening. Fed mulling point hikes Cracks are starting to appear as it becomes clear that the central bank has little choice but to tackle inflation head-on, no matter the cost, after arriving late to the party with its first hike last month. It took a long time for the central bank to acknowledge the problem and much longer again before it eventually started raising rates and

06-04-2022 12:43 GMT by Craig Erlam

Choppy markets continue

It's been another choppy day in financial markets with Europe ending a mixed bag and US indices all in the red but to varying degrees. The markets are very indicative of the uncertainty that we continue to see from Ukraine/Russia negotiations to sanctions, interest rates, recession warnings, lockdowns etc. There's no end to the uncertainty, which makes the resilience we're seeing in stock markets all the more impressive. Europe and the US continue to tighten sanctions against Russia, albeit wi

05-04-2022 13:13 GMT by Craig Erlam

Cryptos: all news & analysis