Monday's Markets Update (July 29, 2024)

30 Jul 2024 by rate3

On Monday, stocks saw a slight downtick, drown by tech giants ahead of earnings reports. Investors await the Fed's decision on interest rates this week, with hopes for a potential rate cut in September. Despite recent market volatility, some companies reported strong earnings, offering a glimmer of optimism. Internationally, oil dipped despite Middle East tensions, as investors worried about a cooling global economy. BTC and ETH prices are diverging again, with ETH continuing to recover after the previous week's dump, while BTC was sold heavily following yet another attempt to breach the 70K barrier after Trump's historic pro-crypto speech in Nashville.

Details

Texas manufacturing continued its decline in July, with production, orders, and shipments falling sharply. Despite plunging backlogs, demand remains weak. Wages surged, but employment recovered slightly. Rising raw material costs led to modest price increases. 1Y trend: "Side" (Dfed)

Crypto

El Salvador has proposed using BTC for trade with Russia to circumvent sanctions. Russia is open to the idea but faces hurdles due to its crypto ban. While El Salvador is a Bitcoin advocate, practical challenges remain for both nations in implementing a crypto-based trade system. (source)

Commodities

Oil prices dropped sharply on Monday due to weakening demand, primarily from China. Despite rising tensions in the Middle East, which typically supports prices, the overall market sentiment was bearish as concerns about global economic health overshadowed supply fears. 1Y trend: "Up"