Instead of a festive Santa Claus rally lighting up the holidays for cryptocurrencies and tech stocks over at the Nasdaq, it looks like the markets decided to take a nap this year-end. Let's dive into the world of finance and see what’s going on!
Traditionally, in 4 out of 5 Christmas seasons since 1950, US stocks have enjoyed a nice boost as investors toss some of their holiday savings into the markets. But hey, not every year can be a party, right?
This year, things kicked off with a little cheer as the Nasdaq Composite and Bitcoin prices rallied on Christmas Eve and Day. But, alas, a Grinch-y pullback later in the week is threatening to swipe away the Santa rally joy.
By Sunday lunchtime over in San Francisco, Bitcoin was feeling a bit blue, slipping over 2% in the past week. This was despite a tiny 0.8% uptick in the daily window, though 24-hour trading volume seemed to be on a diet.
Ethereum, on the other hand, managed to scrape together a 1.5% increase, thanks to some gains on Friday and Saturday. Meanwhile, BNB, Solana, and Toncoin were happily jingling all the way with gains of 11.5%, 8%, and 11% respectively.
But not everyone was on the nice list. Fantom, Ethena, and Ondo found themselves in a bit of a slump after perhaps indulging too much in December’s market eggnog.
Even the likes of Nvidia shares and Ethereum tokens were cooling off after a couple of months of sizzling rallies. So why are crypto assets and tech stocks feeling a bit Grinchy this holiday season?
For starters, valuations were already sky-high going into the holidays. The market optimism, fueled by what some call the “Trump bump” since early November, had investors dreaming of good times ahead for both cryptocurrencies and US businesses.
On top of that, Bitcoin miners have been facing rising energy prices all year, leading to a selloff that’s gathered momentum this December. This, coupled with the tech stock slump, might be weighing down the average exchange rate of major cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin’s correlation with Nasdaq stocks has been climbing, syncing up over 70% of the time since July.
But hey, just like in baseball, it ain’t over till it’s over! With three more days left in the year, there’s still time for the markets to surprise us. Who knows what’s next? Stay tuned!
