Traditional markets and indexes are currently hitting new records. In one such first-ever milestone, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied to a record 28,000 plus levels on Friday. The rally comes amidst waning tensions in the U.S.-China trade war with the hope of reaching a trade deal between the two economic powerhouses.
On Friday, November 15, Dow Jones’s 30-stock average climbed 222.93 points at 28,004. In just the last four months, the Dow Jones price index has surged by 1000 points. Some of the top-performing stock during the same period were Apple, Intel, United Technologies, JP Morgan, and others.
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said that U.S.-China negotiations are coming to an agreement. Certainly, this was the major reason for the market cheer. However, Kudlow added that President Donald Trump wasn’t ready to sign-off yet. Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations event, Kudlow said:
Trump “likes what he sees, he’s not ready to make a commitment, he hasn’t signed off on a commitment for Phase 1, we heave no agreement just yet for Phase 1”.
In his turn, speaking to CNBC, Gibson Smith, founder of Smith Capital Investors said:
“There’s quite a bit of optimism that we’re going to get a deal. That would take away some of the uncertainty off the table. Unfortunately … we’ve had so many rounds of being told a deal is imminent and then it’s not. So, it’s still a very headline-driven market.”
Other Indices Making Record Highs
Not just Dow Jones but other indices like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also hit their new highs. On Friday, the S&P 500 closed at $3120 while the Nasdaq Composite gave a closing at $8540. Talking to CNN Business, Brad McMillan, chief investment officer for Commonwealth Financial Network, said:
“With the Dow closing above 28,000 for the first time, we have further confirmation that this rally may have further to go. Whenever a major index cracks a significant level, like the Dow just did, the psychological effect can help to push markets even higher. With the S&P 500 also hitting new highs, the trend is clearly upward despite the real economic and political risks. Psychology matters in the markets, as it affects how news is interpreted, and this is just one more even that is likely to make perceptions even more positive”.
Bitcoin Performance
While traditional markets have made its investors happy, the crypto markets are turning to be a bit disappointing, especially Bitcoin. On Friday, the Bitcoin price dropped below its crucial support level of $8700 and is currently trading close to its next support of $8550. At press time, Bitcoin is trading 1% down at $8554 with a market cap of $154 billion.
Now looking back we can say for sure that the previously voiced optimistic forecasts haven’t managed to get translated into life. Though there were talks that Bitcoin could reach $16,000 at the end of October, it hasn’t happened. Whether Bitcoin price will surge by seven-fold in the next seven months and hit a market capitalization of $1 trillion as it is now expected by some experts, we will see.
Bhushan is a FinTech enthusiast and holds a good flair in understanding financial markets. His interest in economics and finance draw his attention towards the new emerging Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrency markets. He is continuously in a learning process and keeps himself motivated by sharing his acquired knowledge. In free time he reads thriller fictions novels and sometimes explore his culinary skills.
