The last week of January 2021 was unique in many ways, which we have also written about in our previous comments. The fight against the pandemic, delays in vaccinations and vaccine deliveries or the failure to introduce a rescue plan for the US economy overshadowed the actions of individual investors in the stock markets.
In the passing week, the silver market seems to have gained the most. Gold is trying to join it, but the result there is slightly worse. Gold and silver futures prices appear to be surging, with silver reaching a three-week high. Demand for precious metals is in play just ahead of the weekend amid turmoil in the U.S. stock market and uncertainty surrounding the Reddit investor case. Gold futures rose $30.40 to $1,868.30 and silver futures rose $1,538 to $27.445 per ounce. Thus, in the passing week silver was able to gain more than 7.5 per cent. Thanks to this, part of the losses from the whole month was made up, and silver may end January with more than 4 percent of gains.
On the other hand, the biggest losers of the week seem to be the market bulls on the stock exchange floors, as the main indices are trading on the downside in relation to the beginning of the week. Of the popular indexes, the Nikkei 225 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average seem to be the biggest losers, with weekly declines of 2.3 percent, DAX and S&P 500 falling by 2.2 percent, and the S&P 500 gaining 0.1 percent on the month, followed by the Nasdaq 100 with a gain of 1.9 percent.
In the passing week on the currency market, the Japanese yen seemed to lose the most, while the New Zealand dollar was the strongest. The USD/JPY exchange rate, thanks to strong growth, reached the level of 105 yen per dollar, which is the highest level since mid-November. On a monthly basis, the USD/JPY exchange rate has risen from around 102.50, which could mean that the USD/JPY's upward movement is the largest of all major currencies in the first month of 2021.
As a recap of January, we can't help but mention bitcoin, which first set a new historical peak in the $42,000 area before scoring a roughly 30% correction. The price could have continued to hover around $31k had it not been for Elon Musk changing his Twitter description to #bitcoin, which made up most of the losses from the correction. Thus, BTC/USD could close January with about a 30 percent gain.
Daniel Kostecki, Chief Analyst Conotoxia Ltd.
Materials, analysis and opinions contained, referenced or provided herein are intended solely for informational and educational purposes. Personal opinion of the author does not represent and should not be constructed as a statement or an investment advice made by Conotoxia Ltd. All indiscriminate reliance on illustrative or informational materials may lead to losses. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
76.44% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Trade this news from Conotoxia Ltd. platforms
Go to your account
