Cryptocurrency dipped in value over the weekend, followed by a decline in stock markets as well on Monday, as markets continue to register uncertainty due to U.S. involvement in Iran.
The update comes after oil prices touched $119 per barrel, when the U.S. targeted a key gas facility in Iran.
Trump said on Sunday via Truth Social that the U.S. would target Iran’s power plants if it didn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.
In turn, Iran has threatened to attack vital energy infrastructure across the Gulf if Trump follows through on his promise.
Bitcoin sits at $68,000 level after weekend decline, while gold continues to sell downwards
Bitcoin lost momentum in its slow growth recovery over the weekend, declining in price to a level of $68,000. At the time of writing, Ethereum, BNB, and XRP were also in the red, with weekly declines of 9.12%, 7.79%, and 6.12%.
Resilience in cryptocurrency appears to be broken, and gold is not holding its weight in the current market as a safe haven, still in a sell-off for a consecutive fourth week. Gold dropped by more than 8% on Monday to roughly $4,100.
Oil markets rally continues
Oil remains firmly in the green, with some indexes spiking much more than Brent and typical crude oil. Murban—UAE certified oil—was trading at a price of $146 at the time of writing, up by 18%.
Brent Crude, Urals, and WTI Crude were trading at $113, $104, and $99. Russian oil, which has been temporarily allowed to be shipped due to supply constraints, is experiencing a massive rally, with Urals grade oil up by 78.91% over the past month.
Shipping stocks in decline
Due to the current conflict, large-cap shipping stocks are absorbing volatility and slipping in price.
The Strait of Hormuz—through which 20% of the global oil supply used to pass until recently—now accounts for only a trickle of all global maritime traffic as shipping firms now have to operate in a market plagued by fresh geopolitical risk after Trump rolled out prohibitive tariff rates on multiple countries in April last year.
According to the Joint Maritime Information Centre, an average of 138 ships would pass daily through the Strait. Daily shipping traffic has now reduced to an average of 5-6 ships.
Shipping stocks of Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd declined on Friday, dipping by 5.81% and 7.03% in trading hours.
Indian shipping stocks such as Great Eastern Shipping Company and Shipping Corporation of India continued the downward trend on Monday, currently down by 4.32% and 5.94% respectively.
S&P500 loses 1.5% while Asian equities bear deeper brunt
While the U.S. stock market is yet to open, Asian equities are in a steep decline, with the following prices:
- ASX 200: 8,365 (-0.74%)
- Nikkei: 51,515.49 (-3.48%)
- Nifty 50: 22,527.50 (-2.57%)
- Hang Seng Index: 24,276 (-3.96%)
- Shanghai Index: 3,813 (-3.63%)
The S&P500 lost 1.5% in value, dipping to a low of 6,500 points on Friday before Trump’s threats towards Iran, which was regarded as a direct escalation of the conflict.