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BlackRock predicts another historic year for crypto

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Maturity or insecurity? Spot Bitcoin ETFs head into year 2

Bitcoin should rip higher under President-elect Donald Trump, according to BlackRock’s ETF chief.

Samara Cohen, the firm’s ETF and index instruments chief investment officer, thinks cryptocurrency deregulation will “absolutely” propel bitcoin to another historic year.

“There will be progress made on… FIT21 [“Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act.] There will be progress made on stable coins. There will be progress made just on definitions in taxonomy,” she told CNBC’s “ETF Edge” this week.

Cohen is behind the firm’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) – which is up 114% since its January 2024 debut and up almost 8% year to date. It comes as bitcoin briefly traded above $100,000 this week.

Despite the strong performance, she suggests cryptocurrency investors need an iron stomach.

“Bitcoin is a risky asset. So, 15% in the context of Bitcoin is not an enormous move. Investors should expect volatility,” said Cohen. “But in the long term, the price of bitcoin is really going to be determined by the level and pace of adoption.”

On Monday, BlackRock announced the official launch of its iShares Bitcoin ETF on CBOE Canada.

And, it’s not the only firm making an early year push deeper into cryptocurrency. Calamos Investments plans to launch its Bitcoin Structured Alt Protection ETF next Wednesday – two days after Trump’s inauguration. According to the press release, it’s the “world’s first 100% downside protected bitcoin ETF.”

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Stock market posts third biggest gain in post-WWII history on Trump’s tariff about-face

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Trader work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

Wednesday’s jaw-dropping stock-market rally on President Donald Trump’s surprising tariff reversal is one for the history books.

The S&P 500 skyrocketed 9.52% in a kneejerk reaction to Trump’s announcement to put a 90-day pause on some of the lofty ‘reciprocal’ tariffs. The one-day gain ranks as the third biggest since World War II for the main stock market benchmark, according to FactSet.

The Nasdaq Composite jumped 12.16%, notching its largest one-day jump since January 2001 and second-best day ever. 

“This is the pivotal moment we’ve been waiting for,” said Gina Bolvin, president of Bolvin Wealth Management Group. “The immediate market reaction has been overwhelmingly positive, as investors interpret this as a step toward much-needed clarity.”

The market was a coiled spring after a brutal four-day stretch that briefly pushed the S&P 500 into bear-market territory. Over the course of the previous four trading sessions, the S&P 500 suffered a 12% loss, a decline not seen since the pandemic. The Dow lost more than 4,500 points during the four-day stretch, while the Nasdaq was down more than 13%.

While stocks managed to recoup much of the losses, investors are not completely out of the woods as Trump vows to reorient global trade. The president said more than 75 countries contacted U.S. officials to negotiate after he unveiled his new tariffs last week.

“It’s still too early to signal an all clear,” said Dave Sekera, Morningstar’s chief U.S. market strategist. “Trade negotiations have yet to start and once they do, there will be positive and negative headlines as each party positions itself to extract the maximum amount of concessions possible.”

 

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‘Thank you on behalf of all Americans’

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Bill Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, speaks during an interview for an episode of “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer-to-Peer Conversations” in New York on Nov. 28, 2023.

Jeenah Moon | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Hedge fund mogul Bill Ackman let out a sigh of relief after President Donald Trump temporarily dropped some of the steep “reciprocal” tariffs, sparking a monster rally in risk assets.

“Thank you on behalf of all Americans,” Ackman wrote in a post on social media platform X. Shortly after, he added, “[Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent] rocks!”

His comments came after Trump announced a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs that were imposed on dozens of trade partners, while raising duties on China again to a whopping 125%. Trump said more than 75 countries contacted U.S. officials to negotiate after he unveiled his new tariffs last week.

“The benefit of @realDonaldTrump‘s approach is that we now understand who are our preferred trading partners, and who the problems are,” Ackman said in another post. “This is the perfect setup for trade negotiations over the next 90 days. Advice for China: Pick up the phone and call the President. He is a tough but fair negotiator.”

Ackman, one of the most outspoken backers of Trump on Wall Street, said he was “totally supportive” of Trump using tariffs as a negotiating tool, but as the trade fight escalated quickly, he recently warned that the president might have gone too far.

On Sunday, the CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management said America was heading toward a self-inflicted “economic nuclear winter” because of Trump’s steep tariffs, urging a pause for country-specific levies.

“Business is a confidence game. The president is losing the confidence of business leaders around the globe,” said Ackman in an X post over the weekend.

Ackman also accused Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick of profiting from the economic crash by betting on government bonds, citing an “irreconcilable conflict of interest.” The billionaire investor subsequently walked back his criticism, calling it “unfair” and saying that outside observers didn’t “know how the sausage was made.”

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Chinese EV giant BYD expands in Europe with premium brand Denza launch

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A BYD Denza Z9 GT electric car on display in Hong Kong in February 2025.

Ucg | Universal Images Group | Getty Images

BEIJING — Chinese electric car giant BYD is pushing ahead into Europe, launching its premium Denza brand in the region despite rising trade tensions.

The first model, the Z9GT, is set to arrive in European showrooms in the fourth quarter of 2025, BYD said Wednesday during Brera Design Week in Milan. The company did not specify prices or a delivery date for the station wagon-type car.

The Z9GT for Europe will come in both battery-only and plug-in hybrid versions, BYD said.

BYD already sells electric cars in Europe. The company initially formed the Denza brand in 2010 with Daimler, now the Mercedes-Benz Group. The sub-brand was revamped in 2021 and sells cars in China, with the German automaker reducing its equity interest to 10%.

The European Union last year announced 17% duties on imports of BYD battery electric vehicles over claims of “unfair” production subsidies. Last month, Chinese and EU officials discussed issues related to the electric car supply chain during a meeting in Beijing.

Why some EV researchers are skeptical of BYD's fast charging tech

The second Denza model for Europe will be a seven-seat multi-purpose vehicle called the D9, BYD said, without specifying a delivery date.

“We’re thrilled to be introducing Denza to European customers, starting here in Milan and accelerating as 2025 progresses,” Stella Li, executive vice president at BYD, said in a statement.

Surging overseas sales

BYD has ramped up its overseas sales since late 2022. In the first quarter of this year, the company said it sold more than 206,000 cars outside China, more than double that of the year-ago period and already reaching roughly half of the number of cars it sold overseas last year.

The automaker’s first-quarter revenue grew by at least 86% from a year ago to 8.5 billion yuan ($1.2 billion), according to a filing on Tuesday.

BYD noted “substantial growth” in its international sales as it achieved record new energy vehicle sales in the first quarter, with 986,098 passenger cars sold. The Chinese automaker no longer makes traditional fuel-powered passenger cars.

Most of BYD’s cars target a lower price segment than that of Tesla, and the Chinese company overtook Elon Musk’s automaker in total sales last year.

BYD also sold more battery-only passenger cars in the first quarter, with sales of 416,388 units — more than Tesla’s 172,754 vehicles sold in China during that time, according to delivery numbers published by the China Passenger Car Association.

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