Bitcoin Rises Slightly But Stays Below Record High — Market Talk

1050 GMT - Bitcoin edges higher but is below the record high reached at the start of the week as it struggles for renewed momentum. The cryptocurrency has consolidated some of its gains from earlier in the week even after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday to promote cryptocurrencies and work towards developing a digital asset stockpile. "The lack of immediate clarity on his plans for a national crypto stockpile weighed on sentiment," Saxo Bank analysts say in a note. Bitcoin rises 2.1% to $105,2755, having reached a record high of $109,071 on Monday, according to LSEG. ([email protected])1048 GMT - Europe could attract U.S. workers indignant at the country's recent political developments, top central banker Christine Lagarde says days after Donald Trump was inaugurated for a second term as president of the world's largest economy. Europe has plenty of its own homegrown talent, as well as ambition and means, the president of the European Central Bank says, insisting that the European economy has scope to grow. But that could be supplemented by Americans looking to leave the country, she says. "Maybe it is time to import some of the talent that may be disenchanted from the other side of the sea," she tells a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. ([email protected]; @joshualeokirby)1041 GMT - There is too much gloom around the European economy, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink tells a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "My number-one observation this week is that I've never felt larger or more profound pessimism [about Europe,]" he says. That downbeat sentiment is unjustified, Fink says, though he notes that European banking and capital-market unions are overdue. "It's probably time to be investing back into Europe, focusing on Europe," the investment chief says.([email protected]; @joshualeokirby))1042 GMT - The European Central Bank will maintain a focus on the eurozone's lacklustre economic progress, keeping rate cuts ahead very likely, ING economist Bert Colijn says. Activity in the currency area's private sector rebounded a little at the start of the year, but growth is likely to remain sluggish, surveys set out Friday suggest. There are some signs that price pressures are growing again, but the bank's policymakers look comfortable with a cut to interest rates next week and more at subsequent meetings of the governing council, Colijn tells clients in a note.([email protected]; @joshualeokirby)1036 GMT - The dollar's decline after U.S. President Donald Trump said he'd prefer not to impose new tariffs on China could prove limited, MUFG Bank analyst MUFG Bank's Lee Hardman says in a note. Trump is still likely to implement higher tariffs, he says. Trump wants lower interest rates and a weaker dollar to support the U.S. economy. However, his policy of tariffs, tighter immigration and tax cuts, if implemented, will "help to keep U.S. yields and the dollar higher for longer." Trump told Fox News that he would "rather not" impose new tariffs on China, suggesting the possibility of a trade deal. The DXY dollar index falls 0.5% to 107.454 after earlier hitting a five-week low of 107.276. ([email protected])1025 GMT - London-listed miners are seeing their shares boosted by rising base-metal prices, AJ Bell's investment director Russ Mould writes. The share price gains are propping up the resource-heavy FTSE-100 index, which has broken records in recent days, he writes. Copper, aluminium, lead, zinc and tin are all trading higher on the weak dollar. Given metals are priced in dollars, a decline in the greenback makes commodities cheaper for buyers holding other currencies, he writes. Antofagasta shares trade up 3.93% to 1,798.00 pence, Glencore's rise 2.5% to 382.95 pence, Rio Tinto's London-listed shares climb 1.9% to 5,041.00 pence while Anglo American's edge up 1.84% at 2,595.00 pence. ([email protected])1018 GMT - U.S. Treasury yields fall slightly in early European trade following remarks by the U.S. President Donald Trump that he would prefer to avoid imposing tariffs on China. "These remarks have eased concerns among investors who feared that high import tariffs could reignite inflation," ActivTrades' Ricardo Evangelista says in a note. The 10-year Treasury yield earlier declines to 4.613%. It last trades marginally lower at 4.634%, Tradeweb data show. ([email protected])1010 GMT - Sterling briefly extends its gains against the dollar and trims its losses versus the euro after the flash U.K. purchasing managers' survey exceeded expectations. The composite purchasing managers' index rose to 50.9 in January from 50.4 in December, beating the 50.1 forecast by economists in a WSJ survey. A level above 50 indicates an expansion in activity. However, companies cut employment amid falling sales and concerns about business prospects while cost inflation reached a 20-month high. This presents a policy dilemma for the Bank of England, S&P economist Chris Williamson says in the survey's press release. GBP/USD briefly hits a two-week high of 1.2449 after the survey from 1.2428 beforehand. EUR/GBP falls to 0.8442 from 0.8453 beforehand. ([email protected])0933 GMT - The euro rises to a five-and-a-half-week high against the dollar after a key survey showed a better-than-expected improvement in eurozone manufacturing activity in January while services activity remained in expansion. The manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 46.1 in January from 45.1 in December, above the 45.4 forecast in a WSJ poll of economists. A level below 50 signals a contraction in activity while a reading above that indicates growth. The services PMI fell to 51.4 in January from 51.6 in December, against an expected 51.5. The survey also showed a sharp rise in price pressures. The euro rises to a high of $1.0517 after the data from $1.0495 beforehand. ([email protected])0918 GMT - Yields on eurozone government bonds rise after German and eurozone interim purchasing managers index data for January came in stronger than expected, lowering the chances of aggressive interest-rate cuts from the European Central Bank. The composite PMI index--which measures services and manufacturing activity--rose more than forecast to 50.2 for the eurozone and 50.1 for Germany, with a reading above 50 signallingexpansion. France's PMI data still showed economic activity contracting, although manufacturing improved from very low levels. The 10-Year Bund yield rises to 2.568%, from 2.533% before the release, up around 2 basis points on the day, Tradeweb data show. The 10-year French government bond yield trades marginally higher on the day at 3.309%, up from 3.290% beforehand. ([email protected])0824 GMT - Singapore's manufacturing growth could moderate this year, OCBC's Selena Ling says in a note. It is unclear if frontloading will continue ahead of potential Trump tariffs, and how restrictions will unfold, she writes. "At this juncture, the signals are somewhat mixed." Semiconductor companies, such as Texas Instruments, have given disappointing earnings outlooks due to sluggish chip demand, she notes, while SK Hynix has sparked concern about AI demand. On the other hand, there is a data-center spending boom and chip giant TSMC is upbeat on 2025 AI hardware spending despite the U.S.-China tech conflict, she says. Amid the uncertainty, OCBC projects Singapore's 2025 manufacturing growth at 2.7%, down from 2024's 4.3% expansion. ([email protected])0852 GMT - The yen's reaction to the Bank of Japan's meeting signals a hawkish surprise that ING's Francesco Pesole links primarily to the upward revision in headline and core CPI forecasts. The BOJ's 25bp hike was in line with expectations but policymakers now see inflation at 2.4% in 2025, up from 1.9% previously. USD/JPY briefly traded below 155.0 before paring losses as Gov. Ueda struck a rather cautious tone at the press conference, Pesole says in a note. Ueda gave no hint about the timing of the next hike or pace of further tightening. ING now pencils in two more hikes in May and October, which would help the yen counter broad dollar strength and keep some pressure on USD/JPY into the 155.0 mark. The pair is last at 155.26.([email protected])