Crypto Exchange Closures Ignite Fears — Market Talk

1205 ET - Two major cryptocurrency exchanges have announced plans to close in the past week, igniting fears of more to come. The first is BitMEX, which announced last week in a post on X that it would be shutting down operations effective Sept. 23. Over the weekend, another exchange called BitMart also announced its shutdown via X. Other exchanges are now rumored to be on the chopping block as well, which is seen as a reaction to the nearly $1.7 trillion in market capitalization cryptocurrencies have shed over the past 12 months, according to data from CoinMarketCap. That's a decline of roughly 43%. Bitcoin is and ethereum both fall 1.7%, XRP is down 2.4%, and solana drops 2%. ([email protected])1124 ET - Canada likely requires higher interest rates to attract the trillions of dollars required to restore housing affordability and lift the country's lackluster productivity levels, says economist Charles St-Arnaud. The chief economist at Alberta-based Servus Credit Union says foreign investors are one of the few sources able "to meaningfully increase" capital toward Canada, adding that domestic households have been net borrowers since the late 1990s. Attracting the estimate C$8 trillion required to meet housing and productivity goals likely necessitates higher interest, St-Arnaud reckons, along with policies aimed at encouraging household savings. "There is no cheap or easy path out of Canada's current predicament,"he says. ([email protected], @paulvieira)1111 ET - Concerns over U.S. government debt keep investors on their toes, as shown by the 30-year Treasury yield. The benchmark is on pace to settle above 5% for the 16th consecutive session. The last time it stayed at this level for so long was in the run-up to the financial crisis, for 44 trading days in mid-2007, according to Tradeweb ICE and Dow Jones Market Data. "Rising Treasury yields have become an increasingly meaningful headwind for housing, fixed income, and other rate-sensitive assets," Harbor Capital says in a note. The firm is "monitoring whether elevated borrowing costs begin to materially slow economic activity." ([email protected]; @ptrevisani)1104 ET - Major cryptocurrencies are dropping, with investors anxious about the possibility of a rate hike Wednesday by the Fed, and "an ongoing deleveraging in the tech sector," says Stephen Coltman of 21shares. The shelving of the Clarity Act for now by the U.S. Senate is also weighing on crypto. Bitcoin is down 2.8% to $63,130, while ethereum falls 3.5% to $1,877, XRP sheds 3.6% to $1.05, and solana is down 4.1% to $72.80. ([email protected])1059 ET - Prolonged heat stress and crop damage from Europe's recent heatwaves and fires could create pressure across the food supply chain, Activtrades analyst Ion Jauregui says. Estimated losses of around $2 billion in grain farmer revenue highlight the wider economic impact. Although agriculture represents a limited share of GDP, food prices have a strong influence on inflation because they directly affect household spending, he says. "The main impact on supermarkets would likely be higher costs rather than empty shelves." Lower crop yields can also increase prices for wheat, barley and corn, while also raising costs for livestock producers and food manufacturers, he notes. "Persistent food inflation could slow the decline in inflation and complicate central bank decisions on interest rates," Jauregui says. ([email protected])1057 ET - The impact of Europe's wildfires depends not only on the severity of the hazard itself, but also on industries in its path, Oxford Economics senior economist Daniel Parker says. Around Bordeaux, Gironde's wine industry, agrifood production and logistics networks mean local disruption quickly ripples through supply chains and exports, he says. In Spain, Valencia's concentration of manufacturing, tourism, agriculture and logistics leaves much of its economy dependent on physical assets and transport infrastructure. Near Madrid, fires create impacts beyond the immediate hazard zones on agriculture and transport. "As wildfire seasons become longer and more intense, the effects are increasingly felt through disruptions to production, tourism flows, transport, and supply-chain bottlenecks that extend far beyond the areas directly affected." ([email protected])1054 ET - Investors could be overpricing the possibility of interest-rate rises by the Bank of England in the coming months, Insight Investment's Jessica Shuman says in a note. Markets fully price in one quarter-point BOE rate increase in November, LSEG data show. At 3.75%, the BOE rate is already restrictive and U.K. growth is weak, lowering the prospects of interest-rate rises later this year, Shuman says. "We believe the Bank will prove more reluctant to tighten further than current market pricing implies." ([email protected])1043 ET - Renewed U.S. tariff threats are compounding unease for businesses across Canada and are stacking on an investment slowdown, a quarterly report by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce finds. Based on a Statistics Canada survey, the chamber says just 1% of Canadian businesses plan to establish operations in the U.S., yet far more are postponing investment and delaying expansion until conditions become more certain. The highest rates of delayed investment and postponed expansion in Canada are among manufacturers, yet relatively few plan to relocate production or establish U.S. operations, it says. The report finds most companies could take on additional debt, which indicates that uncertainty and not financing capacity is the primary constraint on investment. ([email protected]; @RobbMStewart)1013 ET - The number of Canada-based Redfin.com users searching for U.S. homes to buy or rent fell 15.3% year-over-year in June, according to Redfin. That after a 10.1% decline in May. Over the past two years, Canadian searches for U.S. homes have dropped roughly 37%, after posting a 25.7% year-over-year decline in June 2025. Redfin says Canada's economy is starting to recover after a weak start to the year, but uncertainty around trade, jobs, the domestic housing market and inflation is still prompting many Canadians to think twice about making a major purchase. Canada-based home searches declined from a year earlier in 45 of the 50 most populous U.S. metros. ([email protected])1010 ET - The U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to leave interest rates unchanged at Wednesday's rate decision, but it could indicate a willingness to increase rates at future meetings, eToro's Lale Akoner says in a note. "We think the most likely outcome is a hold with a hawkish tone, tougher language on inflation and little comfort for anyone hoping the rate-hike debate is over," she says. U.S. money markets are fully pricing in one quarter-point rate Fed rate increase in September, LSEG data show. ([email protected])0959 ET - The selloff in the Japanese yen and the country's government bonds reflect the Bank of Japan's inflationary policy, BCA Research's Mathieu Savary says in a note. Japan's real policy rate adjusted for inflation stands at -0.75%, he says. It was only more negative during the global inflation surge that followed the Covid-19 pandemic, he says. Accommodative monetary policy combined with budding inflationary pressure is worrying yen and bond investors as it is forcing the economy to overheat, he says. The yen and bonds face further weakness over 2026, he says. The dollar rises 0.1% to 163.85 yen, having reached a 40-year high of 163.98 last week, LSEG data show. Japan's 10-year yield is little changed at 2.775%. ([email protected])0959 ET - The dollar could suffer knee-jerk weakness if the Federal Reserve leaves interest rates steady on Wednesday, TD Securities strategists say in a note. Market pricing on LSEG shows a 34% possibility that the Fed could raise rates Wednesday and are fully pricing a move by September. The TD analysts expect unchanged rates with Beth Hammack and Lorie Logan dissenting in favor or raising rates. Still, any short-term dollar weakness will likely be limited as Fed rate-hike pricing for the rest of the 2026 remains intact, they say. TD sees Fed Chair Kevin Warsh providing little forward guidance, reiterating a commitment to price stability. Warsh could note the fall in recent inflation data while suggesting inflation remains elevated, they say. ([email protected])