London, England – European stocks saw optimistic gains at the start of the week, with the Stoxx 600 index rising by 0.5% in London at 8:05 a.m. The FTSE 100 in the U.K. surged by 1.1%, while France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s DAX also experienced increases of 0.5% and 0.7%, respectively.
As fears of a broader Middle East conflict diminished, safe haven assets retreated on Monday. Bitcoin saw a 1.56% increase, reaching $65,713.97, while Asian equity markets, particularly Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index, rose. The Japanese yen, known as a safe haven asset, saw a slight weakening to 154.7, and the price of spot gold decreased by 0.87% to $2,369.58 per ounce. Oil prices, which initially spiked due to news of Israel conducting a strike against Iran, also fell.
In China, the central bank maintained its one- and five-year loan prime rates at 3.45% and 3.95%, respectively. These rates impact most household and corporate loans, as well as property mortgages. The decision aligned with expectations from a Reuters poll.
Tesla, the electric vehicle company, reduced prices globally following a decline in first-quarter deliveries, which marked the first drop in nearly four years. In China, the starting price of the Model 3 was cut to 231,900 yuan ($32,000), a reduction of 14,000 yuan. Similar price adjustments were made in Germany and several other countries in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Bitcoin’s price remained stable around $65,000 following its recent halving. This event, which reduces the rewards for miners, historically led to price increases, although some experts predict potential downside for the cryptocurrency in the near term. The three key futures contracts opened higher in New York, with Dow futures briefly rising by 100 points.
Looking back at last week, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both experienced declines, with the S&P 500 falling by 3.05% and the Nasdaq Composite by 5.52%. In contrast, the Dow saw a slight gain of 0.01% for the week.