US SEC Approves Bitcoin ETFs

12
Jan

As widely expected, the SEC yesterday authorized the sale of retail Bitcoin ETFs by several investment houses. Retail investors should be able to buy and sell these ETFs starting later today. In a typical case of “buy the rumour, sell the fact”, Bitcoin failed to break to a new long-term high following the news, remaining within a bullish consolidation technically. The new ETFs will be very interesting to retail trend traders and momentum investors.
The past day has seen continuing advances by most stock markets, notably the NASDAQ 100 Index, followed during the Asian session by the Japanese Nikkei 225 Index which again reached its highest price in 34 years for the second consecutive day. This may be a key sign of a resumption of the dominant long-term trend, which is bullish on many stock markets, especially in the USA.
The release of key US Inflation data later today could be a catalyst for a strong movement in stock markets if the data surprises. Markets are expecting annualized US inflation to make a tiny upwards tick, from 3.1% to 3.2%. If lower than expected, it will likely boost US stock markets; if higher, it will probably boost the US Dollar.
In the Forex market, the New Zealand Dollar has been the strongest major currency since the Tokyo open today. The Swiss Franc has been the weakest.