This week's big news was the continued drop in digital tokens, as both Bitcoin and Ethereum retreat after their huge runups. Bonds were also lower, stocks were generally higher, while currencies and commodities were mixed. The biggest gains were in crude oil, which rose 4.0%; the largest losses were in the Ethereum token, which fell 19.5%.
The Canadian Dollar and Chinese Yuan were the strongest currencies, rising 0.7% each. The US Dollar was the weakest currency, falling 1.2%. Bonds favored the longer maturities, as the 20+ year TLT fell 0.7%, while the 1-3 year SHY dropped 1.1% and USD cash (notes of zero maturity) fell 1.2%.
Bitcoin traded near 60 grams for most of the week, then dropped sharply on Friday, closing at 56.4 grams, down 12.5%. Ethereum started the week sharply lower, then was highly volatile, trading between 5 and 6 grams, and ending the week at 5.0 grams, down 19.5%.
The Euro STOXX were the strongest major stock index, rising 1.1%. The HUI gold stocks rose even more, adding 2.7%. The other stock indexes were little changed, with the DJIA down 0.2% and the S&P 500 up 0.2%.
Commodities were mixed, with crude oil rising 4.0%, while cotton fell 4.1%. In the metals, silver and platinum were lower (off 2.0% and 0.4% respectively) while palladium and copper were higher (rising 1.9% and 0.5% respectively).
