Bitcoin Hits Record High After Smashing Through $8,000 for First Time

A copy of bitcoin standing on PC motherboard is seen in this illustration picture, October 26, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
A copy of bitcoin standing on PC motherboard is seen in this illustration picture, October 26, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
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Bitcoin Hits Record High After Smashing Through $8,000 for First Time

A copy of bitcoin standing on PC motherboard is seen in this illustration picture, October 26, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
A copy of bitcoin standing on PC motherboard is seen in this illustration picture, October 26, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Bitcoin hit a new record high on Monday after smashing through the $8,000 level for the first time over the weekend, marking an almost 50 percent climb in just eight days.

The new high came after leading US payments company Square Inc said late last week that it had started allowing select customers to buy and sell bitcoins on its Cash app.

Bitcoin traded as high as $8,197.81 on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange, up over 2 percent on the day and around 48 percent up since dipping to $5,555 on Nov. 12.

An eye-watering eightfold increase in the value of the volatile cryptocurrency since the start of the year has led to multiple warnings that the market is in a bubble, and institutional investors are broadly staying away.

Retail investors, however, as well as some hedge funds and family offices, are piling into the market. The “market cap” of all cryptocurrencies hit an all-time high of over $242 billion on Monday, according to trade website Coinmarketcap.



Gold Slips as US Bond Yields Rise, Investors Assess New Tariffs

Gold rings are displayed in a gold shop in Chinatown in Bangkok, Thailand August 21, 2018. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo
Gold rings are displayed in a gold shop in Chinatown in Bangkok, Thailand August 21, 2018. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo
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Gold Slips as US Bond Yields Rise, Investors Assess New Tariffs

Gold rings are displayed in a gold shop in Chinatown in Bangkok, Thailand August 21, 2018. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo
Gold rings are displayed in a gold shop in Chinatown in Bangkok, Thailand August 21, 2018. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo

Gold prices eased on Tuesday, weighed by higher US Treasury yields as US President Donald Trump announced new tariff proposals on trading partners, including Japan and South Korea.

Spot gold was down 0.2% at $3,328.67 per ounce, as of 1207 GMT. US gold futures fell 0.1% to $3,338.20.

The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes rose to a two-week peak, making the non-yielding bullion less attractive.

"Gold is stuck between a rock and a hard place," said UBS commodity analyst Giovanni Staunovo, Reuters reported.

"Negative for the gold price is the US decision to extend the deadline for a trade deal for many trade partners, positive for the gold price is the fact that key US trading partners in Asia might have to deal with higher tariffs in the near future, weighing on economic growth prospects."

On Monday, Trump told 14 countries that sharply higher tariffs would start on August 1, marking a new phase in the trade war he launched in April, with levies between 25% and 40%.

The new deadline was firm, Trump said, adding that he would consider extensions if countries made proposals for a trade deal.

"Reciprocal tariffs" were to be capped at 10% until July 9 to allow for negotiations, but so far, agreements have been reached only with Britain and Vietnam. In June, Washington and Beijing agreed on a framework covering tariff rates.

Meanwhile, China has warned the Trump administration against reigniting trade tensions and threatened to retaliate against nations that strike deals with the US to exclude it from their supply chains.

Trump's tariffs have stoked inflation fears, further complicating the US Federal Reserve's path to lower interest rates.

Investors await minutes of the Fed's June meeting, due on Wednesday, for more clues into the bank's policy outlook.

Spot silver fell 0.1% to $36.71 per ounce, platinum rose 0.2% to $1,372.51, and palladium rose 0.6% to $1,117.33.