Yahoo Finance Bitcoin Pop, Pot Stock Drop, Bumble Debut: 3 Things to Watch
By Liz Moyer
Investing.com -- Stocks were mixed on Thursday, and energy led declines on renewed demand concerns.
The cartel of oil producers known as OPEC said demand will increase about 5.8 million barrels a day, which is actually less than previous forecasts. That weighed on big energy stocks like Halliburton Company (NYSE:HAL)and Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE:MRO)
The number of new jobless claims filed last week was higher than expected, but economists were quick to downplay the weaker headline number, noting that claims remained well below their January peak.
Sentiment on stocks were also supported by ongoing decline in U.S. virus cases and a pick up the pace of the vaccine rollouts that will likely lead to a stronger-than-expected reopening.
There isn’t much data scheduled for release, and earnings season is winding down. Here are three things that could affect markets tomorrow:
1. Crypto craze
Bitcoin (BitfinexUSD) jumped nearly 6% to $47,753, after BNY Mellon (NYSE:BK) said it started a new business to help clients hold, transfer and issue digital assets.
Investors have been piling into bitcoin and other digital currencies, rather than put their money in the traditional safe haven of gold. It might help that widely followed people like Elon Musk have taken to twitter to sing the praises of crypto (in Musk’s case, dogecoin). But Tesla’s investment in $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin is also pushing the price higher.
2. Pot trade up in smoke
A bid up in the cannabis sector this week petered out on Thursday. Widely reported to be a Reddit effort to boost shares of Tilray Inc (NASDAQ:TLRY), Aphria Inc (TSX:APHA), and Canopy Growth Corp (TSX:WEED), the trade lost its momentum and the stocks tumbled.
The ETFMG Alternative Harvest (NYSE:MJ)fund lost 24% on Thursday, though it is still up nearly 76% so far this year.
3. Bumble pop
As we predicted on Wednesday, Bumble Inc (NASDAQ:BMBL), the dating app company, soared on its debut, trading well above its IPO price of $43, following the pattern of other recent new listings. Bumble is getting a boost from users who are stuck at home but still eager to make new social connections, its CEO said on CNBC on Thursday.
After jumping more than 80% when it began trading around midday, Bumble gave up some of that gain. It was up 70% from its IPO price just after 3:00 PM ET.
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