Gold Tops $4,600, Bitcoin Surges as Market Focuses on Nvidia Earnings and Jackson Hole Meeting
TradingKey – On August 21 Eastern Time, the three major U.S. stock indices closed higher across the board, but still recorded losses for the week. After experiencing volatility in Treasury yields, Middle East uncertainty, and a cooling of the AI trade, the market saw a phased recovery on Friday. Strong U.S. services sector data, coupled with news that the U.S. Treasury expanded long-term Treasury buybacks, temporarily alleviated market concerns about long-end interest rates continuing to rise, driving a rebound in risk appetite.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.98% to 53,282.32 points; the S&P 500 Index gained 0.43% to 7,674.37 points; and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.43% to 26,180.45 points.
In terms of sectors and individual stocks, the materials, healthcare, and financial sectors performed relatively well. Ross Stores (ROST) rose 4.39%, mainly boosted by an upward revision in its annual profit forecast and better-than-expected quarterly performance. Crypto-related stocks were the day’s biggest highlight, with Robinhood (HOOD) surging 13.7%, Coinbase (COIN) gaining 8.2%, and Strategy (MSTR) climbing 6.1%. Bitcoin rose approximately 6.4% on the day, reaching its highest level since May and driving crypto asset-related stocks higher in tandem.
As for tech stocks, the main AI theme remains in a cautious phase ahead of earnings verification. Nvidia (NVDA) is scheduled to release its financial results, which the market regards as a crucial window to gauge AI chip demand, data center capital expenditures, and the AI infrastructure investment cycle. Previously, rising long-end Treasury yields weighed on the semiconductor sector, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index falling about 5% last week, indicating that investors remain cautious regarding AI trade valuations and financing costs.
In commodities, crude oil remains oscillating at high levels. Last Friday, oil prices rose for the sixth consecutive trading day, primarily because Trump threatened economic sanctions against Iran’s trading partners, raising market fears of further supply tightening. Entering early Asian trading on August 24, investors chose to take profits before the U.S. announced further sanctions on Iran, with Brent crude falling over 2% to $91.50 and WTI crude (USOIL) dropping about 0.8% to $86/barrel. Although oil prices retreated in the short term, supply risks in the Middle East have not been eliminated.
In precious metals, gold (XAUUSD) continued its strong momentum. Spot gold rose 1.9% last Friday to $4,604.80, touching an intraday high of $4,632.13, a new high since mid-May. The rise in gold was mainly driven by a weakening U.S. dollar, the U.S. Treasury’s long-term Treasury buyback plan, and market concerns about U.S. debt and policy stability.
In the crypto market, Bitcoin (BTC) continued to be a highlight among risk assets. Bitcoin surged last week, reclaiming $70,000 and briefly rising above $79,000, prompting a simultaneous rebound in crypto stocks. The market attributed this rally to changes in liquidity expectations from the U.S. Treasury’s buybacks of long-term Treasuries, a weaker U.S. dollar, and improved expectations for crypto regulation. However, after substantial short-term gains, whether Bitcoin can continue to achieve breakthroughs will depend on ETF fund inflows, dollar trends, and sentiment in U.S. tech stocks.
