1151 ET - Cryptocurrencies have turned higher after starting the day mixed, with bitcoin bouncing off of support seen by analysts around $76,000. Among major cryptocurrencies, Zcash looks to still be the hottest — up 9.6% to $628.71, according to data from LSEG. The privacy coin continues to push higher, making it 16% its gained in the past week and more than 100% it has added in the past month. Earlier this month, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes said in a post on X that he expects Zcash to reach a target equating to 10% of the price for BTC — which would be over $7,700 as of today. Ethereum rises 1% to $2,139, XRP is up 1.2% to $1.37, and solana is up 1.7% to $85.88. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1139 ET - Bitcoin is up 1% to $77,741, and support is seen at just above $76,000, says Bitfinex in a note. More specifically, the firm says $76,318 is a key support level for the cryptocurrency. Liquidation of millions of dollars in long positions has been occurred so far this week, according to data from CoinGlass, but in the past 24 hours more short positions have been liquidated, totaling over $23 million, CoinGlass says.(kirk.maltais@wsj.com)
1122 ET - While there was a welcome decline in U.K. inflation in April, the respite is likely to only be temporary as price pressures from the Iran war pass through, Investec's Sandra Horsfield says in a note. A rise of around 13% in the utility price cap from July could be confirmed by next week. Meanwhile, producer price inflation showed an unexpectedly strong jump in annual input price inflation to 7.7%. "We are braced for inflation to rebound visibly from here between now and autumn," Horsfield says. However, it remains possible that a weakening labor market persuades the majority of Bank of England policymakers that rate hikes aren't necessarily and that postponing rate cuts until 2027 will suffice, she says. (edward.frankl@wsj.com)
1115 ET - Treasury yields and the dollar deepen their decline as oil prices fall. Brent and WTI are down about 4%, reflecting hopes that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen soon. Meanwhile, U.S. crude inventories plummeted by 7.9 million barrels last week, compared to WSJ consensus of a 3 million draw, keeping inflation concerns top of mind in Wall Street. Investors are likely to scrutinize Fed minutes this afternoon for clues on potential rate hikes. A 20-year Treasury auction is on tap this afternoon. The 10-year yield is at 4.603%, down from 4.653% earlier. The two-year falls to 4.066% from 4.112%. The WSJ Dollar Index slips 0.3%. (paulo.trevisani@wsj.com; @ptrevisani)
1102 ET - The Bank of England is expected to continue actively selling its gilt holdings, a process referred to as quantitative tightening, over the next 12-month period starting in October, Morgan Stanley's Bruna Skarica says in a note. "We see risks as skewed towards a slower pace of active sales, albeit not their cessation," she says. (miriam.mukuru@wsj.com)
1059 ET - Crude futures extend losses, sliding as much as 4% despite a sharp drawdown in U.S. stocks and as traders continue to monitor U.S.-Iran negotiations. In U.S. morning trade, Brent crude declines 3.8% to $107.02 a barrel, while WTI futures fall 3.4% to $100.64 a barrel. The latest EIA data showed commercial crude oil inventories fell by 7.9 million barrels in the week ended May 15, while gasoline stocks declined by 1.55 million barrels. The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, rapidly tightening global supplies, and the U.S. and Iran still appear far from reaching an agreement. Still, analysts say several factors could prevent prices from moving significantly higher. "One of the most significant could be a substantial reduction in global demand," says Alex Kuptsikevich from FxPro. "Higher interest rates could push economies closer to recession and reduce demand for energy commodities." (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
1058 ET - U.K. inflation data for April represent a significant downside to the Bank of England's expectations, increasing the chance that it will keep interest rates on hold for the remainder of the year, Barclays' Jack Meaning and Cian Hennigan say in a note. Headline and core inflation declined 0.5 points and 0.6 points respectively, to 2.8% and 2.5%. Even as direct energy components strengthen, there's little evidence yet of indirect energy effects in food prices or core goods, they say. "The [BOE] will take some comfort from confirmation that the underlying inflationary picture in the absence of the shock would have been benign." However, focus will remain on forward-looking indicators and geopolitics, which will shape inflation going forward, the economists say. (edward.frankl@wsj.com)
1051 ET - Tariff refunds could be a modest disinflationary force, according to an analysis from BofA Securities. The economists say the refunds should act as another buffer to high gas prices as importers that receive those refunds will likely use the money to offset rising energy and shipping costs. "They may also offer some type of consumer relief, which surveys suggest is more likely to come in the form of slower price hikes rather than a direct benefit to consumers," they say.(jessica.coacci@wsj.com)
1007 ET - Tracking by job site Indeed of Canadian ads that explicitly include the word summer in English or French in the job title finds seasonal demand remains at similar levels to 2025, and as of May 8 the number of postings was up 4% from a year earlier. Indeed economist Brendon Bernard says this stabilization marks a break in the trend after consecutive declines between 2022 and 2025, with summer job postings in early May still down 37% from the 2022 peak. Jobs at summer camps remain the most prevalent but have slipped compared with 2025, offset by stronger seasonal demand for painters, administrative assistants, warehouse workers, and youth workers. Bernard says that over the past few years, trends in summer job postings have broadly mirrored those in overall job postings. (robb.stewart@wsj.com; @RobbMStewart)
0943 ET - The EU faces a significant skills gap in the raw-materials sector, Ekaterina Zaharieva, the bloc's commissioner for startups, research and innovation, says at a summit. "Public and private investment, together with programs like Horizon Europe, are helping accelerate innovation across the raw materials value chain, but innovation alone is not enough," she says, referring to the bloc's funding program for research and innovation. "Europe must become better and faster at scaling ideas into industrial success," she says. (edith.hancock@wsj.com)
0915 ET - Sterling's recovery partly reflects reassurances from potential U.K. Labour leadership contender Andy Burnham about committing to fiscal rules, Rabobank's Jane Foley says in a note. However, both sterling and U.K. government bonds are likely to be jittery into the summer due to the political uncertainty, she says. Moreover, the Bank of England could raise interest rates less than expected this year given a weak labor market, she says. The euro falls 0.1% to a one-week low of 0.8651 pounds, having reached five-week high of 0.8729 on Friday, LSEG data show. "We see scope for further choppy range trading in euro-sterling around current levels and maintain a six-month target of 0.88," Foley says.(renae.dyer@wsj.com)
0914 ET - Yields on U.K. government bonds, or gilts, could extend declines if investors lower their expectations of the Bank of England interest-rate rises, Peel Hunt's Kallum Pickering says in a note. U.K. jobs data and inflation data released this week came in weaker than expected, reducing the risk of sharp BOE rate rises in the coming months. Investors currently price in a total of 51 basis points of BOE rate rises in 2026, down from 65 basis points priced in prior to the release of the U.K. jobs and inflation data, LSEG data show. (miriam.mukuru@wsj.com)
source: https://www.tradingview.com/news/DJN_DN20260520008453:0/
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