Current times
We are living in uncertain and curious times at the moment as COVID-19 tightens its grip on a global scale. We are fast approaching the 1 Million case mark, with confirmed cases sat at 951,400 at the time of writing.
What we have seen during this pandemic is unprecedented. What started in Wuhan, China has spread across the globe affecting 206 territories. Whole regions have been put on lockdown, travel has been severely restricted for most as countries look to repatriate their people and minimize unessential movements.
Schools have been closed, bars and restaurants have closed as the hospitality industry suffers while employees fortunate enough to work remotely have been told to continue their duties from home.
Even most recently Wall Street Traders are working from home, something unheard of!
Black Monday
On March 9th, global markets suffered massive losses, which is now known as Black Monday. This was largely thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic coupled with an oil price war between Russia and Saudi backed OPEC countries.
We have seen a slowing recently of stocks being liquidated but the market continues to downtrend.
Are we seeing a shift in traditional stocks liquidated to free up investment capital for more favorable digital assets as Bitcoin is making strides forward? Read on to find out how you can build on your existing BTC portfolio.
Stocks take hit
As the Coronavirus effect continues to damage markets, we have seen global markets suffer severely in the first quarter of the year. The DOW Jones Industrial Average fell more than 23% and reported its worst first quarter in the history of the Index which spans 135 years. Investors have continued liquidating assets creating a bear marketplace.
Many commentators are saying that a current market bottom has hit. That being said that doesn’t mean THE bottom has hit showing we are undoubtedly in a bear market. With bear markets in mind, this is providing a perfect chance for traders looking at going short on markets are looking to scalp on short term recoveries on markets.
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Indices in numbers
The DOW Jones closed with a 13.74% down in March marking the worst performing month since the 2008 financial crisis.
For the first quarter of 2020, DOW closed down -23.2% for the quarter which was the worst ¼ since the fourth quarter of 1987.
For March, the S&P closed down 12.51%, its worse since 2008.
The S&P was down 20% in the first quarter of 2020 which was also the worst single quarter since the fourth of 2008. It was the worst first quarter in the history of the S&P 500.
With Stocks taking a hit, market sentiment seems to be shifting towards Cryptocurrencies as a ‘safe haven’ for traders and investors alike.
Investor sentiment
Bear market bottoms are breeding grounds for bull markets. Look back at bear markets historically and markets do bounce back with an average bounce of 15% up from the bear bottom over the next 5 years so opportunities are still alive for long term investors.
Market sentiment is low in Indices at the moment but some Cryptocurrencies and certain stocks are in fact, performing well.
Market bright spots
Amongst the doom and gloom of stock markets plummeting, some stocks have performed exceptionally well. Netflix and Amazon have performed well in the first quarter of the year.
Netflix was up 22% for the first quarter of 2020 showing that people are seeking to keep themselves entertained in the epidemic. Short term this will be good for streaming services however when content starts to dry up, consumers may shift to other streaming platforms with fresh material.
Amazon was up 7% for the first quarter of 2020.
‘Safe haven’ for Cryptocurrencies?
With all the chaos in markets recently we have seen a resurgence in Cryptocurrencies and in particular, Bitcoin. Cashless payment solutions are so desirable right now as lockdown is in full swing as governments work to reduce gatherings of people and emergency staff work tirelessly to control the spread of infection.
BTC price was stable around the $9,000 mark for much of February and early March until prices fell below $5,000 for the first time since December 2019.
We are now experiencing stabilization with BTC price looking to creep over $7k imminently.
You can trade on over 34 Cryptocurrency pairs with leverage at https://www.cryptorocket.com/. Sign up and start trading BTC/USD with leverage up to 1:100 for Crypto.
The Halving
There is one big event coming that is about to reshape the BTC landscape, the 3rd Bitcoin halving!
The mining reward is set to be cut from 12.5 BTC to 6.25 with the projected date set on 13th May 2020.
HODLers are scrambling to accrue more BTC as miners look to cash in before the reward is divided in 2. History has shown us that there is great volatility before, during and after the halving providing an ideal setting for scalpers.
Increase earnings by trading BTC
You can increase your BTC portfolio by trading BTC as well as HODLing. As the US looks at moves towards a digital dollar to help millions of unbanked citizens have access to aid funds, the Fed is looking had a digital wallet to hold onto funds for citizens at the same value as the Fiat dollar.
The Chinese are also looking at digitalizing the Yuan.
With these factors considered there has never been a better time to trade digital assets such as Bitcoin. With lockdown in full swing and restrictions on freedom of movement, it surely makes sense that Crypto will soon be more prominent in markets opposed to paper cash?
Rather than simply HODL your BTC, store tradeable funds in a BIT wallet at https://www.cryptorocket.com/.
This allows traders instant access to tradeable liquidity as account balances move in line with the BTC price movement. Should you see a downward trend on the horizon, simply transfer your funds to USD, GBP or EUR to protect your investment and then short the market.
Join for the Crypto revolution for free today.
