MARKET REPORT: Trump’s Crypto Bonanza Lifts Bitcoin to $90,000

Bitcoin has surpassed $90,000 for the first time following Donald Trump’s election victory.

The value of the world’s largest cryptocurrency has risen from $36,000 a year ago when Trump embraced digital assets in his campaign, promising to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet” and amass a national reserve of bitcoins.

Since its victory last week, the value of cryptocurrencies has risen rapidly in anticipation of the expected relaxation of regulations.

Now, Bitcoin appears to be progressing rapidly to the heady heights of $100,000, possibly even before the new president takes office.

Yesterday’s surge took it up from $88,000 to over $93,000.

Markets were generally more cautious as they digested the latest US inflation figures – in line with expectations of 2.6 percent – ​​amid fears that a Trump presidency could trigger a new price spiral.

New York indices made tentative gains in early trading, while in London the FTSE 100 finished up just 0.06 per cent, or 4.56 points, at 8,030.33.

At one point it fell below 8,000 for the first time since August. The FTSE 250 closed down 0.34 per cent, or 68.59 points, at 20,359.21.

Dowlais bucked the pessimism and accelerated to the top of the FTSE 250 profit board after the car parts maker revealed that while trading was tough, it was not getting worse.

In a market update, the company, which emerged from the former GKN industrial empire, said underlying revenue for the ten months to October 31, 2024 had fallen 6.1 percent to £4.2 billion. , mainly due to the weakness in its operations. Propulsion systems for electric cars.

But the company’s Driveline division, which makes parts for gasoline and diesel cars, outperformed the rest of the market in global light vehicle production, with the exception of China, where its joint venture revenue was flat.

Investors were happy to take advantage of any positives, given Dowlais’s poor share price performance since it was spun off by conglomerate Melrose in April 2023, which acquired engineering giant GKN in 2018. Dowlais shares rose a 6.7 per cent, or 3.2 pence, to 51.3 p.

Smiths Group led FTSE 100 gains, jumping 10.5 per cent, or 159 pence, to 1,681 pence as the airport medical scanner company raised its full-year guidance, with the engineer now expecting organic growth from income from 5 percent to 7 percent.

Smiths reported an increase in organic revenue growth in the first quarter to 16 per cent.

Intermediate Capital was the biggest loser, falling 7.2 per cent, or 162p, to 2,078p, as the private equity investor reported a drop in half-year pre-tax profit to £198.4m from £241.9 million last year, even as its net asset value increased.

Experian fell 2.5 per cent, or 97 pence, to 3,765 pence, as the consumer credit checker reported a 5.9 per cent drop in first-half pre-tax profits, despite a rise in 6.1 percent in revenue, citing movements in interest rates.

And the SSE fell 0.6 per cent, or 9.5p, to 1,691.5p as the electricity generator revealed Alistair Phillips-Davies would retire next year after 11 years at the helm.

The Scottish company posted a 38 per cent rise in its half-year pre-tax profit and increased its interim dividend by 6 per cent.