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U.S. stocks hit records as Tesla investment boosts bitcoin
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A Wall Street street sign outside the New York Stock Exchange as snow falls in New York, U.S., February 1, 2021. /VCG

A Wall Street street sign outside the New York Stock Exchange as snow falls in New York, U.S., February 1, 2021. /VCG

Wall Street stocks powered to fresh records Monday, while bitcoin also touched an all-time high after Tesla declared itself an investor in the cryptocurrency.

Also rising were oil prices to a 52-week high, while U.S. Treasury yields also surged before pulling back.

All three major U.S. stock indices streaked to fresh records, extending last week's rally on optimism that additional U.S. fiscal stimulus is coming soon, along with an expected economic recovery.

Investors are betting that President Joe Biden will succeed in winning approval for most aspects of his $1.9-trillion fiscal relief package, analysts said.

Over the weekend, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen predicted the U.S. would get back to full employment next year if the package is enacted, but warned job gains would lag if Congress does not come through.

Yields on 10- and 30-year Treasury bonds initially jumped in the aftermath of Yellen's comments but later ebbed.

Rising yields have sparked some increased discussion about higher inflation risks, the anxiety is still contained at this point, analysts said.

"Rising interest rates are indicative of an improving economy," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare, adding that there is little evidence of general inflation in the economy.

"The stock market is not overly concerned with the inflation factor," O'Hare said. "It will be one day. It just isn't now."

Tesla magic lifts bitcoin

Earlier, bitcoin hit a record-high of near $45,000 after Elon Musk's electric carmaker Tesla invested $1.5 billion in the digital currency and said it would soon accept it as payment.

The announcement comes on the heels of a cheeky social media embrace of bitcoin by the iconoclastic Tesla chief executive, and marks the latest step in the mainstreaming of the cryptocurrency.

"This is probably one of the biggest developments for the cryptocurrency industry," noted Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at ThinkMarkets.

"Tesla is going to be a major player in the auto industry and if it starts accepting bitcoin as a form of payment, it will give the digital currency further legitimacy."

Shortly after news broke of Tesla's investment, bitcoin hit $44,795.20 before pulling back slightly.

Near 2200 GMT, the currency was at $44,350, up 17 percent for the day.

Meanwhile, the benchmark oil contract Brent North Sea rose above $60 per barrel to hit its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread globally almost a year ago.

Brent's climb above $60 was due to the OPEC oil cartel and its allies cutting output after the COVID-19 pandemic slashed demand, according to analysts.

Petroleum-linked shares were especially strong on Monday in the U.S. thanks to the recent bounce in oil prices. Chevron jumped 2.5 percent, Apache 10 percent and Halliburton 5.6 percent.

Source(s): AFP

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