Weekly news summary for July 1 to July 7
Friday, July 1: Eurozone June Inflation Surges to New Record High
Eurozone inflation hit a new record high in June, ahead of a rate hike decision from the European Central Bank (ECB), which remains under pressure to be more aggressive with raising interest rates in the coming months.
Preliminary data from Eurostat showed the bloc’s headline inflation to 8.6% year-on-year for June, a new peak after it reached 8.1% in May, while Germany unexpectedly lost 0.5 percentage points in its inflation, although Spain climbed 10.2% in June to its highest since April 1985.
Monday, July 4: Bitcoin Returns to $20K Mark on Whales’ Support
Bitcoin climbed back to the $20,000 mark on Monday, with whales purchasing the cryptocurrency at $19,000, providing some unexpected support during the US Independence Day Holiday.
The world’s largest crypto by market cap was trading at $20,085 on the day, its best performance since June 30 and after staying around $19,000 for most of the holiday, while altcoins strengthened from Bitcoin’s surge, with Ethereum gaining nearly 6% to trade above the $1,100 threshold.
Tuesday, July 5: Euro Slides to 20-Year Low on Contraction Concerns
The euro tumbled to a fresh 20-year low against the US dollar on Tuesday, as investors lessened their expectations on the ECB hiking interest rates, as concerns about a possible contraction grew, with the Russia-Ukraine conflict weighing on the bloc’s economy.
The euro fell 0.8% to $1.0335, its lowest level since beating early skepticism toward it after its introduction in 1999, while S&P Global’s Eurozone composite purchasing managers index (CPI) declined to 52.0 last month from 54.8 in May, the lowest figure in 16 months.
Wednesday, July 6: Voyager Digital Files Chapter 11 after 3AC Default
Voyager Digital Ltd. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US after last week’s default of Singapore-based cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) left the cryptocurrency broker with a $650-million loss.
The New York filing stated that Toronto-based Voyager, whose share value has dropped almost 98% since the start of 2022, estimated it owes over 100,000 creditors, has assets worth $1 billion and $10 billion, and liabilities worth within the same range.
Thursday, July 7: Oil Prices Rebound as Attention Shifts to Supplies
Oil prices recovered on Thursday after declining sharply in the past two sessions as investors shifted their attention to tight supplies despite continued concerns about the demand outlook amid the possibility of a global recession.
Global benchmark Brent crude futures added 0.1% to $100.85 per barrel, having lost over $2 to hit a session low of $98.50 earlier, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 0.6% to $99.12 per barrel after posting an intraday low of $96.57.
