Good morning and welcome to the stock market today! The cryptocurrency market is buzzing with volatility and Dogecoin (CCC:DOGE-USD) remains at elevated levels. With so much news flooding Wall Street, what should you know now? And what will the stock market do today?
To start, the major indices are in a slump, potentially thanks to a sharp drop in crypto prices over the weekend. The S&P 500 is down 0.44%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 0.39%. The Nasdaq Composite is also down 0.95%.
So what else will the stock market do today? Here are the top stories.
What Will the Stock Market Do Today? Talk Crypto Crash.
Is the crypto bubble bursting? With Bitcoin (CCC:BTC-USD) dropping to a three-week low over the weekend and retouching levels near $50,000, that question is top of mind. But what actually caused BTC to crash? And where will cryptocurrencies go from here?
Investors should note that there is no one clear reason for the selloff in crypto assets, but that is not stopping the pain. Bitcoin is trading near $55,000 today, far from its new all-time highs above $64,000. Crypto-related stocks like Marathon Digital (NASDAQ:MARA) and Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ:RIOT) are also feeling the heat.
As CoinDesk reported, there are a few theories for the crash. One surrounds rumors that the U.S. Treasury is preparing to charge several financial institutions for money laundering with cryptocurrencies. Another stems from an old CNBC report on a potential Bitcoin ban in India.
Still, some analysts are attributing the selloff to a mining outage in China. According to analyst Willy Woo, everything started last week in Xinjiang when facility safety inspections triggered a blackout. Woo writes that these blackouts were significant, because Xinjiang contributes one-quarter of the global hash rate.
So where do things go from here? While some experts are busy focusing on the cause of the crypto cash, one powerful upside catalyst is brewing in China. According to a new report, the nation is warming up to Bitcoin as an investment alternative. This could be significant for cryptocurrencies, according to industry insiders. Keep this story on your radar.
Yale Switches Up Its Investing Curriculum
Ethical investing stocks are driving interest on Monday morning following big news from the Yale University Board of Trustees. According to a new report from Inside Higher Ed, the university is responding to student pushes to overhaul its endowment investing guidelines. As a result, Yale has adopted five new principles for managing its $31.2 billion endowment.
These guidelines call on Yale to avoid fossil fuel exploration and production, support accurate information about climate change, and adopt industry best practices to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. Yale will make its first set of divestment recommendations in the coming weeks.
So what does this all mean? Yale is recognizing a push for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing that has taken over Wall Street. This comes at a key time for ethical investing.
Just today, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) announced it was partnering with lesser-known Clean Energy Fuels (NASDAQ:CLNE) for a renewable natural gas (RNG) deal. Nio (NYSE:NIO) is sparking interest as China gets serious about electric vehicles. And perhaps in the biggest ethical investing news, Beijing and Washington have agreed to work together on climate goals. As Bloomberg reported, the two countries will work together to implement the Paris Climate Agreement and to promote a climate change conference in Glasgow later this year.
How should investors proceed? As InvestorPlace contributor Robert Lakin wrote this morning, it seems that these clean energy investments are the next frontier. With top players diving into ethical investing, maybe you should too.
What Else We’re Watching
- Today is the first court date for a handful of customer lawsuits against Robinhood. Importantly, one Miami federal judge will lump these lawsuits — a result of the restrictions levied in the GameStop (NYSE:GME) saga — together. However, MarketWatch warns that customers could be in for a drawn-out and bureaucratic legal process.
- Excited about EV stocks? If so, you should be paying close attention to this news. The Wall Street Journal reported that two of the largest lithium mining firms will combine in a $3 billion merger. This deal will see Orocobre (OTCMKTS:OROCF) and Galaxy Resources (OTCMKTS:GALXF) combine to become one of the biggest lithium produces in the world.
- Top Democratic lawmakers have a big ask for President Joe Biden. Ahead of a key WTO meeting, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren are asking the president to waive patents on Covid-19 vaccines. They argue that doing so will help lower-income countries and ultimately prevent more viral strains that could re-infect the U.S.
- JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) is catching buzz on Monday after announcing it would finance the new Super League, a league that currently includes 12 top clubs and promises to meaningfully shake up the sport. Shares of Manchester United (NYSE:MANU) and Juventus (OTCMKTS:JVTSF) are trending, as both clubs are involved in the launch.
On the date of publication, Sarah Smith did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
Sarah Smith is a Web Content Producer with InvestorPlace.com.
