Bitcoin, Nasdaq futures and Kospi climb after China posts 4.5% Q3 growth
In brief
- Bitcoin traded around $82,500, up 1.3% over 24 hours, according to CoinDesk
- Nasdaq futures rose more than 1%; the Nikkei gained 1.8% and the Kospi 0.6%
- China's Q3 GDP grew 4.5% year on year, up from 4.3% in Q2
- Chinese retail sales rose 1.1%, versus the 0.5% expected
- Oil prices fell on expectations of more supply after Trump's Russia waiver, Reuters reported
A bounce after a rough week
Nasdaq futures rose more than 1%, Japan's Nikkei gained 1.8% and South Korea's Kospi advanced 0.6%, CoinDesk reported. It's a sharp turn. Those same markets fell hard the week before, and AI-related shares led the losses.
Chinese stocks gained a smaller 0.3%. Gold was largely unchanged near $4,180, and the Dollar Index held near Friday's lows (below 102), according to CoinDesk's figures at the time of publication.
CoinDesk pointed to China's data as the catalyst.
China's numbers
China's GDP grew 4.5% year on year in the third quarter, according to National Bureau of Statistics data released Monday as reported by CoinDesk. That's faster than the second quarter's 4.3% pace. Retail sales of consumer goods rose 1.1%, above the 0.5% expected and up from 0.4% the previous month.
Why would Chinese growth figures move bitcoin? CoinDesk noted that strong economic data from China tends to encourage risk-taking across financial markets, and in its reading that's what tied Monday's moves together across stocks, futures and crypto.
Oil's part in it
Oil prices fell on both sides of the Atlantic, reversing some of the previous week's gains. Reuters attributed the decline to expectations that President Donald Trump's Russia waiver would boost supply, CoinDesk said. Geopolitical risks in the Middle East haven't gone away, though.
CoinDesk said a sustained drop in oil could ease inflation fears and clear the way for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. The key word there is "sustained." One day of cheaper crude doesn't settle it, and CoinDesk presented the rate-cut path as conditional on the move in oil holding.
Frequently asked questions
Why did bitcoin and Asian stocks rise on Monday?
CoinDesk tied the rally to stronger Chinese economic data and lower oil prices, which it said revived investor risk appetite. China's GDP grew 4.5% year on year in the third quarter, and retail sales rose 1.1% against the 0.5% expected.
Why did oil prices fall?
Oil fell on both sides of the Atlantic, reversing some of the previous week's gains. Reuters, as cited by CoinDesk, attributed the drop to expectations that President Donald Trump's Russia waiver would boost supply. CoinDesk noted that geopolitical risks in the Middle East persist.
