Global Markets Slide as Oil Surges, Bitcoin Holds Steady

• Global stocks plunge as oil surge triggers massive selloff across major markets.
• U.S. futures lose $2 trillion while Asian markets face sharp declines.
• Bitcoin outperforms major equity indexes as BTC trades near $67K.

Crypto markets are clinging to relative stability on Monday as a wave of selling tears through virtually every other asset class on the planet, from Mumbai to Manhattan, in what is shaping up to be one of the most consequential trading days in recent memory.

The Scale of the Damage

The numbers are staggering. Two trillion dollars has been wiped from U.S. stock market futures alone. The S&P 500 is down 2.5%, the Nasdaq is off 2.9%, and the Dow Jones is shedding 2.6% before a single share has traded in New York. In India, the carnage is already visible on the scoreboard: the Sensex has plunged over 2,400 points, and the Nifty has broken below 23,800, erasing approximately 12 lakh crore rupees in investor wealth in a single session.

Asia’s earlier session told the same story in different languages. South Korea’s KOSPI triggered its circuit breaker after an 8% collapse. Japan’s Nikkei fell 7%, Taiwan shed 5.5%, Australia dropped 4.7%, and Hong Kong gave up 3%.

Oil Is the Accelerant

Behind every one of those declines is the same force: crude oil. West Texas Intermediate has surged 25% to above $113 a barrel, crossing $100 for the first time since 2022 and showing little sign of reversing. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed and no diplomatic solution in sight, traders are pricing in a prolonged supply shock rather than a temporary spike. 

Jim Cramer said publicly on Monday that he sees no path to de-escalation between the U.S., Israel, and Iran. Peter Schiff said oil prices have risen above $116 per barrel, surpassing the 2022 peak during the Russia–Ukraine war. 

“The coming crisis could be far worse, especially if oil prices don’t fall,” Schiff added.

Crypto: Battered but Holding

Everything around Bitcoin is falling. Stocks are down. Futures are collapsing. Entire indices are being circuit-broken across Asia. And yet BTC is up nearly 1%. 

At press time, trading at $67,267, Bitcoin is outperforming every major equity index. Ethereum sits near $1,980, and the total crypto market cap holds above $2.29 trillion.  Whether that holds as the week progresses, and as the real-economy consequences of $113 oil begin to surface, is the question markets will spend the next several days answering.

Related: Crypto Activity by Sanctioned States Expands Across Global Networks