‘So bad, it’s good.’ This beleaguered stock market has one big asset on its side, say strategists.

A rough month for stocks is drawing to a close, and many investors likely won’t be sad to see the back of it. And the last day of April trade is looking weak as Apple and Amazon failed to raise the ba...

Opinion: Why I don’t want bitcoin in my 401(k)

Hooray! At long last, the company managing my 401(k) plan will allow me to bet up to 20% of my retirement funds on a digital Ponzi scheme that generates no income and has no practical use. Fidelity In...

Bitcoin Prices Fall as Crypto Market Slammed by Hawkish Fed Expectations

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies dropped Monday as expectations that the Federal Reserve will move aggressively to tighten monetary policy continued to rock the digital asset space. Bitcoin fell mor...

Why did the stock market fall? Dow finishes nearly 1,000 points lower in worst day since October 2020

U.S. stocks fell sharply on Friday to suffer their biggest one-day drop since 2020, as investors continued to weigh hawkish comments on interest rates a day earlier by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome ...

Fed chief Powell backs moving more quickly on interest-rate hikes

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Thursday joined the chorus of U.S. central bankers who want to move faster on raising interest rates. “It is appropriate in my view to be moving a little more...

Financial Face-Off: Should you use your tax refund to buy I bonds or crypto? One of these options could get a 9.6% return. Let us explain.

Hello and welcome to Financial Face-off, a MarketWatch column where we help you weigh financial decisions. Our columnist will give her verdict. Tell us whether you think she’s right in the comments. A...

Here’s the playbook if the rest of the world breaks free from the U.S. dollar, says Credit Suisse’s monetary plumbing guru

It’s pretty well accepted that no one knows as much about the plumbing of the world’s financial system as Zoltan Pozsar, global head of short-term interest-rate strategy at Credit Suisse, who was the ...

Bitcoin Prices, Other Cryptos Fall—and Why One Trader Sees a Tumble to $30,000

Text size Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto space has come under pressure amid a shift in Fed policy. Rutmer Visser/Dreamstime Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies slipped lower on Monday, continuing t...

Fed primed to jack up interest rates in 1/2-point steps if inflation stays high

The Federal Reserve signaled its plans to increase a key U.S. interest rate by 1/2 percentage point steps at upcoming meetings if inflation remains high or gets even worse, according to minutes of the...

Millennials have solved the retirement crisis

Wow. It looks like millennials have totally solved the retirement crisis. And it turns out it was a lot easier than anyone realized. The solution? Cryptocurrencies, of course. A new survey of 4,000 pe...

Markets are hankering to find out the Fed’s plan to shrink its $9 trillion balance sheet. They should get their wish Wednesday

Markets have been craving information about how the Federal Reserve plans to shrink its massive $9 trillion balance sheet. They will get their wish Wednesday when the Fed releases minutes of its March...

Cardano leads rises as largest cryptocurrencies start mixed

The largest cryptocurrencies were mixed during morning trading on Monday, with Cardano ADAUSD seeing the biggest move, rising 2.96% to $1.21. Polkadot DOTUSD led the decreases with a 2.79% drop to $22...

U.S. economy will fall into a recession this summer, as inflation eats into consumer spending, former Fed official warns

Higher inflation will force consumers to limit their spending by so much that the economy will slump into a recession by the July-September quarter, former Federal Reserve Governor Lawrence Lindsey sa...

Fed’s Williams says could begin reducing balance sheet as soon as May meeting

The Federal Reserve may begin reducing its balance sheet as soon as its May 3-4 policy meeting to address the level of U.S. inflation that have become “particularly acute,” New York Fed chair John Wil...

Want to Add Crypto to Your Retirement Portfolio? Here’s How, and What to Consider.

With many cryptocurrencies surging last year as the overall market surpassed $3 trillion in value, a growing number of retirement savers are looking for ways to tap into the potential. Before joining ...

Bitcoin and Ether Prices See Worst Day in Weeks. Dogecoin and Shiba Inu Tumble.

Text size Bitcoin falls but holds above the key technical level of $45,000. Dreamstime Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies fell Friday, with some of the largest digital assets recording their worst per...

Dollar’s dominance could get diluted by sanctions against Russia, IMF official tells Financial Times

The dollar’s dominance within the international monetary system is at risk of undergoing a gradual “fragmentation” as a result of financial sanctions being imposed on Russia, Gita Gopinath, the Intern...

Ethereum’s major upgrade is coming. Should you be more bullish on it than bitcoin?

Hello! Welcome back to Distributed Ledger, our weekly crypto newsletter that reaches your inbox every Thursday. I’m Frances Yue, crypto reporter at MarketWatch, and I’ll walk you through the latest an...

Kremlin demands rubles for gas, leaves currency loophole

Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree Thursday demanding payment for natural gas in rubles but appeared to temper the order by allowing dollar and euro payments through a designated bank, t...

Bitcoin Prices Steady After Crypto Heist. A Prominent Whale Is Getting Bigger.

Text size Bitcoin prices have held onto recent gains. Rutmer Visser/Dreamstime Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies were mostly steady on Wednesday, holding onto recent gains and shaking off pressure on...

Coinbase Stock Is Popping. What a Rally in Bitcoin Means.

Stock in the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase surged on Monday, rallying alongside Bitcoin, ether, and other digital assets. Analysts see more room for gains. Coinbase (ticker: COIN) shares jumped 7% ...

Opinion: Russia just made a case for owning gold—and nobody noticed

Here’s a strong argument for adding some gold bullion to your retirement portfolio right now, alongside those stocks and bonds. And it comes courtesy of Pavel Zavalny, the head of the Russian parliame...

Bitcoin Mining Stocks Look Cheap. Why Investors Are Still Skeptical.

Text size Costs per Bitcoin mined range from $4,500 to $16,000 across the industry. Dreamstime A recovery in the price of Bitcoin should fuel gains for mining companies that process transactions on th...

Opinion: The economy is in much better shape than the headlines would tell you

Inflation is through the roof. There’s an oil crisis. A looming food crisis. You name it. War is raging in Europe. Russia’s president is starting to sound unhinged. And headlines are now linking him w...

Bitcoin rallies after Russia hints at using crypto with $50,000 seen possible on short covering

Bitcoin on Friday briefly traded above $45,000, a psychological level, as financial institutions pushed further into the digital asset space, while Russia hinted at the possibility of accepting bitcoi...

Bitcoin Prices Are ‘On the Verge of a Major Breakout’

Text size The prices of Bitcoin and other digital assets rise Friday. Dreamstime Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies moved higher on Friday, boosted by the return of risk appetite among investors and a...

It’s the beginning of the end of globalization, say BlackRock’s Larry Fink and Oaktree’s Howard Marks

“The magnitude of Russia’s actions will play out for decades to come and mark a turning point in the world order of geopolitics, macroeconomic trends, and capital markets.” That was Larry Fink, CEO of...

Bitcoin Is Bouncing but Ether Is Soaring. This Is Why.

Text size Cryptocurrencies are gaining as investors return to high-growth “risk assets.” Dreamstime Bitcoin has perked up, gaining 8% to roughly $42,600 in the past week. But Ether, the se...

The Biggest Bitcoin Fund Trades at a Discount to Its Bitcoin Holdings. Why Only the SEC Can Solve This Problem.

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler Evelyn Hockstein-Pool/Getty Images Text size The world’s largest Bitcoin fund is trading at 73 cents on the dollar. That may look like a bargain if you want crypto in your po...

Largest cryptocurrencies mixed as Cardano rises

The largest cryptocurrencies were mixed during morning trading on Thursday, with Cardano ADAUSD, -0.12% seeing the biggest move, rallying 2.82% to 85 cents. Polkadot DOTUSD, +0.62% led the decreases w...

Fed’s Powell sees the light — and turns far more hawkish than expected

After remaining stubbornly dovish last year, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday jumped the central bank squarely into the hawkish camp at his press conference on Wednesday. “The March...

Fed to hike interest rates Wednesday, undeterred by lack of visibility on Russia-Ukraine war’s impact

On Saturday, a strong late winter storm caused havoc on the East Coast, particularly in Pennsylvania, with drivers experiencing severely reduced visibility as winds blew snow across the roads. Speed l...