As US-China trade speaks, global markets are stable, bitcoin hits $103K

Global stocks have ended a slightly unusual week as investors looked at fresh US tariff contracts and high quality meetings between Washington and Beijing trade officials this weekend, according to Reuters Market Lap.

Stock step on water with tariff suspension

MSCI’s national equity index rose from just 0.11% to 846.80, trimming a 0.3% loss per week. The European Stoxx 600 added 0.44%, while the German DAX brought another record closer.

On Wall Street, the Dow fell 0.29%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.07%, and the Nasdaq earned a fractional gain. The weekly tally is totally negative, reflecting the broader attention highlighted by the Wall Street Journal as traders support new tariff headlines.

The dollar will be eased, but the Ministry of Finance will bring hovering

The US dollar index fell from 0.28% to 100.37, even though it maintained its weekly progress against the yen, euro and Swiss franc. The benchmark 10-year-old Treasury yield sneaked up to 4.386%, but the two-year memo eased to 3.887%.

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Bitcoin and Ethereum expand profits

Risk appetite spins towards digital assets, with Bitcoin rising 0.58% to $103,224 (highest since January), marking the fourth brightest day-to-day advance. Ether went from 6.7% to $2,493. Traders cited lingering uncertainty on traditional assets and optimism about ultimate interest rate reductions.

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Oil and gold catch bids

• WTI crude settled at $61.02 (+1.85%)
• Brent closed at $63.91 (+1.7%)
• Spot Gold Firm was from 0.67% to $3,327.53 per ounce

Both products benefit from the softer dollar, and we hope that melting trade tensions could enhance demand.

Outlook

Now, all eyes are on the sidelines between the Geneva Summit on Saturday, between the US Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent and the Chinese Deputy Premier. Analysts doubt a breakthrough, but even progressive signs of progress could set a global risky asset and crypto tone for next week’s US CPI release and mid-May Federal Reserve minutes.