As China, the world’s biggest oil importer resumed its coronavirus lockdowns, oil prices fell around 6 percent on Monday along with stock markets.

The price of Brent crude decreased by $6.45, or 5.7%, to $105.94 per barrel. Oil prices in the United States dropped $6.68, or 6.1 percent. The price of US West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $103.09. This year, both contracts have risen by around 35%.

Concerns over interest rate hikes and recession fears have roiled the world’s financial markets. COVID- In April, China’s export growth slowed as a result of 19 lockdowns.

As a result of the COVID lockdowns in China, the oil market has taken a hit, along with the stock market, according to Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates in Houston, Texas.

In the first four months of 2022, China’s crude imports decreased by 4.8% from the previous year, but imports rose by over 7% in April.

With independent refiner demand waning after the COVID lockdowns slashed fuel margins and rising imports of lower-priced Russian oil, China’s Iranian oil imports in April fell below peak levels predicted in late 2021 and early 2022.

The dollar hit a two-decade high, making oil more expensive for holders of currencies other than the U.S. currency.

Prices for Asian and European crude have been reduced by Saudi Arabia, the world’s leading oil exporter.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak was quoted as saying that Russia’s oil output rose in early May from April and that production has steadied after output dipped in April as Western countries implemented sanctions due to the Ukraine situation.

Brent and WTI prices rose for the second week in a row after the European Commission proposed a phased embargo on Russian oil. This week, EU members must vote unanimously to approve the idea.

An EU source tells Reuters that the European Commission is considering handing landlocked eastern European Union nations additional money to repair oil infrastructure in an effort to persuade them to agree.

Bjrnar Tonhaugen, Rystad Energy’s head of oil market research, says the EU oil embargo will cause a “seismic shift in the European and global crude markets” that could see EU crude imports from Russia cut by as much as 3.0 million bpd (barrels per day) by December 2022 in a full-fledged implementation of the policy.

By secretly developing an emergency package that may involve taking control of crucial companies, German officials have been quietly prepared for any sudden halt in Russian gas supply.

PM Kishida said that in principle, Russia would be banned as a crude importer, but added that this would take time.

The crypto market crash of this year left a considerable impact that continues to be felt today as top coins fall even more. Bitcoin has hit new lows, dropping further than before.

Bitcoin is down by 21.33% in the past seven days. With a market cap of $472.55 billion, selling at $24,677.65 as of this writing.

With Bitcoin at its lowest in three years. The entire crypto market is reeling from fear that it could sway investors and cause them to stop investing.

With Bitcoin taking a hard hit, other coins are feeling the effects worse than ever before, especially alternative coins. 

The price of Ethereum has been seeing major fluctuations in recent days. The coin peaked at $4,900 last year. But following the market crash it went down 33% to sell for less than half that amount at just over 1 thousand dollars. Other cryptocurrencies also experienced double digit losses.

Read also: Analysts Point to Bitcoin Bouncing Back with the Recent Inflow in the Crypto Market

The crypto market lost more than $100 billion over the weekend. Following United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s gloomy warning about cryptocurrencies.

However, Bitcoin bulls have a silver lining with a market cap of $472.55 billion. Giving them increased control over alternative crypto coins.

Bitcoin’s value has been steadily declining for the last seven days. At one point, it was closing in on $32K, but it took a sharp decline, losing more value.

Crypto appears to be losing the ideal opportunity to illustrate its forgotten function as a hedge against inflation. Said Rich Blake of cryptocurrency startup Uphold.

With inflation rates rising to an estimated 8.6%, Bitcoin’s volatility increased and played a role in its plunge over the past few days.

The crypto market is not immune to the volatility that has plagued traditional markets in recent months. For example, when stock prices dropped 2.5%, respectively for both S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average, it was clear there would be an impact on cryptocurrency values as well. The Nasdaq also mirrored this trend with its own steep dropoff of  3.5%.

The Federal Reserve will hold a two-day meeting next week that is expected to result in yet another interest rate hike. Janet Yellen has discouraged Americans from putting cryptocurrency into their 401(k) plans, warning it could lead them down an unpleasant path.

Read also: Glimmer of Hope for Bitcoin Before Going Red Again

Source: SCMP

Bitcoin is seeing more trouble on a short timescale, with Ethereum emerging as a popular bet.

On January 3, Bitcoin (BTC) crossed $47,000 as the first Wall Street trading days of 2022 kicked off to a humble beginning.

As the week began, traders were split between short-term outcomes. BTC/USD has been trading in a narrow range. 

“It’s just a matter of time before BTC breaks out, and the longer it takes, the harder it will pump,” captioned Galaxy, a renowned Twitter account, together with a photograph of the charts. “Q1 is up only. You heard it here first.”

Michaël van de Poppe, a contributor for Cointelegraph and an expert in cryptocurrency analysis believes it’s time to take a closer look at altcoins rather than just focusing on Bitcoin.

“Good bounce from Ethereum and I think this one is bottomed,” says van de Poppe in a tweet on Monday indicating the good state of ETH/USD. “Still need additional confirmation, but shows more strength than Bitcoin at this point. Ultimate confirmation above $4,100.”

It has been a few weeks now since BTC/USD has shown propensity in daily highs, while ETH/USD was up more than 2% recently. 

The S&P 500 rose a touch at the Wall Street open, as investors weighed prospects for higher interest rates and other economic data over coming months. 

Meanwhile, the U.S dollar saw a sharp increase on January 3rd, with the USD Index booming following Bitcoins’ downfall. 

Several Bitcoin-focused analysts, TechDev specifically, have come out to argue that on-chain indicators do not back a bearish thesis.

TechDev said that both relative strength index (RSI) and moving average convergence/divergence (MACD) are only minor indicators when compared to more fundamental ones.

Alistair Milne, an entrepreneur, added to the list of meaningful comments: “In case no-one noticed, we have come a long way from nerdy retail HODL’ers being the buyers of last resort.” 

“We now have billionaires, multinationals and countries waiting to buy the dips. Whoever is taking the other side of the trade needs their head examined IMO,” he said. 

A new influx of institutional interest is considered by some to be ready for a new month.