By Investing.com – US stock futures pointed slightly lower, with traders gauging the staying power of a post-election rally in equities. Data shows that the global cryptocurrency market’s valuation has surged above $3 trillion for the first time since 2021 due to hopes that the Trump administration will introduce a friendly regulatory environment for the crypto industry. Elsewhere, Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank (TYO:9984) Group swings to a profit in the second quarter.
1. Futures slip after stocks extend post-election rally
US stock futures inched down marginally on Tuesday as investors assessed the potential policies of the incoming Trump administration.
By 03:23 ET (08:23 GMT), the Dow futures contract had dipped by 0.2% or 69 points, S&P 500 futures had edged down by 0.1% or 8 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures had fallen by 0.1% or 19 points.
The main averages on Wall Street rose in the prior session, extending a rally initially sparked by the victory of Donald Trump in the US presidential election last week. Traders are betting Trump will roll out deep tax cuts and install looser regulations during his second four-year term in the White House.
Shares in Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), whose CEO Elon Musk has been an outspoken advocate for Trump, surged, while banking stocks like Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) also gained.
Bitcoin touched a new record high as well, fueled by expectations that Trump will take a light touch approach to regulation of the crypto industry.
2. Earnings ahead
The quarterly corporate earnings season is beginning to ebb, although several firms are still due to unveil their latest results.
On Tuesday, DIY retailer Home Depot (NYSE:HD) is set to report, with observers keen to see if more customers are choosing to spend on big-ticket home improvement projects after reining in such spending because of recent cost-of-living pressures.
Canadian e-commerce services group Shopify (NYSE:SHOP) will also release its third-quarter returns. In the previous quarter, the company, which helps small- and medium-sized businesses construct their online stores, gave an upbeat sales outlook thanks to demand for its artificial intelligence-enhanced tools.
Meanwhile, Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) is tipped to post its numbers after the closing bell. The Swedish audio streaming giant, which has slashed headcount and reduced its marketing budget this year in a bid to corral expenses, delivered profit that just topped projections in the second quarter.
3. Global crypto market value rises above $3 trillion
The value of the global cryptocurrency market topped $3 trillion for the first time in three years on Monday, according to crypto data provider CoinGecko.
The figure, a tracker of over 15,000 coins that has now jumped by roughly 25% since Trump’s overwhelming election win, last crested the threshold in November 2021.
Expectations are now high that Trump, who courted the industry during his campaign, will boost Bitcoin and other digital assets. Trump vowed to introduce friendlier crypto regulation as part of a bid to make America the “crypto capital” of the world. He also floated the idea of a national Bitcoin reserve.
Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, added to its recent gains on Tuesday, notching a fresh record high of $89,436.1 earlier in the session. By 03:24 ET, it had increased by around 9.3% to $88,854.5.
4. SoftBank swings to profit amid jump in tech valuations
Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp. clocked a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday, aided by the successful listing of some of its portfolio stocks and resilience in the yen.
SoftBank’s net profit surged to 1.18 trillion yen ($7.7 billion) in the three months to Sept. 30, much more than estimates of 287 billion yen, LSEG data cited by Reuters showed. In the same period a year ago, SoftBank reported a loss of 931 billion yen.
Billionaire entrepreneur Masayoshi Son’s tech investment titan benefited from a recovery in valuations in its portfolio firms. The value of its holdings in high-growth tech startups had been heavily dented by recently elevated interest rates.
Softbank’s flagship Vision Fund logged a 608.48 billion yen gain on investments in the September quarter thanks in part to strength at Chinese ride hailing giant Didi and South Korean e-commerce group Coupang.
5. Oil steadies
Oil prices steadied after recent weakness Tuesday following disappointment over the latest stimulus plan from top importer China.
By 03:25 ET, the Brent contract climbed 0.3% to $72.03 per barrel, while US crude futures (WTI) traded 0.3% higher at $68.22 a barrel.
Both contracts had fallen by more than 5% over the previous two trading sessions.
China unveiled a 10-trillion-yuan ($1.4-trillion) debt package on Friday to ease local government financing strains, but the measure is expected to provide little direct support to the economy.
In the US, tropical storm Rafael was seen largely dissipating in the Gulf of Mexico, soothing fears of supply disruptions in the region.
