Bitcoin Rallies; Nasdaq Futures Rise — WSJ
2024-12-16
Category: None

By Joe Wallace
Investors are confronting a two-speed global economy.
While the U.S. is in solid shape, and many hope for a Trump bump next year, other big economies such as China, France and Germany are in the doldrums.
New data Monday from China showed an unexpectedly sharp slowdown in retail-sales growth, suggesting Beijing's effort to juice the economy are struggling to gain traction. In the eurozone, purchasing managers indexes pointed to an ongoing contraction in private-sector activity, led by France and Germany.
Shares fell in Europe and Asia. In the U.S., futures pointed to small early gains for stocks.
PMI data for the U.S. are due this morning. Investors are likely to avoid major moves, though, until after the Federal Reserve's final monetary-policy decision of the year, on Wednesday. Officials are expected to cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point, but the path further ahead is unclear.
In recent trading:
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