After stumbling out of the gate yesterday, stocks are giving back some more ground this morning. Gold and silver are slipping, while crude oil is rising along with the dollar. Treasuries are mostly flat.
The first trading day of 2024 didn’t exactly go as planned for investors. Both the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) that tracks the benchmark stock index AND the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) that tracks the price of long-term US Treasuries slumped 0.6%. That was the worst synchronized, stock-and-bond sell off to start a year since the TLT was introduced in 2002. Tech stocks got hit harder, with the Nasdaq 100 having its third-worst first-day drop since the Dot-Com Bust in 2001.
That said, it follows the Nasdaq Composite’s second-best annual performance in the past 15 years. And it’s worth repeating that several of our top MoneyShow expert contributors – like Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities, who joined the MoneyMasters Podcast not too long ago – continue to look for a strong 2024 for tech.
Bitcoin (BTC)
Meanwhile, Bitcoin suffered a blink-of-an-eye selloff of around 6% this morning. But the cryptocurrency surged more than 160% last year, in part because spot Bitcoin ETFs are expected to gain Securities and Exchange Commission approval soon. The agency faces a Jan. 10 deadline to rule on the first of several applications from ETF sponsors. As that happens, more mainstream investors and advisors will likely increase their exposure to Bitcoin and other top cryptos.
Finally, Tesla (TSLA) released sales data for Q4 and full-year 2023. The automaker sold 484,500 cars in the fourth quarter and 1.8 million over the course of the year. If it can push that figure toward 2 million in 2024, Tesla could eclipse sales at long-time industry stalwarts like Mercedes-Benz.
