LONDON (Reuters) – Bitcoin passed near record highs on Friday, set for gains of more than 20% in a milestone week marked by support from leading companies, such as Elon Musk’s Tesla, while weak U.S. job market keeps pressure on the dollar.
The world’s most popular cryptocurrency traded 1.1% down at $ 47,451, just south of the $ 49,000 high reached after U.S. banking group BNY Mellon said it had create a unit to help clients hold, move and export digital assets.
Tesla revealed that they had bought $ 1.5 billion worth of cryptocurrency and BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, put bitcoin as a worthy investment for two assets.
Credit card giant Mastercard’s plans to offer support for some cryptocurrencies have also added to bitcoin’s intentions in terms of mainstream finance, but many banks are willing to get involved.
“We will not cover other speculative items such as old cars, works of art or expensive watches,” Commerzbank Research said in a note on why it would not comment on the bitcoin exchange rate that some analysts say the $ 50,000 level could be tested soon.
Elsewhere the dollar slipped for the first week in a three-month lump as weak signals in the U.S. job market defied investors ’expectations about the pace of economic recovery from the pandemic.
In early European trading, the dollar index rose 0.15% to 90.55 after controlled volumes in Asia due to the Lunar New Year. It was on track to fall 0.5% for the week.
The dollar went up slightly against the yen at 104.940.
Weak US weekly jobless claims data on Thursday added to concerns that the previous dollar rally had pushed back prices too quickly for the U.S. economy.
There have been differing views among traders this year as to how US President Joe Biden’s planned $ 1.9 trillion fiscal stimulus package will affect the dollar.
Some believe it strengthens the currency frontier as it should accelerate the recovery of the U.S. compared to other countries, while others thought it would fuel a global rebound statement that should fund more risk-taking at the expense of the dollar.
The euro slipped 0.17% to $ 1.2115, consolidating for the third day near that level and moving for a 0.5% weekly improvement.
The average currency was flat against the pound at 0.876 after official figures showed that an economy plagued by coronavirus fell 9.9% in 2020, the biggest annual crash in more than 300 years, but avoided it reverted to a recession at the end of last year.
Norway’s crown strengthened slightly and stopped some losses against the euro after data showed the country’s economy contracted by 2.5% last year, a decline that was not as severe as in most European countries other.
It traded last at 10.2940, down 0.1% against the euro.
Reciting with Julien Ponthus; Edited by Sam Holmes, Simon Cameron-Moore and Barbara lewis