Circle pushed markets into rally mode on Friday after its shares spiked 48%, extending the chaos it kicked off with a massive NYSE debut the day before.
The New York-based crypto company hit $123.49 at its highest point — nearly 4x its $31 offer price, which placed its fully diluted value at $32.1 billion, according to data from Google Finance.
The trading frenzy dragged the entire stock market upward, flipping risk sentiment completely by the end of the week. The Dow Jones ended Friday up 443.13 points at 42,762.87 after climbing over 600 points during the session. The S&P 500 added 1.03% to finish at 6,000.36, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.20% to close at 19,529.95.
Wall Street reacts to Circle frenzy as Tesla rebounds and dollar surges
Matt Kennedy, who leads IPO research at Renaissance Capital, said the rally was “big enough that it extends beyond crypto.” He added:
“This is the latest sign of building momentum in the IPO market. We’ll likely continue to see moderate activity over the next month, but there is still some tariff uncertainty on the horizon, which is why we’re expecting more of a full IPO rebound in the fall.”
Lynn Martin, president of the New York Stock Exchange, called Circle’s IPO “a bellwether for the IPO market this year,” telling attendees at a Thursday conference that the momentum wasn’t limited to crypto listings. That tone was echoed by other execs at the event, many of whom signaled that markets were finally ready for solid companies to go public again after a long dry spell.
Outside of the IPO mania, the jobs report for May beat forecasts even though it showed a mild slowdown compared to April. The update cooled down expectations for fast Federal Reserve rate cuts, which triggered a move into the US dollar.
The greenback jumped 0.95% to 144.87 against the Japanese yen, and added 0.26% to land at 0.822 against the Swiss franc. Both currencies are considered safe-haven assets and usually strengthen when things get rough, but the stronger jobs number reversed that.
The dollar index, which compares the dollar to a group of major global currencies like the euro and the yen, climbed 0.53% to 99.20. Still, it’s looking like the index will finish the week slightly down.
The euro lost 0.43% after the jobs data hit, ending Friday at $1.1395. It had touched a six-week high of $1.14950 on Thursday after European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said they were getting close to ending the rate cut cycle.
Gold got crushed. Spot gold dropped 1.1% to $3,316.13 an ounce by 2:28 p.m. ET, while US gold futures fell 0.8% to $3,346.60. The dip followed a spike in silver, which hit levels not seen since 2012. The change was triggered by stronger-than-expected jobs data and the belief that the Fed wouldn’t be rushing to cut rates this year.
Meanwhile, tech stocks staged their own comeback. Tesla recovered over 3% after sliding 14% on Thursday. The earlier selloff happened after a public social media fight between CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump.
The two went at it over electric vehicle policy and business ties, causing Tesla’s stock to tank. But that narrative turned around quickly. Other major names like Nvidia, Apple, and Meta also closed higher on the day.
Bitcoin rises as Trump teases US-China trade talks
Trump announced Friday that trade negotiations between the US and China will be held next week in London, giving more fuel to the market’s late-week bounce. The announcement came after the damage from Thursday’s tech selloff and helped calm investors ahead of the weekend.
The S&P 500, while still about 2% below its February highs, managed to lock in a 1.5% gain for the week. The Dow rose 1.2%, and the Nasdaq outperformed both with a 2.2% increase across the five-day stretch.
And while everything else was bouncing around, Bitcoin also made headlines. After briefly dipping to $100,000 on Thursday, it came back hard on Friday with a 2.1% jump, ending the day at $105,080.
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