On August 19, the cryptocurrency market exhibited a stable performance overall, with most major digital assets posting modest gains. Bitcoin held steady near the $64,250 mark, edging up slightly on the day and recording a weekly increase of about 1%. Solana led the major cryptocurrencies with a 2% rise, bringing its price to nearly $77; Ethereum advanced 1% to above $1,900, with a weekly gain of 1.5%. Ripple rebounded nearly 1% to just under $1, while TRON and Dogecoin both inched up roughly 0.5%. BNB and Hyperliquid's HYPE saw slight pullbacks, yet HYPE still led major tokens with a 7% weekly gain.
In stark contrast to the calm cryptocurrency trend, the global semiconductor sector experienced a massive sell-off. In the South Korean stock market, both Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix plunged over 7%, dragging the KOSPI index down by more than 6%, while the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index fell 2%. The Asian semiconductor index dropped over 3% overall, extending the previous session's 5% decline in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, which marked its steepest single-day drop since late July. Futures markets indicated further downward pressure on European and U.S. equities.
Analysts attribute this round of chip stock selling to ongoing turbulence in the bond market. A global wave of government debt sales pushed the U.S. 30-year Treasury yield to its highest level since 2007, while the 10-year yield also approached early 2025 highs, significantly raising borrowing costs for companies making large-scale investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure. On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury market temporarily stabilized, with the 10-year yield easing about 1 basis point to 4.69%.
Gold rebounded after falling nearly 2% on Tuesday, at one point gaining 0.6% to break above $4,360 per ounce. Market attention is now focused on Federal Reserve policy direction. The Fed's July meeting minutes are scheduled for release at 2 p.m. Eastern Time, and Fed Chair Kevin Warsh is set to speak at the Jackson Hole global central bank symposium next week.