Winning ETFs in Focus on Bitcoin, AI & Gold's Dream Run Last Week

Wall Street delivered an upbeat performance last week, with theSPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY delivering 1.6%, SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust DIA advancing about 1%, and Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 QQQ gaining 1.6%.

The key corporate event last week was the release of NVIDIA NVDA earnings. NVIDIA beat overall but offered a less lofty guidance. Shares of NVDA gained a moderate 1.9% last week (read: Forget Guidance Woes: Buy Semiconductor ETFs on NVDA's Dip).

Tesla TSLA shares gained 3.5% last week on talks that Donald Trump may ease regulations for self-driving cars. The news weighed on Uber UBER (down 0.1%) and Lyft LYFT (down 4.4%) stocks last week, though the duo rebounded to close out the week.

Overall, it was a winning week for Bitcoin, artificial intelligence (AI) and gold. STKD Bitcoin & Gold ETF BTGD has added 16.3% last week. Below we highlight last week’s winning exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from bitcoin, AI and gold.

Bitcoin

Leveraged Bitcoin ETF 2x Bitcoin Strategy ETF BITX surged 25.4% last week, while the regular ETF ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF ARKB jumped 12.4%. Other bitcoin ETFs also followed suit. Many strategists expect bitcoin to hit the $1,00,000-mark this year as the cryptocurrency already hit the $98K-mark last week. This milestone follows a surge of over 122% so far in 2024, marking a spectacular year of growth.

Several factors are fueling Bitcoin's record-breaking run. The main factor is the Trump trade. Potential initiatives under such a presidency might include more supportive regulations for the crypto industry in place of a crackdown and the establishment of a national Bitcoin reserve.

Along with Trump trade, last week, crypto enthusiasts celebrated the resignation of the SEC Chair Gary Gensler, effective January. This would pave the way for improved relations between the cryptocurrency industry and Washington regulators. During his tenure, Gary Gensler frequently clashed with major cryptocurrency companies, with the SEC filing lawsuits against industry leaders like Coinbase.

Options on BlackRock’s popular iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF IBIT also began trading on the Nasdaq last week. Bitcoin ETF IBIT traded 73,000 options contracts in the first 60 minutes of trading on Tuesday, Nasdaq told CNBC, putting the fund on the top 20 of the most active non-index options (read: Bitcoin to Hit $2,00,000 in 2025? ETFs in Focus).

Artificial Intelligence 

Thanks to the AI boom, Global X Hydrogen ETF HYDR and Defiance Next Gen H2 ETF HDRO each added about 12% last week. While regular fossil-fuel energy has been a source of AI’s energy requirements, demand for clean energy is also rising. In this regard, demand for Hydrogen has been surging.

Hydrogen is a stark contrast to fossil fuels, which emit harmful greenhouse gases. Also, its ability to store and release energy makes hydrogen a likely solution for grid storage, helping to balance the intermittent nature of renewable sources like wind and solar (read: Bet on AI Ecosphere With These ETFs).

Sprott Junior Uranium Miners ETF URNJ is another AI winner, having gained about 9.9%. Many companies are increasingly exploring nuclear energy for their power needs (read: Uranium ETFs Surge as Big Tech Powers Up With Nuclear Energy).

Gold

Gold just had its best weekly performance since March 2023. Gold bullion ETF SPDR Gold Trust GLD added about 4% last week, despite 1.1% gains in the U.S. dollar ETF Invesco DB US Dollar Index Bullish Fund UUP. Fed rate cuts, the need to hedge against inflation, and other geopolitical uncertainties should position the yellow metal positively. Goldman Sachs is betting big on gold for 2025.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, central banks have been buying gold at a hurried pace — roughly triple the amount prior. Goldman Sachs Research expects the buying spree to persist amid concerns about U.S. financial sanctions and the growing sovereign debt burden.

Investors should note that most strategists expect a more muted return from the stock market in 2025 after two consecutive years of a stellar run. If the stock rally fizzles, gold can flex its muscle (read: Should You Go For Gold ETFs in 2025?).

Themes Gold Miners ETF AUMI and Sprott Gold Miners ETF SGDM added about 9.7% and 6.5%, respectively, last week.

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