bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) showed signs of resistance even as broader stock markets fell and oil Prices rose as traders reacted to growing turmoil in the Middle East.
Bitcoin and ether were little changed with a small drop of 0.2% in the last 24 hours. XRP fell 1.3%, while Cardano ADA rose 0.4%. The CoinDesk Market Index (CMI) fell 0.19%, pointing to slight losses among a diversified basket of token holdings.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas extended into its third day on Monday after Palestinian Hamas militants first fired missiles into Israel early Saturday. Fears that the conflict would spread to neighboring states, such as Iran, appeared to affect oil prices, as traders said it could disrupt supplies.
"There could be a pretty dramatic effect on the oil market if the United States applied sanctions on Iranian exports," Josh Young, chief investment officer at energy investment firm Bison Interests, told CNBC. "I think it's appropriate to see WTI oil go up, say, $5."
WTI crude oil rose 3.23% since Sunday, MarketWatch data shows, extending three-month gains to 16%. On the other hand, Brent crude oil rose almost 3.5%.
Stock markets in Asia traded lower after the open on Monday. India's Sensex fell 0.69%, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.44%, while the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 0.2%. US premarket futures pointed to losses, with the Dow Jones index losing 0.77% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 falling 0.86%.
