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Shares in electric vehicle and clean energy company Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) were slightly higher in after-hours trade following the release of its second-quarter results. This was on the back of a 2.2% increase in the Tesla share price during overnight trade.

The highly anticipated results shot the lights out, beating analyst estimates. Let’s lift the lid on the company’s report and take a closer look.

Record-breaking quarter highlights Tesla share price

In a bullish quarterly result, the company made a record number of deliveries despite the current global shortage of chips. According to the update, more than 200,000 vehicles were delivered during the second quarter, representing a 121% year-over-year (YoY) increase.

The majority of the deliveries were made up of Model 3 and Model Y. The uplift in sales resulted in automotive revenues increasing 97% YoY to US$10,206 million. Meanwhile, total revenue amounted to US$11,958 million. This pipped the US$11,300 million estimated by analysts.

EARNINGS: Tesla Q2 EPS $1.45 Adj. vs. $0.98 Est.; Q2 Revs. $11.96B vs. $11.30B Est. • $TSLA https://t.co/XLOKuJNSsM pic.twitter.com/ueydqBfVuG

— CNBC Now (@CNBCnow) July 26, 2021

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Additionally, the record revenue was less reliant on regulator credits – which was a point of contention for the company’s previous quarterly result. Revenue from regulatory credits came to US$354 million, a decrease of 17% compared to the prior corresponding period.

Furthermore, Tesla achieved a total GAAP gross margin of 24.1%, despite the reduction in regulatory credit revenue.

Moving towards the bottom line, income from operations came to US$1,312 million. This was also a record for the company, increasing by 301% YoY. Likewise, earnings per share (EPS) skyrocketed 920% to US$1.45, compared to analysts’ estimates of 98 cents per share.

The company noted: “Operating income increased YoY mainly due to volume growth and cost reduction. Positive impacts were partially offset by growth in operating expenses including SBC, Model S/X ramp (negative margin in Q2), additional supply chain costs, lower regulatory credit revenue, Bitcoin-related impairment of $23 million and other items.”

In another positive for the Tesla share price, some were expecting a larger Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) related impairment following a fall in its value.

How about solar and battery storage?

As shareholders would know, Tesla is more than an automotive company. It is also a solar and energy storage company. On that note, solar deployments increased 215% YoY to 85 megawatts.

Similarly, energy storage deployments more than tripled to 1,274 megawatt-hours during the quarter.

Outlook

Tesla informed investors it plans to grow its manufacturing capacity as quickly as possible. In addition, over a multi-year timeframe, Tesla expects to deliver a 50% average annual growth in vehicle deliveries.

On the cash front, the company now has US$16,229 million of cash and cash equivalents. This provides sufficient liquidity to fund Tesla’s product roadmap, capacity expansion plans, and other expenses.

Finally, management believes the company is on track to produce its first Model Y vehicles from its Berlin and Austin factories in 2021. However, the launch of the semi-truck has been pushed back to 2022.

At the time of writing, the Tesla share price is US$657.67. Correspondingly, the company’s market capitalisation equates to US$633.5 billion.

The post Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) share price climbs on record revenue and profits appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler owns shares of Bitcoin and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Venturex Resources Ltd (ASX:VXR) share price is within sights of breaking its multi-year record today. This comes after the mining company announced an update on its Whim Creek Joint Venture Project.

The company holds a 20% stake in Whim Creek Project, with the remaining 80% interest held by Anax Metals Ltd (ASX: ANX).

Whim Creek discovers extensive anomalies

In today’s statement, Venturex released a Anax presentation advising it has defined multiple cohesive platinum, nickel-copper and gold anomalies at Whim Creek.

The company conducted a soil sampling programme at the Kent Well and Mays Find North Prospects. Notably, no previous sampling had taken historically explored at the site.

Fieldwork, consisting of an initial 3,500 ultrafine soil samples commenced in February 2021 and is now 50% complete. Ultrafine soil sampling is a newly proven soil analysis technique that is ideal for gold and base metals exploration.

The ongoing soil programme has been highly successful and results have generated new nickel-cobalt and platinum anomalies. This coincides with the company’s geological mapping along with geophysical and geochemical surveys.

Once soil surveys and systematic rock chip sampling is completed, both companies will conduct further exploration work. This includes geophysical surveys across these extensive units, followed by drilling.

About the Venturex share price

Investors would be ecstatic with the Venturex share price movement. Over the last 12 months, the company’s shares have accelerated by an astonishing 1,300%. Year-to-date is just as impressive, sitting at a 570% gain.

It’s worth noting that Venturex shares are close to breaking its multi-year high of 82.7 cents achieved in 2012.

Based on today’s price, Venturex presides a market capitalisation of about $517 million, with more than 667 million shares outstanding.

The post Why the Venturex (ASX:VXR) share price is surging 7% in afternoon trade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) share price climbs on record revenue and profits
• Aurelia Metals (ASX:AMI) share price tanks 17% after quarterly results
• Here’s why the Province Resources (ASX:PRL) share price is up 7%
• 2 excellent international ETFs for ASX investors
• Here’s why the Magnis (ASX:MNS) share price is halted

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Aurelia Metals Ltd (ASX: AMI) share price has spent today’s entire session in the red from the market open.

Today’s loss comes as the company released its quarterly results to the market this morning.

Here we comb over Aurelia’s results in a bit finer detail.

Quick recap on Aurelia Metals

Aurelia is in the minerals exploration business. It has expertise in the mining of gold, silver, lead, tin and zinc.

Its two flagship projects are the Hera Mine and Peak Mine interests, although it derives the majority of revenue from the Peak site.

Aurelia has a market capitalisation of $487 million at the time of writing.

Aurelia’s quarterly report

Aurelia outlined several inflection points throughout its report.

Gold production came in at 22.9 thousand ounces (koz) at an all-in-sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,848 an ounce.

This was 34% below the previous quarter’s production of 34.9 koz at an AISC of $1,429 an ounce. The company attributes this to “lower gold grade(s) at all sites”.

Aurelia also reported a 63% increase in mineral resources, including “substantial growth” at its Great Cobar and Federation deposits.

Ore production at the Peak site also increased 21% this quarter, up from 128kt back in March, whereas ore production fell ~13% to 74kt at its Dargues site.

Copper metal output also reduced at Peak, although was “partially offset” by higher copper ore volumes.

Aurelia also provided an update on FY22 production guidance, calling for 112-123 koz at an AISC of $1,500-$1,700 per ounce. This is a step up from the previous guidance of 104 koz at $1,337 an ounce.

Finally, Aurelia reported a ~4.5% quarter-on-quarter decrease in its cash position to $75 million.

Investors seem dissatisfied with the result and have punished Aurelia shares since the release, driving the Aurelia share price down ~17% on the day.

Aurelia Metals share price snapshot

It has been a less than favourable year for the Aurelia Metals share price, posting a loss of 8% since January 1. This extends the previous 12 months’ loss of 33%.

Both of these returns have lagged well behind the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)’s return of ~23% over the past year.

The post Aurelia Metals (ASX:AMI) share price tanks 17% after quarterly results appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The author Zach Bristow has no positions in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Province Resources Ltd (ASX: PRL) share price is gaining today, despite no price sensitive news from the company.

However, Province announced a new addition to its board today and the announcement came with some exciting fine print.

Right now, the Province Resources share price is 7.69% higher. Its shares are trading for 14 cents apiece.

Let’s take a closer look at Province Resources’ newest board member and what their appointment might mean for the company.

Province’s new board appointment

The Province Resources share price is gaining today as the company welcomes Rodger Martin to its board.

Martin has previously been the chief of staff to former West Australian Treasurer Ben Wyatt.

The company stated many of the people Province is in contact with have dealt with Martin in his previous role. Prior to his role with Wyatt, Martin was Woodside Petroleum Limited‘s (ASX: WPL) vice president of corporate affairs.

Martin will take on the role of a non-executive director at Province Resources.

It’s also likely the terms that must be met before Martin can receive allocated performance shares is boosting the Province Resources share price. The terms appear to point to the company’s confidence in its HyEnergy Zero Carbon Hydrogen Project.

Martin will receive around 1.66 million performance shares when Province announces the completion of a positive scoping study at the HyEnergy Project, to the satisfaction of the company’s independent directors.  

The directors will be satisfied if Province begins a prefeasibility study (PFS) by 23 October 2022.

Martin will also receive a second lot of around 1.66 million performance shares if Province announces an offtake partner for at least 30% of the project’s production before 23 October 2024.

If Province fails its second goal, Martin will receive the second tranche when it sells the project for at least $100 million.

However, the second option is likely less exciting to investors, particularly as Province acquired the project’s original owner, Ozexco Pty Ltd, for $750,000 in February.

Commentary from management

 Province’s managing director David Frances said of Martin’s appointment:

I am extremely pleased to welcome Roger to the company, his deep knowledge and vast experience with government and other stakeholders will be critical in the company’s efforts to advance the HyEnergy project through the various pathways to approval. His passion for the global energy transition to renewables is something that resonates well with the Province team.

Province Resources share price snapshot

Today’s gains have added to Province’s recent strong performance on the ASX.

The Province Resources share price is currently 1,300% higher than it was at the start of 2021. It has also gained 600% since this time last year.

The company has a market capitalisation of around $146 million, with approximately 1.1 billion shares outstanding.

The post Here’s why the Province Resources (ASX:PRL) share price is up 7% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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If you’re looking for an easy way to invest in international shares for diversification, then exchange traded funds (ETFs) could be the answer.

But which ETFs should you look at? Here are two popular ETFs that could be worth getting better acquainted with:

BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA)

The first ETF to look at is the BetsShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF. This popular ETF provides investors with exposure to 50 of the largest technology and ecommerce companies that have their main area of business in Asia.

Among the 50 companies you’ll be owning a slice of are tech giants such as Alibaba, Baidu, Infosys, JD.com, Samsung, and Tencent Holdings. It also includes lesser known but high quality tech companies. These include Kuaishou Technology, Meituan Dianping, and Pinduoduo.

In respect to Kuaishou Technology, it is the company behind the eponymous Kuaishou app. This is the world’s second largest short video platform with an average of 275.9 million daily active users. At present, it generates revenue from live-streaming, ads, and ecommerce.

Also in the fund is Pinduoduo. It is an e-commerce platform that offers a wide range of products from daily groceries to home appliances. The platform connects distributors with consumers directly through an interactive shopping experience. This means that shoppers can team up to buy items in bulk at lower prices. A recent update reveals that the company has stolen the crown from Alibaba in respect to active customers. It is now the largest retailer in the region with 788 million annual active customers.

BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ)

Another ETF to look at is the BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF. It aims to track the performance of the NASDAQ 100 Index before fees and expenses. This index comprises 100 of the largest non-financial companies listed on the NASDAQ market, and includes many tech companies that are at the forefront of the new economy.

BetaShares notes that this area of the market is underrepresented on the Australian share market. As a result, it feels the ETF may benefit local investors that often have a large allocation to financials and mining companies and little exposure to technology.

Among the companies you’ll be buying a slice of are global giants such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, Netflix, Nvidia, and Tesla.

Apple is of course the US$2.5 trillion technology behemoth behind the iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and Apple Watch. It also has a quick growing services business, which is generating significant recurring revenues. This business has over 600 million subscribers across its Apple Arcade, Apple Fitness+, Apple Music, Apple News, Apple Pay, and Apple TV+ offerings.

Another company you will be owning a slice of is Tesla. It appears well-placed for growth over the long term thanks to the ongoing adoption of electric vehicles and its energy storage business. In respect to the former, the company notes that public sentiment and support for electric vehicles are at a never-before-seen inflection point.

The post 2 excellent international ETFs for ASX investors appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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The Magnis Energy Technologies Ltd (ASX: MNS) share price won’t be going anywhere today.

Shares in the lithium-ion battery manufacturer entered a trading halt before the start of today’s session.

Let’s take a look at why shares in Magnis are in a halt.  

Magnis share price halted pending capital raise

Earlier today, shares in Magnis were placed in a trading halt at the request of the company.

In a release to the market, Magnis requested the trading halt pending an announcement relating to a capital raise.

The share price will remain frozen until either an announcement is made or until the start of trading this Thursday.

Apart from that, Magnis did not provide further information on how much the company was looking to raise or where funds will be directed.

More on Magnis

Magnis is an Australia-based producer of lithium-ion battery cells. The company has three core areas of operations: battery technologies, gigafactories and graphite.

The company has a partnership interest in Charge CCCV, a US intellectual property company with patented discoveries in lithium-ion batteries.

In addition, Magnis has ownership interests in two lithium-ion gigafactories in New York and Townsville.  

Magnis also has a Nachu Graphite Project in south-east Tanzania which produces natural flake graphite used in battery anodes.

Most recently, Magnis produced its first full-sized lithium-ion battery at its New York plant. The company highlighted the battery cells were produced with commercial grade components from a fully defined supply chain.

Magnis expects cells to meet limited testing and customer sample needs in the third quarter of 2021.

Earlier this month, Magnis also announced its New York battery plant will use BMLMP technology to produce its batteries.

According to the company, batteries using BMLMP technology have a long life, support fast charging and are safe without the use of nickel or cobalt. In addition, the technology enables a higher voltage compared to regulation lithium-ion batteries.

Magnis share price snapshot

The Magnis share price is up more than 40% since the start of the year. Additonally, it is up almost 4% year to date.

Shares in the lithium-ion battery manufacturer closed yesterday’s trading session at 27 cents.  

The post Here’s why the Magnis (ASX:MNS) share price is halted appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Nikhil Gangaram has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Australia’s leading investment platform provider CommSec has released data on the most traded ASX shares on its platform from last week.

Here’s the data:

Zip Co Ltd (ASX: Z1P)

This buy now pay later (BNPL) provider was far and away the most traded share on the CommSec platform last week. Its shares were involved in 4% of trades, with buyers accounting for almost two-thirds of the volume. This followed the release of the company’s fourth quarter update. The Zip share price ended the week marginally lower after investors reacted negatively to the update.

Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ)

This ETF was popular with investors once again during the five days. The Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF was attributable to 2% of trades on CommSec, with a sizeable 90% of the volume coming from buyers. The technology-focused ETF rose 2.3% last week, stretching its 2021 gain to ~18%. Investors may have been buying the ETF in anticipation of a strong US earnings season.

BetaShares Global Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: ETHI)

Investors were piling into this ethical ETF again last week. The ETF was involved in 1.7% of trades during the week, with 92% of the volume coming from the buy side. This led to the ETF gaining 1.6% last week, bringing its year to date gain to 15%. Increased interest in ethical investing has been driving this ETF higher.

iShares Core S&P/ASX 200 ETF (ASX: IOZ)

ETFs certainly were popular last week. A third ETF among the top five was the iShares Core S&P/ASX 200 ETF, which was responsible for 1.5% of trades on CommSec. As with the other ETFs, the majority of these trades were from buyers. A total of 88% of the volume was from the buy side. These investors appear to believe the ASX 200 index can keep on climbing over the remainder of 2021 despite hitting a record high.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA)

This banking giant’s shares were popular with investors and were attributable to 1.2% of trades on the platform. The buying and selling was largely flat, with 53% of the volume coming from buyers. The CBA share price rose 1% over the five days. Investors may be confident that a solid full year result is coming from Australia’s largest bank next month.

The post CBA and Zip were among the most traded ASX shares last week appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS and ZIPCOLTD FPO. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) and Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) are the two biggest players in the worldwide streaming content market. The same factors that affect subscriber growth for one sometimes affect subscriber growth for the other as well.

That suggests you can get some clues on Disney’s upcoming update on subscriber figures (when it reports third-quarter earnings) from Netflix’s earnings report. In fact, Netflix’s management said something interesting that suggests subscriber growth is coming for Disney.

There was a surge in coronavirus cases in India

During Netflix’s conference call accompanying its earnings release, CFO Spencer Neumann said:

The one thing we do see with COVID is we don’t see the big spikes that we saw in terms of engagement or acquisition or churn that we saw in the very early days of the pandemic. But on the margin, acquisition is impacted. So, for example, in Q2, when things tightened up a little bit, say, in Brazil or India, we did see some increase in acquisition.

Indeed, Netflix added a total of 1.54 million subscribers in the quarter, and 1.04 million were from the Asia Pacific segment. In other words, the surge in coronavirus cases in India during the quarter led to an increase in subscriber growth at Netflix. How does that help Disney? Because almost 33% of Disney+ subscribers come from the region. If demand for streaming services increased, some people likely chose to sign up for Disney+.

However, this is not a certainty. In fact, one of the main reasons why Disney+ is so popular in India and the region is because it carries the Indian Premier League, which was canceled because of elevating COVID-19 infection in India. The cancellation of the league could have an offsetting impact on subscriber growth even if there were a surge in demand as folks stayed home to avoid infection.

Thankfully, the surge of infection has decreased, and the Indian government has ramped up its vaccination efforts. Nearly 4 million doses of vaccine are being administered daily. At that rate, it would take 13 months to vaccinate 75% of the population.

What this could mean for investors

Interestingly, subscribers from India bring in lower average revenue per month compared to members from the rest of the world. In fact, the average revenue per user (ARPU) from Disney+ was $3.99 in the most recent quarter. Excluding Disney+ Hot Star, which is what the service is called in India, ARPU was $5.61. ARPU in the region is likely to be lower because of the lack of ad revenue generated from the IPL.

While it may have increased demand for streaming services overall, the impact of the latest COVID-19 surge is likely to be muted for Disney+, even if it does bring in more subscribers. Still, the growth in Disney+ has been a remarkable success, and fluctuations from quarter to quarter are to be expected.

Investors looking for stocks that are poised to gain from the increase in streaming content demand can add Disney and Netflix to their list.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Why Netflix’s Q2 earnings suggest subscriber growth for Disney+ appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Parkev Tatevosian owns shares of Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is having a great day on the ASX share market today.

At the time of writing, CBA shares are up a very healthy 1.62% to back over $100 a share at $100.75. It’s the first time CBA has gone back over $100 a share since its slip into 2-digits at the end of last month.

It seems news that CBA might have a beef with one of the largest companies in the world isn’t bothering too many people today. Yes, CommBank is in a squabble with the formidable Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL). That’s what a report in the Australian Financial Review (AFR) today tells us anyway.

According to the report, Commonwealth Bank CEO Matt Comyn has launched “an extraordinary broadside” against Apple. He has called on federal parliament to rein in the market power of the electronics giant.

Mr Comyn has told a parliamentary committee that Apple is abusing its market powers in the payments space and more regulation is necessary to ensure a level playing field.

Comyn’s comments relate to the Apple Pay payments system. This (according to Comyn) now accounts for 80% of iPhone ‘tap and go’ payments.

CBA orders beef with Apple

Apple Pay lets consumers use their ‘bank cards’ to pay for purchases. But the banks are not truly part of the payment process per se.

Instead, the Apple Wallet app restricts all near field communication (NFC) activity to itself. This means that banks have to go through Apple as the ‘middleman’ of sorts when the customer makes a purchase. Apple, naturally, clips the payment ticket on the way through.

It’s this situation that has got Mr Comyn’s goat. Here’s some of what he told the committee:

Without access to the NFC, it is not even possible to have a competing service…

[Concerns with the power of Apple and Google’s app stores are] consistent with our experience… Manufacturers of mobile handsets and associated software set the terms on which third parties can offer these app-based services, particularly with respect to payments for, and via, these services. They also can restrict apps that provide services that compete directly with those supplied by the manufacturer of the mobile device.

The ability for mobile phone providers to restrict competing services accessed through the app store will inevitably lead to distortions in markets for services provided through mobile apps. These distortions will only intensify if left unaddressed…

Australians who use Apple devices should be able to make their own decisions about which features they prefer in a wallet app, as Android users can. Yet currently they cannot.

Apple Pay-s itself first?

However, Apple has rejected Mr Comyn’s criticisms. It submitted its own set of answers to the committee. The report states that Apple told the committee that “its NFC architecture was available to all banks on non-discriminatory terms”.

Apple also stated that its app was “pro-competition and allowed the consumer to choose which cards to favour in the app”. It also said that large banks pay the same fee as smaller companies to access the wallet.

Mr Comyn was not satisfied with this answer, calling it “selective interpretation”.

He reiterated CBA’s position that Apple’s market power and its employ “should be of growing interest to the Australian Parliament”.

It will be interesting to see what comes out of this committee in light of Mr Comyn’s comments.

The post Commonwealth Bank (ASX:CBA) has beef with Apple. Here’s why appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Apple. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has broken its 6-day run of consecutive price grains (as reported here yesterday), falling 4% over the past 24 hours.

One Bitcoin is currently worth US$36,807 (AU$49,739).

That’s down 9.2% from the US$40,539 the token was trading for just 7 hours ago.

What’s moving the Bitcoin price?

There are numerous forces at work moving Bitcoin’s price in either direction.

Today’s falls look to be related to media speculation surrounding Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN). Amazon is one of the largest companies in the world, reporting roughly US$386 billion in revenue in FY20.

On Monday, British newspaper City A.M. reported that, “Amazon is looking to accept Bitcoin payments ‘by the end of the year’, and is investigating its own token for 2022, says an insider.”

This came after Amazon posted a job vacancy over the weekend for a cryptocurrency and blockchain professional to join their team.

And it aroused the animal spirits of crypto investors, keen to see Jeff Bezos follow in the footsteps of fellow multi-billionaire Elon Musk.

Earlier this year Musk gave the green light for Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) to accept Bitcoin as payment for its vehicles. A move Musk has temporarily suspended until the world’s biggest crypto manages to source at least half its monumental energy needs from renewable sources.

And just as markets witnessed following Musk’s earlier endorsement, the Bitcoin price gained strongly on the unsubstantiated rumours that Amazon would begin accepting it across its payment platforms.

Amazon denies rumours

Amazon put an end to those rumours late yesterday in news that’s likely helped drive Bitcoin lower.

In an email to CoinDesk, an Amazon spokesperson wrote:

Notwithstanding our interest in the space, the speculation that has ensued around our specific plans for cryptocurrencies is not true. We remain focused on exploring what this could look like for customers shopping on Amazon.

It’s not just Bitcoin heading lower over the past 24 hours. Ethereum (CRYTPO: ETH), the world’s second biggest crypto by market cap, is falling too, down 6.1% since this time yesterday to US$2,179.

The post Bitcoin tumbles 9% following Amazon payment plans denial appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• The Ethereum price is crashing as this little known token soars

John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Amazon, Bitcoin, and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Ethereum and has recommended the following options: long January 2022 $1,920 calls on Amazon and short January 2022 $1,940 calls on Amazon. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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