The escalation of geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East triggers turbulence in global financial markets

Late Thursday night, Israel launched airstrikes on targets within Iran, an action that triggered strong reactions in global financial markets, leading to a sell-off of risk assets, and Bitcoin prices also fell accordingly.

The main impacts of this event on investors' assets include the following aspects:

1. The price of Bitcoin dropped about 5% in early trading on Friday, falling from a 24-hour high of $108,500 to around $102,900.

2. Risk aversion sentiment drove gold prices up, with spot gold briefly climbing to $3,429.

3. The U.S. government stated that it is closely monitoring the situation, while oil and stock futures prices have also declined.

The main targets of this airstrike are military facilities near Tehran and Tabriz. The Israeli side claims that this is a "preemptive" action aimed at addressing the "growing threat." Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu emphasized that Iran's nuclear program poses a "clear and present danger" and stated that this action will "last for several days until the threat is eliminated."

The Iranian authorities have not yet made an official response to this matter, but local media reports that explosions occurred in the affected areas, leading to disruptions in air traffic. It is worth noting that, on the eve of the airstrike, Israeli defense officials met with senior officials from the U.S. Department of Defense. The U.S. has not yet taken a clear position on this operation, only stating that it is closely monitoring the developments.

A cryptocurrency fund manager said in an interview: "The latest escalation of tensions between Israel and Iran is affecting risk assets and the oil market, but this is not the first time this has happened." He also pointed out that a similar incident occurred in April this year, which also triggered a brief sell-off in the crypto market, but as the situation eased, the market quickly rebounded. He believes these moments are often good opportunities to buy.

Another analyst believes that while short-term traders still view Bitcoin as a risk asset, the long-term allocation by institutional investors is gradually dominating its trend. This explains why Bitcoin may follow the fluctuations of risk assets in the short term, but can outperform gold in the long run.

Meanwhile, due to rising risk aversion, the spot gold price soared to $3,429. In contrast, U.S. futures prices fell as investors worried that regional conflicts could further escalate.

This series of market reactions highlights the profound impact of geopolitical events on global financial markets, and investors need to closely monitor the situation's development and adjust their investment strategies accordingly.