Bitcoin has been slumping over the past couple of months due primarily to China’s intensifying anti-cryptocurrency crackdown. Conversely, as the global economy continues to recover at an impressive pace, we think growth stocks McDonald’s (MCD) and Linde (NYSE:LIN) are well-positioned to perform much better than bitcoin in the near term. Read on for some details.Bitcoin has taken a hit since China increased its crackdown on domestic cryptocurrency mining owing to environmental concerns. Approximately 65% - 75% of global bitcoin mining is concentrated in China. However, the government crackdown has halted roughly 90% of China’s bitcoin mining capacity. Bitcoin has nearly halved in value since hitting its all-time high of $64,863.10 on April 14 and has declined 11.8% over the past five days. While bitcoin has gained slightly over the past two days, the cryptocurrency markets are expected to remain subdued in the near future.
While the cryptocurrency market remains under pressure, equity markets have been showing strength due to favorable macroeconomic trends. The Nasdaq Composite hit its 14,317.66 all-time high yesterday, while the S&P 500 is currently hovering marginally below its all-time high. Declining unemployment claims and rising industrial and manufacturing activities have driven renewed interest in growth stocks, as evidenced by Vanguard Growth ETF’s (VUG) 6.6% gains over the past month versus the broader S&P 500 index’s 2.2% returns.
Given this backdrop, we think the prices of growth stocks McDonald’s Corporation (MCD) and Linde plc (LIN) could hit fresh highs in the near term. In fact, it could be smart to now liquidate one’s investments in bitcoin and reinvest the money in these two stocks.