• Oil prices rise above $82: WTI crude moved past $82 a barrel, adding to inflation concerns and putting further pressure on risk assets as Treasury yields climbed.
• July retail sales disappoint: U.S. retail sales dropped 0.6% in July, according to government data. Economists had expected a 0.1% increase, while June sales were revised around a 0.2% gain.
• Ex-auto retail sales decline: Sales excluding automobiles fell 0.3% in July, missing expectations for a 0.2% rise. The measure also declined 0.2% in June.

Wall Street had already been expecting a weak retail sales figure because large retailers can monitor credit card spending data before the official government report. As a result, the initial market reaction was relatively muted.

Still, the weaker consumer data reinforce the view that the Federal Reserve has limited need to move aggressively on interest rates.

Kraken Parent Revenue Climbs 17%

Payward, the company behind crypto exchange Kraken, reported $508 million in adjusted revenue for the second quarter, up 17% from the year-earlier period.

Adjusted EBITDA fell sharply to $23 million, down 71% from $80 million in Q2 2025.

Funded accounts grew 42% to 6.6 million, while assets held on the platform reached $40 billion. Payward also said its DeFi Earn Bitcoin Vault accumulated approximately $400 million in deposits.

The company said weaker industry-wide spot trading was offset by growth in futures, equities and tokenized equities. It also gained spot market share for the third consecutive quarter.

U.S. Debt Approaches $40 Trillion

U.S. national debt has risen to nearly $39.91 trillion, according to the U.S. Debt Clock, leaving less than $100 billion before the total reaches $40 trillion.

30-Year Treasury Yield Hits Highest Level Since 2001

Thursday’s $25 billion sale of 30-year Treasury bonds generated a 5.22% yield, according to the Financial Times.

That was the highest yield for the maturity since August 2001, when it reached 5.52%.

Strive and Strategy Preferred Stocks Recover

Strive’s perpetual preferred stock SATA ended the session at $99.65, its highest close since June 18, when it traded near its $100 par value. After falling to $79, the stock has since recovered approximately 25%.

Strategy’s STRC preferred shares closed above $95, their best finish since June 12. The shares have rebounded 34% from their $71 low.

Cronos Jumps on Tokenized Stock Expansion

CRO, the native token of the Cronos blockchain and Crypto.com ecosystem, advanced nearly 5% to about 5 cents since midnight UTC.

It was the token’s strongest daily gain since July 16, when it climbed 10%.

The move followed Crypto.com’s introduction of tokenized equities, enabling users to gain exposure to U.S. stocks through its application. The platform provides access to 1,500 stocks and funds, with purchases starting at $1.

Bitcoin Defends $62,800 Technical Level

Bitcoin is trading near $62,800, a key technical area located along the lower edge of the Ichimoku cloud.

A sustained decline below this level could move BTC beneath the cloud, which traders generally view as a bearish development.

The Ichimoku cloud is a technical indicator developed by Japanese journalist Goichi Hosoda to help traders evaluate trends, momentum, support and resistance. Price moves through the cloud can signal potential shifts in market direction.

Gemini Stock Drops 5%

Gemini shares declined 5% in Friday’s premarket trading after the exchange reported continued weakness in its core trading business.

Second-quarter revenue increased 37% to $45.5 million, driven primarily by services, while exchange revenue fell 38%. The company posted a net loss of $107.7 million.

Bitcoin Slips Below $63K

Bitcoin fell beneath $63,000 as climbing oil prices and higher Treasury yields weighed on risk assets.

WTI crude traded above $82 a barrel, while the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.660%.