<p class="MsoNormal">Market picture</p><p class="MsoNormal">Bitcoin is losing 3.7% in the past 24 hours, falling to $23.9K%. Ethereum is down 5.2% to $1870. Other top altcoins are down 2% (BNB) to 6.4% (Solana).</p><p class="MsoNormal">The total capitalisation of the crypto market, according to CoinMarketCap, fell 3.6% to $1.14 trillion overnight.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Bitcoin on Monday failed to claw its way above $25K, after which short-term buyers rushed to lock in profits and returned the price to the $24K area. The pressure on BTC was exerted by the rising US dollar amid weak data from China, indicating a slowdown in the economy.</p><p class="MsoNormal">However, so far, Bitcoin's decline is more appropriately seen as a corrective pullback within an uptrend. It would only be appropriate to discuss a break in this trend if it moves below $22.5K-23.0K. Sluggish and uncertain growth at the first stages is typical after a strong sell-off that prevailed since last October.</p><p class="MsoNormal">News background</p><p class="MsoNormal">Notably, the positive dynamics of the crypto market last week coincided with a net $17 million outflow, the first net withdrawal in seven weeks, of which $21 million came from investments in BTC. At the same time, investments in bitcoin short funds increased by $2.6 million.</p><p class="MsoNormal">The Wall Street Journal reports that US pension funds remain optimistic about investing in cryptocurrencies, despite a significant pullback in prices and a wave of defaults by crypto companies.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Raul Pal -- Real Vision CEO -- believes that Ethereum remains highly attractive for investors, and interest in it will grow even more after the move to PoS.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Michael Saylor, former head of MicroStrategy, called the company's decision to buy bitcoin a good one. He said, BTC is not suitable for everyone, "you should invest for at least four years. Ideally, it's an intergenerational transfer of wealth."</p><p class="MsoNormal">This article was written by <a href="https://www.fxpro.com/" target="_blank">FxPro’</a>s Senior Market Analyst Alex Kuptsikevich.</p> This article was written by FxPro FXPro at www.forexlive.com.

<p class="MsoNormal">Individuals <a href="https://vhnx.com/" target="_blank">planning for retirement</a> may feel quite anxious about the coming years, considering the high inflation and interest rates and the low consumer confidence.</p><p class="MsoNormal">It's uncertain whether a recession will occur, although there are some signs that an extended economic slowdown may happen. Still, retirement will come to just about every people. Therefore, it's important to learn as much as we can about navigating and managing this period in our lives once it takes place.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Here are four things you can do to prepare your investment portfolio for retirement. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Combine Similar Accounts</p><p class="MsoNormal">Combining your similarly taxed accounts and sticking to only one or two financial institutions helps curb your attention from multiple individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and 401(k)s. Plus, keeping an eye on and handling your investments and taxes is easier when you only have a handful of accounts.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Merging your accounts is more than just about getting you organized in retirement.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Maintaining multiple accounts across different institutions could subject you to some considerable expense funds or additional management costs. And those high, extra costs can be detrimental to your investment returns, leaving you with less money than you should have to retire comfortably. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Opt For Index Funds</p><p class="MsoNormal">Index funds are usually an excellent choice for a retirement investment portfolio. They are low-cost, so they help reduce the fees you pay, which in turn increases your long-term returns.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Furthermore, index funds mirror the performance of particular market indexes, making them a passively-managed investment.</p><p class="MsoNormal">That hands-off approach is a method that you may appreciate in your retirement, as it would allow you to spend less time monitoring your investments, and more on leisurely or recreational activities.</p><p class="MsoNormal">In choosing ideal funds to bet on, you can consider ones that follow the S&P 500 index or the overall bond market.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Additionally, taking a broad look at your portfolio and putting money into diversified index funds may help you generate profit near the amount of the market's total return, which is often higher than what many active investors make.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Cut Down on Individual Stocks</p><p class="MsoNormal">Preparing for retirement signals the time to reassess your individual stock holdings. If single-stock investments still make up a pretty significant part of your portfolio, you may need to consider reducing some of those positions.</p><p class="MsoNormal">That's because idiosyncratic risk is endemic to many individual stocks of companies. You can minimize this type of risk by focusing on diversifying your investments, determining a suitable asset allocation, and setting a target amount for saving.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Have Enough Cash</p><p class="MsoNormal">Having a sufficient cash reserve during retirement can be crucial since it can provide the flexibility you may need in times of emergencies or unexpected expenses.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Relying on your stock positions to pay for your unforeseen expenses is a risky decision in retirement. On the other hand, keeping an adequate amount of cash during a crisis can give you financial peace of mind.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Instead of opening a brokerage account, a <a href="https://vhnx.com/signup" target="_blank">high-yield savings account</a> that you can access anytime would be a better option for storing your fully liquid funds.</p> This article was written by ForexLive at www.forexlive.com.