Bitcoin attempting to make a stand as global stock markets melt down on Iran war

Yesterday's modest rally in stocks in response to a new Middle East war breaking out over the weekend — for the moment — appears to have been a headfake.

In mid-morning U.S. hours, the Nasdaq is at session lows, down 2.5%. The S&P 500 is lower by 2.3%. European markets are being hit even harder, led by a 5.2% plunge in Italy's IBEX 35 and a 4.1% fall in Germany's DAX.

Having run up to historic highs in the weeks leading up to the war, precious metals are tumbling as well. Gold is lower by 4.3%, silver by 7.5% and platinum by 11.3%. WTI crude oil continues to surge, up another 8% to $77 per barrel.

Having declined relentlessly for about the last five months, crypto markets are, however, showing a tiny bit of relative strength. Trading at $68,000, bitcoin is down 1% over the past 24 hours, but higher by more than 2% from its worst levels of the day.

Also down over the past day, but nicely higher from the session's worst levels are ether (ETH), solana (SOL) and $XRP ($XRP).

There's no such bounce yet in crypto-related stocks, which remain under heavy selling pressure on Tuesday.

Shares of trading platform Robinhood (HOOD) dropped 7%, while Coinbase (COIN) fell 5%. Strategy (MSTR) and crypto platform Bullish (BLSH) each declined 4%. Stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL) held up better but still slipped about 1%.

"Historically, bitcoin, as the only liquid asset that also trades on weekends, has absorbed shocks during periods of forced risk reduction," said James Butterfill, head of research at CoinShares. "This time, the price development was constructive, bitcoin gained despite the increasing instability ... This divergence is significant. The absence of significant liquidations despite rising yields and geopolitical tensions suggests that positioning is adjusted compared to previous episodes."