Bitcoin has reached new all-time highs with a strong 11.1% rise in May outperforming gold and pushing past major resistance levels according to a new report from ARK Invest. The surge comes as key sectors of the US economy show growing signs of stress including housing and auto sales.

The housing market is facing a sharp imbalance with more sellers than buyers due to steep interest rate hikes since 2022. Affordability continues to drop putting downward pressure on home prices. At the same time auto sales plummeted in May falling to 15.6 million units after topping 17 million in April as the impact of earlier tariff-related buying faded.

While traditional assets weaken investors are shifting funds toward bitcoin. Spot bitcoin ETFs attracted $5.5 billion in May over three times the amount seen in gold ETFs. ARK says bitcoin’s rise is not driven by hype but by strategic capital reallocation as buyers seek stability and yield in an uncertain economy.