Bitcoin Plunges Under $54K As Weak US Jobs Data Shakes Markets

Bitcoin
fell
below
$54,000
on
September
6,
2024,
after
cruising
earlier
in
the
day
to
$57,000
following
the
US
nonfarm
payrolls.
The
report
showed
that
the
economy
added
only
142,000
jobs
in
August,
which
was
much
below
expectations
and
threw
the
crypto
market
into
volatility.

The
abrupt
U-turn
drove
the
crypto
ecology
into
a
tailspin.
After
striking
a
low
of
$53,780,
Bitcoin
lost
roughly
4%
in
the
past
24
hours
and
traded
for
$54,101.
Following
the
dismal
job
count,
there
was
conjecture
on
Federal
Reserve
interest
rate
cuts;
estimates
of
a
70%
probability
of
a
25
basis-point
drop
at
the
next
FOMC
meeting
on
September
18.

BTC down in the last 24 hours. Source: Coingecko

Altcoins
Also
In
The
Red

The
liquidation
wasn’t
unique
to
bitcoin.
Major
altcoins
were
also
off:
ether
was
down
4.6%
over
the
past
24
hours,
changing
hands
at
$2,261.
Others
with
notable
losses
included
Ripple’s
XRP
and
DOGE,
each
down
more
than
4%.

Liquidations
And
Market
Turbulence

The
wild
swings
in
price
ensured
heavy
liquidations
occurred
in
the
crypto
market.
According
to
some
reports,
about
$93
million
were
liquidated
within
a
four-hour
frame.
These
liquidations
largely
belonged
to
leveraged
longs
that
caught
traders
off
guard
who
were
expecting
a
further
rally.

BTC market cap currently at $1.07 trillion. Chart: TradingView.com

Potential
Fed
Rate
Cut
Looms

The
dismal
jobs
number
has
sparked
speculation
about
upcoming
interest
rate
actions.
Some
investors
now
expect
the
possibility
of
rate
cuts,
with
a
70%
chance
seen
for
a
25-bp
cut
at
the
next
FOMC
meeting
on
September
18.

“Ultimately,
the
nature
of
the
cut
–
whether
bullish
or
bearish
–
depends
on
economic
data
and
Fed
commentary,
but
all
things
being
equal
I
still
view
25
bps
as
better
for
asset
prices
than
50
bps,”
Sean
Farrell,
digital
asset
research
head
at
Fundstrat,
said.

A
smaller
cut
would
be
more
favorable
to
risk
assets,
since
a
50bp
cut
could
suggest
the
Fed
is
getting
worried
about
a
recession
in
the
US
economy.
The
nature
of
the
cut
will
come
down
to
economic
data
and
Fed
commentary.

Bitcoin:
Bearish
Pressure
Remains
Low

Although
the
broader
market
is
in
decline,
data
shows
that
bearish
pressure
for
Bitcoin
remains
low.
This
is
indicative
that
the
current
bearish
momentum
might
be
due
to
unaggressive
selling
pressure.

While
the
failure
of
Bitcoin
to
hold
above
$54,000
after
the
US
jobs
report
brings
into
light
some
volatility
in
the
cryptocurrency
market,
a
possible
central
bank
rate
cut
increased
uncertainty
and
made
the
participants
in
the
market
look
closely
at
the
next
move
from
the
Fed.

Like
all
other
cryptocurrencies,
the
altcoins
have
also
taken
a
beating
and
fallen
below
their
key
resistance
levels,
with
the
broader
crypto
market
retreating.
According
to
analysts,
the
bearish
pressure
might
not
be
that
serious
as
it
seems.

Featured
image
from
Pexels,
chart
from
TradingView