The price of Bitcoin fell to $79,500 on Thursday, erasing much of the prior day’s gains after jumping to $83,300, as jubilation over U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff pause faded.
BTC was recently down about 3.1% over the past 24 hours.
The president lowered tariffs on most nations to 10% yesterday, sparking a furious rally within the cryptosphere and broader markets, as investors contemplated how the U.S. had avoided a trade war with 180 nations caught up in Trump’s “Liberation Day” announcement.
Trump also raised tariffs on Chinese imports, yielding a total rate of 125%, and the confrontation with one of America’s largest trading partners showed no indication of easing on Thursday.
The crypto market’s overall value sank 4.7% to $2.61 trillion from $2.72 trillion the previous day, according to crypto data provider CoinGecko. The price of Ethereum and Solana had each fallen in excess of 7% over the past 24 hours, swooning toward $1,500 and $110, respectively.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Thursday that inflation had slowed to 2.4% in the 12 months through March. While Trump’s universal tariffs went into effect less than a week ago, the Federal Reserve has been monitoring inflation data for signs of potential stickiness.
Investors have raised concerns that Trump’s tariffs could contribute to inflation as businesses deal with higher input costs. At the same time, some economists have raised concerns that Trump’s tariffs could suffocate economic growth and lead to a slowdown.
Trump’s decision to delay most tariffs gave markets much-needed reprieve, but uncertainty still lingers around how the White House’s erratic approach will ultimately play out, Strahinja Savic, head of data and analytics at Canadian crypto-focused merchant bank FRNT Financial, told Decrypt.
“It’s a very confusing environment for all assets,” he said.
Though Bitcoin’s price has fallen over the past several hours, the cryptocurrency’s is still above its low of $74,700 on Monday, when markets bristled with tariff angst.
“Overall bitcoin has proven resilient,” Savic added. “Given the calamitous nature of the past few days, bitcoin’s ‘safe haven’ properties may be resonating among investors more than ever.”
Bitcoin outperformed the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq on Thursday, which each fell 4.5%. However, gold, the original safe haven, rose 3.7% to $3,194 per ounce—a new record.
Edited by James Rubin
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