Cryptocurrencies gained ground on Thursday while major stock indexes closed at all-time highs, as softer-than-expected jobs data lowered expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike.
Crypto Market Rallies
Bitcoin briefly broke $62,000 but failed to sustain the rally, pulling back to the low $61,000 range. Ethereum experienced a more pronounced rally, breaking through the $1,700 level before consolidating sideways.
Nearly $460 million was liquidated from the cryptocurrency market in the last 24 hours, predominantly in short positions, according to Coinglass data
Bitcoin’s open interest rose 1.14% over the last 24 hours to $46.22 billion. Derivatives traders on Binance, including both retail and whale investors, remained net long on the leading cryptocurrency but trimmed their long positions.
Top Gainers (24 Hours)
The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.2 trillion, following a dip of 0.79% over the last 24 hours.
Dow Closes At New Record
Major indexes bounced back on Thursday after a brief pause. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 594.83 points, or 1.14%, to hit a record close of 52,900.07. The S&P 500 eked out a narrow gain to end at 7,483.24, while the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.8% to close at 25,832.67.
U.S. job growth slowed sharply in June, with only 57,000 jobs added, missing economists’ forecast of 110,000 and down from 129,000 in May. The unemployment rate edged down to 4.2%, below the 4.3% consensus.
The CME Group’s FedWatch tool showed markets lowering the likelihood of the Fed keeping the rates unchanged in September to 45% from nearly 50% the day before.
‘Incoming Volatility’
Blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant warned that Bitcoin’s failure to hold $60,000 could trigger accelerated selling, potentially driving the price down toward its realized price of $53,000, which serves as a major support level.
CryptoQuant reported that the average Bitcoin deposit size has doubled from 1 BTC to 2 BTC, signaling increased activity from whales and institutional investors rather than retail participants.
“Whales appear to be leading the move. Incoming volatility,” the firm added.
Michaël van de Poppe, a widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader, said that he’s not selling his altcoins and plans to take profits once market excitement around altcoins returns.
“The markets are just waking up and sentiment can change fast,” Van De Poppe said. “There’s no need to be looking to be selling the actual market bottom, as that would be here.”
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