Bitcoin fell on Tuesday, cutting short a recent rebound as markets remained largely risk-averse amid heightened concerns over a renewed trade war between the U.S. and China.
Bitcoin fell on Tuesday, cutting short a recent rebound as markets remained largely risk-averse amid heightened concerns over a renewed trade war between the U.S. and China.
Broader crypto markets also moved in a flat-to-low range, after suffering heavy losses in recent sessions. U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of 100% tariffs on China wiped out some $500 billion in crypto market capitalization in a matter of days.
Bitcoin was at the heart of this rout, tumbling sharply from a $126,000 record high hit last week. The world’s biggest crypto fell 1% to $113,547.0 by 00:53 ET (04:53 GMT).
Demand for the world’s largest crypto was largely supplanted by demand for safe havens such as gold, which hit another record high on Tuesday.
While crypto markets did take some support from U.S. officials offering conciliatory comments on China, risk appetite still remained largely off.
Bitcoin rebound short-lived as US-China jitters spark crypto rout
Bitcoin slumped as low as $103,800 over the weekend after Trump’s initial announcement of additional tariffs against China.
While the world’s biggest crypto did recover as high as $115,000 on Monday, it cut short this rebound amid few signs of improving U.S.-China relations.
Beijing said on Tuesday that it was ready to “fight to the end” in a trade war with Washington, while also accusing the U.S. of discriminatory practices.
The latest trade tensions– which threaten to undermine an earlier framework deal between Washington and Beijing– largely stem from U.S. ire over China introducing stricter export controls on its rare earth industry.
China said on Tuesday that the controls were justified, and signaled little intent to acquiesce to U.S. demands. While Beijing did confirm that working-level talks were ongoing with Washington, it warned against the imposition of more trade tariffs.
Crypto price today: Ether, altcoins remain on the backfoot
Broader crypto prices mostly moved in a flat-to-low range, as risk appetite showed few signs of improving.
World no.2 crypto Ether fell 0.4% to $4,116.56, after falling as low as $3,400 over the weekend.
XRP fell 0.6% and remained pinned below $3.0.
Solana and Cardano clocked some strength, rising 4.8% and 1.1%, respectively.
Among memecoins, Dogecoin fell 0.7%, while $TRUMP rose 2%.
Beyond trade tensions, crypto markets were also grappling with increasing doubts over the corporate treasury strategy, especially in Bitcoin.