Bitcoin dropped Friday – trading below $96,000 for the first time in over six months – as traders backed off risky assets amid dwindling hopes for an interest-rate cut next month.
The cryptocurrency had fallen nearly 4% to $95,721.83 as of 2:30 p.m. ET — putting it on track for its third weekly decline in a row.
Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, has plunged nearly 24% since its peak in October.
It is still up about 2.7% so far this year.
“Once the price fell below the crucial $100,000 level, it confirmed a descending channel that had been forming since mid-October, right after the massive liquidations,” Arthur Azizov, founder and investor at B2 Ventures, told The Post.
“The macroeconomic background is also cautious,” he added.
Ether also dropped nearly 2% on Friday to $3,169.39.
The federal government reopened this week, ending the longest shutdown in history.
But the White House said economic data from October, including the jobs report and inflation, might never be fully released.
National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said the labor report would eventually come out after a delay, but it would not include the unemployment rate.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has said there is no consensus among officials around a December interest-rate cut, despite markets pricing in high chances.
News that some economic data could be skipped over spooked investors who were hoping for a quarter-point cut, since the Fed relies on government data to make its interest-rate decisions.
The odds of a quarter-point cut at the Dec. 10 meeting dropped to 45.9% on Friday – down 21% from last week and down nearly 50% from October, according to CME FedWatch.
“Until this becomes clearer, investors tend to be careful with assets like Bitcoin,” Azizov said.
Tech stocks suffered a massive rout over the past two weeks as investors turned risk averse – though the tech-heavy Nasdaq rebounded on Friday.
With Bitcoin, there “is always the possibility this is one last shake out before a large run, but that remains to be seen,” Ken Mahoney, chief executive of Mahoney Asset Management, told The Post.
“Crypto investors really need to be watching like a hawk to see how we continue to react to this critical level. Bitcoin is usually better bought on weakness and sold into strength if you are just looking to trade it,” he added.
