Bitcoin, Ethereum Slide as Trumps China Tariffs Trigger $411M in Liquidations
- Bitcoin dropped 4.1% to $76,550, while Ethereum slid 8.3%, its lowest since March 2023.
- Trumps tariffs intensified trade war fears and global market turmoil.
Bitcoin and Ethereum plunged on Wednesday as U.S. President Donald Trumps new tariffs on Chinese goods officially took effect. The sweeping trade measures have sparked a sharp downturn across global markets, triggering $411 million in crypto liquidations in the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin dropped 4.1% to $76,550, while Ethereum lost 8.3%, marking the steepest fall among the top ten digital assets. Ethereum also hit its lowest level since March 2023. Major altcoins followed suit, adding to the widespread market pain.
Traders blamed the plunge on fears that Trumps aggressive tariff policy could deepen the global economic slowdown. Markets need a circuit breaker on sentiment as much as anything else, said Pav Hundal, lead analyst at Swyftx. He noted that over $1.2 trillion in crypto value has vanished since February.
Global Markets Roiled as Bond Yields Surge
According to CoinGlass, liquidations surged as Bitcoin briefly dipped below $75,000 late Tuesday. This drop occurred less than three hours before the new tariffs kicked in. Since its January high above $109,000, Bitcoin has fallen nearly 30%.
Asian markets also suffered. Japans Nikkei 225 dropped 2.6% by midday Wednesday. Australias ASX 200 slid 2%. In the U.S., the S&P 500 fell 1.5% on Tuesday and is now nearing bear market territory with a 20% loss since mid-February.
Bond markets reflected the panic. The 10-year Treasury yield spiked between 4.2% and 4.4% Tuesday, posting its fastest intraday rise since World War II. The three-year Treasury auction also flopped, showing weak foreign investor demand.
The 30-year yield rose 56 basis points in three trading days. Thats the largest such jump since January 1982, according to Bianco Research. This kind of historic move is caused by a forced liquidation, Jim Bianco posted on X.
Rising yields mean falling bond prices and higher government borrowing costs. With U.S. debt already high, this could worsen the federal deficit. At the same time, smaller tokens dropped even further, while traders warned of more downside.
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Text source: TheNewsCrypto – Blockchain & Cryptocurrency News M
