Investing.com — Bitcoin prices rose on Thursday, tracking a broader rise in risk-driven markets amid growing bets on a September interest rate cut, though speculation about further token distributions by Mt Gox limited overall gains.
Risk appetite was also tempered by data showing a sharp downward revision in US jobs data, raising concerns about a possible recession.
At 00:50 ET (04:50 GMT), the token was up 2.4% to $60,751.8. The token moved in a tight trading range for most of this week and struggled to stay above $60,000.
Mt Gox is expected to mobilize tokens this week
Wallets associated with defunct cryptocurrency exchange Mt Gox were seen moving around $700 million worth of tokens on Wednesday, after moving around $2 billion worth of tokens earlier in the week.
The exchange had begun returning tokens to customers following a 2014 hack in early July, raising concerns that token distributions could present an increase in Bitcoin supplies and also increase selling pressure on the cryptocurrency.
It was not clear how much Bitcoin Mt Gox holds, though Coindesk estimates put the figure at 46,000 tokens, or $28 billion based on spot prices.
Rate cut expectations high after Fed minutes, but recession fears return
Expectations of a rate cut in September grew after the results of the Federal Reserve's late July meeting showed policymakers favored lower rates.
Traders were divided over a 25- or 50-basis-point cut in September, it showed.
Bets on lower rate cuts were boosted by a sharp downward revision to payrolls data for the year to March 2024, which indicated the labor market was much weaker than initially expected.
The reading rekindled fears that a cooling labor market will increase the risks of a U.S. recession this year, a scenario that bodes ill for risk sentiment even with the prospect of lower interest rates.
But lower rates present a positive environment for speculative assets such as cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrency prices today: altcoins rise at the same rate as Bitcoin
Cryptocurrency prices generally rose in line with Bitcoin's gains and a broader risk-on environment. But overall gains were still limited.
World. The number 2 token rose 1.1% to $2,622.35, while the other fell 0.5%.
increased by more than 13%, while and increased by 2.8% and 0.3%, respectively.
Among meme tokens, it rose by 1.2%.
