[Bitcoin Now] Decline Ahead of US March Employment Report... Investor Sentiment 'Greed'

Ahead of the release of the US March employment report, the price of the representative virtual asset Bitcoin is showing a slight downward trend.

Image source=Reuters·Yonhap News

According to the global virtual asset market tracking site CoinMarketCap, as of 11:30 AM on the 7th, the price of Bitcoin was recorded at $28,027 (approximately 36.94 million KRW), down 0.16% from the previous day.

The virtual asset market is closely watching the March employment report to be released on the 7th (local time). Experts estimate that nonfarm payrolls for March will be around 240,000. This is a forecasted decrease from 311,000 in the previous month, with consecutive signals of labor market slowdown being confirmed, raising concerns about an economic recession and indicating that the Federal Reserve's tightening measures are having an effect.

In the market, opinions are divided between a rate hold and a baby step (0.25 percentage point increase in the benchmark interest rate) in May. According to the CME FedWatch as of the afternoon of the previous day, the federal funds futures market reflected a 50.3% probability that the Fed will hold rates at the May Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, and a 49.7% probability of a 0.25 percentage point increase.

Meanwhile, virtual asset investor sentiment has recovered. According to the virtual asset data provider Alternative, the Fear & Greed Index, which indicates investor sentiment as an index, rose by 1 point from the previous day to 64 points (Greed). Alternative's Fear & Greed Index means that a score closer to 0 indicates extreme fear and pessimism about investing, while a score near 100 indicates optimism.