Once Threatened $60,000 Level... US Economic Slowdown Concerns [Bitcoin Now]

July US Employment Report Expected to Fall Short
Risk Asset Aversion Strengthens
Recovery to $62,000 Range

The Bitcoin market in the last week of July experienced a downward trend. Investor sentiment weakened as concerns grew over the U.S. government's potential Bitcoin sales, coupled with July's unemployment rate reaching its highest level since October 2021. As the possibility of an economic slowdown was mentioned, risk aversion intensified in the virtual asset market, similar to the stock market.

According to the global virtual asset market tracking site CoinMarketCap, as of 9:31 PM on the 3rd (Korean time), the price of Bitcoin stood at $62,104.58, down 3.62% from the previous day. Compared to a week ago, it fell 9.11%, while it rose 3.32% compared to a month ago. The year-over-year increase rate is 113.52%.

The price, which started at the $68,000 level on the 28th of last month, approached $70,000 on the 29th but then reversed downward. News that the U.S. government transferred $2 billion worth of Bitcoin to another wallet on the 29th (local time) sparked concerns about the U.S. government selling Bitcoin. According to blockchain data from Arkham Intelligence, 29,800 Bitcoins tagged as 'U.S. Government: Silk Road DOJ' were moved to a new wallet address. The U.S. government had previously seized 119,676 Bitcoins from the founder and hacker of the dark web marketplace 'Silk Road.'

On the 3rd, Bitcoin's price dropped to as low as $60,770, threatening the $60,000 level. This is interpreted as a result of the disappointing figures in the U.S. Department of Labor's July employment report released on the 2nd (local time). The U.S. Department of Labor reported that nonfarm payrolls increased by 114,000 last month, significantly below the market expectation of 185,000. The unemployment rate was announced at 4.3%, also exceeding the market expectation of 4.1%. This unemployment rate was the highest since October 2021. Due to these below-expectation economic indicators, risk aversion intensified not only in the stock market but also in the virtual asset market.

According to the virtual asset data provider Alternative, the Fear & Greed Index, which measures investor sentiment as of that day, was 37 points (fear). This is significantly lower than last week's 72 points (greed). Alternative's Fear & Greed Index ranges from 0 points, indicating extreme fear and pessimism about investing, to near 100 points, indicating optimism.