Bitcoin fell back below $74,000 in the early stages of the US session, with the rally from Tuesday’s lows quickly fading as weakness in tech stocks weighed on the crypto.
The Nasdaq 100 was 1% lower after the previous day’s drop of 1.5%. The software sector continued its slide, with the thematic iShares Expanded Tech-Software ETF (IGV) down another 4%, now down 17% in just over a week, on fears that AI will be seriously disruptive.
Crypto miners, increasingly tied to building AI infrastructure, mirrored the slide, with Cipher Mining (CIFR), IREN, and Hut 8 (HUT) down more than 10%. The decline stemmed from chipmaker AMD, which fell 14% after its 2026 outlook missed analysts’ expectations.
Gold was also caught in the sell-off, with the yellow metal quickly reversing an overnight gain to $5,113 per ounce. ounce and slipped back below $5,000.
US economic data is mixed
The ISM Services PMI for January held steady at 53.8, matching December’s revised reading and beating expectations by a hair, pointing to continued expansion in the services sector.
However, private job growth slowed sharply, with only 22,000 jobs added according to an ADP report, well below forecasts for 48,000 and December’s already weak 37,000. The government’s jobs report for January would normally have been released this Friday, but the brief government shutdown has delayed it until next week.
“Manufacturing has lost jobs every month since March 2024 (Main Street recession), but this month professional and business services and large employers joined the weakness,” said Lekker Capital CIO Quinn Thompson, who believes markets are underestimating the amount of Fed stimulus that could come in 2026.
