Bitcoin hovered around $111,000 on Thursday afternoon Hong Kong time, steady after another volatile stretch as China’s latest retaliatory trade measures against the United States reignited risk aversion across global markets.
The broader crypto market slipped back into cautious mode, with total capitalization unchanged at around $3.8 trillion. Ether traded near $4,000, BNB at $1,180, and Solana’s SOL holdings above $190, while better than the majors with a daily gain of 4% and a gain of 21% on the week.
Analysts said the latest setback looks more like indigestion than panic, following last week’s record $19 billion liquidation event, with on-chain firm CryptoQuant stating that the recent “decline was not a panic sale, but a controlled deleveraging” in a weekly market note.
Sentiment data from FxPro showed the fear index fell to 34 as traders continue to defend the $109,000 – $110,000 range that has served as a base since August.
“The bears seem to have had their fill,” FxPro’s Alex Kuptsikevich said in an email. “Potential buyers are waiting for a clearer reason to add risk, and trade tensions are not that reason yet.”
On-chain signals are still flipping constructively. CryptoQuant’s Ki Young Ju noted that Bitcoin’s correlation with gold is at a multi-year high of 0.9, reinforcing the “digital gold” narrative as both assets move in tandem under geopolitical shocks.
Ethereum developers, meanwhile, have advanced testing of the Fusaka upgrade on Sepolia, while Bhutan confirmed plans to migrate its national digital ID system from Polygon to Ethereum in early 2026 in a quiet sign of long-term confidence in the network’s infrastructure.
The institutional flow remains the stabilizer for some participants.
“Despite a historic deleveraging, structural demand for Bitcoin and Ethereum remains firmly intact,” said Nassar Achkar, Chief Strategy Officer at CoinW. “ETF inflows and stablecoin supply growth are still building the liquidity base – what matters now is how quickly it turns into new risk-taking.”
Meanwhile, traders continue to watch Trump’s tariff rhetoric and Powell’s next remarks on catalysts. “Rate cuts are on the table, but rate fears are still at the top,” said Nick Ruck of LVRG Research. “Bitcoin’s long-term value pulls investors back, but macro headlines keep short-term choppy.”
The $110,000 is now the zone to watch. Lose it and the sentiment can finally shift from cautious to defensive.
