Bitcoin price wavered on Thursday as investors embraced a risk-off sentiment amid the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and its top trading partners.
Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $90,000, up 15% from its lowest level this month, while American stock indices like the Dow Jones, Nasdaq 100, and S&P 500 dropped by over 1%.
BTC has two key catalysts that may push its price to $100,000 in the next few days. First, Donald Trump will host the first-ever crypto summit in Washington. This summit will feature top industry leaders, including Ripple’s Brad Garlinghouse, Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong, and Tether’s Paolo Ardoino.
The most notable outcome of the summit will be the launch of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve by Donald Trump. Such a reserve could help boost Bitcoin’s price due to the size of the government’s balance sheet.
One option would be to transform the Bitcoin the government holds into reserves. It currently holds 198,109 coins worth over $17.9 billion. Another option would be to push the Cynthia Lummis bill which proposes that the government buy and hold 200,000 coins annually for five years, a move that would lead to substantial demand.
David Sacks, the AI and crypto czar, made the case for these reserves, noting that the U.S. government had sold 195,000 coins in the last decade. It raised $366 million from these sales, significantly lower than their current value of $17 billion.
US nonfarm payrolls data
Another potential catalyst for Bitcoin’s price on Friday will be the U.S. nonfarm payrolls data. This report will provide more insight into the state of the American economy at a time when it is facing substantial headwinds.
Wall Street analysts expect the NFP report to show that the economy added 159,000 jobs in February, while the unemployment rate remained at 4.0%. There is a possibility that the jobs report will fall short of expectations due to Elon Musk’s job cuts. An ADP report released on Wednesday showed that the private sector added just 77,000 jobs in February.
A weak NFP report would be bullish for Bitcoin’s price as it could increase the likelihood of the Fed delivering more rate cuts.
Bitcoin price technical analysis
The weekly chart shows that Bitcoin’s price is showing signs of bottoming out after plunging to a low of $78,100 last week. It has remained above the ascending trendline that connects the lowest swings since Aug. 5.
Bitcoin has also formed two hammer patterns. A hammer candlestick comprises a long lower shadow and a small body and is one of the most bullish reversal patterns. It also remains above the 50-day moving average.
Therefore, Bitcoin’s price is likely to continue rising as bulls target the key resistance level at $100,000. This view will become invalid if it drops below the support at $80,000.
