qerranews 
The cryptocurrency market took a sharp downturn this week, with Ether leading the decline amid renewed fears of a prolonged U.S.-China trade war. The move came after former U.S. President Donald Trump doubled down on plans to impose 104% tariffs on a wide range of Chinese goods, rattling global financial markets and sending digital assets into a tailspin.
Ether, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, dropped over 6% early Wednesday, marking its lowest intra-day level since March 2023. Although it later recovered some ground to trade at US$1,432 at 9:51 a.m. in Singapore, the dip underscored growing investor pessimism across crypto markets. Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, wasn’t spared either—slipping over 3% before staging a partial recovery.
This downturn comes at a time when hopes for a strong rebound in crypto during the first half of the year were already waning. “It seems like people have given up on a major recovery in crypto in the first half of the year,” noted Sean McNulty, head of APAC derivatives at FalconX, a digital-asset prime brokerage.
Market sentiment soured further as Trump and top administration officials suggested they were still open to trade negotiations but offered little reassurance about dialing back the aggressive tariff stance. Asian equity markets responded in kind, with stock indexes across the region falling sharply on renewed fears of escalating economic conflict between the world’s two largest economies.
Derivatives markets mirrored this anxiety. McNulty reported a surge in the purchase of put options—contracts that offer protection against falling prices—for Ether and Solana. This indicates that traders are bracing for further declines, particularly as technical indicators suggest limited support in the near term.
The next major support level for Bitcoin is seen around US$65,000, which will be closely watched by investors for signs of stabilization. If the price breaches this level, it could trigger another wave of selling pressure across the digital asset space.
While crypto markets are no strangers to volatility, the added geopolitical risk from renewed trade tensions adds another layer of complexity. With uncertainty hanging over both macroeconomic policy and crypto regulation, investors may remain cautious through the next quarter.
For now, all eyes remain on Washington and Beijing as markets await clarity on whether this renewed trade rhetoric will result in a deal—or a deeper divide.