- Bitcoin fell 3% after China retaliated to Trump’s tariffs.
- China slammed US goods with 34% in additional tariffs.
- Crypto market watchers remain bullish about the market.
Crypto has fallen almost 2% over the past day as traders digest US President Donald Trump’s tariffs before pivoting towards China’s retaliation.
On Friday morning China announced additional tariffs of 34% on US goods, a retaliatory move towards the sweeping regime of tariffs that the White House announced on Wednesday, and labelled the US policy as “unilateral bullying.”
The move brings the US’s total tariff rate against China to 47.5%, according to Goldman Sachs.
Trump’s tariffs have kneecapped the bullishness that flowed through the crypto industry at the beginning of 2025. His promises to relax crypto rules were seen as a boon to the industry.
Since he took power, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped multiple cases against crypto firms, and Trump has installed pro-industry reps in key government jobs.
Crypto market watchers are now scaling back their bullishness. Polymarket punters put a 73% chance that Bitcoin will plummet to $70,000 by the end of the year.
Bitcoin to $250,000?
They have reason to be concerned. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and other top tokens reacted swiftly and negatively to the news.
Bitcoin fell 3% to $82,022 on the back of China’s retaliation to Trump’s tariffs. Similarly, Ethereum and Solana fell 2.8% and 4.5% respectively.
The VIX, an index for measuring volatility in financial markets, spiked from around 28.9 to 45.5, signaling a deepening fear and possible market moves away from risk assets like Bitcoin.
Some market observers say they’re still bullish about crypto’s long-term prospects.
“The outcome for crypto will be positive,” Zach Burks, CEO of NFT platform Mintology, told DL News on Wednesday.
Others, like BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, predict that Bitcoin’s price will hit $250,000 on the back of the year as he expects the US Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, which will add liquidity to the market.
The CME FedWatch tool now estimates that there’s a 42% chance that the central bank will cut interest rates in May.
Andrew Flanagan is a markets correspondent for DL News. Have a tip? Reach out to aflanagan@dlnews.com.