Bitcoin and Ether were mixed Tuesday morning in Asia, while Solana led the downturn in the rest of the cryptocurrencies in the top 10 by market capitalization. Most of the Top 10 are seeing double-digit price declines over the last seven days.
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Fast facts
- Bitcoin was trading down 0.6% to US$21,399 in the 24 hours to 8 a.m. in Hong Kong, while Ethereum was up a marginal 0.2% at US$1,621, according to CoinMarketCap.
- Solana fell 2.9% to US$35.44 after hitting a six-week low of US$33.92 overnight. Dogecoin was down 1.4% to US$0.068 after falling to a three-week low of US$0.065.
- The malaise in crypto markets reflects a dour day in U.S. equities, with stocks posting their biggest drop in two months overnight. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index both closed down around 2% on Monday, while the Nasdaq Composite Index fell over 2.5%.
- Investors remain concerned about further rises in interest rates in the U.S. to slow inflation. Some guidance on that may come this Friday from the Federal Reserve’s annual economic policy symposium at Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
- Meanwhile, in China, the world’s second-largest economy, a slowdown is more of the concern, with the monetary authorities cutting interest rates for the second time in a week on Monday to try and reverse a slump in industrial production, construction and real estate.
- Recent heat waves in China are adding to problems as subsequent droughts have led to hydroelectric power shortages and outages in some regions, reducing manufacturing capacity.
See related article: Crypto winter may be just what DeFi needs to grow and thrive