Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization, saw its decline deepen on Friday following a significant escalation in the trade conflict between the United States and China.
The market downturn was triggered by US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a plan to increase tariffs on Chinese exports to 100% and to impose comprehensive export controls on critical software. These measures were characterized as a direct response to China’s recent imposition of export limits on rare earth minerals, which are essential for technology and various manufacturing sectors.
The renewed trade tensions rattled global financial markets, precipitating a drop of more than 2% in the benchmark S&P 500 Index.
Amid the broader market sell-off, Bitcoin was trading down 8.4% at $104,782 as of 17:20 Eastern Time (2120 GMT). Similarly, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value, fell 5.8% to $3,637.
