Nvidia shares pop as analysts dismiss AI bubble concerns
Investing.com-- Bitcoin edged lower on Thursday, remaining on the back foot after sliding below the key $90,000 level in the previous session, as investors weighed conflicting signals from the Federal Reserve and reacted to critically delayed U.S. jobs data.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency last traded down 1% at $91,012.0 by 09:42 ET (14:42 GMT)
It plunged to as low as $88,610.4 in the last 24 hours before recovering back above $90,000.
Get more stock picks by Wall Street analysts by upgrading to InvestingPro - get 55% off today
Fed uncertainty remains
Minutes from the Fed’s Oct. 28-29 meeting revealed a growing divide within its policy-making body over whether to cut interest rates at its Dec. 9-10 meeting.
Some officials argued a reduction was appropriate if the economy weakened, while others flagged persistent inflation and said a pause may be warranted.
Market-implied odds for a December cut have fallen in the wake of the disclosures.
Compounding the uncertainty, the Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed that its October employment report will not be published because the 43-day federal government shutdown prevented the collection of the household survey.
The October establishment-survey data will instead be rolled into the November report, now scheduled for release on Dec. 16—after the Fed’s policy meeting.
September jobs report tops forecasts, unemployment up to 4.4%
Meanwhile, the delayed September employment data was released later on Thursday.
The country’s labor market delivered a stronger-than-expected rebound in September, with new figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showing a clear pickup after weeks without official data.
Nonfarm payrolls rose by 119,000, sharply above the 50,000 gain economists had forecast. August’s figures were revised lower, shifting the initially reported job increase to a loss of 4,000, while July employment was marked down by 7,000 to 72,000.
The unemployment rate moved up to 4.4%, its highest level since late 2021. A broader gauge that captures discouraged workers and those employed part-time for economic reasons eased slightly to 8%.
Thursday’s release breaks a 44-day data blackout caused by the government shutdown, which prevented agencies such as the BLS and Bureau of Economic Analysis from collecting and publishing statistics. The last employment report before the standoff was issued on September 5.
The release will be the only full official labour-market snapshot prior to the Dec. meeting. With policymakers signaling a more cautious stance in minutes released Wednesday, traders largely expect the central bank to keep rates steady into year-end.
“This gives the Federal Reserve an out to skip a rate cut, due to the "fog" as described by Chair Powell,” ING analysts said in a note.
Against this backdrop, the crypto market is showing signs of stress. Bitcoin’s inability to hold above $90,000 underscores fragile momentum.
The digital asset plunged from an early-October peak above US$120,000 as investors stepped back from risk assets in light of the policy ambiguity and data shortfall.
Crypto price today: altcoins rangebound amid cautious mood
Most altcoins were rangebound on Thursday amid a cautious investor sentiment.
World no.2 crypto Ethereum fell 1.9% to $2,994.73.
World no. 3 crypto XRP traded flat at $2.12.
Solana edged 2.3% higher and Polygon rose 3.5%, while Cardano was nearly unchanged.
Among meme tokens, Dogecoin rose 1% and $TRUMP fell 1.8%.
(Ayushman Ojha contributed to this report.)