Bitcoin Plunges Below $56K as Stocks Sell Off in Weak U.S. Trading

Cryptocurrencies sold off once again early in the U.S. trading session on Wednesday with bitcoin {{BTC}} diving below $56,000.

BTC climbed during the Asian and European trading hours from a low of $56,000 after last night's U.S. presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, briefly topping $57,000 following the U.S. CPI inflation report. The price quickly tumbled to $55,600 in little more than an hour following the opening of U.S. stock markets. Bitcoin has bounced a bit since, but remains lower by 2% over the past 24 hours.

The broad-market crypto benchmark CoinDesk 20 Index also fell over 2% during the same period, with altcoin majors solana {{SOL}}, avalanche {{AVAX}}, and artificial intelligence-focused tokens near {{NEAR}} and render {{RNDR}} sliding 4%-7%.

It's been a trend for weeks now that bitcoin and other digital assets declining around the traditional U.S. market opening, pointing to a general risk-off sentiment among American investors.

Indeed, U.S. stocks started the day weak, with the S&P 500 and the tech-focused Nasdaq 100 1.6% and 1.3% lower, respectively, at 11 a.m. ET.

Perhaps contributing to negative action was a renewed rise overnight in the value of the Japanese yen. At 141 to the U.S. dollar, the yen today now stands higher than it was in early August, when its sharp rise forced a quick reversal of yen-carry trades, apparently a major cause of a panicky mini-crash in traditional and crypto markets.

Read more: Bitcoin Slides, Yen Gains as Trump-Harris Debate Disappoints Markets