bitcoin trimmed earlier losses Thursday afternoon after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would extend a pause in attacks on Iran’s energy infrastructure.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said the pause will now be 10 days, citing ongoing diplomatic talks.
“Per the request of the Iranian government… I am pausing the power plant destruction period for 10 days,” Trump wrote, adding that “talks are ongoing” and “going very well.”
The news helped stabilize markets after an ugly Thursday that saw bitcoin fall 3% and the Nasdaq 2.4%, with that tech index now down about 10% since hitting its yearly high in late January.
The rise in oil prices since the outbreak of hostilities has grabbed most of the headlines, but the sell-off in Western bond markets is becoming more problematic.
The 10-year US Treasury yield (down from 4% just a few weeks ago) jumped as high as 4.43% on Thursday, before retreating to the current 4.41%. Along with that sharp rise, not only have expectations of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve faded, but also serious bets that the US central bank will soon raise rates.
Similar moves in bond yields and central bank expectations are also occurring across Western Europe.
However, Trump’s comments sent bitcoin up about 1% from its worst levels, and it is now trading just above $69,000. Ether (ETH), XRP (XRP), Solana (SOL) and all also recovered from session lows, although they remained 3% to 5% lower in the last 24 hours.
