Strong US job growth pushes Bitcoin below $80,000

U.S. non‑farm payrolls for August came in at 162,000, far exceeding the consensus forecast of about 56,000. The surprise boost to the labor market prompted a sharp sell‑off in Bitcoin, which fell from roughly $81,300 to a low of $78,600 before stabilising near $79,500.

Labor data reshapes rate‑cut expectations

With the Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting scheduled for mid‑September, market participants had been divided on the likelihood of a rate pause. Prior to the payroll report, betting markets showed an even split between a pause and a 25‑basis‑point hike. The stronger‑than‑expected jobs number pushed those probabilities back to roughly 50/50.

Political reaction adds to market chatter

Following the data release, the U.S. president called for the Federal Reserve to cut rates, arguing that high rates place the United States at a competitive disadvantage.

New Blake2b Bitcoin fork sees initial liquidity

After the BIP‑110 soft fork split the Bitcoin network in early August, a subset of supporters launched a hard fork on August 30 that changes the proof‑of‑work algorithm to Blake2b. The resulting chain, sometimes referred to as Blake2b Bitcoin, began trading on the Neoxa exchange at about $350 per coin against USDC, with a modest 1.1% spread.

Implications for the broader crypto market

The combination of unexpected macro data and the emergence of a new Bitcoin variant underscores the continued volatility in crypto assets ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting.