Bitcoin brushed aside a volatile series of headlines on U.S. tariffs on Friday, approaching $68,000 and altcoins rebounding modestly.
The day began with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that President Donald Trump’s implementation of global tariffs was illegal. The decision did not specify what should happen to the tariff revenue already collected, and it does not necessarily mean the end of Trump’s trade agenda, with multiple legal and executive avenues still available.
In the afternoon, President Trump announced an additional 10 percent global tariff that would be implemented under Section 122 for approximately five months, effective in three days.
The new levy, imposed on top of existing customs tariffs, has done little to shake confidence.
Risk assets, including crypto, rose slightly throughout the session. The general CoinDesk 20 index gained 2.5% in the last 24 hours, with BNB, , and Solana (SOL) outperforming with advances of 3 to 4%. Bitcoin was recently trading just below $68,000.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.9% and 0.7%, respectively. Among crypto-related stocks, exchange Coinbase (COIN), stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL), and treasury company Bitcoin Strategy (MSTR) rose more than 2%. Bitcoin miners tied to AI infrastructure development underperformed, with Riot Platforms (RIOT), Cipher Mining (CIFR), IREN, and TeraWulf (WULF) down 3-6%.
Cryptos will remain limited
“We saw a slight rally in risk assets after the tariff news, as it leads to a narrative that tariffs are detrimental to the macroeconomic environment,” said Paul Howard, director at trading firm Wincent.
However, there remains little confidence that prices could break out of the current narrow range. “Volumes, however, remain moderate and we can expect cryptocurrencies to maintain limited trading for the time being,” unless “macro or geopolitical shocks arise,” Howard added.
A key potential macroeconomic risk could be that Trump orders strikes against Iran in the coming days, following the significant military buildup in the region for weeks now.
