The rally in bitcoin (BTC) and crypto from the weekend's tariff-induced panic has proven to be a short-lived one.Late in the U.S. trading day, bitcoin was down 4.8% over the past 24 hours to $96,900 after having climbed up to the $101,000 level just two hours earlier.See all newslettersMuch of the altcoin sector fared worse, with solana (SOL), (XRP), cardano (ADA) and chainlink (LINK) sporting declines of 6%-10%. Ether (ETH) was lower by 5.3%.The start of today's late tumble appeared to coincide with a crypto-related press conference held by White House crypto and AI czar David Sacks alongside the heads of key committees in the Senate and House.Hopes that the press conference would center on the chances of a strategic bitcoin reserve were dashed as the discussion centered almost exclusively on regulatory matters and platitudes.Bitcoin did a get a mention at the end of the press conference, when — in response to a question — Sacks said that a White House working group on crypto is looking into the feasibility of a strategic bitcoin reserve. Asked if yesterday's executive order on creation of a sovereign wealth fund meant something for bitcoin, Sacks deferred, saying that's a question for Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick (who, along with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will be spearheading the SWF).For now, it appears that bitcoin could be setting up for a retest of its Sunday evening low below the $92,000 level. Possibly bullish or bearish on the horizon will be Friday's U.S. January employment report. A soft number could have market participants pricing Federal Reserve rate cuts back into the outlook which could prove a boon to prices. Another strong print, though, might have investors pricing in a rate hike at some point this year — absent other forces, a headwind to prices.
