Bitcoin fell back toward the $90,000 level on Friday after a brief mid-session rally failed to hold, as investors digested mixed U.S. economic data, firmer inflation expectations and a delay in a closely watched Supreme Court decision.
BTC jumped to around $92,000 during U.S. mid-morning trading but quickly lost momentum, drifting lower through the remainder of the session. With about an hour left before U.S. equity markets closed, bitcoin was trading near $90,300, down roughly 1% over the past 24 hours.
The move fit a pattern seen in recent weeks, with bitcoin lagging broader markets even as risk assets pushed higher. The Nasdaq rose about 1% on the day, while the S&P 500 gained roughly 0.8%. Commodities rallied broadly, with precious metals and crude oil posting solid gains, and bonds edging modestly higher.
On the macro front, Friday’s U.S. December employment report offered mixed signals. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 50,000 last month, missing forecasts for a 60,000 gain, and previous months’ figures were revised lower. The unemployment rate, however, declined to 4.4% from 4.6% in November, beating expectations for a dip to 4.5%.
Consumer sentiment showed modest improvement. The University of Michigan’s January sentiment index rose to 54, above forecasts of 53.5 and December’s 52.9 reading. One-year inflation expectations edged up to 4.2% from 4.1%, though the measure remains sharply divided along political lines.
Uncertainty also lingered around trade policy. The U.S. Supreme Court did not issue a ruling on the Trump administration’s tariff framework, despite market expectations for a decision on Friday. The case was not among those released by the court, with additional opinions now expected next Wednesday.
Crypto-linked equities mostly traded lower alongside bitcoin. Coinbase (COIN) slid 2.3%, Gemini (GEMI) fell 4.5%, and Strategy (MSTR) dropped 5.6%. In contrast, some bitcoin miners with growing exposure to AI infrastructure outperformed, with Hut 8 (HUT), IREN (IREN) and Core Scientific (CORZ) gaining between 2% and 4%.
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