Bitcoin pulled back modestly over the past day, slipping about 1.7% to trade near $106,600 as of mid-afternoon Friday. The world's largest cryptocurrency spent much of the session oscillating between $109,000 and $103,700, reflecting the same choppy tone seen in equity and commodities markets. Analysts attributed the move to renewed risk aversion after U.S. macro data hinted at sticky inflation and softer tech earnings dampened investor appetite for speculative assets.
Ethereum, meanwhile, tracked Bitcoin lower, easing roughly 1.6% to hover around $3,830. The token tested support near $3,700 before recovering slightly as traders bought dips across decentralized finance-linked assets. Despite the day's weakness, ETH remains up significantly year-to-date thanks to growing institutional inflows into staking products and Layer-2 adoption — a trend that has helped buffer it against sharper downside seen in smaller altcoins.
Litecoin also joined the pullback, dropping about 1.1% to around $90.60 after touching an intraday low near $84.80. The move extends a week-long drift lower that has mirrored Bitcoin's trajectory. Market watchers note that LTC's price action remains closely tied to broader Bitcoin sentiment, as retail traders often use Litecoin as a lower-cost proxy for BTC exposure.
Market commentators said Friday's downturn was less about fundamental deterioration and more a reflection of broader risk repricing. With the U.S. dollar firming and Treasury yields edging higher, crypto assets — typically viewed as high-beta trades — saw moderate outflows. Still, trading volumes held near average levels, suggesting that few investors were panicking despite the red screens.
On a 12-month view, Bitcoin and Ethereum remain deep in positive territory, both up well over 50% from last October, while Litecoin has posted a more modest gain in the mid-teens. The past year's climb was fueled by the 2024–25 institutional adoption wave, the Bitcoin ETF approvals, and expectations of looser monetary policy in the U.S. that have since partially unwound.
Looking ahead, analysts say the next key test for the crypto majors will come from macro catalysts — next week's Federal Reserve commentary and fresh CPI data. For now, the three leading tokens remain in a consolidation range, with technical traders eyeing $105,000 for Bitcoin, $3,700 for Ethereum, and $88 for Litecoin as short-term support levels to watch.
