Bitcoin rises back above $100,000 after positive data

The token was up 1.5% to trade at $103,195 on Thursday morning, recovering after dropping sharply earlier in the week

Bitcoin has risen back above the $100,000 mark after positive jobs data boosted sentiment, though the cryptocurrency is still trading well under record highs.

The token was up 1.5% to trade at $103,195 on Thursday morning, recovering after dropping sharply earlier in the week. However, bitcoin is still trading far below the all-time high of $126,000 hit in early October.

In a note on Thursday, Deutsche Bank analysts said the “risk-on tone” had returned to markets in the past day, with the S&P 500 jumping 0.4% on Wednesday, recovering from a sell-off in the previous session.

The main driver was stronger-than-expected data, alongside growing speculation that the government shutdown might come to an end soon, the analysts said.

So that helped to boost investor optimism about the near-term outlook, with risk assets doing well across the board, they said, which included a stabilisation in bitcoin following recent losses.

The latest report by payroll processor ADP showed that private employers in the US added 42,000 jobs in October, which marked the first monthly gain since July.

Bitcoin dropped earlier this week amid investor concerns about the US government shutdown and slowing economic growth.

Fundstrat head of digital assets Sean Farrell said on Monday that “whale selling,” or investors with large holdings, had risen over the past few weeks.

Whales — they continue to hammer price, he said, noting that billions in bitcoin have recently been moved from private wallets to exchanges, presumably to be sold.

Simon Peters, crypto analyst for eToro, said in commentary on Wednesday that the fall in bitcoin “stemmed from the recent FOMC meeting, where Chairman Powell poured cold water on the idea of a December rate cut”.