Sunday afternoon brought a sharp rejection in the crypto market, as Bitcoin touched a key resistance at 104,460 before sliding lower — just hours before a major White House announcement regarding U.S.–China trade relations.
Despite the gravity of the news, crypto traders seemed unimpressed, with the market pulling back into the evening. Bitcoin was down 0.60%, Ethereum fell 2.91%, and altcoins saw steeper declines between 3%–7%.
So why the selloff, even after the headlines?
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Technical Rejection Meets Geopolitical Noise
The crypto market's intraday rejection at 104,460, a well-watched weekly resistance, set the tone for the evening — just before Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced progress in long-awaited trade talks with China.
In the Geneva press briefing, Secretary Bessent stated:
“We made substantial progress between the United States and China in the very important trade talks… We will be giving details tomorrow (May 12).”
The surprise came not just from the progress, but from the tone and urgency of the messaging. Greer followed up with:
"Just remember why we’re here in the first place — the United States has a massive $1.2 trillion trade deficit, so the President declared a national emergency and imposed tariffs…"
Markets were poised for fireworks — but instead, crypto remained cool.
Why Didn’t Crypto Rally?
While the announcement was politically significant, it lacked the details traders needed to reprice risk.
Most believe the market is in a “wait and see” mode:
- No full deal has been confirmed.
- No tariff rollbacks or enforcement terms were disclosed.
- Key market participants expect clarity Monday morning, during U.S. trading hours.
Until then, the market remains hesitant, especially after Bitcoin's rejection at the top of its recent range.
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Key Levels to Watch
Bitcoin continues to hold the one-hour bullish trend, but that could change quickly depending on how Monday's session unfolds.
Here are the major levels in play:
- Weekly Resistance: 104,460 (rejected)
- Short-term Support: 103,000 (trend-defining)
- Breakdown Target: 100,000 (if support fails)
If Bitcoin breaks below 103,000, that would mark a short-term shift in structure and likely invite sellers down toward 100,000.
What Comes Next?
Monday is expected to bring more clarity as the White House announces the terms of the trade deal. Equities markets — which have been anticipating resolution on this front — are likely to react strongly.
For crypto, however, the question remains whether this deal will lead to increased risk appetite, or if lingering uncertainty continues to cap upside momentum.
As Greer noted, "…we're confident that the deal we struck with our Chinese partners will help us to work toward resolving that national emergency."
If that confidence becomes tangible policy — and markets trust the terms — crypto could follow.
But until then, traders are keeping their eyes on the chart… and their stops in place.
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