Crypto edges off of worst levels after Trump extends Iran strike pause

It was an ugly day all around in markets as the Iran war has sent oil prices and bond yields surging higher.

What to know:

• Bitcoin recovered modestly from earlier losses after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would extend a pause on U.S. attacks against Iran’s energy infrastructure to 10 days.
• The remarks came following declines across markets on Thursday, with bitcoin tumbling more than 3% and the Nasdaq 2.4%.
• The war in the Middle East has led not just to sharply higher oil prices but also to a growing selloff in Western bond markets.

Bitcoin BTC$68,897.71 pared earlier losses Thursday afternoon after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would extend a pause on attacks against Iran’s energy infrastructure.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said the pause will now be 10 days, citing ongoing diplomatic talks.

"As per Iranian Government request… I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days," Trump wrote, adding that the "talks are ongoing" and "they are going very well."

The news helped stabilize markets after an ugly Thursday that saw bitcoin slide 3% and the Nasdaq 2.4%, with that tech-heavy index now lower by about 10% since peaking for the year in late January.

The surge in oil prices since the breakout of hostilities has garnered most of the headlines, but the selloff in Western bond markets is growing more troublesome.

The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield — below 4% just weeks ago — jumped to as high as 4.43% on Thursday, before pulling back to the current 4.41%. Alongside that sharp rise has been not just the vanishing of expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts, but also serious bets that the U.S. central bank will soon hike rates.

Similar moves in bond yields and central bank expectations are taking place across Western Europe as well.

Nevertheless, the Trump comments sent bitcoin higher by about 1% from its worst levels, and it is now trading just above $69,000. Ether (ETH), XRP (XRP), Solana (SOL) and ADA$0.2559 all also rebounded from session lows, though they remained 3%-5% lower over the past 24 hours.

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