Asia Market Open: Bitcoin Slips Under $90K, Stocks Slide as US Data Delay Keeps Markets On Edge

Good morning, Asia. Here’s what’s moving before the bell.

Bitcoin fell below $90,000 in Asia on Tuesday, a six-month low, as traders cut risk and markets waited for key US data delayed by the government shutdown.

Investors are fixated on Thursday’s September nonfarm payrolls report, which arrives only after a prolonged US government shutdown froze data releases and left markets guessing about the health of the world’s largest economy.

Rate expectations have already shifted. Market pricing for a December Fed cut has fallen to about 40% from more than 60% earlier this month, pushing investors toward cash and safer assets and away from high-beta trades tied to artificial intelligence and crypto.

JUST IN: $BTC falls below $90,000.

View chart: https://t.co/LrE9BNTol6 pic.twitter.com/SF8pzaYpTR

— CoinGecko (@coingecko) November 18, 2025

Market snapshot

• Bitcoin: $90,190, down 5.1%
• Ether: $2,994, down 5.5%
• XRP: $2.15, down 4.5%
• Total crypto market cap: $3.17 trillion, down 4.4%

That reset weighed on equities. US stocks closed sharply lower on Monday, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq both slipping below a closely watched technical level for the first time since late April as traders braced for earnings from major retailers and chip giant Nvidia, alongside the delayed jobs report.

US stocks ended sharply lower as investors awaited a long-delayed US jobs report this week and braced for quarterly results from retailers and chip giant Nvidia pic.twitter.com/V3lSA4D3z2

— Reuters (@Reuters) November 18, 2025

Crypto Sentiment Weakens As Traders Unwind Positions And Cut Leverage

Asia followed the weaker lead. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.7%, while Japan’s Nikkei dropped more than 2%. The early decline reflected caution ahead of both US data and Nvidia’s earnings, which many see as a temperature check on the AI trade that has powered much of this year’s stock rally.

Bitcoin’s slide tracked that shift in mood. The token fell under $90,000, its lowest level in about six months, as traders unwound positions built on expectations of aggressive Fed easing and grew more wary of macro risk.

Gadi Chait, investment manager at Xapo Bank, said the move is rattling newer market participants more than long-time holders. He argued that the drop reflects leverage being flushed out and portfolios being adjusted rather than a break in the long-term adoption story for crypto.

“While some will search for specific triggers — whether residual effects from October’s deleveraging or broader macro shifts — the precise cause is largely secondary,” he added. “Periodic drawdowns are a familiar feature of this market. Those who have been in the space for years recognise this pattern: we’ve seen it before, and we’ll see it again.”

US Data To Resume After Shutdown, But Markets Still Lack Clarity

Analysts at Bitfinex struck a similar tone, pointing to the size of the recent decline. “Statistically, given that this is the third largest pullback since 2023 and the second largest since Bitcoin ETFs launched across major US providers, it feels like it is time for a local bottom to be established relatively soon.”

Sentiment around equities remains fragile. This month, stocks have come under pressure as investors question whether AI enthusiasm has pushed valuations to stretched levels, especially with growth indicators softening and policy still tight. Nvidia’s results on Wednesday sit at the centre of that debate.

The end of the longest US government shutdown on record has cleared the path for data to resume, but the information gap has already forced markets to trade in the dark on parts of the economic picture.

Private surveys have flagged signs of slowing, even as Fed officials push back on the idea of rapid easing.