Summary
· Bitcoin gained over 2%, breaking $113K after U.S. job growth slowed in August
· Total crypto market cap rose $60B, hitting $3.9T amid liquidity expectations.
With the publication of a weak August labour market, crypto markets broadly rallied on Friday as investors realigned their expectations regarding the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy. U.S. nonfarm payrolls are included in the report, which was released at 8.30 a.m. ET gained only 22,000 jobs in February, which is way below the trend and insufficient to suggest strong momentum in the labor market.
Stagnant Labor Growth Prompts Risk Asset Rotation
A stable, though rising, unemployment rate was produced with labor indices of 4.3% indicating some chilling under the hood. Long-term unemployment had crept upwards, and labor force participation had dropped – both indicators highlight slackness in the broader employment picture. These signs had traditionally been seen as harbingers of monetary accommodation, and markets reacted promptly.
Bitcoin reacted instantly, falling as low as 109,347 in intraday trading, before breaking through 113,357 within several hours. This move was equivalent to a 2.06% growth on the day and continued to imply a good mood that pervaded the digital asset complex. The crypto market capitalization increased by over 60 billion to reach 3.89 trillion by mid-afternoon.
The labor report was seen as an indication by traders that the Federal Reserve would lean dovish in the coming months. As the risk of declining rates increases near the beginning of 2026, the Fed Funds Futures have set off a new demand spurt in high-volatility items such as cryptocurrencies.
Altcoins and Memecoins See Widespread Participation
Bitcoin led both price changes, whereas altcoins gained significant returns by shifting to higher betas. Etherem increased by one point four percent and ended above 3200. More telling, ETH saw its trading volume spike by 6.8% to $40.56 billion, indicating institutional desk accumulation as they re-priced to looser financial parameters.
Further down the capitalization list, Cardano led the pack with a 3.25 percent gain. The session began with Layer 1 protocol Sui leaping 4% to $3.44, topping the relative strength table. Action in these tokens suggests a speculative appetite returning to the market, indicative of better USD liquidity expectations.
In the meantime, memecoins fell into solidarity- usually a good sign of a market-wide risk-on tilt. Shiba Inu was up 1.93 percent, PEPE 2.51, FLOKI 3.06, and dogwifhat 3.76. Their coordinated rally indicates that capital flows are not fundamentally motivated, but reflect macro-level changes in investor sentiment.
This report and market response also provide background on rising correlations between crypto and traditional financial assets. As equities also rise after the jobs print, risk assets rally around a familiar story: that monetary policy may soon turn towards the easing side.
