BTC/USD: Bitcoin Rockets 15% as Good Jobs Data Ignites Post-Selloff Bargain Hunt

Crypto enthusiasts snapped up tokens on discount left and right after jobless claims offered glimmer of hope that the economy may not be that bad.

• Bitcoin prices BTCUSD shot sharply higher Thursday and remained well-bid Friday morning after a single report sparked a broad rally in crypto. Following the digital asset carnage from earlier this week, risk takers rushed to snap up discounted tokens, sending Bitcoin higher by as much as 15%. The OG token rallied from a Thursday low of $55,000 a piece to nearly $63,000. What’s more, Bitcoin jumped 26% from its weekly low to its weekly high.
• Jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, showed that 233,000 people filed for unemployment benefits in the week ended August 3. The figure slipped below expectations for 240,000 and offered a glimmer of hope that the economy might not be crumbling (as suggested by the July jobs report.) To this end, risk assets were back on the menu. Cryptocurrencies enjoyed lots of buying appetite as pent-up demand got unleashed.
• Ethereum, the second-largest digital coin, also added 15% on Thursday with prices floating near $2,800 a piece, from $2,350. Following the painful Monday rout, a strong recovery has buoyed Ether to flaunt gains of about 30% on the week. The token is seeing increased investor interest now that a total of nine spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are trading side by side with traditional assets.