Major cryptocurrencies fell sharply after Donald Trump signaled new U.S. tariffs, triggering sell-offs across global crypto and equity markets.
Major cryptocurrencies declined sharply on Monday as trade war fears resurfaced across global markets. Investors reacted cautiously following an indication from US President Donald Trump to bring in new tariffs on European goods. As a result, cryptocurrencies followed equities lower as an indicator of weak risk sentiment.
Crypto Markets Slide as Trade War Fears Intensify
Ethereum and the broader cryptocurrency market experienced a sudden sell-off during early trading hours. Market participants were worried about increasing tensions between the United States and the European Union. As a result, volatility did return across digital asset markets.
According to CoinMarketCap data, Bitcoin dropped sharply within a short time window. The most important cryptocurrency dropped from $95,500 to $91,910. This represented a decrease of 3.6% in a matter of several hours.
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Other major cryptocurrencies tracked Bitcoin’s downward movement closely throughout the session. Ether, XRP, and Solana all recorded notable intraday losses. Therefore, selling pressure seemed broad-based as opposed to isolated.
The market reaction came following comments made by Trump on 17th January 2026. He announced plans to impose a 10 per cent tariff on the goods of eight European countries. These tariffs will start from the 1st of February.
The affected countries include Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland. Trump said that the tariff could go as high as 25% by June 1. However, this increase requires achieving a wider agreement.
Trump tied the proposed tariffs to the US efforts to acquire Greenland. The leaders of Europe have publicly rejected the proposal. As a result, diplomatic tension rose and added pressure to financial markets.
The announcement caused a cautious change in global investors. Risk-sensitive assets went down, while safe-haven commodities were in demand. As a result, the cryptocurrencies followed the market weakness.
Bitcoin, Ether, and Altcoins Record Sharp Losses
Bitcoin led the decline among major digital assets during Monday’s session. The asset fell as much as 3.6% to fall below the $91,910 mark. Just days earlier, Bitcoin had approached levels near $98,000.
Ethereum experienced even steeper losses during the sell-off. The second-largest cryptocurrency registered a decline of up to 4.9% at one point. This was an enabler of greater sensitivity to macroeconomic headlines.
Solana recorded one of the most pronounced dips among large-cap altcoins. Prices have plunged by about 8.6% during the downturn. Therefore, the volatility was high throughout the alternative cryptocurrencies.
XRP also experienced some significant losses during the market decline. The token fell around 4.7% and traded close to $1.96. This move was very similar to the overall trends of the cryptocurrency market.
The proposed tariffs triggered a mass liquidation of the leveraged positions. More than $600 million in long crypto positions were liquidated in the sell-off. High leverage drove price movements up across exchanges.
Asian markets were a mixed bag but most indices ended in small losses. In the meantime, safe-haven commodities hit record highs. This divergence reflected investor risk aversion.
The tariff proposal is also still up for negotiations between the US and European countries. Until the situation becomes clear, market participants could be cautious. Consequently, the volatility of crypto may continue in future sessions.