As 2024 comes to a close, many experts believe the performance for Bitcoin (BTC) has been a little disappointing, with the asset falling to below $94,000 yesterday, down by $14,000 since peaking last Tuesday.
Altcoins have experienced significant losses as well, with sharp declines for tokens like AVAX, LINK, SUI, and others. Still, many are currently in the green as of this writing. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization also dropped by $150 billion in just two days.
 
BTC Faces Continued Struggles
The downturn began last week as Bitcoin fell to $92,000 in a matter of days despite reaching a new ATH of over $108K earlier this month. While it managed to somewhat recover last weekend, even briefly reaching $99,000, the rally was short-lived, and the price quickly dropped again on Monday. After another dip to around $92,000, Bitcoin saw a brief resurgence, reaching a multi-day high of just under $100,000. However, this rally was also quickly halted, and the price started to decline once again.
Yesterday, after failing to hold at $97,000, Bitcoin slid to below $94,000. Though it has since recovered slightly and is now trading above that level, it is still down by more than 2% on the day. Bitcoin also saw its market capitalization fall to $1.87 trillion, with its dominance over altcoins dropping to 54.4%.
 
Altcoins Face Significant Losses
Ethereum (ETH) leads the market with a current price of $3,396, seeing a modest increase of 0.2% over the past 24 hours and maintaining strong performance in the last 7 days. Tether (USDT) and Dogecoin (DOGE) follow closely, with USDT at $0.9983 and a market cap of $138.76 billion, and Dogecoin at $0.3275 with a 4.8% gain in the last week. Solana (SOL) and Binance Coin (BNB) are also notable, trading at $195.13 and $714.92, respectively, with Solana seeing a solid 6.0% rise in the past week.
Other key players include XRP, which is priced at $2.19, and Cardano (ADA) at $0.8896, both showing slight gains. The market also highlights the stablecoins USDC and USDE, priced at $1.00 and $0.9972, and the dynamic rise of tokens like Bitget Token (BGB), which has surged 86.5% in the past 7 days. The diverse crypto landscape also includes newer assets such as Hyperliquid (HYPE) and Aptos (APT), both showing impressive short-term growth.
 
Other Markets
China has taken steps to stimulate its economy by encouraging banks to lend more and cutting key interest rates, as Shanghai remains a focal point of these efforts. Meanwhile, hedge funds are continuing their bullish stance on the banking sector, while momentum trading reaches new heights despite emerging vulnerabilities. In Singapore, former oil mogul Lim Oon Kuin faces sentencing after his empire collapsed, leading to his bankruptcy declaration.
Elsewhere, the Argentinian economy is slipping into recession, spurred by President Milei and his austerity measures, with the country spending $803 million this week to meet the demand for dollars by importers. On the commodities front, oil prices are set to record their largest weekly gain since early 2023, driven by growing risks surrounding Middle East crude flows.
In Canada, stocks have dropped following a global market selloff, but strategists remain optimistic, predicting the TSX will reach 28,000 next year as interest rates fall. Meanwhile, companies in the U.S. and Europe are scrambling to place orders early and consider price hikes, as tariff threats by Trump disrupt global supply chains and Chinese factories search for new buyers.