Bitcoin rose 1% to above $86,000 after a weak U.S. jobs report pushed traders to drop bets on an October Federal Reserve rate hike. The move follows a bullish "golden cross" in bitcoin's chart, the first in more than three years.
Bitcoin climbed 1% to just above $86,000 early Monday after a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report pushed traders to drop bets on an October Fed rate hike. DOGE led the majors with a gain of more than 3%, and HYPE rose nearly 3% to about $93.
Soft jobs data supports a Fed pause
U.S. employers added just 29,000 jobs in September, against expectations of 84,000, according to QCP Capital. Unemployment rose to 4.2%, and wage growth slowed to 3% from a year earlier — the slowest pace since May 2021.
That data supports a Fed pause in October, but long-term borrowing costs have barely moved. The 10-year Treasury yield sits at 5.25%, which QCP pinned on heavy bond supply and the extra return investors now demand to hold long-dated debt.
Liquidations stay light, majors mixed
Weekend liquidations were light at $62.7 million, and short bets made up 68% of the total. According to QCP Capital: "Acceptance above $87,200 remains necessary to confirm the next leg." Ether and XRP gained up to 1%, while SOL, BNB and ZEC each slipped less than 1%. Minutes from the Fed's last meeting come out Wednesday.
A golden cross reinforces the rally
Bitcoin tumbled 34% over the first half of 2026 but has soared more than 40% in just the past few months, MarketWatch reported. On Friday, bitcoin's 50-day moving average rose above its 200-day moving average, forming a bullish "golden cross" pattern for the first time in more than three years.
The last such crossover, a death cross, appeared on Dec. 11, 2025, when bitcoin closed at $92,638, according to FactSet data cited by MarketWatch; it then fell another 36.8% before bottoming at $58,548.13 on June 30. The previous golden cross appeared on March 6, 2023, with bitcoin closing at $22,398. Bitcoin then soared 457% before peaking at $124,836 on Oct. 6, 2025.
Sources: CoinDesk, MarketWatch
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