Bitcoin price fell more than 3% to a low of $92,089 in Asia trading hours, primarily due to new Trump tariffs on 8 European countries over the Greenland standoff. Meanwhile, gold prices rose 1% to hit a new high amid risk-off sentiment. Here are the 3 reasons BTC price could remain low this week.
Bitcoin Price Slips Amid the US-EU Tariff Jitters
Bitcoin price tumbled 3% and gold price surged above $4,660 as the European Union retaliates with almost $100 billion in tariffs and market restrictions on US companies. This comes as US President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on 8 European countries over the Greenland standoff.
Trump claimed the new 10% tariff on Denmark and seven other European countries will remain until “a deal is reached for the complete and total purchase of Greenland.” The rate could rise to 25% by June 1, sparking concerns across markets.
Bitcoin price fell as millions of levered longs were liquidated in just an hour. CoinGlass data showed more than $850 million in crypto were liquidated over the past 24 hours, with almost $800 million in long position liquidations. BTC recorded nearly $250 million in total liquidations.
Gold is already trading at a new record high above $4,670, and silver is up over $3, trading above $93. Trump’s new tariffs and threats to invade Greenland are uniting the world against the U.S. and threatening to end the U.S. dollar’s hegemony. Our loss will be the world’s gain.
— Peter Schiff (@PeterSchiff) January 18, 2026
BTC Derivatives-Driven Rally Lacked Leverages
Bitcoin price rally towards $98,000 was driven by derivatives flows and short liquidations rather than sustained demand from whales and investors. Whales continue to close their BTC long positions. Onchain Lens reported that whales, including the “255 BTC Sol” whale, closed their ETH, BTC, and SOL long positions. Lookonchain highlighted that whales are opening short positions on Bitcoin.
10x Research noted that while bulls returned during the recent BTC rally, it was not a leverage-driven crypto market rebound. The market sentiment shifted as traders closed their short positions following the US CPI inflation data release.
“For portfolio managers, this environment is exactly where positioning and timing matter most: dispersion rises, false signals increase, and consensus narratives lag the data,” 10x Research added.
Also, CryptoQuant reported that the recent Bitcoin price rebound was a clear bear market rally. In the weekly research report, the firm noted that BTC remains below its 365-day moving average near $101,000, a level that has historically acted as a regime boundary.
Weak demand, rising exchange inflows, and options markets reflect uncertainty over a trend reversal to $100K. Bitcoin implied volatility remained low, but downside protection is still priced into long contracts, suggesting traders remain cautious.
Bitcoin Price Risks Crash on Bank of Japan (BOJ) Rate Hike
Investors grew cautious and liquidated their BTC holdings in response to Bank of Japan’s interest rate decision later this week. Recently, BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda reiterated that the central bank can raise rates if economic and price trends align with projections.
Japan’s 30-Year Government Bond yield spiked to the highest level in history at 3.58% today. Also, Japan’s 10-year government bond yield jumped to 2.24%, reaching its highest level since 1999.
This comes amid bets on BOJ rate hikes and expectations of increased fiscal spending under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. MacroEdge notes that the Bank of Japan is going to need to hike again as bond yields continue to climb. It risks carry trades unwinding, causing Bitcoin price to crash.
Source: https://coingape.com/3-reasons-why-bitcoin-price-is-falling-today/