BTC Price Crashes 4% on Trump 50% Tariff News – Key Levels to Watch

Bitcoin (BTC) price sufferred a 4.5% crash in the past 24 hours, as US President Donald Trump announced a 50% tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1. The sell-off began before Friday’s market open and accelerated during the late New York session, pushing BTC price down to $106k.

This sudden crash in response to Trump’s tariff announcement wiped out $638 million in leveraged positions, according to CoinGlass data. During Friday’s briefing, Trump said that he is “not going to make a deal with the EU.” However, if the European Union builds factories in the United States, Trump said he might “consider delaying duties.” This move by the United States president has sparked concerns of a potential trade war revival. 

CoinGape data shows BTC trades at $107,739 at press time, with an attempt to recover recent losses in the early Asian session bounce. Here’s what traders should watch next.

Key Bitcoin Price Levels to Watch

The Time Price Opportunity Chart for Bitcoin shows Friday’s crash knocked the crypto down to retest $106,764 – a key naked Point of Control (nPOC) level. The aforementioned support was created on May 21, where Bitcoin price saw a stark rise in demand, catalyzing a 4.80% rally to a new all-time high of $111,866. 

A naked Point of Control is an untested, high-volume level at which massive demand previously catalyzed the underlying asset to soar higher.

At press time, the selling pressure is stabilizing at $106,764, with BTC bouncing 1.15%.

Regardless, TPO chart notes three other key levels to watch:

1. Support: If the sell-off continues, then the poor lows at $106,017 are the next pivotal point that investors should pay close attention to. These levels often trigger reversal due to overextended sellers. Poor lows are levels where the price has created equal lows or a double bottom. A sweep of such levels often triggers a sharp reversal. 
2. Resistance: In case of a recovery, the previous ATH at $110,000 will be a critical resistance juncture that could make-or-break the trend.

BTC Crash Triggers IV Spike, Flushes Open Interest

Bitcoin’s Implied Volatility (IV), which had remained subdued during its rally to $110,000, spiked sharply ahead of the crash. The IV surge coincided with the aggregate IV indicator’s sell signal. This was followed by a $1.87 billion drop in Open Interest, suggesting a decent flush of leveraged positions.

A 9.5% move in Bitcoin price between May 19 and 25 saw Open Interest rise $6.26 billion, showing investor interest and leverage. However, the recent drop shows that OI dropped 1.87 billion, which is relatively low considering that BTC retraced 50% of the 9.5% move. This shows lingering leverage positions are still in play.

For a deeper dive into BTC’s macro outlook, read our Bitcoin price prediction 2025 to 2030.