Bitcoin fell below $65,000 on Thursday, July 23, after the Trump administration announced new tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 trading partners, covering more than 99% of U.S. trade. The decline was compounded by stronger-than-expected U.S. jobless claims data and rising Treasury yields, both of which added pressure on risk assets across the board.

According to CNBC, the duties will take effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Friday, replacing a temporary 10% global tariff that had been scheduled to expire the same day. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative tied the measures to what it described as inadequate enforcement against goods produced with forced labor.

The timing mattered for crypto markets because tariffs can add uncertainty around corporate costs, inflation expectations, and global trade flows, while Bitcoin has continued to trade like a high-beta risk asset during major macroeconomic repricing events.

Bitcoin traded as low as $64,985 before briefly recovering above $65,000. However, selling resumed once additional details of the tariff plan emerged, making the rebound short-lived. crypto.news data showed the asset down approximately 1.5% over 24 hours, with its market capitalization standing near $1.3 trillion. CoinGecko data placed BTC close to $65,000 at the time of reporting.

Liquidations and Market Impact

Leveraged long traders absorbed the brunt of the sell-off. CoinGlass data showed that 62,869 crypto traders were liquidated over the preceding 24 hours, with total liquidations reaching approximately $162 million. Separate figures from Coinalyze placed Bitcoin-specific liquidations near $28.7 million, of which roughly $26.2 million came from long positions.

The tariff announcement landed during an already challenging session for risk assets. The Nasdaq Composite dropped about 2.2% to a four-week low, the S&P 500 declined 1.2%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by approximately 507 points.

Earlier in the day, escalating tensions between the United States and Iran had already weighed on Bitcoin. Al Jazeera reported that President Donald Trump had threatened an unprecedented "massive attack" on Iran as military exchanges continued across the region.

The decline erased a brief advance toward $67,000 earlier in the week. BTC had been approaching a seven-week high on July 21, despite the conflict with Iran and the pending tariff decision, but buyers were unable to sustain the move as macroeconomic headwinds intensified.

Strong Labor Data Pressures Rate Expectations

Fresh U.S. employment data gave traders additional reason to reassess interest-rate expectations. The Labor Department reported that initial jobless claims fell by 22,000 to 187,000 for the week ending July 18 — the lowest total since September 1969. Economists surveyed by Reuters had expected claims to rise to 212,000.

Continuing claims also fell by 2,000 to 1.796 million, indicating that layoffs remained limited despite slower hiring and ongoing uncertainty surrounding trade policy. Stronger labor figures can reduce the urgency for the Federal Reserve to ease monetary policy, as they suggest the economy can withstand restrictive borrowing costs.

Interest-rate futures indicated that traders were pricing in the possibility of a Fed rate increase by September, Reuters reported, as rising oil prices contributed to inflation concerns. Treasury yields climbed in tandem with those expectations, with the 10-year yield reaching approximately 4.70%, according to Investors Business Daily. Higher bond yields tend to weigh on cryptocurrencies by increasing the return available from traditional assets that carry less risk than Bitcoin.

Tariff Structure and Legal Basis

The administration imposed the tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which authorizes Washington to respond to trade practices it deems unfair. This legal route differs from the emergency powers used for an earlier set of tariffs that the Supreme Court struck down in February.

A senior administration official described the measures as the most extensive international labor-rights trade action ever undertaken by any country. According to the administration, tariff rates are tied to the degree of progress each trading partner has made in restricting imports produced with forced labor.

Countries and territories that have introduced partial restrictions or made related commitments will face a 10% rate. USTR documents identify this group as including Canada, Mexico, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Argentina, and several Southeast Asian and Latin American economies.

A higher 12.5% tariff will apply to partners the USTR determined had made less progress. That group includes China, India, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Australia, and New Zealand. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer argued that weak enforcement abroad forces American workers to compete against goods linked to abusive labor practices.

Exemptions and Conditions

Several major product categories will remain outside the scope of the new duties. Reuters reported that exemptions include crude oil, petroleum products, pharmaceuticals, rare-earth materials, aircraft parts, and certain foods. Goods already covered by Section 232 tariffs will not face an additional charge, and Canadian and Mexican products that comply with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement will also be exempt.

Administration officials said the new steel and aluminum duties would not stack on top of existing national-security tariffs. The USTR has not published an estimate of how much revenue the tariff package is expected to generate, CNBC noted.

Trading partners can potentially secure lower rates by strengthening their forced-labor import rules, though officials acknowledged that no country currently enforces a complete prohibition. That leaves the implementation details, any responses from affected governments, and the next round of U.S. inflation and labor data as key inputs for traders assessing whether macro pressure on crypto is easing or building.

For Bitcoin, the tariff announcement added a layer of trade uncertainty to a session already shaped by geopolitical tensions, rising oil prices, stronger labor data, and higher Treasury yields — leaving the $65,000 level as the immediate test for buyers following the latest decline.