Bitcoin opened the week near $94,177 and closed Sunday at $86,805, down 7.83%.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $903 million in net outflows on November 20 alone, with Ethereum ETFs shedding another $261 million the same day.

This Week's Macro Releases

International trade figures for August arrived Wednesday morning with exports at 280,832, imports at 340,382 and the balance of trade at -59,550.

Initial claims fell to 220,000 while continued claims dropped to 1,960,000. The combination of still-positive hiring and a higher jobless rate left markets parsing whether the data supported fewer or more rate cuts ahead.

The softer external demand signal in the trade figures points to slower growth momentum that could sustain easier financial conditions overall, supporting crypto through improved dollar liquidity and steadier risk appetite once positioning stabilizes.

The labor cluster shows hiring still positive yet with rising slack, transmitting to crypto via expectations of measured policy support that limits aggressive dollar strength and keeps leverage available for risk assets rather than forcing broad deleveraging.

How Bitcoin Reacted, Measured

At the 8:30 AM ET trade release on Wednesday, Bitcoin stood at $91,790, falling 0.3% in fifteen minutes and 0.7% after one hour. The hour's high-low span reached 0.9% versus 0.6% beforehand, producing a volatility ratio of 1.53x and volume ratio of 0.98x. That ranked fifth among the last twelve International Exports prints, above the 1.28x median. Ether dropped 2.2% over the same hour.

Thursday's 8:30 AM labor cluster saw Bitcoin open at $91,918, down 0.3% after fifteen minutes and 0.5% after sixty minutes. Span widened to 2.3% from 0.4% previously, lifting the volatility ratio to 2.32x and volume to 2.92x. The print ranked third of the last twelve Continued Claims releases against a 1.47x median. Ether fell 0.3% over the hour while its span reached 2.8%.

The ranking near the top of recent prints for the labor release highlights how this data set produced outsized immediate flows compared with similar events, meaning crypto desks faced quicker margin pressure and had less room to hold leveraged exposure through the uncertainty.

Bitcoin and Ethereum Price Action

Bitcoin spent the week sliding from the $94,177 open on November 16 to the $86,805 close on November 23. Ethereum mirrored the move, closing at $2,801.68 after trading below $3,000 mid-week.

The sustained decline reflects a broad repricing of growth-sensitive assets as liquidity expectations shifted, pushing traders to reduce gross exposure and favor shorter duration positions until clearer signals on policy transmission emerge.

Altcoin Stories

XRP closed the week at $2.0463, down 7.68%, after touching a low of $1.81. Cumulative inflows into XRP ETFs reached nearly $500 million, including $118 million added on November 20 alone. Solana recovered from an intraday low of $129 to close at $130.71, supported by $55.6 million in ETF inflows for the week.

Continued product inflows amid price weakness show that certain segments attracted dedicated capital even as overall leverage contracted, allowing selective stabilization that cushions altcoin drawdowns relative to the broader deleveraging seen in major assets.

Market Structure and Sentiment

Risk appetite deteriorated as equity and crypto correlations tightened. Record ETF outflows exceeding $1 billion on a single day underscored the shift from leveraged long positioning to outright redemptions. Funding rates compressed and open interest declined, leaving the market lighter heading into the final week of November.

The compression in funding and drop in open interest reduces the incentive for new leveraged longs, extending the period of cautious positioning and making any later liquidity improvement transmit more slowly into crypto prices until leverage rebuilds.

What the Data Is Telling Us

Hotter-than-expected payrolls combined with a rising unemployment rate produced the largest volatility spike of the week, yet the move remained contained relative to historical medians for labor releases. The combination suggests the market had already priced a modest cooling in hiring and is now adjusting expectations for the pace of any remaining policy support.

Next Week's Calendar

Retail Sales, Core PPI and PPI are scheduled for Tuesday 25 November at 8:30 AM ET. Durable Orders and Initial Claims follow on Wednesday 26 November at the same time. Any material surprise in the inflation prints would reset positioning ahead of the December FOMC meeting.