Crypto markets shiver amid Nvidia’s $5.5 billion write down and Trump’s 245% tariff hike on China

New macro pressures chafed traditional and crypto markets on April 16 as sentiment remained volatile due to ping pong escalations in the global commerce frontier, primarily between the United States and China.

Late on Tuesday, stocks of chipmaker Nvidia dropped up to 8% after market hours. The sell-off seemed tied to a potential $5.5 billion revenue knock from licensing constraints on H20 chips exports to China, which were disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Nvidia shares still traded 6% down ahead of the U.S. open on Wednesday. The S&P 500 and tech futures also reeled.

US-China battle sparks flight to gold, not bitcoin

China and the U.S. are embroiled in a tariff standoff, casting a shadow over most financial planes. President Donald Trump increased import tolls on Chinese goods to 245%, a response to Beijing’s restrictions on rare earths. Minerals like gallium and germanium are key components for making high-end computer chips sold by Nvidia and other firms.

Risk assets were once again caught between the hammer and the anvil. Bitcoin’s correction erased the $86,400 two-week high gained this week after some recovery over the weekend. Before the latest developments, Nic Puckrin, founder of the Coin Bureau, had told The Block that one headline could undo progress. “The caveat here is that all this positive momentum could disappear in a puff of smoke if there’s any backpedalling on tariffs or an unexpected shock announcement, which we all know is always a possibility,” Puckrin said in a note.

BTC changed hands for $83,700 as of writing on a 2% pullback, according to The Block’s price page. Majors like ether, XRP, Solana and Cardano fell at least 4% on the day, correlating with the broader altcoin ecosystem and the general cryptocurrency market.

Gold, on the other hand, made a new all-time high of $3,300 per ounce — emerging as the market’s “preferred store of value” per QCP Capital analysts. The fresh peak arrived while bitcoin swayed on macro news, and the Dollar Index (DXY) showed a weakening greenback against currencies like the euro and the yen. “Unlike gold, BTC has not caught a safe-haven bid. The ‘alternative store of value’ narrative isn’t gaining traction in the current macro regime,” wrote QCP on Wednesday. “Positioning remains defensive. Participants are still focused on hedging their downside until greater clarity emerges.”

Macro and bitcoin-crypto outlook

Later today, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will give a speech on the mood for America’s monetary policy. Powell’s talk at the Economic Club of Chicago and the U.S. retail sales report for March — also expected on April 16 — may offer investors a feel of the Fed’s outlook. Previously, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said the apex bank would strongly consider rate cuts if the U.S. reinstated high blanket tariffs issued on “Liberation Day.” President Trump paused trade taxes for 90 days shortly after the rollout when bond markets quaked.

Dr Kirill Kretov, CoinPanel’s senior automation expert, expects volatility to continue until the macro picture eases. However, the analyst argued that these price swings are immaterial. “Right now, we are in a period of heightened geopolitical tension, economic fragility, and overall risk-off sentiment,” Kretove told The Block. “These sudden moves (up or down) are often just noise, part of a broader effort to shake out weak hands. It’s not about fundamentals or charts right now; it’s about sentiment and narrative control.”

Wincent Senior Director Paul Wincent echoed Kretov’s thoughts, adding that short-term action absent macro influence looked tepid at worst rather than downcast. “Take the macro book out of the picture and we’re continuing to see sideways movement in digital assets this week,” Wincent stated.

Bitcoin reversing a little lower could actually be bullish, according to Coin Bureau’s founder. “A short-term correction to re-test support at $81,000 would be healthy and, as long as BTC remains above this threshold, would even point to a sustainable price recovery,” Puckrin stated. “We just all have to keep our fingers crossed that President Trump doesn’t have another market-shaking announcement up his sleeve.”