Leading cryptocurrencies moved sideways Thursday as investors awaited key employment data releases to gather insight into the economy’s health.

What Happened: Bitcoin wobbled in the $60,000 zone for much of the day before an overnight flourish saw it sail above $61,200. 

Ethereum too meandered in the $2,300 region, failing to break above $2,400.

Sentiment has been damp since Iran’s missile barrage against Israel on Tuesday, with both Bitcoin and Ether correcting significantly, by 4.5% and 9.11%, respectively, since then.

Liquidations continued to bog the market down, with more than $192 million locked in the derivatives market getting erased in the last 24 hours. Upside bets accounted for 74% of the total.

Bitcoin’s Open Interest rose 0.85% in the last 24 hours, going against the price drop. This possibly indicated new short positions getting opened.

The coin’s Long/Short Ratio also surged to 1.09, indicating a higher number of traders placing bullish bets as compared to those gunning for price declines.

The Cryptocurrency Fear & Greed Index rose from 37 to 41, although the predominant sentiment remained one of “Fear.”

Top Gainers (24-Hours)

The global cryptocurrency stood at $2.12 trillion in the last 24 hours, following a narrow drop of 0.36%.

Stocks slipped during Thursday’s trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 184.93 points, or 0.44%, to end at 42,011.59. The S&P 500 slid 0.17% to close at 5,699.9. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed 0.04% lower at 17,918.48.

The Dow and S&P 500 were down 7% this week on escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Investors also weighed the higher-than-expected weekly jobless claims data for the week ending Sept. 28. Participants now await the nonfarm payrolls data, due to be released Friday, to gain a better understanding of the labor market and state of the economy.

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Analyst Notes: Influential cryptocurrency researcher Ali Martinez flagged $60,365 as a key level to watch out for Bitcoin.

“If BTC breaks below this, we could see a dip to $57,420. But if BTC holds, a rebound to $63,300 is on the table,” the analyst remarked.