Bitcoin Dives Under $56K as Asian Equities See Red

Bitcoin {{BTC}} fell to its lowest level since early August in Asian morning hours Wednesday after steep losses in U.S. and Asian equity markets saw some major stocks tumble nearly 10%.

BTC briefly fell to $55,500, its lowest since August 8, to reverse nearly all gains in the past month. The broader market tracked by CoinDesk 20 (CD20), a liquid index tracking the largest tokens by market capitalization, fell nearly 6%. Major tokens solana's SOL and ether {{ETH}} dropped over 7%, leading losses.

U.S. stocks tracked by Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 fell as much as 3.5% lower on Tuesday to kick off a historically bearish September month as weak manufacturing data reignited concerns over an economic slowdown. The move spread over to Asian markets as Japan's Nikkei slid more than 4% in the hours after opening - exacerbating tremors from last month's Yen carry trade unwinding.

The August reading of the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index slumped for a fifth straight month with a rebound from July but remaining below the 50 threshold. The index is a monthly gauge on the level of economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector and is considered to be a sign of the broader economy.