After a very rough close to the month of August, crypto markets are starting September on a far stronger tone. The buying got started in force as U.S. traders returned to their desks following the three-day weekend, sending bitcoin (BTC) to as high as $111,700 versus the $107,500 level seen as September began. At press time, bitcoin was changing hands at $111,600, up 2.5% over the past 24 hours. Solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP) were ahead similar amounts. Notably lagging was August outperformer ether (ETH), roughly flat over the past day. Stocks shake off panicky start Likely helping the tone in crypto was a strong bounce in stock markets. Reacting to negative tariff news and a continued rise in global long-term interest rates, major U.S. indices began the month with big losses, including the Nasdaq's 2% decline. Buyers are stepping in though and roughly 90 minutes after the open, stocks have about halved their early losses. Economic data on tap The new month has already seen one important economic report, the ISM Manufacturing Index for August. Coming in at 48.7, the number missed economist forecasts by a hair and showed continued contraction in the U.S. manufacturing sector. The Prices Paid subindex at 63.7 remained perky, but was softer than the 65.3 forecast and 64.8 the previous month, suggesting at least some easing in price pressures. The big report this week will be Friday's U.S. employment numbers. Strong data is likely to put into some question the Fed's apparent plan to trim interest rates when it meets later this month. A week print, however, might put a 50 basis point cut on the table as opposed to the universally expected 25.
