Bitcoin (BTC) Reclaims $84,500 Level on April 14

Bitcoin (BTC) reclaimed the $84,500 level on April 14, and the recovery appears partially fueled by the announcement of partial import tariff relief by US President Donald Trump.

Bitcoin (BTC) price reclaimed the $84,500 level on April 14, following a period of recovery that appears to be partially fueled by the announcement of partial import tariff relief by US President Donald Trump.

However, optimism among traders appears to be fading as, according to reports by several news outlets, President Trump stated that tariffs on the electronics supply chain could be reconsidered.

This uncertainty has impacted Bitcoin markets, leading traders to lose some of the optimism they had regained. As a result, Bitcoin’s price failed to break above the $86,000 mark, and BTC derivatives showed limited potential for the next few days.

Bitcoin 2-month futures annualized premium. Source: Laevitas.ch

The premium on Bitcoin monthly futures contracts reached 6.5% on April 11 but has since decreased to 5%, which is close to a neutral to bearish threshold. Typically, sellers prefer a 5% to 10% annualized premium for longer settlement periods. Anything below this range may indicate less interest from leveraged buyers.

Traders' brief excitement can be linked to President Trump's April 13 announcement that tariffs on imported semiconductors would be reviewed during the week. This suggests that exemptions for smartphones and computers are not final, according to Yahoo Finance. President Trump reportedly said, "We want to make our chips and semiconductors and other things in our country."

Bitcoin traders experienced emotional swings during this period of fluctuating expectations. The performance of broader markets, particularly large technology companies reliant on global trade, seems to have influenced Bitcoin sentiment.

The strong intraday correlation between Bitcoin and stock markets dampened bullish enthusiasm, leaving questions about whether this effect is limited to BTC futures.

S&P 500 futures (left) vs. Bitcoin/USD (right). Source: TradingView / Cointelegraph

To determine whether Bitcoin traders' sentiment is merely mirroring trends in the S&P 500, it's useful to examine the BTC options markets. If professional traders anticipate a significant price drop, the 25% delta skew indicator will rise above 6%, as put (sell) options become more expensive than call (buy) options.

Bitcoin 30-day options 25% delta skew (put-call) at Deribit. Source: Laevitas.ch

On April 13, Bitcoin options delta skew briefly fell below 0%, signaling mild optimism. However, this momentum did not persist on April 14, reinforcing data from Bitcoin futures that show no substantial bullish sentiment despite prices recovering from the $74,440 lows.

Another way to gauge market sentiment is by analyzing stablecoin demand in China. Strong retail interest in cryptocurrencies usually pushes stablecoins to trade at a premium of 2% or more above the official US dollar rate. In contrast, a premium below 0.5% often indicates fear as traders move away from crypto markets.

Related: Crypto markets ‘relatively orderly’ despite Trump tariff chaos: NYDIG

USDT Tether (USDT/CNY) vs. US dollar/CNY. Source: OKX

Between April 6 and April 11, Tether (USDT) in China traded at a 1.2% premium, indicating moderate enthusiasm. However, this trend reversed, with the premium now at just 0.5%, suggesting that the earlier excitement has faded. As a result, traders remain cautious and show little confidence in Bitcoin exceeding $90,000 in the near term.

The announcement of Strategy's $286 million Bitcoin acquisition at $82,618 failed to boost sentiment, as investors suspect that the recent temporary decoupling from stock market trends was largely driven by this purchase. Similarly, Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw $277 million in outflows between April 9 and April 11, further weakening any potential improvement in trader confidence.