Bitcoin dips to $80.1K as KOSPI closes at its lowest since April

Bitcoin (BTC) fell to its lowest levels in over three weeks on Thursday as crypto tracked fresh losses on South Korean stock markets.

Key points:

• Bitcoin reached new local lows of $80,154 as downside pressure returned to South Korean equities.
• The KOSPI closed Thursday at 5,554 points, its lowest since early April, driven by a rout in tech stocks.
• Oil prices cooled, with Brent crude dropping more than 2% despite an “unjustifiable” Singapore fuel-tanker strike in the Strait of Hormuz.

Bitcoin price nears $80,000 as KOSPI falls 7.5%

Data from TradingView showed BTC/USD hitting $80,154 on Bitstamp, a level last seen on Sept. 20.

BTC/USD one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The weakness came after South Korea’s Korea Composite Stock Price Index, or KOSPI, finished the day 7.5% lower, taking week-to-date losses to 15.5%.

KOSPI Composite Index one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

As with earlier in the week, tech giants bore the brunt of the sell-off, with SK Hynix down 11% and Samsung Electronics finishing 9.5% lower on the day.

SK Hynix stock one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

As Cointelegraph reported, concerns over AI debt obligations, foreign capital outflows and competition from China contributed to the South Korean market rout, with KOSPI’s 200-day moving average dropping to as low as 5,450 points, a level not seen since late July. It ended Thursday’s trading session at 5,554 points, marking its lowest daily close since April 8.