Lutnick Plays Down Recession Fears as BTC Lingers in 80K Range

Treasury Secretary Howard Lutnick insists the U.S. system is connected coagulated footing contempt concerns from Wall Street that a recession is successful the cards.

“Absolutely not,” helium said connected a Sunday variation of Meet the Press erstwhile asked if Americans should hole for a downturn.

"There's going to beryllium nary recession successful America," helium continued. "It's similar the aforesaid radical who thought Donald Trump wasn't a victor a twelvemonth ago. Donald Trump is simply a winner. He's going to triumph for the American people."

A recession is 2 consecutive quarters of economical contraction, caused by imbalances from outer oregon interior factors, oregon operation of both.

This statement contradicts comments made by the President earlier, who didn't regularisation retired a recession, calling it portion of a transition.

Lutnick argued that Trump’s tariff strategy volition unit different countries to little their commercialized barriers, unleashing American maturation and driving $1.3 trillion successful caller investment.

“We’re going to unleash America retired to the world,” helium said successful effect to warnings from JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs astir a tariff-induced recession. “You are going to spot implicit the adjacent 2 years the top acceptable of maturation coming from America.”

While Lutnick acknowledged that tariffs could marque overseas goods much expensive, helium framed them arsenic portion of a broader effort to chopped the shortage and little borrowing costs.

“When you equilibrium the budget… you thrust involvement rates down 150 ground points. Mortgages travel smashing down. The outgo of your location volition travel smashing down," helium said.

Crypto traders, however, don't look to person the aforesaid optimism.

Bitcoin (BTC) fell 7% connected Sunday, dropping to $80,000 and nearing its 2025 debased of $78,000.

Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), and XRP (XRP) followed, portion meme coins similar Dogecoin (DOGE) and Cardano (ADA) tumbled astir 12%.

On Polymarket, bettors are progressively bracing for a slowdown, though the chances of 1 occurring stay slim.

A contract asking astir the probability of a U.S. recession successful 2025 has seen the Yes likelihood leap to 41%, a 16% summation successful caller weeks.

Meanwhile, the latest U.S. jobs study showed 151,000 jobs added successful February, CoinDesk precocious reported, astir successful enactment with expectations, though the unemployment complaint ticked up to 4.1% and January’s occupation gains were revised lower.

However, layoffs successful the nationalist assemblage arsenic portion of the White House's DOGE efforts whitethorn propulsion these numbers up adjacent quarter.

While labour marketplace resilience has kept recession calls astatine bay, signs of slowing maturation are emerging, with the Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow exemplary forecasting a antagonistic 2.8% Q1 maturation rate.

However, another contract gives conscionable 3% accidental of a recession happening earlier May. The archetypal 4th ends March 31.