Bitcoin, Ether Tentative, XRP Steady as Trump Announces 30% Tariff on EU and Mexico

Major cryptocurrencies, excluding XRP, registered moderate losses as President Donald Trump announced fresh tariffs on imports from Mexico and the European Union (EU).

The President slapped 30% levy on the two trading partners, which will take effect from Aug. 1, according to letters Trump posted on his Truth Social account.

“Mexico has been helping me secure the border. BUT, what Mexico has done, is not enough,” Trump wrote in a letter to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. In another letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Trump called the relationship with the EU far from reciprocal.

Early this week, Trump issued new tariffs for several countries, including South Korea, Japan, Canada and Brazil, along with a 50% tariff on copper, triggering volatility in the market for the red metal.

Bitcoin (BTC), the leading cryptocurrency by market value, traded around $117,400 following Trump’s announcement, down 0.6% from the European session high of $118,200. Prices have failed to establish a foothold above $118,000 multiple times since Friday’s early Asian trading hours, CoinDesk data show.

Ether (ETH), the second-largest token, traded 1% lower on the day (UTC) at $2,930, having put in an indecisive doji candle Friday. Solana’s SOL and DOGE traded over 2% lower while BNB was down 0.7%. Meanwhile, payments-focused XRP traded relatively resilient, flashing a 1.78% gain as of writing.

The weak tone followed intense bullish price action mid-week that saw BTC blow past the long-held resistance at $110K, prompting renewed risk-taking in the broader crypto market. Some analysts anticipated a continued indecisive price action over the weekend.

“Expectations this weekend are we chop around in tight range today. Then Asia comes in late on Sunday evening and buys ALL the Bitcoin, and we break through $120k,” the founders of the newsletter service LondonCryptoClub said on X.

UPDATE (July 12, 16:56 UTC): Corrects bitcoin price in 5th paragraph.