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Bitcoin slid back toward $55,000 overnight as it caught up with Tuesday’s broader market sell-off.

On Wednesday, the price of the flagship cryptocurrency was lower by more than 2% at $56,481.90, according to Coin Metrics. It fell sharply Tuesday night — to as low as $55,673.80 — with the start of Asia-Pacific trading but has stabilized since then.

Coinbase and MicroStrategy fell 3% and 2%, respectively.

Tech stocks struggled in U.S. trading Tuesday – the sector is coming off worst day since September 2022 – while two readings of manufacturing production showed signs of weakness, rekindling fears about the health of the economy. Japan’s Nikkei 225 and the broad-based Topix finished Wednesday trading with their worst one-day loss since the Aug. 5 sell-off.

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Bitcoin tumbles overnight but stabilizes at $56,000

Lately, bitcoin’s moves are sometimes more muted than stocks’ during U.S. hours on big market days. James Davies, co-founder at crypto trading platform Crypto Valley Exchange, explained that traders react “more dynamically” to macro events during Asia trading.

“U.S. crypto trading accounts for around 30% of global volume, but it’s largely driven by institutional activity, especially in derivatives like CME futures, which are often less reactive to immediate market trends they have seen coming,” he said. “In contrast, the Asian market, contributing close to 50% of global volume, is more retail-focused. As a result, during Asian trading hours, bitcoin tends to respond more actively to global financial movements, such as stock market shifts.”

August was a tough month for bitcoin and its poor trading action could go on for another month. Analysts have warned that the cryptocurrency could slide back to $50,000 in September as traders wait for a sense of direction to emerge about U.S. interest rate cuts and the looming presidential election.

September is historically the worst month for bitcoin. The coin has finished higher in just three of the last 11 Septembers and the month has the largest average loss of the year for the coin at 4.8%, according to CoinGlass.

Don’t miss these cryptocurrency insights from CNBC PRO:

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Instacart shares drop on report that FTC is probing company over AI pricing tool

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Instacart shares drop on report that FTC is probing company over AI pricing tool

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Shares of grocery delivery service Instacart dropped about 7% in extended trading on Wednesday, following a report that said the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has begun an investigation into the company’s pricing practices.

The FTC sent a civil investigative demand to Instacart, Reuters reported, citing unnamed people.

A study released last week showed that prices for the same products in the same supermarkets that work with Instacart can vary by around 7%, which can result in over $1,000 in extra annual costs for customers. Instacart responded by saying that retailers determine prices listed in the app.

In 2022, Instacart spent $59 million to acquire Eversight, a company specializing in artificial intelligence-driven pricing and promotions for retailers and consumer packaged goods. Instacart sought to “create compelling savings opportunities for customers in real-time” with Eversight, according to a regulatory filing.

The FTC and Instacart did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Read Reuters’ full report here.

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Cramer slams Amazon for considering a circular AI deal reminiscent of the dotcom bubble

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Cramer slams Amazon for considering a circular AI deal reminiscent of the dotcom bubble

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Amazon says AI chief Rohit Prasad is leaving, Peter DeSantis to lead ‘AGI’ group

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Amazon says AI chief Rohit Prasad is leaving, Peter DeSantis to lead 'AGI' group

Rohit Prasad, Senior VP & Head Scientist for Alexa, Amazon, on Centre Stage during day one of Web Summit 2022 at the Altice Arena in Lisbon, Portugal.

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Rohit Prasad, a top Amazon executive overseeing its artificial general intelligence unit, is leaving the company at the end of this year, the company confirmed Wednesday.

As part of the move, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the company is reorganizing the AGI unit under a more expansive division that will also include its silicon development and quantum computing teams. The new division will be led by Peter DeSantis, a 27-year veteran of Amazon who currently serves as a senior vice president in its cloud unit.

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