Leading cryptocurrencies moved sideways Thursday as investors awaited key employment data releases to gather insight into the economy's health.

What Happened: Bitcoin wobbled in the $60,000 zone for much of the day before an overnight flourish saw it sail above $61,200.

Ethereum too meandered in the $2,300 region, failing to break above $2,400.

Sentiment has been damp since Iran's missile barrage against Israel on Tuesday, with both Bitcoin and Ether correcting significantly, by 4.5% and 9.11%, respectively, since then.

Liquidations continued to bog the market down, with more than $192 million locked in the derivatives market getting erased in the last 24 hours. Upside bets accounted for 74% of the total.

Bitcoin's Open Interest rose 0.85% in the last 24 hours, going against the price drop. This possibly indicated new short positions getting opened.

The coin's Long/Short Ratio also surged to 1.09, indicating a higher number of traders placing bullish bets as compared to those gunning for price declines.

The Cryptocurrency Fear & Greed Index rose from 37 to 41, although the predominant sentiment remained one of "Fear."

Top Gainers (24-Hours)

The global cryptocurrency stood at $2.12 trillion in the last 24 hours, following a narrow drop of 0.36%.

Stocks slipped during Thursday's trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 184.93 points, or 0.44%, to end at 42,011.59. The S&P 500 slid 0.17% to close at 5,699.9. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed 0.04% lower at 17,918.48.

The Dow and S&P 500 were down 7% this week on escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Investors also weighed the higher-than-expected weekly jobless claims data for the week ending Sept. 28. Participants now await the nonfarm payrolls data, due to be released Friday, to gain a better understanding of the labor market and state of the economy.

See More: Best Cryptocurrency Scanners

Analyst Notes: Influential cryptocurrency researcher Ali Martinez flagged $60,365 as a key level to watch out for Bitcoin.

"If BTC breaks below this, we could see a dip to $57,420. But if BTC holds, a rebound to $63,300 is on the table," the analyst remarked.

Widely-followed cryptocurrency analyst Michaël van de Poppe believed Bitcoin correcting in the first week of October is "relatively standard" due to the release of unemployment numbers.

"We expect to reverse from next week, through which dips are for buying!" he forecasted.

Photo by CMP_NZ on Shutterstock

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