Investing.com-- Bitcoin fell slightly in holiday-thinned trade on Monday, remaining largely within a trading range established over the past week as traders sought more definite cues on  U.S.-China trade talks and the economy.

A swathe of market holidays in Asia kept trading volumes dull.

The world’s biggest cryptocurrency had benefited from improved risk appetite through late-April, as positive comments on eventual U.S.-China trade negotiations sparked some cheer in markets.

But traders were now seeking more definite signals that trade talks will take place. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he had no plans to begin immediate talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but noted that some dialogue with China was taking place.

Bitcoin fell 1.7% to $94,437.8 by 01:24 ET (05:24 GMT).

Bitcoin rangebound with focus on trade, economy

Bitcoin fell into a holding pattern over the past week- between $92,000 to $97,000- as a rebound through late-April ran out of steam.

Capital flows into U.S.-traded spot exchange-traded funds also cooled after outsized gains in April.

While the crypto did offset most of its 2025 losses with its late-April rally, it was still nursing a muted year-to-date performance as risk appetite dwindled in the face of Trump’s tariffs.

Crypto markets face little direct impact from Trump’s tariff agenda, due to their decentralized nature. But negative sentiment arising from Trump’s tariffs tends to dent risk appetite, which in turn weighs on speculative assets such as crypto.

Trump says he wants to keep crypto away from China

Trump on Sunday evening reiterated his support for crypto, but stated that he wanted to ‘keep it away from China.’

“Crypto is a whole new thing that started not so long ago… but I’m very much in favor of crypto because otherwise China is going to take it over and just like AI, just many to many other industries… crypto is very important,” Trump said in comments made to reporters aboard Air Force One.

Trump has maintained a largely positive stance towards crypto, stacking his cabinet and regulatory agencies with several pro-crypto candidates. But his actual policies attempting to further U.S. crypto development have so far garnered lukewarm optimism, especially his unveiling of a strategic Bitcoin reserve earlier this year.

Crypto price today: altcoins drift lower

Broader crypto prices mostly drifted lower on Monday, keeping to tight trading ranges as traders awaited more cues on U.S. policy and the economy.

World no.2 crypto Ether fell 2.1% to $1,806.94, while XRP fell 1.7% to $2.1705.

Solana rose 0.2%, while Carano slid 2.8%. Polygon shed 0.1%.

Among meme tokens, Dogecoin shed 2%, while $TRUMP rose 0.3% after falling sharply in recent sessions.