$64K Bitcoin Range Holds as Oil Rally and AI-Driven Tech Selloff Pressure Investors

Brent crude surged nearly 4% as escalating U.S.-Iran tensions fueled concerns in energy markets, while Asian semiconductor shares remained under pressure following Friday’s selloff triggered by China’s latest AI developments.

Bitcoin remained close to the $64,000 level on Monday as investors weighed two competing forces: higher oil prices driven by geopolitical uncertainty and continued market anxiety after Moonshot AI’s latest Kimi model disrupted technology stocks last week.

The leading cryptocurrency traded around $64,200, showing little movement on the day but maintaining a weekly gain of about 3%. Bitcoin’s trading volume stood near $18 billion. Ether continued to outperform other major cryptocurrencies, rising to roughly $1,860 and gaining 5% over the past seven sessions.

Most large-cap tokens saw minimal changes. XRP stayed near $1.09, Solana hovered around $76, BNB slipped to about $565 and dogecoin remained steady near $0.07. Hyperliquid’s HYPE was the notable weak performer, falling 10% over the week to $60 as the broader risk-off environment weighed on sentiment.

Oil was the biggest market mover, with Brent briefly climbing to $91.42 a barrel, its highest level since June. The rally came as U.S. and Iranian strikes intensified, bringing back inflation concerns that had recently eased after softer U.S. inflation data.

Technology stocks were still attempting to recover from Friday’s losses. Moonshot AI’s Kimi K3 model, a Chinese open-weight AI system that ranked highly on a widely tracked coding benchmark, fueled concerns about the AI sector’s competitive landscape and triggered a decline in semiconductor stocks, which also pressured crypto markets.

The impact extended across Asian markets on Monday, with South Korea’s Kospi dropping 3.5% as trading resumed following a holiday. U.S. futures stabilized, with Nasdaq 100 futures rising 0.5%, but investors continued to assess the long-term implications of China’s AI advances.

For bitcoin, the market remains caught between conflicting pressures. Rising oil prices from geopolitical tensions could increase inflation risks and affect expectations for Federal Reserve policy, while weakness in AI-related equities has weighed on semiconductor stocks that bitcoin has recently tracked.

This week’s key market signals are expected to come from corporate earnings rather than economic data. Investors will focus on results from Alphabet, Tesla and Intel to determine whether AI-related spending remains strong.

Following last week’s volatility in AI and semiconductor shares, these earnings reports could reveal whether the artificial intelligence investment cycle still has momentum and whether crypto miners transitioning into AI data centers can maintain investor support.