Crypto Rebounds Toward $2.15T as KOSPI Crashes 8%, AI Job Cuts Hit Record

Crypto News

US lawmakers are intensifying pressure on Congress to confront artificial intelligence driving widespread job losses. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders led renewed calls for worker protections, with Warren arguing legislators cannot wait years to tally layoffs before acting. Sanders blamed industry money flooding super PACs for the stalemate. The concern spans party lines: Republican Josh Hawley cited findings that nearly one in five US workers expect automation to claim their roles. The warnings follow data showing AI behind 38,579 US job cuts in May—the highest monthly total on record—and 87,714 for the year so far, already eclipsing 2025's full-year total of 54,836.

The broader crypto market staged a modest recovery, climbing roughly 0.84% as total capitalization rebounded toward $2.15 trillion after basing near $2.02 trillion last week. Bitcoin led the bounce, rising to around $63,100 after bottoming at $59,014 during the recent washout. The rebound traced largely to a short squeeze, with roughly $522 million in short liquidations over 24 hours forcing bearish traders to repurchase positions into thinning liquidity. June 7 printed a rare green candlestick after red closes stretching back to May 31, with $2.02 trillion now marking the critical support level traders are watching.

Equity market turmoil framed the backdrop. South Korea's KOSPI plunged more than 8% on Monday, tripping a circuit breaker as the index suffered one of its sharpest single-day declines in years. Chip heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each tumbled roughly 10%, dragged lower as a US semiconductor selloff cascaded across Asian markets. The rout underscored how risk-off sentiment in traditional equities continues to bleed into digital assets, with crypto traders monitoring whether deepening losses in tech and chip stocks could renew pressure on an altcoin market still nursing wounds from last week's cycle lows.

Warnings of further downside grew louder. DWF Labs co-founder Andrei Grachev cautioned that forced selling by large corporate holders—naming MicroStrategy and BitMine—could trigger what he described as crypto's largest crash to date. Grachev urged investors to weigh the possibility of a slide toward $10,000 to $20,000 should treasury-style holders be compelled to liquidate into weak demand. The remarks tapped into mounting anxiety over leveraged corporate balance sheets built around digital assets, and the systemic risk concentrated positions pose during a bear market. Whether such a capitulation materializes hinges on whether the $2.02 trillion floor holds in coming sessions.

Geopolitics injected fresh volatility. President Trump signaled the United States and Iran are "close to a deal," a development that briefly nudged risk appetite higher. Yet the optimism remained fragile as a third wave of Iranian ballistic missiles was reportedly fired toward Israel, keeping oil prices and broader risk sentiment on edge. The conflicting signals left markets caught between hopes of de-escalation and the reality of active hostilities. For crypto, the headlines added another layer of unpredictability, reinforcing digital assets' growing sensitivity to geopolitical flashpoints that can swing sentiment within hours and complicate any sustained recovery attempt.

Select tokens defied the gloom. Zcash emerged as one of the top-100 leaders, surging 12.5% off its crash lows as the short squeeze that lifted the broader market disproportionately rewarded heavily-shorted names. The move illustrated how violently oversold assets can snap back when bearish positioning unwinds, with traders chasing rebounds in beaten-down coins. Such outsized single-day gains often accompany the early stages of a relief rally, though they rarely guarantee a durable trend. For the bounce to mature into a sustained bull market leg, analysts highlight the need for total capitalization to reclaim $2.19 trillion on a daily close.

Taken together, the week's developments point to a single dominant narrative: markets are navigating intersecting shocks rather than any one catalyst. Geopolitical risk from the Middle East, equity routs spilling from Asian chip stocks, structural labor anxiety from AI automation, and fears of forced corporate liquidation all converge on the same theme—fragile risk appetite testing whether crucial support levels can hold. Crypto sits at the crossroads of these forces, increasingly correlated with macro and geopolitical headlines. The short-squeeze rebound offers tentative relief, but durability depends on de-escalation abroad and stability across the equity complex that now drives sentiment.