As reported by The Block, Bitcoin remained below $55,000, while Ethereum traded below $2,300 after the U.S. non-farm payrolls data came in below expectations.

Now, markets are eyeing more U.S. inflation data this week and the first presidential debate between Harris and Trump.

Bitcoin and Ethereum slipped over the weekend and remain below key price levels following the release of weak U.S. economic data on Friday.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at $54,744, up 0.64% over the past 24 hours. Ethereum (ETH) is up 0.17% and trading around $2,291, according to Blockchain’s cryptocurrency prices page.

The latest US non-farm payrolls (NFP) data, an important measure of national employment, inflation and overall economic health, was released on Friday. US non-farm payrolls increased by 142,000 in August, below market expectations of 160,000.

Augustine Fan, head of insights at SOFA.org, said: “Cryptocurrencies needed a near-perfect combination of non-farm payrolls to see higher prices. Instead, we received one of the worst outcomes, with a repricing of risk sentiment dragging down Bitcoin and Ethereum.”

Fan also said the latest data showed that U.S. private sector growth was heading for its "weakest pace in more than a decade" and that a recession looked more imminent than expected.

However, the US unemployment rate released on the same day sent a positive signal, falling to 4.2%. "The lower unemployment figure has eased concerns about an impending recession. However, it seems that the weaker-than-expected employment data is dominating market sentiment for now," said Lucy Hu, senior analyst at Metalpha.

There’s more news this week Metalpha’s Hu said the crypto market, which reacts more strongly than the stock market, will continue to show significant volatility ahead of the next Fed meeting. The next FOMC meeting will be held on September 17-18.

“The coming week is likely to see more risk-off amid a lack of positive catalysts,” said Fan of SOFA.org. “The focus will be on Tuesday’s U.S. presidential debate, as well as a busy schedule of inflation data and central bank speeches around the world.”

US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are expected to hold their first televised debate. According to reports, the latest polls show that the two are evenly matched. Cryptocurrency has become one of the main topics of the upcoming election in November, although it was not mentioned in the previous debate between Trump and the current US President Joe Biden.

U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) data will be released on Wednesday and Thursday.