Blowout Jobs Report Upends Prediction Markets
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 162,000 August jobs on Friday—five times the average of the prior year—triggering immediate shockwaves across crypto and prediction markets. Within 15 minutes of the data release, Polymarket traders moved the odds of a quarter-point September rate increase from 39.5 cents to a majority outcome. According to Decrypt, the blowout payrolls tripled estimates and pushed September rate-hike odds to 58%. The macroeconomic shift also knocked Bitcoin down $1,430 in five minutes and dropped the Dow 226 points, erasing earlier gains that had briefly pushed Bitcoin above the $81,000 mark.
Polymarket Rolls Out 20x Leverage Perpetuals
As traders digested the macroeconomic data, Polymarket also executed a major product expansion. The prediction market platform officially launched its new "Perps" product, scaling rapidly from 10 to 67 markets on its first day. The perpetual futures contracts cover stocks, crypto, indices, and commodities, offering up to 20x leverage on select markets. However, order placement remains strictly blocked for United States traders. For users outside the U.S. looking to track these new derivatives and market shifts, predictionmarketstools.com provides comprehensive analytics on emerging prediction contracts.
Kalshi Traffic Surges 1,500% Amid Regulatory Scrutiny
Meanwhile, regulated U.S. competitor Kalshi is experiencing explosive growth despite looming legal hurdles. Kalshi's U.S. web traffic has soared more than 1,500% in less than a year. Trading volume has outpaced even this massive traffic growth, though the platform is facing intensified legal scrutiny over its sports-related contracts.