SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Cryptocurrency prices slid as the spectre of a global trade war put investors on edge and pushed them out of risky assets.

Bitcoin was down more 4% early on Monday morning in Asia, touching a three-week low around $96,606. Smaller cryptocurrency ether was down around 12% and back to levels last seen in early November.

Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Mexican and most Canadian imports, and 10% on goods from China, starting on Tuesday.

Cryptocurrencies trade around the clock, including on weekends, and have lately been sensitive to markets' broader sentiment.

Investors think tariffs can hurt growth and company earnings.

"Crypto is really the only way to express risk over the weekend, and on news like this crypto resorts to a risk proxy," said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone.

At the same time, there is added downward pressure on crypto after a strong rally in the wake of Trump's election, as some investors have felt disappointed at the lack of immediate moves to boost crypto or loosen regulations since he took office.