Bitcoin experienced a decline of approximately 1.6% over 24 hours, trading around $61,000 after dipping to a low of $60,300 late Wednesday. The broader cryptocurrency market, as measured by the CoinDesk 20 Index, also fell by 2%. Attention now shifts to the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for September, set to be released later on Thursday, which is expected to show a 0.1% month-on-month increase and a 2.3% year-on-year rise. Stronger-than-expected results could heighten calls to halt interest-rate cuts, potentially impacting risk assets like cryptocurrencies.
The minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September meeting, released on Wednesday, indicated a divide among policymakers regarding the aggressiveness of future interest rate cuts. While “a substantial majority of participants” supported a 50 basis-point reduction, some expressed concerns about such a significant move.
Alex Kuptsikevich, a senior analyst at FxPro, noted that crypto market sentiment has returned to the “fear zone” at 39, contrasting sharply with a “greed” reading of 72 in equities. He attributed this shift to the dollar’s appreciation and the growing appeal of bonds, which has dampened institutional interest in Bitcoin. The dollar index (DXY) rose to 102.97, its highest level since August 16, marking a cumulative gain of 2.7% since the September 30 low of 100.18, according to TradingView.
In the U.S., Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) reported no inflows or outflows on Wednesday, marking the second instance of inactivity this week and the third since their launch in July. Since debuting, Ether ETFs have seen net outflows of $562 million, in stark contrast to Bitcoin ETFs, which have attracted nearly $19 billion in net inflows since January. On Wednesday, Bitcoin ETFs recorded outflows exceeding $30.5 million, with nine out of 11 funds showing zero flows in either direction, indicating a muted trading day.
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