Crypto contracts, altcoins under pressure as markets brace for U.S. inflation data

Quick Take

  • BTC and ETH were trading at $19,017 and $1,276, respectively, on Thursday.
  • Altcoins were down significantly more than the two leading cryptocurrencies ahead of U.S. inflation reports. 

Cryptocurrencies were down across the board on Thursday as markets await U.S. inflation data. 

Bitcoin was trading at $19,017 today — down 0.87% over the past day — while ether traded down just over 1.5% at $1,276.

Altcoins experienced more-significant losses. ADA shed 5.14% over the past 24 hours, SOL lost 5.3% and Ripple's XRP plunged 6.75%, in the same period, according to data via TradingView.

Equity futures rose on Thursday ahead of the U.S. inflation data — slated for release at 08:30 am ET — and S&P 500 futures rose 0.51%. Meanwhile, Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.29%.

A Bloomberg poll estimates year-on-year inflation will come in at 8.1% for September, while month-on-month inflation will register at 0.2%. Core estimates, which exclude food items and fuel, are expected to see a 6.5% year-on-year increase and a 0.4% month-on-month rise. Anything above this would potentially put a nail in the proverbial coffin and seal a 75 basis point interest rate hike from the Fed at the start of next month, according to Forex.com's Global Head of Market Research Matt Weller.

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"Both the crypto market and traditional risk assets remain highly correlated with monetary policy expectations, and with any prospect of a Fed pivot still at least a couple months out, the risks for bitcoin, ether and the rest of the crypto space are to the downside ahead of the US CPI print," Weller concluded. 

Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs remains steadfast on its prediction that the Fed will hike by 75 basis points in November, 50 basis points in December, and 25 basis points in February — to reach a terminal forecast of 4.5% to 4.75%.

Finally, BTC's correlation to equities had been showing signs of waning over the past two weeks. However, the decline plateaued ahead of today's crucial data release. 


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About Author

Adam Morgan is a reporter covering cryptocurrency, financial markets, and economics – anything from price movements, earnings reports, and inflation to the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate decisions and everything in between. Adam is based in London.