Bitcoin ((BTC) topped $26,000 on March 14, when US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data showed mixed signs of inflation.
CPI drives BTC price to 9-month highs
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView followed the BTC/USD pair as sudden volatility kicked in following the release of February CPI figures.
Inflation rose 6% year-on-year, while month-on-month was 0.4%, both in line with expectations. Items excluding food and energy increased 0.5%, slightly above forecast.
US #inflation data more or less online. Feb Overall CPI +6% YoY from 6.4% in Jan, Core CPI 5.5% in Feb down from 5.6& YoY in Jan. pic.twitter.com/k8rzsmdqVA
—Holger Zschaepitz (@Schuldensuehner) March 14, 2023
Bitcoin appeared to react positively to the data, which allowed the Federal Reserve to avoid being caught between more problematic inflation and avoiding interest rate hikes amid an ongoing banking crisis.
In this regard, Venturefounder, an analyst at on-chain analysis platform CryptoQuant, suggested that the market was anticipating a “turnaround” higher, which would be a boon for risk assets in general.
“The Market: oh yeah big win in the fight against inflation! No more rate hikes and the Fed will cut rates by 50 basis points before fiscal 2023,” tweeted.
“If Powell changes the 2% inflation target it will be the Fed’s biggest rug move since the 1970s off the gold standard.”
The resource, Game of Trades, argued, however, that CPI was not yet low enough for the Fed to “aggressively” change its stance and echo actions that followed the March 2020 crash following the outbreak. of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The consensus is spot on: CPI stands at 6%. But it’s not low enough to give the Fed room to intervene aggressively during the current crisis, as it did during C19,” it said. read in a tweet.
Volatility Continues as BTC Price Approaches $26,000
The IPC is notorious for causing unpredictable movements in the BTC price, and as such, the picture remained unclear at press time as to the next direction for the BTC/USD pair.
Before the publication of the CPI, a significant sales liquidity it opened at $25,000 and above, this being the main target of bulls on the lower time frames.
Nonetheless, Bitcoin’s local highs at $26,150 marked a new record for 2023 and its best performance since June of last year.
The BTC/USD pair broke above the key 200 period moving average that acts as resistance on weekly time frames.
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