Bitcoin, Ethereum prices fall amid macroeconomic woes

Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) experienced price declines as fears of prolonged inflation gripped the macroeconomic landscape.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading at almost exactly $95,000 after losing 5.44% of its value over the last 24 hours. The price of the world’s first cryptocurrency is still 1.25% higher than where its price stood seven days ago.

Similarly, Ethereum is currently trading at a few dollars over $3,350 after losing 7.35% over the last 24 hours. Still, the price of the cryptocurrency that unleashed smart contracts on the world is 0.66% higher than seven days ago.

All ten of the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap are also in the red today. Cardano (ADA) and Dogecoin (DOGE) are the top losers, which lost 13.35% and 9.4%, respectively, over the last 24 hours.

The market cap of the whole cryptocurrency market tumbled from $3.6 trillion yesterday to its current value of $3.33 trillion. This translates to $270 billion leaving the crypto market as it shrinks by 7.5% — in line with The Block’s GMCI 30 index, which measures the performance of the top 30 cryptocurrencies, dropping 7.48%.

Earlier this week, Bitcoin reached $100,000 once again on Monday following Congress’ official certification of President-elect Donald Trump’s 2024 victory ahead of his Jan. 20 inauguration. Still, Min Jung, an analyst of Presto Research, recently told The Block that macroeconomic concerns are now pushing both traditional and crypto markets down:

“Not just crypto, but both the NASDAQ and S&P 500 fell more than 1% yesterday, driven by concerns over inflation after ISM data revealed faster-than-expected growth in the U.S. economy. […] This heightened fears of persistent inflation, [led] to a surge in bond yields, with the 10-year Treasury reaching its highest level since April.”

Rachael Lucas, crypto analyst at BTC Markets, also told the news outlet that market indicators suggest that the United States Federal Reserve is likely to maintain elevated interest rates for a longer period:

“The market was already uneasy following comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in December, which suggested a firm stance on monetary policy and tempered hopes for additional rate cuts, fuelling further volatility.”

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