Bitcoin price at the time of writing is around the $52,000 mark, influenced by news on Reddit. Fed member Harker made some statements. The significance of comments made by Fed members has increased following the latest inflation and employment data. Even though the expectation of an interest rate cut in March has vanished, it is important to monitor the outlook for June and subsequent meetings.
Fed Statements
Cryptocurrency markets were shaken by concerns over the Fed’s continuation of tight monetary policy for a longer period, alongside a slowdown in spot Bitcoin ETF entries. The stance on the Fed’s side is quite clear, but we see the market’s excessive optimism being undercut, and Harker stated the following during the time of writing;
“The latest CPI data shows uneven progress in pulling down inflation. The deflationary trend has accelerated, and the Fed is on the final stretch towards 2%. We may be close to lowering interest rates, but we are not certain when this will happen. There are many signs that the labor market is becoming more balanced. The US GDP continues to be strong. The biggest risk is the Fed lowering interest rates too early. Financial market liquidity remains abundant. An increase in layoffs is not a sign of an approaching recession.”
The key points of the statements are outlined above, and the outlook is not that bad. However, the inflation data for February coming in March is of critical importance.