Bitcoin surges to fresh record high above $73,000 post US CPI data

Market

Bitcoin hit a new all-time high on Wednesday, surpassing the $73,000 mark as investors mostly shrugged off slightly hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation, betting it won’t derail interest rate cuts expected by the middle of the year.In the last 24 hours, Bitcoin jumped to an intraday peak of $73,127. It was last 0.9% higher at $72,920 at 12:57 pm IST.

Overnight data showed U.S. consumer prices increased a solid 0.36% in February against expectations for a 0.3% rise, amid higher costs for fuel and shelter, though on an annual basis, core CPI slowed slightly to 3.8%.

“The CPI data came higher than expected in February. Despite this, Bitcoin holds above the $72,000 threshold level with the continuation of inflows into the spot Bitcoin ETFs. Bitcoin has gained about 44% in the past one month and is now eyeing toward the $76,000 level,” said Edul Patel, CEO of Mudrex.

Following Bitcoin’s gains, several other cryptocurrencies also surged in Wednesday’s trade. Avalanche and Toncoin saw notable increases of 13.5% and 21.2%, respectively. Ethereum, BNB, Cardano, Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, Polkadot, and Chainlink also experienced significant gains.

The total crypto market volume over the last 24 hours is $158.71 billion, which makes a 2.97% decrease. The total volume in DeFi is currently $15.44 billion, 9.73% of the total crypto market 24-hour volume. The volume of all stablecoins is now $146 billion, which is 91.9% of the total crypto market 24-hour volume, as per data available on CoinMarketCap.

In the last 24 hours, the market cap of Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, surged to $1.434 trillion. Bitcoin’s dominance is currently 52.06%, according to CoinMarketCap. BTC volume in the last 24 hours rose 4.4% to $62 billion.

Tech view by Sathvik Vishwanath, Co-Founder & CEO, Unocoin
Bitcoin continues to command attention as it hovers above $72,000. This resilience fuels optimism among traders and analysts regarding its future trajectory. Critical price levels on a four-hour chart include a pivot point at $70,013, with resistance at $73,824, $76,749, and $79,904, potentially impeding upward movement. Conversely, support levels at $67,154, $64,861, and $62,192 offer buffers against downward pressure.

Technical indicators, notably the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 67, suggest a slightly overbought status, yet predominantly bullish sentiment persists. Investors weigh these factors in deciding whether now is the opportune time to enter the market.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)