Bitcoin Market Decline Amid Economic Data Releases

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CoinDesk 20 Index: 1,925 −2.1%
Bitcoin (BTC): $59,616 −1.9%
Ether (ETH): $2,675 +0.5%
S&P 500: 5,344.16 +0.5%
Gold: $2,481 +2.0%
Nikkei 225: 35,025 +0.56%

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Bitcoin (BTC) encountered a decline, dropping toward the $58,000 mark, which triggered a broader sell-off across the crypto market as traders sought direction ahead of a week filled with significant economic data releases. Currently, BTC has decreased approximately 2.15% in the past 24 hours, hovering just below $59,500. The overall digital asset market has also seen a downturn, losing nearly 2.9%, as reported by the CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20). Notably, Solana’s SOL was among the hardest hit, plummeting nearly 3% to $149. In addition, recent data concerning U.S.-listed ETFs has been lackluster, with bitcoin funds experiencing outflows totaling $89 million on Friday, while ether-based funds recorded a loss of $15.7 million.

Amid these fluctuations, some analysts have expressed concerns over the potential for further declines in BTC prices over the coming weeks due to signs of technical weakness. They pointed out that upcoming economic reports could exert upward pressure on prices. “Crypto prices are likely to remain rangebound, leaning towards the downside,” stated Augustine Fan, head of insights at SOFA.org, in a message to CoinDesk via Telegram. “The crypto markets currently lack a solid anchor and are vulnerable to ongoing position adjustments. We have noticed continued muted ETF inflows for both BTC and ETH in recent sessions.” Key economic indicators, including the July CPI readings from both the U.K. and the U.S., are set to be released on Wednesday. Additionally, Australia’s consumer confidence index, which gauges public sentiment regarding household finances, along with Japan’s Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures price trends for goods traded within the corporate sector, are scheduled for release on Tuesday.

In other news, a former official of the Bank of Japan indicated that the central bank is likely to postpone any additional interest rate hikes until next year. “They won’t be able to raise rates again, at least for the remainder of this year,” remarked Makoto Sakurai on Friday, as reported by Bloomberg. “It’s uncertain whether they will be able to implement even one hike by next March.” The BOJ had previously increased its key interest rate to approximately 0.25% from a range near zero on July 31, marking the first hike in over a decade. This shift away from the zero interest rate policy strengthened the yen and led to the unwinding of “risk-on” yen carry trades. Consequently, this caused a significant drop in traditional risk assets, heavily impacting BTC, which fell from around $65,000 to $50,000 in less than a week.

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