[Bitcoin Now] Decline Ahead of US July CPI Release... Investor Sentiment Also Down

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Ahead of the release of the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) for July, the price of the leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin is showing weakness.

According to the global cryptocurrency market tracking site CoinMarketCap, as of 11:09 AM on the 10th, the price of Bitcoin was recorded at $22,909 (approximately 29.96 million KRW), down 3.55% from the previous day. It had fallen to the $22,700 range around 9:50 AM but later narrowed the decline.

Bitcoin prices are declining ahead of the US July CPI announcement scheduled for 9:30 PM that day. The market expects the July CPI to rise 8.7?8.9% year-over-year, which is lower than June’s 9.1% but still at a high level. There are concerns that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) may implement another giant step (a 0.75 percentage point interest rate hike). Cryptocurrency specialized media CoinDesk evaluated that "investors are holding back while waiting for the US July CPI announcement."

Additionally, the synchronized decline in the US stock market also influenced the drop in Bitcoin prices. On the 9th (local time), the tech-heavy Nasdaq index closed at 12,493.93, down 150.53 points (1.19%), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 32,774.41, down 58.13 points (0.18%) from the previous session. While watching the US July CPI announcement, semiconductor stocks showed weakness as Micron, following Nvidia, lowered its earnings outlook citing continued deterioration in memory semiconductor demand.

Meanwhile, the Digital Asset Fear & Greed Index by Dunamu, which operates the domestic cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, recorded 53.19 on the day, indicating a 'neutral' stage. This is a decrease of 2.28 from the previous day’s 55.47 (neutral). Dunamu’s Digital Asset Fear & Greed Index is divided into stages of 'Extreme Fear (0?20)', 'Fear (20?40)', 'Neutral (40?60)', 'Greed (60?80)', and 'Extreme Greed (80?100)'. The greed direction indicates increased interest in buying by market participants, whereas moving toward fear indicates a fear of asset decline, leading to market exits and a chain reaction of price drops.