[Bitcoin Now] Surges Over 3% Amid US Stock Rally... Inflation Easing Hopes

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] As the U.S. stock market closed higher on expectations of easing inflation, the leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin showed strength.

According to the global cryptocurrency market tracking site CoinMarketCap, as of 1:10 PM on the 13th, Bitcoin was trading at $24,756 (approximately 32.33 million KRW), up 3.03% from the previous day.

Bitcoin, which had fallen to the $23,600 range the day before, is showing an upward trend as the U.S. stock market, which exhibits a synchronization phenomenon, closed higher. On the 12th (local time), the Nasdaq index, centered on technology stocks, closed at 13,047.19, up 267.27 points (2.09%). The S&P 500 index, focused on large-cap stocks, closed at 4,280.15, up 72.88 points (1.73%) from the previous session, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 33,761.05, up 424.38 points (1.27%).

The U.S. stock market rose as risk appetite revived following signals of inflation slowdown. The July Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) growth rates both slowed. Additionally, the import price index for July, announced on the same day, recorded a decline for the first time since December last year. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the July import price index fell 1.4% from the previous month. Although it rose 0.3% the month before, it turned to a decline. If inflationary pressures ease like this, expectations arise that the Federal Reserve's rate hike intensity will weaken.

Investor sentiment is also recovering. According to cryptocurrency data provider Alternative, the Fear & Greed Index, which measures investment sentiment, rose 4 points from the previous day to 46 points (fear) on the same day. This is the highest level so far this month and a 15-point increase from 31 points (fear) on the 6th of this month, a week ago. Alternative's Fear & Greed Index means that the closer to 0 points, the more pessimistic fear investors feel about investing, and the closer to 100 points, the more optimistic they are.