After returning to the $69,000 zone early Wednesday morning in the United States, Bitcoin quickly reached almost $71,000.
Other crypto assets, including ether (ETH), solana (SOL), and XRP, saw the same sharp rises.
The gains appear to come as crude oil quickly reversed most of its session’s big gains, losing $3 a barrel in a matter of minutes. At press time, WTI crude futures for April were at $85, up 2% for the day.
The drop in crude also benefited stocks, with the Nasdaq going from a slight decline to a gain of 0.5% in early US trading.
Crypto-related stocks were mixed, with Strategy (MSTR), Galaxy Digital (GLXY) and Bullish (BLSH) posting modest advances, while Coinbase (COIN) and eToro (ETOR) were slightly lower.
With the ongoing war against Iran, risk markets have been dominated this week by the movement in oil prices. Stocks and cryptocurrencies plunged late Sunday as oil climbed to $120, but then gained as oil quickly retreated.
New inflation data
Wednesday’s February CPI report was in line with economists’ forecasts, rising 0.3% on a monthly basis, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 2.4%. Next month, however, the situation could be much different due to the outbreak of war between the United States and Iran, raising the question of whether the Federal Reserve will react to the temporary shock or adopt a more hawkish stance after being caught off guard during the last inflation cycle.
Stephen Coltman, head of macro at 21shares, said the Fed’s choice will be crucial, noting that investors will be watching next week’s Fed meeting closely to see what signals officials give that they intend to respond.
As for Bitcoin, next month’s data surge is likely “already baked,” he said.
