Traders are positioning cautiously ahead of U.S. inflation reports that analysts say could determine the tone for the remainder of December.
Bitcoin News
Bitcoin changed hands below $86,000 Monday as crypto markets entered a week heavy with macroeconomic data releases. Traders are positioning cautiously ahead of U.S. inflation reports that analysts say could determine the tone for the remainder of December.
Ethereum held near $3,100 while BNB and Solana traded around $890 and $132, respectively. The price action reflects broader cooling in sentiment after last week's hawkish cut from the Federal Reserve and muted follow-through across spot and derivatives markets.
With Federal Open Market Committee meetings concluded for 2025, markets turn fully toward U.S. data to gauge how quickly monetary easing may translate into improved liquidity conditions next year. Retail sales, jobless claims, Consumer Price Index, personal consumption expenditures, and multiple Fed appearances will cluster into a narrow window.
Timothy Misir, head of research at BRN, noted markets are no longer trading last week's rate cut directly, but the data that may validate or challenge it. Inflation prints will be decisive, with any upside surprise risking reinforcement of the hawkish cut narrative, while softer data could reopen the door for risk assets into year-end.
Approximately $298 million in positions were liquidated over the last 24 hours, with longs representing nearly 80% of the total according to data from CoinGlass. The flush reduced speculative leverage but did little to spark fresh upside momentum, with Bitcoin struggling to reclaim key resistance zones.
Bitcoin's network hashrate fell approximately 8% after reported mining shutdowns in China's Xinjiang region. While disruptive in the short term, such contractions historically tighten marginal supply and can precede periods of stabilization, according to market analysts.
CryptoQuant data shows wholecoiner inflows to exchanges have collapsed to levels last seen in 2018. Transactions of more than 1 Bitcoin moving onto exchanges now average around 5,200 Bitcoin weekly, down from historical highs.
The trend signals reduced selling intent from investors holding meaningful amounts of Bitcoin. CryptoQuant analysts noted the broader ecosystem's expansion has redirected flows away from centralized exchanges, contributing to the decline in large-holder deposits.
Standard Chartered revised its outlook last week, halving its end-2025 Bitcoin projection from $200,000 to $100,000. The bank cited diminished corporate treasury buying and slower-than-expected exchange-traded fund inflows as factors behind the reduced forecast, while maintaining its long-term view that Bitcoin can reach $500,000 by 2030.
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