Investing.com-- Bitcoin price moved little on Friday as sentiment towards crypto markets was largely quashed by growing expectations of higher-for-longer U.S. interest rates, with focus turning to upcoming U.S. inflation data.
Bitcoin rose 0.2% over the past 24 hours to $64,339.7 by 01:38 ET (05:38 GMT). The world’s largest cryptocurrency was set for a muted weekly performance, as it sat squarely within a $60,000 to $70,000 trading range established over the past six weeks.
Fears of continued regulatory pressure on crypto came to fore this week after reports said U.S. prosecutors were seeking a three-year prison sentence for disgraced Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, after he pleaded guilty to violating anti-money laundering laws.
Bitcoin outlook dim as rate cut bets wane
The token, along with the broader crypto market, took little advantage of an overnight decline in the dollar, following weaker-than-expected U.S. gross domestic product data.
But a stronger GDP price index reading saw traders further price out expectations for interest rate cuts by the Fed.
The CME Fedwatch tool showed traders only pricing in rate cuts by September, or the fourth quarter of 2024.
The prospect of higher-for-longer U.S. interest rates kept traders largely averse to Bitcoin and crypto, given that it diminishes the appeal of volatile, speculative assets.
Bitcoin tends to thrive in low-rate, high-liquidity environments.
This saw the token also disregard positive cues from U.S. technology stocks, following strong earnings from tech giants Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL).
The token's correlation with U.S. tech stocks was seen coming back into play in recent weeks, although largely in a negative context.
Crypto price today: altcoins listless as PCE data looms
Broader crypto markets were also a mixed bag, with focus turning chiefly to key upcoming U.S. inflation data for more cues on interest rates.
World no. 2 token Ethereum fell 0.3%, while XRP and Solana moved in a tight range.
PCE price index data for March is due later on Friday. The index is the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, and is widely expected to factor into the central bank’s outlook on interest rates.
