Bitcoin (BTC) hovered near $71,000 at Thursday’s Wall Street open after US inflation data conformed to expectations.
Key points:
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Bitcoin waits for new catalysts as US PCE inflation data conforms to market expectations.
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Friday’s CPI release may begin to reflect any impact of the US-Iran conflict, analysts say.
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$80,000 remains in play as a BTC price target, a trader says.
PCE data avoids surprises for risk assets
Data from TradingView showed cooling BTC price volatility after local highs near $73,000 the day prior.
BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingViewRelief over a US-Iran ceasefire combined with favorable readings from the Federal Reserve’s “preferred” inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, helped steady risk assets.
Core PCE year-on-year came in at 3% for February. On a monthly basis, core PCE was at 0.4%, per data from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The data reflects February activity and may not yet capture recent geopolitical developments.
US PCE data. Source: BEAReacting, trading resource The Kobeissi Letter noted that the impact of the US-Iran war and oil-supply squeeze were not yet reflected in PCE.
“This marks the final pre-Iran War PCE inflation datapoint,” it wrote on X.
Markets remained cautious about future Fed policy, with data from CME Group’s FedWatch Tool continuing to show no expectations of interest-rate cuts in 2026.
Fed target rate probabilities (screenshot). Source: CME GroupWhile Bitcoin offered no obvious reaction to the latest data, meanwhile, economist Mohamed El-Erian argued that Friday’s March Consumer Price Index (CPI) release was more important.
“While PCE inflation is widely regarded as the Fed’s favorite measure, the bigger inflation focus this week will be on tomorrow’s CPI data, as PCE covers February and not March,” he told X followers.
As Cointelegraph reported, CPI is particularly susceptible to fallout from oil-price swings.
Trader: $80,000 BTC price push “on the horizon”
BTC price action thus left traders guessing as to when and where the next move would be.
Related: Bitcoin RSI ‘nearly perfectly’ copying end of 2022 bear market: Analysis
In their latest market commentary, pseudonymous trader LP leveraged liquidation clusters to give potential targets.
“On the HTF, some upside low-leverage liquidation clusters have been cleared, but sizeable liquidity still remains around 73K and above the highs near 76K. Meanwhile, liquidity is starting to build on the downside, mainly around 69K and 64K,” an X post stated.
BTC/USDT order-book liquidity data. Source: LP/XCrypto trader Michaël Van de Poppe was more optimistic, keeping the $80,000 mark in play.
“As long as Bitcoin continues to hold these ranges, there’s a strong new upwards leg on the horizon towards $80K,” he summarized on the day.
BTC/USDT one-day chart. Source: Michaël Van de PoppeThis article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and is intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or recommendations. All investments and trades carry risk; readers are encouraged to conduct independent research before making any decisions. Cointelegraph makes no guarantees regarding the accuracy or completeness of the information presented, including forward-looking statements, and will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from reliance on this content.
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