Crypto Markets at Crossroads as Traders Eye Fed Moves

Bitcoin is up slightly to trade above $109,000, while altcoins are mostly in the red.

Crypto markets started the month mostly flat, with total market capitalization holding steady over the past 24 hours, just below $3.9 trillion. Bitcoin (BTC) is up slightly today, Sept. 1, reaching back over $109,000, while Ethereum (ETH) declined by 1.5% to about $4,400 — losing 5% over the past week.

On the monthly timeframe, BTC is down 4%, after hitting a new all-time high above $124,000 in mid-August.

BTC 24-hour price chart. Source: CoinGecko

ETH had a much stronger past 30 days, breaking over its former 2021 all-time high to reach above $4,900. The largest altcoin is up more than 25% over the past month.

ETH 1-month price chart. Source: CoinGecko

As for other large-cap crypto assets, Solana (SOL) fell 1% to trade around $200 today, while XRP is down 1.3% at $2.77. Meanwhile, BNB also lost around 1% over the past 24 hours and is trading at $853.

At the same time, approximately $297 million in leveraged positions were liquidated over the past 24 hours, with ETH traders taking the biggest hit at $76.2 million. BTC accounted for nearly $55 million in liquidations, and other altcoins made up around $42 million, per CoinGlass.

ETF Flows and Macro Update

Spot Ethereum ETFs are still stealing the spotlight. In August, they pulled in $3.87 billion, pushing total inflows to $13.5 billion and total assets to $28.6 billion.

August marks the second-largest monthly inflow ever for ETH ETFs, following July’s $5.43 billion in net inflows, according to data from SoSoValue. Meanwhile, spot Bitcoin ETFs moved in the opposite direction, seeing a total of $751 million in net outflows last month.

Looking at macro economic signals, in the U.S., July’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) numbers came in at about 2.6% for headline and 2.9% for core inflation. The fresh data signals that while overall price growth is steady, there are still pockets of pressure, so the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to take a careful approach on cutting rates.

Futures and the CME FedWatch tool are largely on the same page, mostly pricing in a 25-basis-point move rather than a bigger cut. All eyes are now on the August Producer Price Index, due Sept. 10, and the following labor reports, which could change expectations for the Fed and move the markets again.

Source: https://thedefiant.io/news/markets/crypto-markets-at-crossroads-as-traders-eye-fed-moves