Traditional and cryptocurrency investors eagerly await Friday’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) release in the US, which may provide some relief to inflation-related concerns and increase investor appetite for risk assets including Bitcoin.
The US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) will release on March 28 the next PCE report, which measures the inflation of prices US consumers are paying for goods and services.
The PCE inflation print may become the “next key catalyst” for Bitcoin (BTC) and other risk assets, according to QCP Group, a Singapore-based digital asset firm.
QCP wrote on Telegram:
“As we approach Friday’s quarterly expiry, with the highest open interest in topside strikes above $100K, we don’t expect major volatility driven by options positioning alone. But attention will turn to the PCE inflation print, which could become the next key catalyst.”
Risk assets staged a significant recovery after “Trump signaled twice on Monday that trading partners might secure exemptions or reductions, offering a reprieve that helped soothe market jitters,” QCP added.
Other analysts have pointed at global trade war concerns as the biggest hurdle for investor appetite.
Despite a multitude of positive crypto-specific developments, global tariff fears will continue to pressure the markets until at least April 2, according to Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at Nansen.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what happens with the tariffs from April 2nd onward, maybe we’ll see some of them dropped but it depends if all countries can agree,” Sondergaard said.
Bitcoin’s price is down over 14% since US President Donald Trump first announced import tariffs on Chinese goods on Jan. 20, the day of his presidential inauguration.
Still, analysts expect the PCE report to further soothe inflation-related concerns, catalyzing Bitcoin’s historic rally for the month of April.
Bitcoin has averaged over a 12.9% monthly return during April, making it the fourth-best month for Bitcoin’s price based on historic returns, CoinGlass data shows.
Bitcoin may rally to $110,000 record high on easing inflation concerns
Bitcoin is more likely to soar to a new $110,000 all-time high before retracing to $76,500, according to Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX and chief investment officer of Maelstrom.
Bitcoin’s rise to the record $110,000 mark “appears plausible in the current market environment,” according to Juan Pellicer, senior research analyst at IntoTheBlock.
“BTC is showing signs of recovery, driven by growing institutional interest and significant investments from large players,” the analyst told Cointelegraph, adding:
“The Federal Reserve’s recent decision to ease its monetary tightening could further boost liquidity, favoring a price increase in the near term.”
“While market volatility remains a risk that could lead to a pullback, the overall momentum and support levels suggest Bitcoin is more likely to hit the higher target first,” added Pellicer.