Investing.com — Bitcoin fell to its lowest level in over six months on Monday, driven by weakening expectations for an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve next month and increased caution ahead of the delayed release of U.S. economic data. The world’s largest cryptocurrency last traded down 1.6% at $93,876.6 as of 07:22 Moscow time. Earlier in the session, it dropped to $93,043.9, hitting its lowest level since late April. Bitcoin fell almost 7% last week, marking its third consecutive weekly drop. Bitcoin falls amid fading hopes for Fed rate cut The decline came as traders sharply scaled back bets on a policy easing in December. Interest rate futures now imply about a 40% probability of a rate cut at the Fed’s December 10-11 meeting, compared to about 90% at the beginning of this month. A growing number of Fed policymakers are signaling a reluctance to move further, citing uneven inflation trends and an still-resilient labor market. Boston Fed President Susan Collins said last week that she was “reluctant to ease policy further” without clear evidence of conditions worsening. Crypto markets, which rallied earlier this year amid aggressive bets on Fed easing, are currently losing momentum. Spot Bitcoin ETFs are also seeing accelerating outflows as investors unwind positions tied to looser monetary conditions. Sentiment was also dampened by the recent data blackout caused by the U.S. government shutdown, which left investors without key macroeconomic indicators for several weeks. The shutdown delayed the release of Bureau of Labor Statistics reports, including the September nonfarm payrolls report, which is now scheduled for release on Thursday. Japan Considers Classifying Cryptocurrencies as Financial Products — Asahi Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) is reportedly preparing to reclassify cryptocurrencies as financial products under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act, according to the Asahi newspaper. Under the proposed rules, around 105 crypto assets, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, would fall under insider trading laws prohibiting transactions based on undisclosed information. The FSA is also pushing to lower the tax rate on crypto profits to a flat 20%, aligning the regime with stocks, compared to a top rate that can exceed 55%, Asahi reports. Coin Prices Today: Altcoins Remain Cautious, Ether Jumps Over 4% Most altcoins also continued their losses on Monday amid a general risk-off sentiment. The world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, Ethereum, fell 1.6% to $3,104.13. The world’s third-largest cryptocurrency, XRP, was nearly flat at $2.226. Solana dropped 1%, while Cardano and Polygon fell 3% each. Among meme tokens, Dogecoin lost 1.7%, and $TRUMP declined by 0.7%. Which Stock to Buy in the Next Trading Session? AI computing power is changing the stock market. In Investing.com’s ProPicks AI, you can find dozens of winning stock portfolios selected by our high-tech AI. Since the beginning of the year, 3 out of 4 global financial portfolios have outperformed their benchmark indices year-to-date, with 98% of the stocks within them showing gains. Over 18 months, our flagship “Titans of Tech” strategy has doubled the performance of the S&P 500. Outstanding results notable among Super Micro Computer (+185%) and AppLovin (+157%).
About the Author
