Cryptocurrencies moved in tandem with other risk assets, dropping more than 2.5 percent in the past 24 hours amidst renewed concerns about recession and the health of the economy. The Wall Street had closed lower on Thursday. Friday’s trading in Asia as well as Europe also was in negative territory, reflecting deep-rooted recession worries.
The PMI Flash readings for April from the U.S. are due on Friday morning and markets are waiting to know whether manufacturing sector would remain in contraction territory and whether the services sector would retain the expansionary position. Manufacturing PMI is seen falling to 49 from 49.2 in the previous month whereas the Services PMI is seen falling to 51.5 from 52.6 in the previous month.
The regulatory crackdown on the crypto industry in the U.S. also weighed on sentiment. Coinbase meanwhile announced that it has secured a license from the Bermuda Monetary Authority and hinted at a possibility of moving out of the U.S.
The sharp contrast between the clear regulatory environment in the Europe and the confused and conflicting approach in the U.S. also weighed on crypto market sentiment. The European parliament recently passed the Markets in Crypto-Assets or MiCA framework that provides for a comprehensive cryptocurrency regulation.
Fears of continuing rate hikes by the Fed also weighed on crypto market sentiment. According to the CME FedWatch tool, the probability for the Fed to raise rates by 25 basis points in its next review in early May is 84 percent currently. The probabilities of a 25-basis points rate hike were assessed at 78 percent a week earlier and 59 percent a month earlier.
The Dollar Index, a measure of the Dollar’s strength against major currencies is at 101.77, versus 101.84, a day earlier.
Overall crypto market capitalization dropped to $1.19 trillion, from $1.22 trillion a day earlier. Only three of the top 100 cryptocurrencies are trading with overnight gains of more than one percent.
Among the top 10 cryptocurrencies, 4th ranked BNB (BNB) is the best performer with an overnight gain of close to half a percent. 8th ranked Dogecoin (DOGE) is the biggest laggard, declining 8.7 percent in the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin shed 2.3 percent overnight and traded between $28,906.25 and $27,855.96 in the past 24 hours. It is currently changing hands at $28,194.29.
Ethereum too lost 2.8 percent overnight and is currently trading at $1,915.13. The 24-hour trading range has been between $1,979.57 and $1,894.97.
Both Bitcoin and Ethereum shed more than 8 percent in the past week. However, over the past 30 days, Bitcoin is mostly flat, whereas Ethereum has surged 5.5 percent amidst the euphoria that followed the Shapella upgrade.
6th ranked XRP (XRP) dropped more than 5 percent in the past 24 hours and 11 percent in the past week amidst the impending verdict in its dispute with the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission.
7th ranked Cardano (ADA) shed 3.5 percent in the past 24 hours and 7.9 percent in the past 7 days.
9th ranked Polygon (MATIC) and 10th ranked Solana (SOL), both declined more than 3 percent overnight and more than 10 percent over the week.
The Forkast 500 NFT Index, a proxy measure of the performance of the global NFT market that includes 500 eligible smart contracts on any given day, is currently at 3918.58, down 1.9 percent on an overnight basis.
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