Summary
- Crypto roundup for Thursday portrays a slightly upbeat risk profile as rising hopes of a December Fed rate cut join Ukraine-Russia peace expectations on Thanksgiving-linked market inaction.
- Bitcoin eases after hitting a weekly top, while Gold holds mild losses following an uptick to an eight-day high, and the U.S. Dollar rebounds.
- Odds favoring the December Fed rate cut jump to over 80% from 30% last week, restoring the market’s hopes of easy money.
- Russian President Putin praised the U.S. peace plan, flashing the much-awaited positive sign.
- China flags concerns about U.S.-Malaysia trade deal, mainly over rare earth exports.
- U.S. holiday, light calendar elsewhere will restrict market momentum, allowing contrarian traders to take risks during less liquidity.
Crypto Roundup for Thursday: A Dull, But Positive Day
Thursday’s market activity remains subdued due to the U.S. Thanksgiving Holiday and a light global economic calendar. Despite this, a sharp rise in dovish Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) expectations, jumping from 35% last week to nearly 85%, fueled a cautious risk-on sentiment. This was further supported by optimism surrounding a potential Ukraine-Russia peace deal.
Amid these plays, Bitcoin (BTC) seesaws around $90,700, after hitting the weekly top near $92K, while the spot Gold (XAU) posts modest losses near $4,160, following an uptick to an eight-day high of $4,169. That said, the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) bounces off a week’s low, despite lacking upside momentum near 99.60 by press time.
Although there are no major data/events from the U.S., Thursday’s statistics and Fed Beige Book bolstered the previous expectations of a third consecutive rate cut by the U.S. central bank in December. That said, the CME’s FedWatch Tool portrays an 85% chance of the rate cut, versus 39% on November 20.
Elsewhere, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the U.S. is taking into account their (Russian) position while adding, “We agree that Trump’s Ukraine plan can be used as a basis for future agreements.” Putin’s comments raise hopes of an earlier end to the deadly war in Ukraine and favor the risk assets despite holiday-linked inaction.
Alternatively, China showed its dislike for the trade deal between the U.S. and Malaysia, mainly due to the concerns surrounding the rare earth compound.
Crypto, Equity Update
Major cryptocurrency coins remain under pressure, apart from Bitcoin (BTC), despite lacking momentum due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
That said, Bitcoin (BTC) hits weekly high with mild gains, while Binance Coin (BNB) edges up, but Ethereum (ETH), Cardano (ADA), and Ripple (XRP) all drop between 0.5% and 2.0% each by the press time.
Notably, Kaspa (KAS) jumps 17% in the last 24 hours to gain the bull’s attention, whereas MemeCore (M) nosedived 30% and lured the crypto bears.
On a broader front, crypto market capitalization (market cap) rose 3.40% on the day to $3.1 trillion, while the Bitcoin Dominance rose to 58.6% from 57.8% during the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data.
That said, some of the top crypto news are as follows, while more updates like this could be traced to our News section.
The global exchange body representing over 250 market infrastructures, the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), urges global regulators to clamp down on tokenized equities. The WFE stated in a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other global regulatory bodies that granting special exemptions to crypto firms would create an opportunity for regulatory arbitrage.
Read Details: World Federation of Exchanges Demands Crackdown on Crypto “Mimic” Stocks
The Bolivian government took a bold move to combat 22% inflation and dollar shortages, allowing banks to custody cryptocurrencies and stablecoins as part of a broader $9 billion recovery plan. Economy Minister Jose Gabriel Espinoza stated that banks can now hold cryptocurrencies, allowing individuals to store their crypto in savings accounts, use crypto for credit products, and receive loans based on crypto collateral.
For More: Bolivia Crypto Integration Policy to Stabilize Ailing Economy
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has admitted RegTech firm Eunice into its Regulatory Sandbox to test new disclosure tools aimed at improving transparency in the UK’s crypto market.
Also Read: UK’s FCA Turns To Market Players For Crypto Clarity, With Eunice First Into The Sandbox
Talking about equities, Wall Street and bond markets are both off Thursday due to the Thanksgiving Holiday, allowing major traders a chance to spend earnings from the latest run-up in equity indices.
On Wednesday, the U.S. equities rose for the fourth consecutive day, with the NASDAQ leading the gainers (up +0.82%), followed by the S&P 500 (+0.69%) and then the Dow Jones (+0.67%). Notably, shares from Nvidia and AMD gained, while stocks of Google’s parent company Alphabet retreated. Overall, the increasing odds of December Fed rate cut defended the market sentiment, despite mixed geopolitical and trade news.
- Gold remains mildly offered around $4,160, after hitting a week’s high.
- Bitcoin (BTC) remains sidelined near $90,700, following a run-up to refresh the weekly top.
- Ethereum (ETH) drops 1.0%, posting the first daily loss in six, around $2,990 as we write.
- U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) bounces off a week’s low, making rounds to 99.60 at the latest.
- U.S. equities and bond markets are closed due to the Thanksgiving Day Holiday.
- WTI Crude Oil stays mildly bid, keeping the previous day’s rebound near $58.80 by press time.
An inactive day/week ahead
Thursday’s market moves will be restricted by the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, while a light calendar and an early close on Friday will challenge the momentum traders tomorrow.
With this, key risk factors to watch include central bank speculations, updates on Ukraine, and tensions between China and Japan.
With December Fed rate cut bets rising, the U.S. Dollar may remain under pressure, but a multi-week support near 99.40 could trigger the greenback’s corrective bounce during the inactive session. Meanwhile, optimism surrounding trade and geopolitical developments could help the risk assets like equities and cryptocurrencies to pare the previous week’s losses.
Notably, an absence of the U.S. traders creates a liquidity gap in the markets and allows the contrarian traders to take control, requiring market participants to remain cautious during the wild swings, if any.
Also read: Cryptocurrency Weekly Price Prediction: BTC, ETH, and XRP Tumble on Fed Buzz; More Pain Ahead?
