BTC Holds Steady at $83K as ZEC Tumbles 12% and Oil Gains Ground

Global stock markets fell to a one-week low as Brent crude extended its gains for a second consecutive session and traders increased bets on additional Federal Reserve rate hikes ahead of Wednesday’s PCE inflation data.

Bitcoin slipped less than 1% to just above $83,100 during Tuesday’s Asian trading hours, testing the lower end of last week’s range. The decline came after the 10-year Treasury yield climbed to its highest level since 2007.

ZEC recorded the steepest decline among major cryptocurrencies, dropping 12% to about $1,380, according to CoinDesk data. SOL and HYPE each declined between 3% and 4%, while DOGE fell 3%, BNB dropped 2% and XRP lost nearly 2%. Ether and TRX remained largely unchanged.

Among smaller tokens, The Graph’s GRT rose 18% and Immutable’s IMX gained almost 10%, according to FxPro. UNI and BCH each declined around 10%, while DASH fell 7%. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization stood near $2.86 trillion.

A widely followed crypto sentiment index registered 74 out of 100 on Monday, just below the “extreme greed” range. FxPro noted that the reading stood in contrast to the stock market, where fear has persisted for around 20 days.

Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, said Bitcoin’s decline toward $83,000 has brought the cryptocurrency to the lower boundary of last week’s consolidation range. He said a retest of $82,000 would be reasonable under current market conditions, noting that the level marked previous peaks in May and early September.

Kuptsikevich said a sustained break below $80,000 would signal that Bitcoin may require more time before attempting another move higher. If the current consolidation is followed by renewed bullish momentum, however, Bitcoin could potentially move well above $90,000.

Oil and Treasury Yields Add to Market Pressure

The latest pressure on Bitcoin is coming from the bond and oil markets.

Treasuries stabilized during Asian trading after a sharp decline in U.S. markets. The 10-year Treasury yield rose one basis point to 5.25%, following a move to its highest level since 2007 on Monday. Higher government bond yields can make traditional fixed-income assets more attractive relative to non-yielding assets such as Bitcoin.

Brent crude gained more than 1% to nearly $107 a barrel, marking its second consecutive advance as expectations for an immediate diplomatic breakthrough with Iran faded.

Higher oil prices can add to inflationary pressure, prompting traders to raise expectations for additional Federal Reserve rate increases. The MSCI All Country World Index fell to its lowest level since Sept. 18, while Nasdaq 100 futures declined 0.3% following Monday’s technology-led selloff on Wall Street.

PCE Data Becomes the Next Key Test

Markets are now focused on Wednesday’s release of the August personal consumption expenditures price index from the U.S. Commerce Department.

The PCE index is one of the inflation measures closely monitored by the Federal Reserve. A stronger-than-expected reading could reinforce expectations for further rate hikes and push Treasury yields higher.

The combination of elevated yields and renewed inflation concerns is adding pressure to Bitcoin after its recent climb above $87,000.