FED, CPI, US Consumer Confidence

• Crypto Market beings the second week of 2023 on an optimistic note ahead of key macro indicators.
• The Fed commentary and inflation will be the most likely watched for markets to decide on the next course of movement.

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We are officially into the second week of 2023 and the broader cryptocurrency market is cheering with a fresh pump. Bitcoin (BTC) is up by 2 percent at press time, moving past its crucial resistance of $17,200. On the other hand, the altcoins have been backing this rally with a strong pump over the last 24 hours.

This week in particular will be important for the crypto space considering all the macro developments lined up ahead. The positive movements in the stock indices in Europe and the USA have served as a catalyst for the recent fresh pump in crypto. Let’s take a look at some of the key developments ahead this week.

Fed Press Conference on Jan 10

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will provide more insights into the monetary policy over the next interest rate decision ahead of February 1. The Fed chair will likely reaffirm his stand on the monetary policy going ahead into 2023.

Jerome Powell has already hinted that there will more rate hikes this year. However, the Fed has slowed down on the rate hikes which is a bit positive for the market. If things proceed as per plans, the market will take a breather from last year’s correction and likely move ahead or restrict greater falls on the downside.

CPI Consumer Prices and Inflation Data on Jan 12

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics will publish the inflation data ahead of this week on January 12 for the month of December 2022. Compared to the month of November, analysts are forecasting a 0.3 percent increase in the core rate.

However, on the year-on-year comparison, the markets are expecting a decline to 5.7 percent from 6.0 percent for the same period a year ago. If these forecasts come true and US consumer prices continue to fall, the correction in the US Dollar Index will widen further. This would, in turn, help the stock market and the crypto market to gain strength.

On the other hand, if the consumer indices turn out to be higher than expected, it would mean a bearish signal for the market. The Fed will further continue with rate hikes at higher interest rates going ahead.

US Consumer Confidence

A day after the inflation data we will have insights into US consumer confidence and consumer expectations for households in the month of January 2022. The University of Michigan publishes consumer confidence data highlighting the level of consumer optimism about the US economic development.

For the month of December 2022, household confidence was 59.7. For the month of January, experts are expecting consumer confidence to rise to 60.0.

This data will ultimately reflect in the movement on Wall street and the subsequent move in the crypto space thereafter.