The Crucial Federal Open Market Committee Meeting

The crucial Federal Open Market Committee meeting is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. In a recent speech, US Fed Chairman Jerome Powell hinted at a wait-and-see approach on interest rates, citing the turmoil caused by newly introduced economic policies, particularly the aggressive tariff policy. Uncertainty looms over US markets, and crypto investors have reacted to these market fluctuations. The cryptocurrency market has seen a decrease of 3.1% in the past 24 hours. Bitcoin has dropped by 1.7%, while Ethereum declined by 2.3%. Let’s dive in for more details!

Bitcoin and Ethereum Drop

Yesterday, the Bitcoin market suffered a significant drop of 2.09%. On March 16, it closed at $82,577. In just 24 hours, the BTC market fell by an additional 1.9%, with the current price at $82,888.44, showing a slight increase of 0.37% from the previous closing.

Yesterday, Ethereum plummeted from approximately $1,935.77 to $1,886.92, marking a substantial single-day drop of 2.52%. Over the last 24 hours, ETH has experienced a decline of 2.4%, currently priced at $1,888.69, just above yesterday’s close.

Experts believe that the sharp decline in market sentiment over the weekend stemmed from economic and regulatory concerns.

US Stock Futures & Federal Reserve’s Impact

At this week’s FOMC meeting, the Fed is unlikely to alter interest rates. Currently, the federal funds rate remains between 4.25% and 4.5%.

In February, the US inflation rate decreased from 3% to 2.8%. Forecasts indicate it could drop to 2.5% in March.

US President Donald Trump recently imposed import tariffs on China, Mexico, and Canada and intends to expand this aggressive tariff policy.

Many believe that the Fed won’t make any interest rate decisions until the US economy has fully absorbed the impact of the tariffs, which could potentially increase inflation in the market.

Uncertainty continues to affect US markets. Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite Futures have all declined, indicating cautious investor sentiment.

Crypto Derivatives & Market Trends

The cryptocurrency market has dropped by 3.1% in the last 24 hours, with nearly all top-ten cryptocurrencies experiencing decreases. Bitcoin fell by 1.9%, Ethereum by 2.4%, XRP by 1.9%, Solana by 4.6%, and Cardano by 3%.

Despite $253 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, reports suggest that leverage remains high in crypto futures markets.

Funding rates have stabilized at neutral, reflecting mixed market sentiment.

In conclusion, crypto traders are looking for a catalyst, such as the Fed’s policy decision or a signal of institutional investment, to determine the market’s next direction.