Decentral Block Post

Bitcoin (BTC) price had a mixed reaction on Dec. 9 after the November report on United States producer prices showed a 7.4% increase versus 2021. The data suggested that wholesale costs continued to rise and inflation may last longer than investors had previously believed. Oil prices are also still a focus for investors, with crude WTI hitting a new yearly low at $71.10 on Dec. 8. 

The United States Dollar Index (DXY), a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of top foreign currencies, sustained the 104.50 level, but the index traded at 104.10, a 5-month low on Dec. 4. This signals low confidence in the U.S. Federal Reserve’s ability to curb inflation without causing a significant recession.

Trader gutsareon noted that the choppy activity caused leverage longs and shorts to be liquidated, but it was followed by a failed tentative dump below $17,050.

According to the analysis, the open interest stagnation on futures contracts indicated low confidence from bears.

Regulatory uncertainty could have played a key role in limiting Bitcoin's upside. On Dec. 8, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued new guidance that could see publicly traded companies disclose their exposure to crypto assets.

Crypto exchange Binance closed a trader account on Dec. 9 after a user complained about the exchange's response for alleged funds theft. Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao said the firm does not want to service "unreasonable" clients.

A user by the name of CoinMamba on Twitter started complaining about the lost funds on Dec. 8, claiming that a leaked API key tied to crypto trading firm 3Commas was used "to make trades on low cap coins to push up the price to make profit."

The trader claims in a series of tweets that Binance was unable to provide him with appropriate support:

Binance CEO also took to Twitter on Dec. 9 to clarify the situation:

As the user continued to complain on the social media platform, CZ admitted in another tweet to be considering putting the user's account “in off boarding (withdrawal only) mode", claiming "we don’t want to service people who are unreasonable.” The tweet was later deleted, but is still available as a screenshot in the thread. The user's account was then closed, with three days to withdraw funds.

Bitcoin (BTC) maintained $17,000 support into Dec. 10 ahead of a critical week of macro data.

CPI print will make Fed "slow down"

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView followed BTC/USD as it traded sideways after the close of trading on Wall Street.

The pair looked set for a quiet weekend, with all eyes focused on United States inflation readings and policy updates due from Dec. 13 onward.

With the Producer Price Index (PPI) November print behind it, the month’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) results took center stage.

As Cointelegraph reported, expectations remain that CPI will show U.S. inflation continuing to abate, sparking renewed strength in risk assets, including crypto.

Bitcoin (BTC) mining is the backbone of the BTC ecosystem and miners’ returns also provide insight into BTC’s price movements and the health of the wider crypto sector.

It is well-documented that Bitcoin miners are struggling in the current bear market. Blockstream, a leading Bitcoin miner recently raised funds at a 70% discount.

Current mining activity shares similarities to historic BTC bear markets with a few caveats.

Let’s explore what this means for the current Bitcoin cycle.

Analysis shows that based on previous cycles the bear market may continue

Bitcoin mining profitability can be measured by taking the miner’s revenue per kilowatt hour (kWh). According to Jaran Mellerud, a Bitcoin analyst for Hashrate Index, a BTC mining bear market has a sustained period of revenue per kWh of less than $0.25. Under his assumption, he calculates using the most efficient Bitcoin mining machine on the market.

Crypto price action has been rough over the past few months, but a few green shoots are finally beginning to emerge.

While Bitcoin (BTC) remains in a downtrend, its price has recently found support at the $17,000 level, and ping-pong price action in the $16,700–$17,300 range appears to be allowing traders to pursue some interesting setups in a few altcoins.

Let’s take a quick peek at some enticing patterns showing up on the weekly time frame.

Time for Litecoin’s halving hopium?

As a fork of Bitcoin, Litecoin (LTC) tends to turn bullish several months before its reward halving takes place, as was the case in 2015 and 2019.

Litecoin’s next reward halving is 237 days away, and it appears that the altcoin is undergoing a little pre-halving hype. Since Nov. 6, LTC has gained 58.6%, and it is starting to mirror the triple price action that occurred in previous halvings.

Crypto price action has been rough over the past few months, but a few green shoots are finally beginning to emerge.

While Bitcoin (BTC) remains in a downtrend, its price has recently found support at the $17,000 level, and ping-pong price action in the $16,700–$17,300 range appears to be allowing traders to pursue some interesting setups in a few altcoins.

Let’s take a quick peek at some enticing patterns showing up on the weekly time frame.

Time for Litecoin’s halving hopium?

As a fork of Bitcoin, Litecoin (LTC) tends to turn bullish several months before its reward halving takes place, as was the case in 2015 and 2019.

Litecoin’s next reward halving is 237 days away, and it appears that the altcoin is undergoing a little pre-halving hype. Since Nov. 6, LTC has gained 58.6%, and it is starting to mirror the triple price action that occurred in previous halvings.

The United States equities markets are headed for a down week as market participants remain cautious ahead of next week's key consumer price index data for November.

The CPI report will be followed by the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Dec. 13-14 where the central bank is expected to hike rates by 50 basis points, according to the FedWatch Tool.

The outcome of the events next week could increase the volatility in Bitcoin (BTC) and result in a trending move.

After a terrible year that saw some high-profile cryptocurrency companies go bust, the bulls will expect 2022 to end on a strong note. Bears will also try to maintain their stronghold and extend the decline in the next year.

What is the path of least resistance in Bitcoin and altcoins? Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to find out.