Bitcoin Climbs Past $100,000 Again as US Inflation Data Rekindles Risk Appetite

The original digital asset has been trading roughly in a range of $90,000 to $100,000 over the past four weeks.

Bitcoin rose above $100,000 again on Wednesday, tracking a gauge of US technology stocks and pausing a recent downturn in crypto markets as softer-than-expected US inflation data helped spur demand for riskier assets.

The original digital asset was trading as high as $100,222 at about 9:45 a.m. in New York, up as much as 3.9%. It last reached the $100,000 level on Jan. 7, or around $8,000 below a record high set on Dec. 17.

Bitcoin has been trading roughly within a range of $90,000 to $100,000 over the past four weeks. The token began 2025 with a brisk rally, climbing above $40,000 in the first week of January. But crypto markets have been volatile since then, largely tracking movements in US equities.

The correlation between Bitcoin and US technology stocks hit a two-year high on Wednesday, as the equity market's reaction to US inflation data helped set a stronger tone for digital tokens.

A 30-day correlation coefficient for the largest cryptocurrency and the Nasdaq 100 Index stood at about 0.70, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. A reading of 1 indicates assets are moving in lockstep, while minus 1 signals an inverse tie.

The inflation report showed a 2.9% increase year-over-year in prices, meeting expectations, and saw month-over-month core inflation at 0.2%, below analyst expectations. Markets had been fretting about the Federal Reserve’s scope for further interest-rate cuts amid a robust US economy and uncertainty over the impact of Donald Trump’s agenda.

The softer core price index helped lift stocks and crypto. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes were up over 1% after the inflation report.

Trump Inauguration

President-elect Trump will be sworn in on Jan. 20 and may unleash a policy blitz. Speculators are weighing up the risk of inflationary tariff and immigration policies against his pledge to make the US the global home of crypto.

“The overall sensitivity to interest rates over the past month suggests increased importance of Wednesday’s CPI print,” K33 Research analysts Vetle Lunde and David Zimmerman wrote in a note. “Additionally, notable Trump momentum may still form in the days leading into the inauguration.”

Hedging activity is picking up in the options market, signaling that investors are positioning for increased volatility, according to trading platform Derive.xyz.

The proportion of bearish bets has climbed, pointing to “hedging against potential downside risks as we approach the inauguration,” said Derive.xyz’s Head of Research Sean Dawson.

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