Dogecoin Leads Market Decline Ahead of CPI

Dogecoin (DOGE) led the market decline as Bitcoin traders closely monitored the U.S. dollar. Crypto markets slid by 3% within the last 24 hours

Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) led the market decline Tuesday evening as key U.S. inflation data is set to be released.

Memecoin fans will be closely watching the U.S. dollar movements after the latest Consumer Price Index report.

Crypto Markets Drop 3% Ahead Of Past 24 Hours, Dogecoin Hit Hard, traders await U.S. CPI Data

Crypto Markets Overview

Crypto markets experienced a 3% decline in the past 24 hours, as traders await the release of the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) data. The CPI numbers, which are set to be published later on Wednesday, could provide insights into the Federal Reserve’s future interest rate decisions.

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) lost 1.3% of its value during the past 24 hours and was trading at $441,334. Major altcoins, including Ether (CRYPTO: ETH), Solana (CRYPTO: SOL), Cardano (CRYPTO: ADA), and XRP (CRYPTO: XRP), also experienced declines of up to 3%.

Among the crypto majors, Dogecoin led the market slide as traders also monitored the U.S. dollar for any indications of an upcoming rate cut. Notably, several memecoins, such as floki inu (CRYPTO: FLOKI) and shiba inu (CRYPTO: SHIB), experienced gains during the past 24 hours.

The CoinDesk 20 index, which tracks the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, experienced a decline of 2.5%. This broad-based drop in the index reflects a cautious market sentiment ahead of the CPI report.

Crypto And Inflation

Crypto investors often view Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies as a hedge against inflation, which increases the importance of inflation-related data. Any signs of the Fed cutting interest rates could create a rally in risk assets like cryptocurrencies.

Market participants expect a monthly CPI increase of 0.3% for January, which would bring the 12-month inflation rate to 2.9%. This data will be crucial for any indication of the potential direction of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy.

Some traders are arguing that the U.S. dollar is now primed for a retreat. They maintain that the market has priced in all the negative news, which has left the dollar vulnerable to any downward pressure.

According to the analysts, positive CPI data could trigger a massive unwind of dollar positions, which could benefit any risk assets, including crypto. The likelihood of a dollar slide has raised expectations that the broader crypto market could experience a surge.

Bitcoin has underperformed both equities and gold in YTD returns, which has signaled some hesitation within the crypto community. At the same time, some crypto traders are being cautious as liquidity is limited and new listings fail to generate substantial trading volumes.

A major liquidation in the previous week, which wiped out $1 billion in crypto positions, is also a topic of discussion among traders. This liquidation event occurred due to a rally in several altcoins, which led to a shift in market structure.

As a result of the market liquidation, market participants have been seen purchasing downside protection to hedge against any potential losses. Analysts continue to advise that the purchase of downside options is a prudent strategy in the current uncertain environment.