Crypto Reporter
Shalini Nagarajan
Crypto Reporter
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Bitcoin stayed pinned near $91,000 on Tuesday, as traders watched Japan’s stock market burst to fresh records and treated US macro headlines as the next real trigger for crypto direction.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei surged to an all-time high, climbing as much as 3.6% to 53,814.79, and the Topix also set a record with a 2.4% gain to 3,599.31.
The move came after a public holiday left Tokyo playing catch-up with Wall Street’s recent rally, and traders leaned into speculation that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi could call an early election that keeps fiscal spending in play.
A weaker yen added fuel, since it lifts the value of overseas earnings for export-heavy companies. Chip and auto names led the charge, and breadth looked lopsided in a way that told you investors came ready to buy, with 209 of the Nikkei’s 225 stocks higher.
Market snapshot
- Bitcoin: $91,026, down 0.9%
- Ether: $3,096, down 1.6%
- XRP: $2.05, down 1.8%
- Total crypto market cap: $3.18 trillion, down 1.3%
Powell Investigation Looms Even As Markets Stay Risk On
Elsewhere in the region, markets opened with a modest risk bid. From the snapshot on screens, Shanghai rose 0.24%, the SZSE Component gained 0.60%, and Hang Seng added 0.14%, even as the China A50 fell 0.77%, a reminder that big-cap China stayed more cautious.
Wall Street set the tone overnight. The S&P 500 and Dow closed at record highs on Monday, and traders largely looked past the Justice Department’s criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, with tech names and Walmart among the leaders.
The Powell story still hangs over rates. Powell has said the administration threatened him with a criminal indictment over testimony tied to the Fed’s headquarters renovation, calling it a pretext to pressure the central bank into cutting interest rates faster.
Inflation Data Likely To Set Tone For Risk Assets
For crypto, the macro calendar matters more than the noise. The US CPI report lands on Tuesday, Jan. 13, and traders will use it to price the next steps for the Fed, then the Beige Book follows on Jan. 14, and the Fed’s next policy meeting runs Jan. 27 to 28.
Koinly CEO Robin Singh said Bitcoin appears to be at a crossroads, with prices likely to enter a period of consolidation for several months despite the CLARITY Act vote scheduled for this week.
“Bitcoin’s price has moved very little at the start of the year, and overall crypto sentiment has been treading water for a while now,” he said. “The US Fed Reserve potentially slashing rates may have some minor impact on price, especially if they do it in the earlier months of the year, as the market seems to be more hesitant on the likelihood of that, and may not be priced into Bitcoin so much.”
Bitcoin’s stall near $91,000 reflects that setup. Rate expectations, dollar moves, and ETF-driven flows can shift quickly around inflation prints, and leveraged positioning tends to amplify the first move after the data hits.
Oil stayed on the front burner too. Crude settled at a seven-week high on Monday, as traders tracked unrest in Iran and the risk of supply disruption, keeping the broader risk conversation anchored to geopolitics as well as economics.
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