Markets: Bitcoin, Ether rise with most other tokens amid mixed signals on U.S. economic outlook

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Bitcoin and Ether rose in Thursday morning trading in Asia along with most other top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies. Cardano led the gainers, while Litecoin and Tron were the only ones on that list to fall. Economic data from the U.S. on Wednesday indicated inflation is easing, but this was muted by concerns the Federal Reserve remains set on raising interest rates.

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Fast facts

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Bitcoin rose 1.1% to US$16,863 in the 24 hours to 8 a.m. in Hong Kong, while Ethereum jumped 3.4% to US$1,256, according to pricing data from CoinMarketCap.

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Cardano rose 5.9% to change hands at US$0.26, gaining the most on CoinMarketCap’s list, and bringing its advance for the calendar week to 7.8%. BNB added 5.2% to trade at US$258.98 for a weekly gain of 6.1%.

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Litecoin fell 0.2% to US$75.42, though is still up 13.7% for the week after reporting a record number for transactions on the network in 2022. Tron slipped 0.2% to US$0.054, bringing its weekly gain to 1.1%.

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The total crypto market capitalization rose 1.9% to US$819.8 billion. Trading volume climbed 35.2% to US$35.7 billion.

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U.S. equities gained on Wednesday, though trading was choppy amid the mixed signals from the economy and the Fed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%, the S&P 500 Index climbed 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite Index finished the day 0.7% higher.

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The U.S. Institute for Supply Management on Wednesday said its manufacturing index fell to 48.4 in December for a second straight month of declines. Figures below 50 indicate a contraction in manufacturing.

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The U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTs) showed 10.46 million jobs were available in November, which was higher than expected, but down for a second straight month.

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While these indicators suggest inflation is easing, the minutes for the U.S. Federal Reserve’s December meeting released the same day show the central bank is committed to keeping interest rates high to tame inflation. The Fed raised rates by 50-basis points in December, bringing benchmark rates to between 4.25% and 4.5% — the highest in 15 years.

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The latest U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed that inflation was up 7.1% in November compared to last year, though a decline from readings of 7.7% in October and 8.2% in September. The December CPI will be released on January 12 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.