US dollar firms as markets await US inflation data

US dollar stabilized today, Wednesday, in cautious trading ahead of US inflation data later this week, which may affect the policy of the Federal Reserve (the US central bank), while Bitcoin fluctuated after a false post on social media caused turmoil in the markets. .

According to Reuters, the US Securities Regulatory Commission said that someone briefly accessed her X account on social media and posted a fake message saying that she had approved Bitcoin exchange-traded funds. The Securities and Exchange Commission said it had not yet approved the matter

Bitcoin rose to a new peak in 21 months at $47,897 after the fake post, before falling to less than $45,000 within minutes after the Securities and Exchange Commission deleted the information and denied its authenticity.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency fell in recent trading by 0.37% to $45,953. Expectations of a positive decision from the Securities and Exchange Commission on ETFs, which will likely attract billions of dollars in new investments, have supported Bitcoin prices in the past two months.

In the currency market, the dollar maintained its gains, as the dollar index, which measures the performance of the US currency against a basket of six currencies, reached 102.53, after rising by 0.215% on Tuesday.

So far, the index has risen by one percent this month, after falling by two percent in December, as traders reassess the possibilities regarding the size and timing of reducing US interest rates.

The Federal Reserve’s sudden change in caution in December, when it expected to cut interest rates by 75 basis points in 2024, increased market expectations of monetary easing, with traders last month expecting cuts of up to 160 basis points.

Traders are focusing on the release of the US CPI report on Thursday to help predict the possibility of an interest rate cut in March. The report is expected to show an increase in the inflation rate by 0.2 percent on a monthly basis and by 3.2 percent on an annual basis.

In terms of other currencies, the euro did not record a noticeable change at $1.093, while sterling fell 0.05% to $1.2699. The Japanese yen lost 0.17%, reaching $144.70.

The Australian dollar rose 0.22% to 0.6703 against the dollar, and the New Zealand dollar rose 0.09% to 0.6242 against the dollar.