Macroeconomic factors continue to exert pressure on Bitcoin, Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies, preventing them from surging higher
Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency, has dropped to an intraday low of $2,961 on the Bitstamp exchange, falling roughly 6% over the past 24 hours.
It is performing in line with other major altcoins. Solana (SOL) is the top laggard, slipping by more than 8% to hit $100.
The price of Bitcoin dropped to an intraday low of $39,811 earlier today on the Bitstamp exchange.
The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has dropped to the psychologically important level of $40,000 since April 18.
Bitcoin is down more than 7% over the past 24 hours. After reclaiming the $42,000 level, the cryptocurrency was violently rejected at $43,000, which prompted a bigger selloff. The minor recovery that took place earlier this week now appears to be a bull trap.
The recent correction has once again demonstrated Bitcoin’s persistent correlation with the stock market. U.S. equities are under pressure today, with the Dow shedding 480 basis points at press time (1.38%).
The markets have been spooked by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s increasingly hawkish rhetoric. On Thursday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell did not rule out hiking the benchmark U.S. interest rates by 50 basis points next month in order to “restore price stability.” As reported by U.Today, the Fed raised interest rates for the first time since 2018 last month, but recent comments indicate that its hawkish pivot is far from over.