Bitcoin price has been struggling to gain momentum above the $26,000 level for the past few days as investors brace for the US key inflation data and interest rates decisions by central banks. At the time of writing, the crypto leader was trading at $26,113.68. The asset’s total market cap, as well as the volume, has increased over the last day but remains below the highest level this year.

Fundamentals

The crypto market has been signaling signs of stability since the start of this week, following a massive sell-off last week on the back of the SEC lawsuit against Binance and Coinbase. The Bitcoin price has increased by more than 1.50% in the past week but remains below its crucial support level of $26,500. Ethereum, the largest altcoin by market cap, has increased slightly over the last day but remains 3.63% lower over the past week.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission sued Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange platform, and Coinbase last week, alleging that both failed to register as an exchange and of selling unregistered securities. A slew of altcoins, including Solana, Polygon, and Cardano were deemed as securities by the SEC.

Investors are now eyeing the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for May set to be released later today as the Federal Reserve commences its two-day policy meeting. The US Labor Department’s report is expected to show that the monthly inflation in May cooled to 0.2%, while the annual inflation dropped to 4.1%. A slowdown in inflation will give the Fed room to pause its interest rate hike campaign this month.

According to the CME FedWatch tool, money markets are pricing in an 80% chance that the Fed will pause its interest rate hike in June, pushing the US dollar lower. The European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of Japan (BoJ) are also expected to announce their monetary policy decisions this week. An environment of higher interest rates tends to be bearish for risk assets such as stocks and cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin Price Outlook

The Bitcoin price has been under intense pressure for the past few days as the crypto market struggles to recover from its sharp sell-off last week. On the daily chart, the digital currency has continued to move below the descending trendline shown in yellow.

Bitcoin has also managed to move below and above the 50-day and 200-day exponential moving averages, respectively. It is also moving below the 50-day and 10-day simple moving averages. Its Relative Strength Index (RSI) is hovering slightly below the signal line, while the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator remains bearish.

Therefore, the Bitcoin price is likely to trade sideways in the ensuing sessions as the uncertainty around the macroeconomic concerns continues to weigh on markets. A downward price correction will have sellers eyeing the next support level at the 200-day EMA at $25,283.85. Conversely, a move past the critical level of $26,500 will give bulls more room to push the price higher to $27,500.

BTC Price Chart