Stocks recover, cryptocurrencies slip sideways on CPI data 

Bitcoin, after posting another record-high of just under $73,000 Monday, lost 0.7% Tuesday

article-image

Vit-Mar/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

Bitcoin and ether faltered slightly Tuesday afternoon in New York while stocks rebounded after an initial slip on disappointing annual inflation numbers. 

The S&P 500 was trading about 1% higher at time of publication while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.3%. 

Bitcoin (BTC), after posting another record-high of just under $73,000 Monday, lost 0.7% Tuesday. Ether (ETH) was also trading lower, dropping 1% at time of publication. 

Read more: Cheatsheet: Ethereum on track to burn $10B ETH over next year

The market moves come as Tuesday’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) print showed inflation rose 0.4% in February and 3.2% from a year ago, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Analysts had expected a 3.1% year-over-year increase, but the monthly figure came in as predicted. 

Despite coming in not too far off expectations, Tuesday’s report could lead markets to expect a delayed timeline for rate cuts from the Federal Reserve, which will announce its policy decision next week. 

“There’s no way the Fed can justify a cut if inflation is accelerating, even if it’s only a small move,” Noelle Acheson, author of the Crypto is Macro Now newsletter said. 

February’s CPI report was highly anticipated, analysts say, as the January read — which showed a 3.1% annual increase — is skewed by annual contracts.

“In terms of the short-term impact of today’s US CPI release, we do not expect it to end the crypto bull market yet, nor to impact prices significantly in the coming weeks,” Aurelie Barthere, principal research analyst at Nansen, said. “What will probably happen is a repricing of expected Fed rate cuts: Right now future markets have four rate cuts priced by December 2024, this should be shaved to 2-3 rate cuts.”


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

  • Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
  • Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
  • Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
  • 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
  • Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
  • The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
Tags

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 18 - 20, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template Presentation.jpg

Research

The Solana validator landscape has changed drastically over the past year. The chain now has 1,332 active validators with 380.9 million SOL staked (63.9% of supply) as of February 2025. Validator revenue had diversified beyond inflationary rewards (still making up 55%) to include Jito tips (30%), priority fees (24%), and base fees (<1%), in January, especially with the increased activity on Solana. Since then, issuance has become dominant again (76%), while Jito tips (14%), priority fees (9%), and base fees (less than 1%) have reduced in share of February 2025. There has been a strong shift towards non-inflationary revenue sources, which have become more central to validator economics as priority fees and off-chain blockspace auctions gain traction. Client diversity has also improved drastically, with implementations such as Agave, Jito-Solana, and Frankendancer already in use, and upcoming clients like Firedancer and Sig expected to further strengthen resilience and reduce reliance on a single codebase.

article-image

BWR analyst Carlos Gonzalez Campo explains the consequences of SOL inflation and transfers lost to “leaky buckets”

article-image

Empire co-host Santiago Santos makes the case that memecoins have actually helped push infra forward…just not in the way you think

article-image

A16z Crypto lists seven buckets for tokens and recommendations for how to regulate them, in a filing submitted to the SEC

article-image

New model aims to resolve trading inefficiencies with a single execution layer and market maker changes

article-image

Investors navigating BTC face short-term unpredictability, influence from other markets

article-image

The GENIUS Act aims to establish regulatory guidelines for stablecoins