Cryptocurrencies decline over 6% with Fed worries

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies fell more than 6% on Friday, as investors are worried that the US Federal Reserve's first interest rate cut could come later than estimated.

The value of the cryptocurrency market was down 6.7% to $2.45 trillion at 4.30 p.m. EDT, according to data from CoinMarketCap, a digital asset price-tracking website.

The price of Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, fell almost 4.7% to $67,395, while Ethereum, the world's biggest altcoin by market cap, was down 7.8% to $3,248.

Some altcoins saw their daily prices plummet more than 20%.

The Dow Jones, S&P 500, Nasdaq, gold, and silver also posted major losses on the last trading day of the week.

Consumer inflation figures announced earlier this week came in higher than estimates, and that increased the possibility that the Fed could begin lowering interest rates as late as September, rather than the previously expected June.

The probability of a rate cut of 25 basis points at the Fed’s June 12 meeting stood at just 26.1% as of Friday, according to the FedWatch Tool provided by the US-based Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group.

The probability of a cut of 25 basis points at the July meeting was 44.5% and 44.4% for the September meeting.

The Fed's next two-day meeting will conclude May 1, with the central bank widely expected to keep the federal funds rate unchanged.

Consumer inflation in March rose 3.5% annually, and climbed 0.4% monthly, both coming in above market expectations. The annual figure is still far from the Fed's 2% target.