Bitcoin Resilient Amid Geopolitical Tensions
Geopolitical tensions have flared up in the market once again, sending oil prices higher. The US attack on an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted a major oil tanker route that's been affected since the conflict began six months ago.
WTI crude futures jumped 2% to $85.10 and Brent rose 1.9% to $92.39, according to TradingView. However, bitcoin (BTC) remained steady during Asian hours, trading near $77,580, largely unchanged since midnight UTC, according to CoinDesk.
Bitcoin's price has surged 23% this month compared to gold's 9% gain and the Nasdaq's 4% rise. Other major tokens like XRP (XRP) fell by 0.8% with solana (SOL) down 0.6%. The strong inflows into spot ETFs and hopes for aggressive Fed intervention could be linked to bitcoin's continued outperformance.
However, the Treasury's bond buyback program has raised hopes of an interest rate hike in September. Fed chief Kevin Warsh delivered a hawkish speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium, arguing that inflation remains insufficiently contained and current financial conditions are not restrictive.
'The speech prompted a repricing of U.S. rates,' said Lloyd Chan, FX strategist at MUFG, adding 'markets now assign a 58% probability of a September hike and price roughly 1.5 hikes by year-end.'