Crypto Market Holds Breath as August CPI Report Looms

The crypto market is trading defensively as investors await the August Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, which could decide whether Bitcoin reclaims $80,000 or slides back toward the low $70,000s.

A hotter-than-expected Producer Price Index reading a day earlier pushed the total crypto market capitalization down to roughly $2.7 trillion and drove the heaviest single-day outflow from U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs since July.

Bitcoin is holding the $76,800, $77,200 zone, down about 1.1% on the day but nearly 4.7% lower over the past week, with sentiment having cooled from greed toward a more cautious middle ground without tipping into fear.