Bitcoin Briefly Swells to $116K as Macro Tailwinds Lift Trader Sentiment

Bitcoin’s bullish start to the week extended on Thursday, hitting a 19-day high, with experts citing slightly cooler inflation data as a tailwind ahead of the Federal Reserve’s September 17 rate cut decision.

The top crypto is up 1.5% in the past 24 hours, per CoinGecko data, extending Wednesday’s push that ended a two-week consolidation. Bitcoin is currently trading at $115,680 after climbing to just above $116,300 earlier in the trading session.

“I think this week’s price action has been driven by growing expectations that the U.S. Fed will cut interest rates in their next meeting after producer inflation data was lower than expected,” Julio Moreno, head of research at CryptoQuant, told Decrypt.

The August 2025 U.S. Producer Price Index unexpectedly fell by 0.1%, compared to July’s massive spike that kicked off a market selling spree.

It marked the first decline for the PPI since April, with the data showing that it was driven by lower prices for unprocessed goods, such as crude petroleum, and easing service costs.

“Markets are up as the odds of a rate cut next week now seem all but certain,” Sean Dawson, head of research at on-chain options platform Derive, told Decrypt. “The Fed is set to turn the money printer on, especially in light of weak jobs growth across the U.S.”

CME’s FedWatch tool shows a 92.7% odds of a 25 basis point rate cut, while a half-point rate cut hovers around 7.3%.

“We’re probably going to have another big surge up toward the end of the year as the Fed begins its cutting cycle,” Michael Novogratz, founder and CEO of Galaxy Digital, said in a CNBC interview on Thursday.

Looking to the future, Moreno is bullish, as the downward pressure on prices declines. On-chain data shows that selling pressure from profit-taking has been exhausted.

Dawson is also optimistic and expects Bitcoin to hit new highs in the coming weeks, driven by a surge in ETF inflows.

Although Bitcoin pushed to a 19-day high, key altcoins like Ethereum, XRP, and Solana hover around single-digit gains. Dogecoin and Hyperliquid, however, are up 25% and 23%, respectively, in the past 24 hours.