Bitcoin Price Slides to $22K as Powell Warns on Inflation

The Federal Reserve chairman said economic figures from January were stronger than expected.

AccessTimeIconMar 7, 2023 at 3:20 p.m. UTC
Updated Mar 7, 2023 at 10:21 p.m. UTC

Inflationary pressures are running higher than expected, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said in prepared remarks before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday.

Bitcoin (BTC) fell about 1.6% to below $22,000 in the immediate aftermath of the release of the remarks. The price has bounced a bit since, recently trading at $22,100, while the S&P 500 was down 0.75%.

"The data from January on employment, consumer spending, manufacturing production and inflation have partly reversed the softening [inflation] trends," Powell said.

While allowing that unseasonably warm weather in January might be responsible for the higher-than-expected inflation figures, Powell said the "process" of returning inflation to the Fed's target of 2% "has a long way to go and is likely to be bumpy."



DISCLOSURE

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

The leader in news and information on cryptocurrency, digital assets and the future of money, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups. As part of their compensation, certain CoinDesk employees, including editorial employees, may receive exposure to DCG equity in the form of stock appreciation rights, which vest over a multi-year period. CoinDesk journalists are not allowed to purchase stock outright in DCG.

Stephen  Alpher

Stephen Alpher is CoinDesk's managing editor for Markets. He holds BTC above CoinDesk’s disclosure threshold of $1,000.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk’s longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.