Bitcoin retracts, Altcoins shine in unusual reactions to US CPI

[Ben Graham]

This morning's price action is a tricky one: The US CPI report has surprised positively, with a lack of initial reaction still turning into a positive reactions at the Market Open.

Equities rallied and Bitcoi,n which retracted from its all-time highs overnight, saw a bounce but that rally was underwhelming and got followed by some reversals – The moves in markets are centered around the major Rally that happened in the US Dollar since 9:30.

The Dow Jones was the index to follow as a failed bounced got followed by a general reversal from markets and Majors which are currently struggling against the Greenback – Only the Nasdaq is still up on the session, consolidating around the 22,950 Level.

In spite of all the mixed signals given by Markets in the morning session, BTC is still trading $6,000 above its record highs and Cryptocurrencies aficionados are using this relative strength in Tech as a signal to pump altcoins.

Let's take a look at Risk-Assets with an emphasis on Crypto to spot what Markets are cooking.

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An uncommon Price action in US Equities

Nasdaq and Dow Jones performance in the past 24 Hours

The Immediate reaction to the data was positive but not by a strong margin, with the Dow taking a concrete turn to the downside which may weigh on overall Equity sentiment, with the S&P 500 actually turning negative in the past hour.

The earnings season has just begun, therefore expect some confusion in Indices as Markets tend to see major rebalancing around these periods

So, what about Cryptos?

Bitcoin 4H Chart, July 15, 2025 – Source: TradingView

Bitcoin is trading just below the 50% retracement of the impulsive Move that took the crypto to its all-time highs (~$123,200).

As long as BTC holds above its $115,000 Pivot Zone (light blue), expect the Crypto Markets to maintain a positive tone.

Usually, when Bitcoin stays put after having retraced slightly from all-time highs, like today, Altcoins tend to rally consequently.

Cryptocurrencies Performance Board – Source: Finviz

As can be seen, the picture is very green for cryptos – The all-around positive sentiment in Tech, the only sector positive on the day is dragging up majorly altcoins, with OP (Optimism, an ETH-Ecosystem altcoin), AAVE and Polkadot are leading on the day.

For major cryptos, Ethereum is up close to 3% compared to an down small/unchanged Bitcoin – another bull sign for altcoins.

Monitor this trend for the upcoming period as this is a move that Crypto buyers have been awaiting in the 9-month Bitcoin-Only rally.

ETH/BTC Update

ETH/BTC Since February 2025 – Source: TradingView

ETH/BTC has been rallying consequently since the June 21st War Lows and this has helped altcoins to take back some share of the crypto market – Most of the crypto inflows have been directed to Bitcoin and Altcoins had previously been correcting, awaiting for such a move.

It is still early to assume a breakout, but the strength of the ongoing ETH/BTC rally may lead to significant upside in Ethereum and hence other altcoins.

Potential targets for the potential breakout could be between 2.90% to 3% of BTC's price on a measured move count – Difficult to predict if sentiment will hold but the probabilities of this scenario are high on a Technical Analysis perspective.

A story that warrants close follow-up, particularly as the ongoing market-environment is giving some signs of change.


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