Bitcoin Surges Ahead of U.S. CPI Release, Ethereum Set for The Merge Upgrade
Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s largest cryptocurrency, spiked to its highest level since the August 19th dump on the morning of September 12th.
Price Movement of Top Cryptocurrencies as of 09:00 AM on September 12, 2022. Source: Coin360
Following a recovery since hitting a two-month low of $18,649 on September 6th, Bitcoin reached a new peak of $22,374 on Monday morning (September 12th). This marks the highest value BTC has achieved since mid-August.
Bitcoin has now seen six consecutive days of green candles since September 6th, signaling positive momentum as the crypto market heads into a crucial week.
1-Hour BTC/USDT Chart on Binance as of 09:00 AM on September 12, 2022
Firstly, on the evening of September 13th, the U.S. will release its Consumer Price Index (CPI) for August 2022. This index represents the inflation rate for the world’s largest economy, which has recently reached its highest level in four decades. Bitcoin, and the crypto market in general, often experiences significant volatility due to U.S. inflation news, primarily due to its correlation with the U.S. stock market.
Next, from September 13th to 15th, Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is expected to activate its most significant upgrade in history, known as The Merge. This upgrade will merge Ethereum's Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Stake blockchains, eliminate mining, reduce new coin issuance, and cut network energy consumption by over 99%.
These two events are key moments for the cryptocurrency investment community to watch this week.
Similar to Bitcoin, Ethereum is also experiencing significant volatility at the time of this writing, though it has yet to show the same clear upward trend as its larger counterpart.
1-Hour ETH/USDT Chart on Binance as of 09:00 AM on September 12, 2022
The latest BTC surge has resulted in nearly $60 million worth of derivatives being liquidated in the past hour, with short positions accounting for 70% of the liquidations.
Liquidated Cryptocurrency Value in the Past Hour, Data from Coinglass as of 09:00 AM on September 12, 2022
