Bitcoin Falls Below $80,000 After Fed Holds Rates Steady
Key Facts
Bitcoin closed at $77,991.89 on October 29, below $80,000, after recording $81,343.50 the previous day, according to EL7 data. On October 30, it closed at $77,088.24, extending the declines recorded over the previous two days. An Investing.com report linked the currency's fall to U.S. economic data that bolstered expectations of rate increases, and to declines in artificial intelligence-related stocks on Wall Street. The report said these factors weakened risk appetite, while the Fed's decision to hold rates had been issued the previous day. This sequence places bitcoin's move in the context of concerns about tighter monetary policy and falling technology stocks, rather than as a direct response to the hold decision alone.
On October 28, the Federal Reserve kept the federal funds target range at 3.75% to 4%, according to the Federal Open Market Committee statement. The statement was approved by a vote of 10 to two, breaking with the unanimous decision the committee took at its previous meeting. The two dissenting members preferred to raise the target range by a quarter of a percentage point. The Fed had raised rates by a quarter point on September 16, bringing the range to 3.75%–4% at the time, after a unanimous vote of 12 to zero. The split October vote shows that some committee members saw a case for further tightening, while the majority chose to keep the existing range.
The Fed said in its statement that "inflation remains elevated," and that the accumulation of more information would help the committee determine the appropriate stance of monetary policy to ensure a timely return to its 2% target. The latest September personal consumption expenditures data showed the headline index rose 0.5% month over month and 3.6% year over year. The core index, which excludes food and energy, rose 0.3% monthly and 3.1% annually. Monthly and annual readings for both the headline and core indexes were in line with estimates, while the annual readings showed acceleration compared with August. This coincided with real gross domestic product growing at an annual rate of 3.4% in the third quarter, compared with 2.2% in the second quarter, exceeding economists' expectations of 3.2%, according to a preliminary estimate cited by an Investing.com report.
Data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that increased investment and consumer and government spending contributed to U.S. economic growth in the third quarter. The economy expanded at an annual rate of 3.4% in the preliminary estimate, after growing 2.2% in the second quarter. These figures add to the backdrop for the debate over the rate path, coming alongside higher annual inflation than in August, while an Investing.com report said U.S. data pointed to the possibility of further rate increases. In markets, losses in artificial intelligence-related stocks added to those concerns, according to the report, weighing on risk appetite and accompanying bitcoin's fall below $80,000. The report did not provide, in the available evidence, a figure for the change in the stock index or the extent of its impact on the cryptocurrency.
Markets are awaiting the next release of the personal income and outlays report, which includes October data and the personal consumption expenditures price index, on November 25, 2026, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The Federal Open Market Committee is scheduled to hold its next meeting on December 8 and 9, 2026. The meeting follows October's decision to keep rates in a range of 3.75% to 4%, and a vote in which two members dissented in favor of a quarter-point increase. The committee's assessment of further information about the economy and inflation will be part of determining the appropriate policy stance, according to its statement. The inflation target cited by the Fed in the statement remains 2%.