Bitcoin Holds Below $70K as Cooler PPI Data Fails to Lift Markets

Bitcoin holds below $70K — Bitcoin traded below $70,000 on Friday, down roughly 4% on the day, as a cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation print failed to spark a rally in crypto or traditional equities.

The U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) rose 6.5% year-over-year in October, marking its largest annual gain since November 2022 but coming in 0.1 percentage points below market forecasts. Despite the slight cooldown, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both fell over 1% at the open, with Bitcoin hovering near $68,700 after briefly dipping to a 12-week low around $67,500 earlier in the session.

The data led markets to slightly adjust expectations for Federal Reserve policy, with the probability of a 25-basis-point rate hike in December rising to nearly 90%, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool. Analyst Rekt Capital warned that a weekly close below $73,000 would mark Bitcoin’s third breakdown of that key support level in 2026, a pattern that previously preceded declines toward $60,000.

Bitcoin’s performance in the fourth quarter is currently its second-worst on record, with the asset down 17.7% since the start of October.