[Bitcoin Now] 'Pelosi's Visit to Taiwan'... Decline as US-China Tensions Escalate

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Bitcoin prices are also weak as political tensions between the U.S. and China escalate following U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan.

According to the global cryptocurrency market tracking site CoinMarketCap, as of 10:58 a.m. on the 3rd, Bitcoin was priced at $22,792 (approximately 29.84 million KRW), down 1.69% from the previous day.

Bitcoin prices declined on the day as tensions between the U.S. and China deepened due to Speaker Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. China announced large-scale military demonstrations surrounding Taiwan, heightening tensions around the Taiwan Strait. Cryptocurrency media outlet CoinDesk stated, "Speaker Pelosi's visit to Taiwan has dampened investor sentiment," adding, "Risk assets ranging from Bitcoin to stocks are under renewed pressure."

As a result, the U.S. stock market, which tends to move in sync, also closed lower. On the 2nd (local time), the tech-heavy Nasdaq index closed down 20.22 points (0.16%) at 12,348.76. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 402.23 points (1.23%) to 32,396.17, and the large-cap S&P 500 index dropped 27.44 points (0.67%) to 4,091.19.

Additionally, remarks from Federal Reserve (Fed) officials regarding interest rate hikes appeared to contribute to the weakness. Loretta Mester, President of the Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank, said stronger evidence is needed that inflation is easing and stated, "There is more work to do," signaling a continued policy of additional rate hikes. Mary Daly, President of the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank, told U.S. economic media CNBC, "Our work is not done yet," cautioning that the market should not interpret the Fed's consecutive giant steps (0.75 percentage point rate hikes) as a signal that the pace of rate increases will soon slow.

Meanwhile, according to cryptocurrency data provider Alternative, the Fear & Greed Index, which measures investor sentiment, rose 3 points from the previous day to 34 points (fear). Alternative’s Fear & Greed Index ranges from 0, indicating extreme fear or pessimism about investing, to 100, indicating extreme optimism.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.