- Bitcoin briefly approached $79,000 while Ethereum climbed above $2,500 after U.S. CPI data showed annual inflation at 3.4% in August.
- Analysts said the largely in-line inflation report did little to change expectations for the Federal Reserve’s September rate decision, leaving the broader crypto rally intact.
- Bitcoin holding above $76,270 could signal resilient underlying demand, while analysts are also watching $100 for Solana as a key level.
Bitcoin and Ethereum moved higher following the latest U.S. inflation report as traders found little in the data to significantly alter expectations for the Federal Reserve’s next move.
Bitcoin briefly approached $79,000 before settling around $77,800, while Ethereum climbed above $2,500.
The Consumer Price Index increased 0.4% in August, bringing annual inflation to 3.4%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Energy contributed to the increase, with gasoline prices rising more than 25% year over year.
Despite the higher headline number, analysts said the report provided limited new information for crypto markets ahead of the Fed’s September decision.
Bitcoin Rally Remains Intact
Matt Mena, senior crypto research strategist at 21Shares, said Bitcoin has historically performed relatively well following hotter-than-expected core inflation readings.
According to Mena, BTC has returned an average of 2.13% during the 30 days following such reports.
He said this supports the case for the current uptrend continuing if the Federal Reserve leaves interest rates unchanged.
However, Sygnum Bank CIO Fabian Dori warned that unexpectedly strong core inflation remains a potential risk.
With September rate hike odds near 70%, Dori said another upside inflation surprise could force markets to reprice Fed expectations and test a Bitcoin rally increasingly driven by institutional allocation rather than leverage.
Bitcoin Holds Key $76,270 Level
Bitget analyst Lewis Huang highlighted the divergence between headline and core inflation.
While energy prices pushed headline inflation higher, easing core inflation could give the Federal Reserve some room to look beyond the headline increase.
That leaves the September decision dependent on inflation, labor market conditions and broader financial conditions.
Huang said Bitcoin remaining above $76,270 would indicate that underlying demand is holding up despite uncertainty surrounding interest rates.
Higher rates could also have mixed effects across the crypto industry. Arbitrum Foundation Head of Investment Strategy Brendan Ma noted that elevated yields can benefit stablecoins and tokenized Treasuries even while putting pressure on risk assets and trading activity.
Solana Targets $130 as Crypto Rally Expands
Solana is also showing strength, with analysts watching whether SOL can maintain its position above $100 and potentially move toward $130.
Mena pointed to more than $500 million in net inflows into Solana ETFs during 2026 and a record of more than 5 billion transactions on the network last month.
Ethereum’s ecosystem is also expanding, with Robinhood Chain Layer-2 becoming the fastest chain to reach $1 million in daily revenue and $1 billion in trading activity, according to Mena.
Looking toward the fourth quarter, Mena said passage of the CLARITY Act could provide another catalyst, potentially putting Bitcoin on a path toward $100,000, Ethereum toward $3,000 and Solana toward $130 or higher.
