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Bitcoin drops to $70K amid Iran conflict
Bitcoin fell during Asian trading on Friday but held above the key $70,000 level, as investors remained cautious amid escalating tensions in the Middle East. The conflict has driven oil prices higher and introduced uncertainty into forecasts for global inflation and interest rates.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency was last trading down 3.1% at $70,182.6 as of 05:56 GMT, after briefly climbing above $74,000 earlier this week, which still keeps it on track for a weekly gain of around 7%.
Iran conflict and oil price surge in focus
Sentiment in the cryptocurrency market remained fragile as geopolitical tensions intensified after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran triggered retaliatory missile and drone attacks across the region, with the war entering its seventh day.
The conflict has also threatened shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy chokepoint through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply typically passes, sending shockwaves through commodity markets.
Oil prices have surged since the escalation, rising more than 16% this week amid fears of prolonged supply disruptions if the conflict continues.
Higher crude prices have fueled concerns about a new wave of global inflation, complicating expectations for monetary policy.
Investors have begun scaling back expectations for near-term interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve, as energy-driven price pressures could keep inflation elevated.
Stronger dollar pressures risk assets
Shifting rate expectations helped strengthen the U.S. dollar this week, putting pressure on a range of risk assets.
The stronger dollar has also weighed on commodities: gold is heading toward a weekly decline, despite ongoing geopolitical tensions.
Despite broader risk-off sentiment, Bitcoin has shown relative resilience, holding above the psychologically important $70,000 level.
Crypto prices today: altcoins also decline
Most altcoins also fell on Friday, extending losses amid cautious market sentiment.
The world’s second-largest cryptocurrency Ethereum dropped 3% to $2,069.03.
The third-largest cryptocurrency XRP fell 1.8% to $1.39.
Solana declined 1.6%, while Cardano and Polygon each dropped about 2.5%.
Among meme tokens, Dogecoin slipped 1.8%.
