Bitcoin (BTC-USD) edged up by about 1% on Thursday, climbing to $96,535 (£77,328). The cryptocurrency’s intraday range spanned from approximately $94,100 to $98,150, as investors found renewed optimism amid news that US president Donald Trump is set to begin negotiations with Russian president Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.
In a recent call, Trump announced that Washington and Moscow would commence talks “immediately” to work toward a resolution, injecting a dose of optimism into global markets — even as hotter-than-expected US inflation data added pressure.
Despite a 3% year-over-year increase in the Consumer Price Index for January, exceeding December’s 2.9%, the overall global cryptocurrency market cap rallied by around 3% to reach an estimated $3.22tn.
Bitcoin’s market dominance dips as altcoins gain traction
Bitcoin’s (BTC-USD) market dominance dipped by 0.64% to 59.82%, as other leading cryptocurrencies gained ground on Thursday. Ethereum (ETH-USD) rose by 2%, XRP (XRP-USD) was up 1.5%, and BNB (BNB-USD) rose over 9%.
Meanwhile, in broader markets, Asian equity benchmarks — led by Japan’s Nikkei 225 (^N225) which rose 1.3% — were buoyed by the prospect of renewed diplomatic engagement. Optimism in the region was further supported by expectations that Trump might pause some of his recently announced tariffs, offering a counterbalance to concerns over persistent US inflation.
Investors welcomed news that US House of Representatives speaker Mike Johnson said he believes Trump is considering exemptions to reciprocal tariffs for the auto and pharmaceutical industries.
“I think the White House does have a few categories that would be treated differently, and I expect those two would be among them,” Johnson said in a brief interview on Wednesday. “But I’m not certain. You have to wait, ask the White House about that.”
