The Aug. 10 Consumer Price Index (CPI) report shows year-over-year inflation rose 8.5% in July and while this figure is below economists’ expectations of 8.7%, it is still high. Although inflation remains much higher than the Federal Reserve's 2% target, the marginal slowdown raises hopes that the rate hikes by the Federal Reserve have started to work. That has reduced the probability of a 75 basis point rate hike in the September meeting from 68% on Aug. 9 to 37.5%, according to CME group data.
Risky assets, including the cryptocurrency markets, responded positively to the CPI print. Compared to Bitcoin (BTC), the altcoins are enjoying a stronger rally. This has pulled Bitcoin’s dominance near its yearly lows while Ether (ETH) has climbed near its yearly high.