Bitcoin price hits $28.5K on PCE data as macro 'accumulation zone' ends

cointelegraph.com:

Bitcoin (BTC) recovered recent losses at the March 31 Wall Street open as traders looked for a strong monthly close.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD heading to $28,556 on Bitstamp after the opening bell, up $1,000 from the day's lows.

The fresh gains followed encouraging macroeconomic data from the United States, with the February Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index modestly beating expectations in some areas.

"We are making progress in the fight against inflation," an official White House statement about the PCE numbers read.

More evidence of a decline in the US Inflation Rate...The PCE Price Index moved down to 5%, its lowest level since September 2021. Peak was 7% in June 2022. pic.twitter.com/gR4pY1UVpf

With inflation sticky yet seemingly not troubling markets, these appeared to increase bets on Federal Reserve interest rate hikes pausing in May, data from CME Group's FedWatch Tool showed.

Risk assets thus traded higher in anticipation. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite Index were both up around 0.5% higher at the time of writing.

Related: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime

The mood around Bitcoin was equally buoyant, countering reservations among some traders who had warned of a significant retracement at or near the monthly close.

#Bitcoin / $BTCAND BOOM THAT IS HOW IT’S DONE BOUNCE RIGHT OFF $27.5KNow time to slowly grind back toward highs, reclaim $29K and initiate acceleration for full send pic.twitter.com/VDt6zn8lcA

To the upside, data from monitoring resource Material Indicators showed the bulk of ask liquidity stacked at $29,000 prior to the PCE release.

Popular trader Crypto Tony entertained the idea of Bitcoin hitting $30,000 in the