US Inflation Spooks Markets, Sends BTC Below $82K Amid Rate Hike Fears

US inflation increased again in September, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Consumer Price Index report from Wednesday shows prices increased 0.6% over the month, while annual inflation rose to 3.7%, up from 3.4% in August. In other words, consumer prices were 3.7% higher than in September 2025.

The hotter-than-expected inflation report comes amid an unresolved conflict in the Middle East which has been going on for many months now, disrupting global fuel supplies. The data has shaken markets and revived expectations of a possible further rate hike at the Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting on 27–28 October.

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Crypto Market Drops

Meanwhile, the crypto market responded with a 3% drop in market cap over the past 24 hours, currently sitting at US$2.73 trillion (AU$3.92 trillion), CoinMarketCap data shows.

Bitcoin (BTC) dropped 2.58% over the past 24 hours and, at the time of writing, trades at US$81,533 (AU$117,249), a significant drop from a high of US$84,230 (AU$121,127) on Monday, 12 October. In the immediate hours following the announcement, BTC slipped as low as US$80,642 (AU$115,968), but has slightly recovered since.

Ethereum (ETH) was one of the worst performers among top-ten assets, dropping by 5.17% over the past 24 hours and 7.06% over the past week. At the time of writing, it trades at US$2,380 (AU$3,422), but has been as low as US$2,342 (AU$3,368) during lunchtime hours in Australia.

Other large-cap coins were also down, with XRP (-4%), Solana (-3.78%) and Hyperliquid (-2.71%) booking moderate losses, while Zcash lost 11.97% over the past 24 hours.

Crypto ETFs Flip-Flop

And the US spot Bitcoin ETFs aren’t exactly offering a silver lining either. The past few days saw mixed results: some days had net inflows and some net outflows. This follows last week, which saw US$678.9 million (AU$976.3 million) in net outflows.

The week started with US$65.4 million (AU$94 million) in net outflows, followed by US$175.7 million (AU$252.6 million) in net inflows.

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However, it doesn’t look like a trend reversal just yet. Wednesday’s flows show a US$261.4 million (AU$375.8 million) net outflow, with BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC bearing the brunt of it with US$110.9 million (AU$159.4 million) and US$152.7 million (AU$219.5 million) in net outflows respectively, while Bitwise’s BITB saw US$2.2 million (AU$3.2 million) in net inflows.