On Thursday (May 23), the US dollar index was strong at 104.90, gold plummeted from $2,426 overnight to $2,383, and Bitcoin once fell below $69,000. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes released hawkish signals, hitting the original rate cut pricing. The situation in the Middle East flashed differences, and Ireland, Spain and Norway will recognize Palestine as a country and call on other countries to follow suit.
FOMC hawks spread their wings, and the market pricing of interest rate cuts suddenly changed
FOMC minutes showed that Federal Reserve officials became increasingly concerned about inflation at their recent meetings, with members saying they lacked confidence in moving forward with rate cuts.
Some participants expressed uncertainty about how restrictive policy needed to be. The minutes noted that many officials believed that the Fed's monetary policy was seen as restrictive, but there was uncertainty about the extent to which the policy would be restrictive on the economy.
Some participants indicated that they were prepared to tighten policy further if risks to the outlook emerged that warranted such action. In addition, participants noted that it would take longer than expected to gain greater confidence that inflation could move sustainably toward 2 percent.
However, members expressed confidence that inflation would eventually fall to the long-term target of 2%.
The CME’s Fed Watch tool shows no rate cuts are expected in June or July, but there is a 37% chance that current policy will be maintained in September.
"Huge differences" emerge between Israel and many European and American countries
Ireland, Spain and Norway said they would recognise Palestine as a state and called on other countries to follow suit as Israel's international isolation grows.
Slovenia's ambassador to the United Nations, Samuel Zbogar, told Al Jazeera he may soon join other European countries in formally recognizing the state of Palestine.
He said the country's foreign minister had "travelled extensively" in the Middle East and the government would complete internal discussions by June 13.
Gaza health authorities said Israeli attacks in the past 24 hours killed at least 62 people and injured 138.
Foreign media reported that Israel's wartime cabinet met to discuss ceasefire negotiations, and protests continued.
These protests have been ongoing almost daily, and include not only the families of those still imprisoned, but also people demanding the dissolution of the government and the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
William Lawrence, a professor of international relations at American University, said Israel was ignoring the U.S. military strategy for the Gaza war.
“While they do have mechanisms to avoid killing civilians, they also do not enforce their policies. There is a huge divide in strategy right now,” he told Al Jazeera.
He noted that the United States has so far given Israel "carte blanche" and continues to deliver small arms to the Israeli army during the ongoing battle in Gaza.
"From the Palestinian perspective, it's clear that the United States has done almost nothing to save them from the Israeli army," Lawrence said.
Bitcoin Technical Analysis
CoinTelegraph pointed out that the price of Bitcoin remains in a range. Usually, traders will sell when the price approaches the upper resistance level, but the inflow of funds into spot Bitcoin spot ETFs indicates that buying is still continuing. Farside Investor data shows that the total inflow of spot Bitcoin ETFs from May 20 to 21 was US$500 million.
However, some analysts are concerned about Bitcoin’s short-term price action. John Bollinger, the creator of the Bollinger Bands, mentioned that Bitcoin’s formation indicates a short-term consolidation or pullback. Similarly, trading resource Material Indicators warned that its proprietary trading tool gave a “clear” downside signal that would invalidate prices above $71,500.
Bitcoin broke the $68,000 barrier at the beginning of the week, but the bulls failed to push the price above the overhead resistance of $73,777.
However, a positive sign is that the bulls are trying to keep the price above the psychological level of $70,000. If they succeed, Bitcoin is expected to touch $73,777 again. If the bulls gain the upper hand, the pair could rally to $80,000 and then to $84,000.
Conversely, if the price turns down sharply from the current levels or from the overhead resistance, it will suggest that the bears are strongly defending the $73,777 level, which means that the consolidation might continue for a few more days.
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