Following the release of retail sales figures in the United States, Bitcoin remains under pressure below $30,000.

Bitcoin (BTC) is just holding above a one-month low at $29,780 as Tuesday’s economic data verifies the US economy is still growing and traders brace for what is now a near-certainty of another Federal Reserve rate hike next week.
On the surface, the June retail sales report from the United States Census Bureau revealed some weakness, with the headline figure climbing 0.2% last month versus 0.5% expected and 0.5% in May. However, the retail sales “control group,” which excludes some components to get a more exact measure of consumer spending, climbed 0.6% in June, more than doubling the rate in May and above expectations for a 0.3% fall.
“Score another win for team soft landing”RSM’s head economist, Joseph Brusuelas, reiterated. He added that the control group is higher by 2.1% on a 3-month average annualised basis, reflecting a minor upside risk to his team’s prediction of 1.7% GDP growth in Q2.
According to the CME FedWatch Tool, traders are now pricing in a 97.3% chance of another 25 basis point rate hike at the Fed’s policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting next week.
Bitcoin, which appeared to be on the verge of a significant price increase after rallying as high as $31,800 last Thursday in response to a favourable court judgement for Ripple’s XRP, is now trading near the low end of its recent price range at $29,780.