Bitcoin dropped below $71,000 while stocks closed at session lows as expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2026 continued to fade. The broad market decline reflected growing investor concern about the central bank's monetary policy outlook.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell highlighted rising energy prices as a factor feeding into the inflation outlook, though he noted that "nobody knows" yet how lasting the impact will be. This uncertainty about inflation persistence has dampened market expectations for aggressive rate cuts in the coming years.