Investing.com — on Friday was headed for its best week since October 2025, as risk assets caught a bid from a U.S.-Iran ceasefire, with the focus on planned peace talks for the weekend.
Bitcoin was also aided by optimism over more positive U.S. crypto regulation, although the passage of the CLARITY Act still appeared distant.
At 18:05 ET (22:05 GMT), the world’s largest cryptocurrency was up 1.7% to $73,061.2, and was set for a weekly advance of nearly 9%.
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U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks in focus amid conflicting signals
Market focus was squarely on ceasefire talks between the U.S. and Iran, which are scheduled to take place in Pakistan over the coming days.
Tehran and Washington had agreed to a conditional ceasefire earlier this week. But Iran almost immediately accused the U.S. and Israel of violating the agreement, demanding that Lebanon be included in the peace agreement.
Iranian state media reports also showed Tehran denying earlier reports that its delegates had landed in Pakistan for talks, and that talks remained suspended until it had sufficient assurances on Lebanon.
Iran was also seen keeping shipping through the Strait of Hormuz limited, drawing ire from President Donald Trump.
The U.S. and Iran remain deeply divided over the conditions for a ceasefire, with Tehran signaling that it will begin charging a toll for passage through Hormuz– a notion that Washington has decried. Iran has also largely rejected calls from the U.S. that it cease its nuclear activities and hand over its uranium.
Uncertainty over the war and its economic effects was a major weight on risk-driven assets over the past month, although crypto markets did fare relatively better than their peers.
Energy spike drove inflation jump in March, but core prices stay tame
Aside from the Middle East conflict, the spotlight on Friday was also taken by a key inflation print.
As per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, consumer prices rose sharply in March as the conflict with Iran drove energy costs higher, pushing headline inflation further from the Federal Reserve’s target.
The consumer price index (CPI) climbed a seasonally adjusted 0.9% for the month, lifting the rate to 3.3% — the highest since April 2024 and up from 2.4% in February.
Both figures matched Dow Jones consensus estimates. A 10.9% surge in energy costs was the primary driver, with gasoline prices jumping 21.2% and accounting for nearly three-quarters of the headline increase.
However, excluding food and energy, core prices rose just 0.2% for the month and 2.6% year-over-year, each coming in 0.1 percentage point below forecast.
Energy costs have since moderated following a U.S.-Iran ceasefire that took hold in April, potentially offering Fed officials room to look past the March spike and focus on the broader inflation trajectory, which has remained above target for five years.
Higher inflation typically gives the Fed less impetus to cut interest rates – a scenario that bodes poorly for speculative assets.
“The March energy shock looks set to stay in the system for longer, as it has already started to spread through the global economy, making the Fed even less likely to cut rates soon,” Gracy Chen, CEO at crypto exchange Bitget, said.
“For the crypto market, the picture is difficult. Higher inflation means tighter dollar liquidity and less support for risk assets. Bitcoin is holding up better than most, as it remains the main crypto asset for large investors and the easiest way to keep exposure when markets turn cautious, however CPI print gives bulls a strong reason to push higher,” Chen added.
Crypto prices today: altcoins mostly rise
Broader crypto prices also largely rose on Friday, tracking gains in Bitcoin.
World no.2 crypto rose 2.6% to $2,255.02, while added 0.7% to $1.3611.
climbed 1.6%, while Cardano and were little changed.
Among memecoins rose 0.9% while fell over 3%.
Ambar Warrick and Vahid Karaahmetovic contributed to this article