Bitcoin opened the fourth quarter in a familiar trading range after a sharp but short-lived reaction to the latest U.S. PCE inflation data. According to market reports on Oct. 1, BTC briefly surged to $85,600 after the softer-than-expected PCE release, but the move reversed almost immediately, dragging the price back toward $83,600. This left the market inside the established $82,000–$85,000 band and showed that favorable macro data was still not enough to clear overhead resistance.
The prior week had already tested Bitcoin’s upside. BTC pushed above $87,000 in late September, its highest level since late January, but sellers forced it back below $83,000 within a day. U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $148.7 million in net outflows, ending a nine-day inflow streak worth roughly $3.08 billion. Bitcoin open interest eased from $21.8 billion to $20.9 billion, while 24-hour liquidations totaled about $100 million, almost evenly split between longs and shorts, signaling no extreme leverage imbalance.
Altcoin strength remained selective. Midnight’s NIGHT token jumped more than 20% in 24 hours and traded above $0.04, while Stacks rallied toward $0.40. In broader market coverage, BTW surged by about 35% to $1.41, NIGHT gained around 26%, and STX rose roughly 22%. Ether stayed below the $2,700 resistance, BNB held above $765, and XRP dipped slightly under $1.50. The total crypto market cap rose just over 1% to $2.890 trillion, while Bitcoin’s dominance remained flat at 58.6%.
Despite the softer PCE reading reducing expectations for tighter Federal Reserve policy, bond-market pressure and fading ETF momentum remain obstacles. The market remains sensitive to fresh macroeconomic and institutional-flow catalysts as Q4 begins, with traders watching whether Bitcoin can convert macro support into a sustained move above $85,000.
