Leading cryptocurrencies rallied Wednesday after in-line inflation data boosted expectations of monetary easing by the Federal Reserve.

What Happened: Following a minor pullback, Bitcoin reclaimed the $100,000 mark, while Ethereum returned to the $3,800 territory.

Bitcoin's upswing catalyzed the rest of the market, as the altcoin dominance increased by 4.41% over the last 24 hours.

Cryptocurrency liquidations surpassed $240 million in the last 24 hours, with $154 million in leveraged shorts getting wiped out.

Over $400 million in shorts risked liquidation on Binance if Bitcoin rises to $104,000.

Bitcoin's Open Interest surged by 4.90% in the last 24 hours. Interestingly, the number of traders shorting the asset rose dramatically in the last 24 hours, implying a greater expectation of another dip.

Market sentiment returned to the "Extreme Greed" zone, as per the Cryptocurrency Fear & Greed Index, lending credence to the pullback narrative.

Top Gainers (24-Hours)

The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $3.61 trillion, surging  5.02% over the last 24 hours.

The stock market rebounded sharply after consecutive days of losses. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.77% to close at a record high of 20,034.89. The S&P 500 rallied 0.82%, ending at 6,084.19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, closed another day in the red, slipping 0.22% to 44,148.56.

The tech rally was supported by electric vehicle giant Tesla Inc.'s (NASDAQ:TSLA) stock hitting all-time highs after a 5.93% spike.

Additionally, November's Consumer Price Index matched analyst's expectations, prompting traders to raise the likelihood of a 25 basis point rate cut in next week's Federal Reserve meeting to 98.6% from 88.9% a day before, per CME FedWatch data.

Analyst Notes: Popular cryptocurrency analyst and trader Michaël van de Poppe stated that Bitcoin was headed to new all-time highs in the coming days if it managed to stay above the $97,844 resistance level.

Let's do some TA on #Bitcoin.
It broke through a crucial area yesterday.
If it holds above that resistance level, likely we'll see a new ATH in the coming days.
We're back in $100k+ territory. pic.twitter.com/eiK45s5aNi

— Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL) December 11, 2024

Another widely followed analyst, known by their pseudonym venturefounder, predicted Ethereum to hit $4,900 "very soon" as it reclaimed the $3,800 level as support.

The analyst also set price targets of $5,349, $6,457, and $7,238 by the first quarter of 2025.

$ETH weekly candle not done yet, we are back to $3,800 support level.
It took #Ethereum 2 years to complete this cup and handle, and you think it will be shaken out like this?
$4,900 very soon. Then it gets explosive, PT are:
$5,349
$6,457
$7,238
All this by Q1 2025 the... pic.twitter.com/9jdbe95uvU

— venturefounder (@venturefounder) December 11, 2024