US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently claimed that the Trump administration is determined to lower interest rates. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell opposes the move and may be a significant obstacle.

Additionally, US-China tariffs may create additional pressure on crypto markets, diminishing the short-term positive impact of rate cuts. Trump’s Crypto Reserve policy is already struggling with Congressional pushback, and the government may not be prepared to wage a committed fight over this issue.

Can the Fed Cut Interest Rates?

Interest rates are a key monetary policy that impacts the entire US economy. The Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is determined to bring them down. President Trump selected Bessent for this position shortly after his election win, and Bessent seems determined to follow his agenda.

In a recent Fox News interview, Bessent talked about rate cuts:

“The interest rates effect credit cards, they’ll effect auto loans, the bottom 50% of Americans over the past two years have gotten crushed by these high interest rates. We’re set on bringing interest rates down, and I think that’s one of the great accomplishments so far,” Bessent claimed in a televised interview.

Generally, lowered interest rates are bullish for risk-on assets, and cryptocurrencies fall into that category. Last September, the Federal Reserve cut rates by 50bps, which proved bullish for crypto.

Rumors of further rate cuts fueled higher price gains, but Fed Chair Jerome Powell claimed that slower rate cuts would be the agenda for the foreseeable future.

Powell himself may be the largest obstacle to cutting interest rates. As rates remained steady in January, the crypto market didn’t take it as a bearish signal. Last month, he voiced support for the crypto industry on several fronts, pushing for stablecoin regulations and an end to debanking efforts.

However, he also opposed rate cuts, and that’s ultimately his decision to make.

Regardless of what economic policy Trump or Bessent wish to pass, the Federal Reserve actually determines interest rates. Powell preemptively claimed that he would resist any attempt to eject him from office before his term ends.

It’s a delicate situation; acting harshly may push him away from pro-crypto policies at a time when extreme fear rules the market.

Tariffs Fuel Market Uncertainty

A further complication is Donald Trump’s tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and China. These took effect last night, and all three nations have retaliated.

Typically, lowered interest rates give traders an extra advantage when making riskier investments. However, geopolitical concerns may complicate these usual patterns.

Crypto liquidations are already high, and a US-China trade war could cause a liquidity squeeze. In the last 24 hours, over 300,000 traders were liquidated, and the market may be in a highly speculative phase.

When Trump proposed tariffs last month, it caused a spike in using Bitcoin as an inflation hedge. This factor may ease pressure on crypto, but it seems like a long shot.

In other words, this might be a bad time to insist on cutting interest rates. Yesterday, Trump’s Crypto Reserve plan began seeing serious pushback from both parties and the industry, and it may fall apart in Congress.

To meet this goal, Trump and Bessent will need to either convince Powell or force him out. They may not want to commit to that fight when a recession is looming.

The XRP price has retraced and lost the gains it recorded from its Sunday rally following Trump’s announcement that the crypto would be included in the crypto strategic reserve. Following this price correction, crypto analyst Trade City has key support levels that could determine XRP’s future trajectory. 

Important Support Levels For The XRP Price

In a TradingView post, Trade City highlighted $3.06717 and $1.67220 as critical support levels for the XRP price on the weekly timeframe. While analyzing the weekly chart, the analyst noted that after bouncing along the ascending trendline, XRP confirmed its breakout above $0.73056, which sparked the main bullish leg, sending the crypto up to $3.06717. 

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In line with this, Trade City remarked that $3.06717 is the all-time high (ATH) and a major supply zone. He added that the next bullish leg could begin soon enough if the XRP price can hold above this level. Meanwhile, in the event of a price correction, the analyst stated that the only key support viable in the weekly timeframe is $1.67220. 

Trade City revealed that the Relative Strength Index (RSI) oscillator has exited the overbought zone and returned to normal levels. He asserted that the bullish scenario for the XRP price becomes more likely if the RSI re-enters overbought conditions. 

Analysis Of The Daily Timeframe

Trade City went further to give an in-depth analysis of the XRP price on the daily timeframe. He stated that the first key observation on the daily timeframe for the XRP price is a strong bearish divergence on the RSI, which formed as the price moved sideways inside the range between $2.02967 and $3.30467. 

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The crypto analyst revealed that the trigger for this bearish divergence is a break below $2.02967, which has yet to happen. The analyst warned that a break below this support level could happen soon due to a drop in the trading volume. If this range breaks downward and the support level at $2.02967 is lost, Trade City stated that the XRP price could enter a deeper correction toward key Fibonacci levels such as 0.382, 0.5, and 0.618. 

The analyst noted that these three Fibonacci levels are strong support zones, which could prevent a further sell-off. Meanwhile, on the bullish side, if the XRP price breaks to the upside from its current range, the analyst assured that a new bullish leg will begin, pushing the crypto toward higher targets. The analyst’s accompanying chart showed that the XRP price could rally to as high as $4, marking a new ATH for the crypto. 

At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $2.32, down over 12% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com

Onyxcoin (XCN) has faced significant challenges recently, with the altcoin struggling to break out of a prolonged downtrend. Despite attempts to reverse its course, Onyxcoin’s price continues to face strong bearish pressure. 

While long-term holders (LTHs) are realizing profits, the overall market sentiment remains uncertain, which could delay any meaningful recovery for the coin.

Onyxcoin Investors Are Bullish

Onyxcoin’s price movement is currently influenced by its correlation with Bitcoin (BTC), which has recently risen to a strong 0.84. This suggests that XCN could follow Bitcoin’s lead.

However, this correlation also poses risks, as Bitcoin is experiencing difficulties, trading below the $85,000 mark. If Bitcoin continues to struggle, it could pull Onyxcoin down, preventing any potential rally for the altcoin.

However, the MVRV Long/Short Difference for Onyxcoin currently stands at a positive 18%. This indicates that long-term holders are in profit, which usually suggests a more stable market for the altcoin. These holders’ reluctance to sell during market downturns helps maintain some support for the coin.

Onyxcoin’s price movements are currently constrained by larger macro trends. If the market environment worsens or Bitcoin’s price continues to stagnate, Onyxcoin may find itself caught in a downward spiral. Conversely, should the broader market recover, Onyxcoin could see a shift in investor sentiment, which would be vital for its price recovery.

XCN Price Decline Likely

Onyxcoin’s price has dropped 15% in the last 24 hours, continuing its 4-week-long downtrend. After a brief 27% rally over the weekend, the altcoin failed to maintain upward momentum, and the previous breakout attempt was invalidated. XCN is currently stuck below the key resistance level of $0.0182, with its support sitting at $0.0150.

If the price continues to consolidate around these levels, the outlook remains uncertain. Without substantial market support or a clear reversal in sentiment, XCN could continue to struggle, falling below $0.0150 and potentially testing $0.0127.

Despite the challenges, if the broader market conditions improve, XCN could end up breaching and reclaiming $0.0182 as support. This could push the altcoin to $0.0237 and invalidate the bearish thesis.