[DigitalToday reporter Yoonseo Lee (이윤서)] Bitcoin fell as low as $80,154 on Oct. 15 (local time), hitting its lowest level in about three weeks. It was the lowest since Sept. 20.

Cointelegraph, a blockchain media outlet, reported on Oct. 15 that risk aversion spread to the cryptocurrency market as a sharp drop in South Korean stocks coincided with shock from U.S. inflation data.

Instability in South Korean stocks was cited first as a backdrop to bitcoin's decline. The KOSPI fell 7.5 percent amid weakness in tech shares, posting its lowest closing level since April 8. Weekly losses widened to 15.5 percent. The market pointed to debt burdens related to artificial intelligence (AI), outflows of overseas funds and intensifying competition from China as key reasons for weakness in domestic stocks.

As risk-asset sentiment weakened, selling pressure in the cryptocurrency market also increased after U.S. inflation data came in above expectations. The U.S. consumer price index (CPI) for September rose 3.7 percent from a year earlier. The market interpreted it as a signal that the Federal Reserve (Fed) was more likely to raise rates further.

QCP Capital, a Singapore-based trading firm, said the key variable after the inflation data was whether the likelihood of additional tightening increased or whether credit stress would trigger a policy recalibration. With uncertainty over the interest rate path growing, investment sentiment in risk assets overall, including cryptocurrencies, was shaken.

Energy prices also drew attention. September inflation reflected the impact of high oil prices, but West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude fell on the day despite rising Middle East tensions. A Singapore-registered oil tanker sank in the Strait of Hormuz a day earlier, and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) called it unjustifiable.

Still, oil prices did not surge. Firas Beshwati (피라스 베슈와티), head of business development at online trading platform ICM, said Saudi crude continues to be supplied to international markets via alternative routes and emergency stock releases by member countries of the International Energy Agency (IEA) are also acting as a buffer. He said those factors help prevent a price spike even as tensions remain elevated.

The market is also expected to focus on earnings announcements from major domestic tech shares. If results fall short of expectations, investor sentiment could weaken further, raising volatility in domestic stocks and risk assets such as bitcoin.

The latest decline showed bitcoin is being influenced not only by internal factors within the cryptocurrency market but also by weakness in domestic tech shares, U.S. inflation and oil price moves. With earnings announcements from major tech shares approaching, attention is also turning to the linkage between stock and cryptocurrency markets.