Check out these Bitcoin price levels ahead of Fed Chairman Powell’s speech

Bitcoin (BTC) traded at $74,000 on Wednesday, 2.6% below the six-week high of $76,000 reached on Tuesday.

Main Receptors:

There is a 100% chance that the US Federal Reserve will leave interest rates unchanged today.

If the support between $72,000 and $65,000 is broken, the price of BTC may drop to $60,000.

100% chance interest rates will not change.

Data from TradingView shows that after breaking out of the range on Friday, the BTC/US pair made daily candlestick highs, but failed to break the resistance at $76,000.

With the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting taking place on March 17-18, markets could see volatile price changes to key BTC price levels over the next few days. The interest rate decision will be announced at 2:00 PM on Wednesday.

Related: Bitcoin Holds $70K, Place ETF Brings Buyers Closer to Breakeven: Is the Bull Market Back?

Polymarket contends that there is a 100% chance that current interest rates will remain between 3.5% and 3.75%, leaving less than a 1% chance of a rate cut of 0.25%.

Futures traders have pegged a 98.9% chance that the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged, with almost no chance of a 25 bps cut.

But, market participants say, any depreciation that would come from unchanged interest rates has already been sold.

Meanwhile, other sources of volatility traders will have to contend with include the US and Israel-Iran war, US inflation and rising oil prices, along with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech after the FOMC meeting.

U.S. President Donald Trump has again pressed Powell to cut interest rates, saying on Thursday's Truth Social that the Fed chairman must cut interest rates quickly.

The market will be watching Powell's language at the FOMC news conference with interest to see if there is a change in tone.

🇺🇸 Today: FOMC decision at 2:00 PM ET, followed by Powell's press conference at 2:30 PM ET.

Will the crypto market boom or bust? pic.twitter.com/UQMIspxV35

— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) March 18, 2026

“The price decision is absolutely worth it at very low risk,” veteran trader Matthew Dixon told XPost on Wednesday.

“The real dynamic is Powell's tone,” whether hawkish or dovish, Dixon added.

“Jerome Powell is going to sound as good as he can at the last meeting. That's his legacy,” crypto analyst Sycodelic said.

“I think after the meeting, the big hedges will be released and both stocks and bitcoin will continue to get juiced.”

Crypto trader BitcoinHyper has seen BTC prices lower after the last six FOMC meetings.

Key Bitcoin price levels to watch

Bitcoin should break the $76,000 resistance level into support to target the upside above $80,000.

For this to happen, BTC/USD must first hold a position above the 50-day simple moving average (yellow line) on the daily chart. For the first time since January 1st, BTC price dropped below the 50-day SMA on March 1st.

If the bulls can push the price above the $76,000-$80,000 resistance level, the next target is the 200-day SMA at $87,411.

One impetus for higher prices may continue to be demand for spot Bitcoin ETFs. On March 17, Bitcoin ETFs recorded $199 million in inflows, marking the seventh consecutive day of net inflows.

The bears, on the other hand, will try to keep the $76,000 resistance in place, increasing the possibility of a drop to the $72,000-$65,000 range where the 200-week moving average (EMA) is located.

Below $65,000, the next key area of ​​interest remains between $62,500 and $60,000, which will erase all gains from February 6.

According to Cointelegraph, a close below the moving averages would favor the bears and turn last week's rally into a bull trap.