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Golden Ten Data reported on March 18 that Citigroup stated that as global oil prices surge and push up inflation, the Bank of Korea may raise its policy rate to 3% this year. Citigroup economist Jin-Wook Kim wrote in a report that the Bank of Korea is expected to hike rates twice, each by 25 basis points, once in July and once in October, bringing the benchmark rate close to 3%. As price pressures have proven more persistent than previously anticipated, these moves will mark a restart of the tightening cycle after a prolonged pause. Due to disruptions related to the Iran conflict, Brent crude oil may rise to $110–$120 per barrel in the near term before retreating later this year. This price surge—equivalent to a further increase of up to 20% over the already elevated oil prices in the next 12 months—will have a greater impact on inflation than on economic growth. The asymmetric and significant impact of rising oil prices on inflation will prompt the Bank of Korea to adopt a more hawkish stance, especially considering historically loose financial conditions.

ChainCatcher news, QCP Capital released a market analysis stating that BTC is currently trading around $74,000, consolidating within a recent range, with insufficient upward momentum. Although the overall crypto market is under pressure, the decline is relatively controllable compared to the pullback of other macro-sensitive risk assets. On-chain data shows that there is still buying activity at the lower end of the range, but spot trading volume remains low. Recent price movements are mainly driven by macro factors. On the macro level, this week is the most important central bank policy week of the year. The Federal Reserve will announce the results of its March FOMC meeting on Wednesday, while the European Central Bank, Bank of Japan, and Bank of England will release their decisions on Thursday. Due to high oil prices, the market has significantly lowered expectations for rate cuts, and the interest rate environment is providing less support for crypto assets. Meanwhile, geopolitical risks persist, oil prices remain near $100 per barrel, and the market continues to maintain stagflation expectations. QCP Capital pointed out that BTC currently does not exhibit purely high-beta risk asset characteristics, nor has it formed stable safe-haven capital inflows. Until policy paths and geopolitical situations become clearer, the range-bound pattern may continue.

BlockBeats News, March 18th, according to Hyperinsight monitoring, pre-market trading of storage concept stocks continued the uptrend from yesterday, with an exchange stock (SNDK) up 3.6% and an exchange stock (MU) up 2.7%. As a result, the SNDK contract on Hyperliquid is currently at $748.6, and the MU contract is at $474.9. The sector continues to strengthen, putting significant pressure on on-chain shorts. The largest short positions for these two targets are held by the "Crypto KOL CBB" (0xefd) address, with a total position size of approximately $12.9 million. Both short positions are currently underwater, with a combined unrealized loss of around $1.4 million. The specific positions are as follows: 3x SNDK short: Position size of $7.8 million, average price $679.4, unrealized loss of $71.2 (-26.5%); 3x MU short: Position size of $5.1 million, average price $410.7, unrealized loss of $69 (-38.7%).