Crypto Week Ahead: U.S. Inflation, Ethereum Upgrades and Key Token Events

U.S. inflation data is expected to be the main focus for investors this week as markets look for fresh clues about the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decisions ahead of its October meeting. Current expectations suggest the Fed will hold rates steady, with a potential increase anticipated in December.

Third-quarter earnings from major banking institutions will also be in focus, offering an update on lending activity, trading performance and investor demand.

Meanwhile, Ethereum developers will review upcoming network upgrades, and Singapore’s consultation on stablecoin regulation is set to conclude.

Upcoming Events

All times are Eastern Time (ET), unless otherwise noted.

Crypto Industry Calendar

• October 15: ArbitrumDAO’s proposed USDG initiative is expected to enter an off-chain governance vote, which is scheduled to run until October 22.
• October 15, 10 a.m.: Ethereum developers will meet for All Core Devs Consensus Call No. 189 to review the Glamsterdam and Hegotá upgrades.
• October 16: Balancer partners must submit requests to extend support for selected v3 pools through November 30, in line with the protocol’s approved wind-down plan.
• October 16, 11:59 a.m.: Singapore’s Monetary Authority will close its consultation on stablecoin regulatory rules.

Macroeconomic Releases

• October 12: U.S. bond markets will be closed for Columbus Day, while stock exchanges will remain open.
• October 13, 9:30 p.m.: China’s September CPI is expected to register annual growth of 1.0%, compared with 0.8% previously. PPI inflation is forecast at 4.5%, up from 3.8%.
• October 14, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. CPI for September is projected to increase 0.6% month over month, compared with 0.4% previously. The annual rate is expected to rise to 3.6% from 3.4%.
• October 14, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. core CPI is forecast to rise 0.2% monthly, down from the previous 0.3%. Annual core inflation is expected to reach 2.5%, compared with 2.4%.
• October 15, 2 a.m.: U.K. GDP for August is expected to fall 0.1% month over month, following a previous increase of 0.4%.
• October 15, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. September PPI is projected to increase 0.5% monthly, compared with 0.4% previously. Annual producer inflation is expected to ease to 5.3% from 5.4%.
• October 15, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. core PPI is forecast to rise 0.3% month over month, up from 0.2%, while its annual rate is expected to decline to 4.4% from 4.6%.
• October 15, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. retail sales are expected to grow 0.3% in September, compared with a previous increase of 1.2%.
• October 15, 8:30 a.m.: Initial jobless claims for the week ending October 10 are estimated at 195,000, down from 197,000. Continuing claims for the week ending October 3 were previously reported at 1.716 million.
• October 15, 11:30 p.m.: U.S. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh is scheduled to speak with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.
• October 16, 5 a.m.: Final eurozone CPI figures for September are expected to show annual inflation of 3.8%, compared with 3.2% previously.

Earnings Schedule

• October 14: BlackRock (BLK) will report results before the market opens, with an estimate of $14.24.
• October 15: BNY (BNY) is scheduled to announce earnings before the market opens, with an estimate of $2.27.

Token Governance and Supply Events

Governance Votes

• Balancer: A community vote on establishing an independent, self-funded fork is scheduled to end October 13.
• Compound: A proposal to withdraw wrapped Ether (wETH) reserves from its discontinued Ronin market and transfer them to Ethereum mainnet is up for a vote through October 13.
• Gitcoin: A proposal would lower the Snapshot quorum requirement from 2.5 million GTC to 1.5 million GTC, reducing the voting power needed to validate a proposal. Voting closes October 15.

Token Unlock Schedule

• October 15 — Starknet (STRK): Approximately 3.37% of circulating supply is scheduled for release, worth an estimated $13.2 million.
• October 15 — Connex (CONX): An unlock equal to 1.39% of circulating supply is expected, valued at about $12.18 million.
• October 16 — Arbitrum (ARB): Around 1.56% of circulating supply is scheduled to unlock, worth approximately $18.07 million.
• October 17 — Cronos (CRO): Tokens representing 2.33% of circulating supply are due to be released, with an estimated value of $73.08 million.

Airdrop Claim Deadline

• October 15: Sonic’s final deadline for users to claim Season 1 and Season 2 airdrop rewards.

Conferences and Industry Events

• October 12–14: Paradigm Frontiers — San Francisco.
• October 15: Pantera Blockchain Summit — San Francisco.
• October 15: Ledger Op3n — Paris.
• October 15–16: BGIN Block 15 — Washington, D.C.
• October 17–18: EDCON — Kuala Lumpur.