Bitcoin price and other major cryptos were roughly flat from the beginning of the weekend
Bitcoin price flittered around the same price where it started the weekend, sometimes a little over and just under $39,500, as investors continued to digest worsening events in Ukraine and the increasing likelihood of a half-point interest rate hike when the U.S. central bank meets in May. The largest cryptocurrency by market cap was recently trading at $39,098, down slightly over the previous 24 hours.
BTC/USD 4-hour chart | Source: TradingView
Bitcoin price, Ether, and other cryptos tread water
Bitcoin’s quiet weekend followed a volatile Thursday and Friday that included a run past $42,000 and then a steep decline after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the central bank was ready to raise interest rates more aggressively to tame inflation. The Consumer Price Index hit 8.5% and could increase amid surging energy prices and supply chain snags, exacerbated over the past six weeks by Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. Housing rents and the price of products have increased markedly this year.
Bitcoin dipped below $40,000 on Friday, the midpoint of a three-month-long trading range. The cryptocurrency could find support at $37,500, although the upside appears to be limited toward the $46,000 resistance level.
BTC/USD 1-week chart | Source: TradingView
A positive momentum signal on bitcoin’s daily chart was invalidated on Thursday, which typically precedes a period of price weakness. However, momentum remains slightly positive on the weekly chart, suggesting that rangebound trading could persist over the next few days.
Most technical indicators are neutral, although a significant loss of upside momentum on the monthly chart increases the probability of a break below BTC’s year-long price range. Further, the recent increase in sell volume relative to buy volume means traders have been reluctant to maintain long positions after the 2020 crypto rally.
For now, the upward sloping 100-week moving average, currently at $35,693, has kept the uptrend intact. If price breaks below that level, the next support zone is between $27,000 – $30,000.
The second-largest crypto by market cap, Ether, followed a similar weekend holding pattern and was also recently off roughly a percentage point at about $2,930. Other significant cryptos from the CoinDesk top 20 by market cap were mainly in the red, with DOT and MATIC off 4% and 3%, respectively, at certain points. Popular meme coins DOGE and SHIB were recently off more than 2%. Trading volume was light, as is often the case over weekends.
The overall cryptocurrency market cap stands at $1.800 trillion, and Bitcoin’s dominance rate is 41.2%.
Read more:
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