BTC/USD Holds above 26,385 in Downward Triangle, ETH/USD Consolidates above 700

BTC/USD

There was a sharp rise in selling volumes from 04:00 to 06:00 UTC; the hourly candlestick between 05:00 and 06:00 fell as low as 25,838 but was supported by the buying volumes around 26,000 and closed a few price points below the open, forming a hammer with a long tail, and eventually produced an upside impulse for a local recovery.

Between 12:00 and 13:00 UTC, the pair briefly rose above 27,000 in a relatively short shooting star candlestick. Owing to the general decline of the downward triangle clearly visible on the 4-hour timeframe and the selling stimulus candlestick, the pair edged lower again to 26,300. The local support level, with buying volumes concentrated between 26,200 and 26,300, once again sent the pair a little higher between 17:00 and 18:00 UTC.

This week’s corrective pattern is increasingly looking like a descending triangle, which in general has a downside motive potential and is typical of downtrends. Considering that we are currently facing a firmly going uptrend and the positive fundamental outlook surrounding Bitcoin, 26,250 can be a good entry point for a buying order for BTC/USD with a short-term target of 28,000. It is likely that at the year end the BTC price will be at around that mark.

ETH/USD

Ether has been recently trying to minimise the relative growth gap with its BTC rival. ETH/USD opened the trading session of 29th December at 728. In the first five hours, there was considerable selling pressure, and the pair hit a local low of 690. But two hourly candlesticks with long lower wicks between 04:00 and 06:00, supported with the 50-period simple moving average, produced enough buying stimulus for the pair, to let it grow to $730 around which the pair was trading from 11:00 to 14:00 UTC. The next selling move took the pair to 710 between 16:00 and 17:00 UTC.

From 17:00 to 19:00 UTC, ETH/USD was trying to return to 730, which was reached between 2:00 and 20:30 UTC. Closer to the day’s end the pair was trading at around the day’s open, thus stabilising around 730.

The latest price action in ETH/USD indicates substantial buying stimulus present in the pair. The market is certainly reacting to the Bitcoin uptrend, but the current ETH/USD growth may also be a result of the market’s anticipations relating to Etherum’s transition to the Beacon chain and the potentials it will grant the smart contract pioneer in the near future.

Presently, Ethereum can be regarded as locked between $700 and $740 per Ether. Considering the ongoing bullish trend, chances of a continuation of the uptrend stand above those of a downward reversal.

Konstantin Anissimov, Executive Director at CEX.IO