Bitcoin continues to trade sideways around the $68,000 mark on international exchanges like CoinMarketCap and Coinbase, showing a minimal increase of 0.66% in the last 24 hours. However, on Indian exchanges such as WazirX and CoinDCX, Bitcoin’s price is higher, hovering around $72,005.
Market Dynamics
The recent volatility in the crypto market followed the release of lower-than-expected US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data. Initially, this led to a price increase (“market pump”), but prices retraced after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announced that the Fed’s fund rate would remain unchanged. For Bitcoin, maintaining support above $67,000 is seen as crucial to sustaining the current upward trend.
Ethereum (ETH) and Altcoins
Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, saw a modest 0.30% increase, trading at approximately $3,509 on international exchanges and $3,112 on Indian exchanges. Despite the anticipation surrounding the launch of Ether’s spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US, ETH has struggled to break above $3,750 due to uncertainties about regulatory approvals.
According to ZebPay Trade Desk, ETH has found support around $3,450, with $3,700 acting as a resistance level.
Altcoins Performance
Several altcoins joined Bitcoin and Ethereum in experiencing gains. These include Binance Coin, Solana, USD Coin, Ripple, and Cardano. Other notable gainers on Thursday were Avalanche, Shiba Inu, Polkadot, Chainlink, Near Protocol, Polygon, and Litecoin.
However, a few cryptocurrencies faced losses, including Tether, Dogecoin, Tron, Leo, Braintrust, and Circuits of Value.
Overall Market Performance
The total cryptocurrency market cap increased by 1.40% over the past 24 hours, reaching approximately $2.47 trillion. Bitcoin maintains dominance with 54.2% of the market share, followed by Ethereum with 17.2%. The remaining share is held by various other altcoins.
Bitcoin’s price stability around $68,000, coupled with the varied performance of altcoins, reflects ongoing market adjustments amidst global economic and regulatory developments. Investors are closely monitoring key levels for Bitcoin and Ethereum, while market sentiment remains influenced by macroeconomic indicators and regulatory news.
