Despite an observable decline in trading volumes, bitcoin (BTC) remains determined to be among the better performing asset classes as the second quarter gets under way.
After adding 1.3% to US$28,165 on Tuesday, the benchmark cryptocurrency added another 1.4% during Wednesday’s Asian trading hours, bringing it to US$28,525 at the time of writing.
Where to next for bitcoin (BTC)? – Source: currency.com
The BTC/USDT pair is being supported by a weaker dollar as traders weigh a wave of softer US economic data.
There has been a decline in U.S. job vacancies, notably a surge in economic activity. While the R-word means different things to different analysts, the recession issue seems to be weighing on dollar strength.
The Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index, which measures volatility, market momentum and market dominance, remains firmly in the green, suggesting bullish appetite persists for the world’s largest cryptocurrency, even if that sentiment isn’t quite filtering through to the broader crypto market.
There’s no real telling where bitcoin will go from here, although lower trading volume and a hard selling pressure at 29k make an undeniable case.
Ethereum (ETH), the market’s second largest cryptocurrency measured by market capitalization, has outperformed bitcoin recently.
ETH/USDT rose 3.3% to $1,870 yesterday before shooting as high as $1,925 this morning; the best trading price since August 2022.
The prospect of breaking 2k must be enticing for the ETH bulls, although they will first have to contend with a significant selling wall at USD 1,950.
Ether is leading the way in the run-up to the April 12th Shanghai hard fork, which will free approximately 16 million ETH from staking contracts.
Despite all the hype buying, there is a high chance that ETH could swing lower after the upgrade, should newly freed ETH players decide to take profits.
Meanwhile, the ETH/BTC pair is on a roll, having added 6% in the past week.
Disabled boy
Twitter’s surprise Dogecoin (DOGE) rebrand at the behest of Chief Twit Elon Musk sent the meme coin skyward in recent days.
DOGE remains the best weekly performer in altcoin for 20 altcoin set 27% higher, although the recent Musk rally is already showing signs of slowing.
DOGE/USDT closed around a percentage point lower yesterday, while this morning’s session has been highly volatile with 6.5% amplitude swings. The meme coin is currently changing hands 1.6% higher at $0.096.
Polkadot (DOT), Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Avalanche (AXAV) are all around 5% higher week-on-week, while Ripple (XRP)’s stellar performance of late seems to have held back, with 5% losses in the last seven days.
The global crypto market capitalization reached US$1.2 billion after adding 2.5% overnight, while total value in decentralized finance (DeFi) increased by 3 percent to exceed US$51 billion for the first time in six weeks.
