Bitcoin and ether market update, Jan. 26

The total crypto market cap is down by $5 billion since Monday and now stands at $1,004 billion. The top ten currencies are all in green for the day with cardano (ADA) and solana (SOL) being the biggest gainers with 4.7 and 4.5% increases respectively. At the time of writing bitcoin (BTC) is trading at $22,960. Ether (ETH) is at $1,603.

BTC/USD

Bitcoin closed the trading day on Sunday, January 22 flat at $22,630 after a solid seven-day period during which it managed to add 8% to its valuation making it a total of 45% since the November 2022 bottom.

On Monday, the new week started with low volatility and a small green candle to $22,900. BTC continued to trade above both the 21-period EMA on the weekly timeframe and the long-term diagonal resistance. Still, the $23,300 monthly resistance and the next lower high on the chart – $24,300 remained the next two big obstacles in front of buyers.

Things did not change much on Tuesday as neither bulls nor bears could take control of the price action. The biggest cryptocurrency erased all gains from the previous session and ended the day at $22,650.

The return of volatility marked the mid-week trading on Wednesday. The BTC/USDT pair was trading in the $23,800-$22,300 range before stopping at $23,050 in the evening.

What we are seeing early on Thursday is a minor correction in the price before the US market opens. Bulls were ready for the next leg up while bears continued to insist the monthly horizontal rejection marked the local top for BTC.

Trading volumes remain stable around the average values while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) index points to an exhaustion of the rally.

ETH/USD

The Ethereum Project token ETH ended last week with a 5% increase. The coin climbed above the $1,590 high and confirmed its presence above the 200-period EMA.

The next major obstacles in front of bulls are the monthly horizontal resistance – at $1,685 and the long-term diagonal resistance line which is currently situated near the $1,800 mark.

On Monday, January 23 the ether remained flat, above the mentioned $1,590 high.

Bears, however, managed to push the price down 5% the next day. The leading altcoin continued to be in an obvious consolidation, but too much time spent below the next resistance line could mean a lack of bullish momentum.

The price bounced back up from the meeting point of the 200 and 21 EMAs on the daily chart on Wednesday. The move resulted in a 4% jump that saw bulls re-capture the $1,600 level.

As of the time of writing this market update early on Thursday, the ETH/USDT pair is trading flat. 24-hour trading volumes again fell below the average for the last 14 days while the RSI has been reset by going out of the overbought area in the last couple of days.