Ethereum retraces to $2.3K after strong rally, analysts eye fresh upside ahead
Ethereum is trading at $2,378, down 5% in the past 24 hours after reaching a weekly high of $2,693.
Even with the decline, Ethereum (ETH) is still up over 35% in the past month, showing strength amid a recent crypto market revival. With 24-hour volume up 128.6% to $29.6 billion, trading activity has increased, indicating renewed interest from both retail and institutional investors.
Derivatives data paints a similar picture. CoinGlass data shows a 135% spike in trading volume. Interestingly, open interest in ETH futures has declined by 5.53% during the same period, which could suggest that short-term traders are closing out positions while new momentum begins to build underneath.
From a technical standpoint, Ethereum has returned to the middle of its Bollinger Bands after the recent sell-off. Momentum has turned slightly negative, and the relative strength index has cooled from the overbought zone to 59.6.
While short-term signals like the 10-day EMA and SMA are flashing red, Ethereum is still above its 20-, 30-, and 50-day moving averages. At the moment, the majority of momentum indicators are neutral. Additionally, the MACD is still positive, suggesting that if the asset finds solid support within the current range, there may be a chance for a fresh uptrend.
Analysts are still split on the near-term outlook, although they are generally optimistic. Titan of Crypto, in a May 17 post on X, suggested that Ethereum still has “more gas in the tank,” citing the weekly Stochastic RSI, which has not yet reached extreme overbought levels. According to him, the rally could extend over the coming weeks.
On the flip side, Crypto Patel views the current move as a healthy correction. He points to Ethereum’s rejection at the $2,500 level, an area known as a fair value gap, a price zone where the asset previously moved too quickly, often leaving behind unfilled orders. These gaps tend to get revisited by the market, either to confirm support or resistance.
Patel believes ETH could now dip into the $1,930 to $2,100 range, which also aligns with another FVG and a bullish order block near $1,810. Order blocks, which frequently serve as powerful support zones, are collections of sizable buy or sell orders made by institutions or whales. He argues that the next leg higher could push ETH closer to the $4,000–$5,000 range if demand holds here.
The outlook for Ethereum is still cautiously optimistic, regardless of whether it finds support at current levels or declines further before the next rally.
