Bitcoin (BTC) headed into an “interesting” liquidity zone on May 18, as US stock markets opened with a bang to the downside.
BTC Price Approaches ‘Interesting’ Rematch With Recent Lows
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView followed the BTC/USD pair as it broke support at $29,000 after the Wall Street open.
US markets saw a rapid reversal of gains earlier in the day, with the S&P 500 down 2% and the Nasdaq 100 down 2.3%.
The big surprise, however, came from department store chains Walmart and Target, which posted the biggest intraday falls since the weeks before the market crash on “Black Monday” in 1987.
At press time, WMT had fallen more than 15% in five trading days, while TGT was close to 25%. Both falls came after earnings deterioration was reported amid a cutback in consumer spending due to inflation.
“Bear market rallies can last for weeks or just a few days. Walmart/Target higher combo indicates the US consumer may not be as healthy as previously thought. The 3-day rally may be over,” said Fred Hickey, editor of The High-Tech Strategist, to his Twitter followers that day.
As a rule, BTC fell with the indices to threaten a break below $29,000, into a liquidity zone that represented the daily closes of last week’s decline, which had seen lows below $24,000.
“Looks like a clean breakout to me. Price action has been choppy but we should at least sweep the lows,” tweeted popular trader and analyst Nebraskan Gooner in his latest update.
“If the lows break, we are likely to see $22,000. If the lows hold, we can break back above $30,000.”
Cointelegraph contributor Michaël van de Poppe agreed, describing the zone around $28,400 as “interesting.”
His social media partner Josh Rager was hoping for a bounce off the key level to push Bitcoin back up.
“A lot of times these compressions break one way for a fakeout and then reverse,” he tweeted, referring to the dwindling volatility that could now lead to a price move.
“I would love to see BTC break down, shorts get out of the sideways, and move up. Not sure this will happen at all, but it would be a great setup.”
a later post confirmed that the BTC/USD pair was moving as expected.
Altcoins risk a 90% “standard bear market correction”
In altcoins, losses started to pile up more quickly as Bitcoin abandoned any short-term bullish signs.
Of the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap, Cardano (ADA) and Solana (SOL) were the worst performers, with daily losses close to 8%.
Ethereum (ETH) lost support at $2,000 and headed to its lowest levels since the crypto capitulation on May 12.
“Altcoins have pulled back a lot. But previous bear markets suggest they could go lower,” warned that day the trader and analyst Rekt Capital.
“If BTC misses its macro range low, that would confirm further declines in the crypto market. Which could allow altcoins to follow their standard +90% bear market correction.”
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