(Kitco News) – Bitcoin (BTC) bulls and bears waged another day of battle for control of the $19,200 support/resistance level, as there was little change to the persistent sideways price action in the crypto market during trading on Wednesday.
A bounce-back in the DXY, which briefly spiked above 113 near midday after hitting a low of 111.78 on Tuesday, put pressure on global financial markets and plunged the major stock market indices into the red. Oil was the one exception to the widespread weakness, up 3.66% on the day at the time of writing.
Data from TradingView shows that three attempts by Bitcoin bears to break below support at $19,200 were well-defended by bulls, keeping the top crypto squarely in the middle of the trading range it has been oscillating in since late August.
BTC/USD 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
The “steady” BTC price was noted in the morning update from Kitco senior technical analyst Jim Wyckoff, who added that there is “not much new at mid-week.”
“The sideways and choppy trading range continues,” Wyckoff added, as “Bulls and bears continue to fight for control, with neither having a decided edge. That suggests more of the same in the near term.”
Across crypto Twitter, the current price action is widely being panned as “boring,” which prompted independent market researcher McKenna to post the following tweet warning to not let the current boredom lull traders into a false sense of security.
Bollinger band compression on the higher timeframe meaning volatility is getting primed to return.
When the market becomes the most boring and the majority become disinterested is when you should begin to watch very closely. #BTC pic.twitter.com/KZUaQdO6EF
— McKenna (@Crypto_McKenna) October 15, 2022
Higher-priced BTC is only a matter of time
Taking a step back from the day-to-day price action of crypto winter, senior Bloomberg analyst Mike McGlone recently wrote that the “benchmark crypto is gaining value as a unique alternative asset and global collateral that’s no one’s liability or responsibility.”
The strategist highlighted the fact that the first time WTI crude oil reached its current value of $84 in October 2007, Bitcoin didn’t even exist yet, which “may indicate the appreciation advantage of the nascent technology.”
Bitcoin’s struggles in recent months as the Federal Reserve embarked on its most aggressive tightening in 40 years makes sense to McGlone, “but rising demand and adoption, declining supply and a steep relative price discount point to risk/reward leaning favorably.”
“Returning to its propensity to outperform most assets may be a matter of time, as mainstream adoption progresses and adaptive changes in US accounting standards give it a lift,” McGlone suggested.
The Bloomberg analyst indicated that “aggressive Fed tightening to squash inflation” is the primary headwind for risk assets in 2022, but the fact that BTC didn’t see further declines with the latest round of rate-hike expectations “may also signal a Fed end game on the horizon.”
“A top potential catalyst for central banks to curtail tightening is for markets, notably stocks and commodities, to do it for them, which may favor Bitcoin,” McGlone said. “Bitcoin is showing signs of bottoming and divergent strength in 4Q. The lowest-ever crypto volatility vs. the Bloomberg Commodity Index may portend better performance for Bitcoin.”
And on the topic of Gold and Bitcoin, McGlone suggested that BTC “may be transitioning toward a high-beta version of gold and US Treasury bonds.”
“The burgeoning technology is a top contender to outperform the precious metal in the long term, and is retreating into a good support zone,” the analyst observed.
“Bitcoin’s 180-day volatility, at about quadruple the metal’s, is still comparatively high. But trends in rising adoption vs. declining supply suggest diminishing relative Bitcoin risk should be a matter of time.”
Altcoins trade flat
The wider cryptocurrency market traded mixed on Thursday as the lack of any major catalyst meant that only tokens with a major development saw a significant price change.
Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source: Coin360
Noteworthy gains on the day include an 11% increase for Balancer (BAL), a 10.59% gain for APENFT (NFT), and a 9.47% price increase for Just (JST).
The overall cryptocurrency market cap now stands at $925 billion, and Bitcoin’s dominance rate is 39.8%.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
Read More:As Bitcoin trades sideways, one analyst says a higher price is only a matter of time
2022-10-19 20:38:00
