Bulls Fail to Push Bitcoin Above $53,000 as Ethereum Marches Steadily toward $3,000

Bulls fail to push Bitcoin above $53,000 as Ethereum marches steadily toward $3,000

The crypto market has been experiencing headwinds over the last few days with the total market capitalization falling by 0.3% over the last 24 hours to rest at $1.90 trillion. This movement has increased Bitcoin (BTC) market dominance by 0.25% to 50.59%.

The second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, Ethereum, has been holding above $2,900, dropping only by 0.6% on the day after being rejected from the $3,000 psychological level a few days ago.

Both cryptocurrencies have been trading sideways, indicating a tough battle between the buyers and the sellers.

Will the bears overpower the bulls and start a short-term correction, or could the buyers come out on top?

Let's look at the most important support levels that may arrest the decline in Bitcoin and Ether.

Bitcoin price analysis

Bitcoin is fighting to regain the support level at $52,000 after fiercely being rejected by supplier congestion around $53,000 on Feb. 20.

A closer look at the BTC four-hour chart below shows a bearish divergence in the four-hour RSI (blue trend line) even as the price appears to increase.

The RSI is a trend-following oscillating momentum indicator used to assess the strength of an uptrend or a downtrend.

A bearish divergence happens when the price of an asset records a series of higher highs while the trend-following RSI oscillator reaches lower highs, indicating a potential trend reversal.

As such, the price could continue dropping to produce a daily candlestick close below $50,000. If this happens, short-term traders may give up and book profits. That could pull the Bitcoin price to $49,200, close to the 100-four-hour exponential moving average (EMA).

BTC/USD four-hour chart. Source: TradingView

If the price produces a strong rebound off the 100-day EMA, it will suggest that the sentiment remains positive and traders are buying the dips. That will increase the likelihood of a rally back above $52,000. The pair could then jump to $60,000 and later $65,000, before returning to the November 2021 all-time highs of around $69,000.

Instead, if the price continues lower and breaks below the 100-period EMA, it will signal the start of a pullback to the 200-period EMA at $47,150.

Ethereum price analysis

The Ethereum price turned down from the psychological resistance of $3,000 on Feb. 21, indicating profit booking by short-term traders and buyer exhaustion among the buyers.

The decline to $2,870 has given sidelined buyers an opportunity to enter the market at discounted prices. The 50-day exponential moving average (EMA), 100-day EMA, 200-day EMA and the relative strength index (RSI) were all facing upward, indicating that the bulls were ready to resume the uptrend and give the suppliers at $3,000 another challenge.

If the price snaps back above $3,000 with force, it will indicate that every minor dip is being purchased aggressively. That will enhance the prospects of a climb to $3,300. Ether's price may then rally to all-time highs at $4,000.

ETH/USD daily chart. Source: TradingView

On the downside, if bears pull the price below the support level at $2,870, it will signal the start of a deeper correction to the 50-day EMA at $2,523.