It is evident there is a very strong focus on the Bitcoin price right now. After some substantial losses over the past few days, it seems we have another uptrend forming on the charts. It is still too early to say for sure that we will see a new all-time high, though, as there is still plenty of resistance in the markets. Surpassing US$11,000 once again will be a challenge, to say the least.
Bitcoin may yet Mount a Comeback
The past few days have not been easy for fans of Bitcoin. After last month’s massive price rush, it was a matter of time until a correction set in. So far, the losses have been kept to a minimum, even though a US$2,000 decline is not something to dismiss by any means. Ever since then, however, things have started to reverse. Whether or not this is a temporary trend remains to be determined.
About 24 hours ago, the Bitcoin price was barely above US$10,000. Given the latest correction, that was a pretty big victory in its own right. However, Bitcoin didn’t stop there, as its value spiked to US$10,800 relatively quickly. After some minor pushback across all markets, the price started surging once again and successfully reached US$11,300. This has been a clear repeat of the momentum we saw affecting Bitcoin not that long ago. Such massive, rapid gains will always create more volatility, though.
It now seems the markets are trying to push the Bitcoin price back below US$11,000. That’s not an unexpected turn of events by any means, as steep gains always involve profit-taking along the way. Any decent gain in one’s portfolio will be cashed out these days, as no one knows for sure if the long-term bullish trend can be sustained for the remainder of the year. There have been some positive developments in the financial sector to move things in that direction, but cryptocurrency markets never operate in a rational manner.
With over US$6.8 billion in 24-hour trading volume, Bitcoin is still a wrecking ball in the cryptocurrency world. Most people are forced to buy Bitcoin before they can diversify into some of the more prominent altcoins, which may explain some of this momentum. It is good to see such strong demand for Bitcoin, although it remains to be seen whether or not it will be sufficient to push the Bitcoin price even higher in the coming days and weeks.
While Bitfinex still dominates the exchanges in terms of trading volume, Bithumb is not giving up without a fight. The latter is US$150 million behind in terms of 24-hour volume, which can easily be overcome with some effort. GDAX continues to trump bitFlyer for third place, which is an interesting situation to keep an eye on. Bitstamp is also included among the top five on a regular basis now. As is usually the case, the European markets barely make the top 20 right now, a situation that will not change anytime soon.
All of this positive Bitcoin price momentum has affected the altcoin markets as well. We are seeing most currencies go up in value again, even though the Bitcoin Dominance Index is back over 56%. The final few weeks of 2017 will be incredibly interesting for all cryptocurrencies, although there is no guarantee of future gains whatsoever. It is safe to assume most holiday discussions will touch upon cryptocurrency at one point or another.
