Bitcoin may go “hard lower” if it fails to preserve the area around $22,500, market participants say.
Bitcoin (BTC) stayed lower at the Feb. 9 Wall Street open as a sweep of local lows increased bets of a more serious comedown.
Trader: “Something feels off” about BTC strength
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView followed BTC/USD as it traded around $22,700 on Bitstamp.
The pair had dipped to $22,378 earlier in the day, marking its lowest levels since Jan. 25 and a reinforcement of $22,400 as an important zone to watch.
“We tapped the swing low at $22,500 followed by a bounce. I would look for the bears to escalate the drop once we lose that low,” popular trader Crypto Tony summarized in part of Twitter coverage.
Fellow trader Crypto Chase likewise forecast that Bitcoin was “more likely to go lower if 22.3k is tagged.”
In an update to analysis from Feb. 8, fellow Twitter account TraderSZ showed Bitcoin dropping below $23,000, which he had warned would mean “moving hard lower.”
“BTC - clean break below dashed line then I think we get moving hard lower. Expansion phase very soon,” he wrote at the time.
“It’s still support for now, but idk something feels off. Im@happy to catch something above jan high if market rips higher. Gut feel says lower first.”
United States equities were marginally higher at the open, while the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) saw a comedown on the day, dropping back below the 103 mark.
“The dollar looks washed,” trader and podcast host Scott Melker, known as “The Wolf Of All Streets,” reacted, arguing that DXY weakness could continue to serve risk assets.
“Classic retest of strong support as resistance at 103.82. Also starting to look like a potential head and shoulders top. Lots of signals that this little bull run will continue.”
Sellers cement $22,800 resistance
The day’s U.S. macroeconomic data, meanwhile, had little perceptible impact on crypto markets.
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This came in the form of jobless claims, which, at 196,000, neared one-year highs and beat expectations by 6,000 — the “hot” result analysis argued was being hoped for by the Federal Reserve.
Weaker employment data notionally bolsters the idea that restrictive economic conditions are working, and a reversal could thus be on the cards sooner.
“Jobless claims 196k, but four-week average still trending toward historic lows,” CNBC host Carl Quintanilla additionally noted.
The week prior had seen blockbuster jobs data capture the lowest U.S. unemployment since the late 1960s.
Immediately prior to the report being issued, the composition of the BTC/USD order book on Binance showed resistance strengthening at $22,800.
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