As we await data in the last few hours, the prices of Bitcoin and Ethereum, and other major cryptocurrencies are moving around parity, if we consider the prices set at the opening of the week, while among the major assets Solana (SOL) continues to stand out; so let’s take a look at the price forecast for these three cryptos.
Overall context
Over the past two months, the cryptocurrency market has been heavily influenced by positive macro data.
Traders expect a healthy economy anticipating monetary policy decisions from the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank.
This data will continue to be crucial as it will guide future Fed decisions and consequently the investment structure for the crypto sector as well.
Decisions from Federal Reserve
The focus on macro data by crypto traders was also confirmed over the past two days, after the Fed announced that it would reduce interest rate hikes to 25 basis points.
This decision pushed up the prices of Bitcoin and other digital assets to their highest levels in months. However, yesterday’s ECB decision slowed the rise in cryptocurrencies, causing prices to take a small step backward that looks more like a pause to catch their breath rather than an afterthought.
Nonfarm payrolls (NFP) data
Traders seem to have chosen to hold off on making new bids as the upcoming nonfarm payrolls (NFP) data, due today, could have a significant impact on the price of Bitcoin.
The wage report will provide a better picture of conditions in the U.S. economy, and if it shows strong job growth it would go a long way toward influencing the Fed’s accommodative stance at upcoming meetings, which would be a positive signal for Bitcoin investors.
In addition to nonfarm payroll data, other economic indicators such as ISM Services PMI and Final Services PMI could also influence Bitcoin prices. Investors should pay close attention to these reports to make informed decisions about their cryptocurrency investment.
Analysts predict an increase of 220,000 nonfarm jobs in the United States and an expansion of the unemployment rate to 3.6 percent. Average hourly earnings are expected to increase to 4.9 percent annually while remaining unchanged at 0.3 percent every month.
This increase in labor demand outstripping supply could translate into higher price indexes, which could offset expectations of slowing inflation.
Should prices show an upward trend over the next two days of the upcoming weekend, this would be the 5th consecutive upward week.
It was August 2021 when Bitcoin managed to pull off a 5-week upward streak. At that time, BTC prices were close to USD 50,000 while Ethereum reached USD 3,300 and began to soar, reaching an all-time high of USD 4,860 three months later – November 2021.
Overall, the crypto market is set to close another positive week on the heels of January’s positive trend.
Solana: the outlook for crypto
Among the major assets, Solana (SOL) continues to stand out by continuing to recover from losses accumulated between November and December. The failure of the FTX exchange, which directly implicated SOL due to its mentor Sam Bankman Fried’s direct involvement with investments. Over the past week, SOL has managed to revisit USD 26 for the first time since November. At the time of writing, SOL’s price has fallen below 24.5 USD, registering a 140 percent rise since the beginning of the new year.
Among the Top 15 by capitalization, Avalanche (AVAX) takes the podium with a rise approaching 20 percent from last Friday’s levels. The token native to the blockchain structured for decentralized applications and among Ethereum’s main competitors, in the last week managed to revisit USD 22 after five months since its last time.
Bitcoin price forecast
The price of Bitcoin (BTC) continues to attract the attention of the financial world. Currently listed at $23,480 with a trading volume in the last 24 hours of $29 billion, Bitcoin with a market capitalization of over $452 billion maintains 42 percent of the total market, the highest market share since last July.
From a technical perspective, Bitcoin is currently heading toward an immediate support area of $23,300. If this level is broken, further selling could push the price to $23,000, where an upward trend line could provide support.
Technical indicators, such as RSI and MACD, continue to signal a selling trend, which means that further selling pressure could push Bitcoin’s price down.
However, it is necessary to consider the possibility of continuation to the upside. A recovery of USD 24k supported by buying would project prices toward the medium- to long-term resistance of USD 24,500 where major profit-taking could begin for the buy positions opened in recent weeks. Therefore, it is necessary to place operational alerts to follow even distracted prices over the weekend.
Ethereum price forecast
In the last 24 hours, the price of ETH managed to rise to 1.715 USD for the first time since September 14 managing to break for a few hours the resistance built with the relative highs of early November.
Breaking that instead of supporting a new bullish push was an opportunity to take profit. Overbought indicators accompanied prices to an abrupt descent quickly pushing prices back below USD 1,640 on the same day yesterday.
Consolidation of prices above yesterday’s lows is needed for the weekend to prepare the ground for new buying confidence.
