Bitcoin Climbs Near $44K as U.S. Stocks Nurse Biggest Three-Month Loss

Bitcoin [BTC] neared the $44,000 level early Thursday and reversed some losses, which were caused by the sudden drop in U.S. stocks on Wednesday.

The S&P 500 index closed 1.42% lower, impacting riskier assets such as bitcoin. Some analysts pointed out that a correction was overdue as market indications were in overbought territory and the expiry of a certain type of options created selling pressure.

Its a 0DTE driven plunge in the S&P.

you can see the spread here between bearish 0DTE flow (teal) is identical to that of all flow (purple) informing us that the bulk of flow on this downdraft is all todays expiration. pic.twitter.com/WFGuRY2Cj8

— SpotGamma (@spotgamma) December 20, 2023

Bitcoin and trending tokens such as Solana’s SOL and Avalanche’s AVAX took a hit after the broader market plunge but climbed in early Asian hours on Thursday. SOL extended gains to 15% in the past 24 hours, and extended gains from a multi-week rally to over 55%.

Traders’ optimism around bitcoin remained strong ahead of an expected spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval in the U.S., which could bolster demand, and the halving event scheduled for April 2024, which has historically preceded bull runs for the crypto market.

However, some traders pointed out current bitcoin market metrics flashed signs of cooling down after a month-long rally – suggesting a low period of volatility ahead of the holidays.

“This week has witnessed a sideways trend, with bitcoin moving between $40,500 and $43,500 and ether between $2,150 and $2,250,” said Rachel Lin, CEO and co-founder of SynFutures. “Both these coins and the broader market are consolidating near their recent highs following a rapid increase in value during November.”

“One notable effect of this sideways movement is the cooling down of RSI, which, two weeks ago, was in highly overbought territory. Bitcoin’s weekly RSI stands at around 75, down from 82 at the beginning of the month,” Lin added.

The RSI indciator calculates the magnitude of price movements for assets, with readings below 30 indicating prices of an asset have fallen further than its fundamental value.