Is the bottom in? Markets rally following festive slump

By Darren Parkin

The colour of the crypto markets returned to shades of green this morning after spending much of the holiday season sporting a red hue.

Bitcoin had looked to all intents and purposes like it was determined to end 2022 on a high as the run-in to Christmas took the flagship cryptocurrency above $18,000. But the upward movement wasn’t to last as it met strong resistance on December 15 that pushed it down on a trajectory towards the $16.5k mark, and almost looked like dropping into the fifteens in the 24 hours ahead of New Year’s Eve.

Ethereum showed a similar pattern, although with much less dramatic margins, as it lost its grip on $1,350 on the way to $1,190 before the blue touch-paper was lit on the NYE fireworks.

The much-celebrated Cardano followed suit, but with a more alarming tumble mid-December from $0.32 to $0.24 over the final two weeks of 2022.

It was a pattern that would be repeated across the board, leading several analysts to predict 2023 would continue the slide that 2022 had triggered.

However, the descent arrested slightly on New Year’s Day before rising today with some unexpectedly robust pick ups.

Bitcoin is up – if only by little more than one per cent – today, edging towards $17k as it slowly kicks on from $13,730.

Ethereum is looking better, nearing a two per cent rise at $1,217 as it boasts a 25% jump in trading volume from yesterday’s day of rest with $3.5bn changing hands. Bitcoin’s 24-hour trading volume was up nine per cent at around $11.4bn.

Cardano has shifted three per cent in value since yesterday, but trading volume was a little slower off the mark at 3.5% and close to $151m.

It’s a similar story for most leading cryptocurrencies, with only JASMY reporting double figures. The top 100 token saw a jump this morning of 15% in value to $0.0035 but all eyes should be on the 24-hour trading volume which shot up by a remarkable 200% to $107m.

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