Market Wrap: Bitcoin Holds Its Perch Over $19K and Is Likely to Continue Trading in Its Current Narrow Range

Bitcoin (BTC) spent another day comfortably perched above $19,000 and well within the narrow range it has held for more than a month.

Uber-investor Peter Brandt told CoinDesk TV that investors should not expect much to change for the foreseeable future and that the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization might drop as low as $13,000. Investors are “just tired,” Brandt said in a 10-minute interview.

BTC was recently changing hands at about $19,300, flat over the past 24 hours. Ether was recently trading near $1,350, up by less than a percentage point from Sunday, same time. Other major cryptos were also up or down in small increments, albeit slightly more to the red. Among the exceptions was MATIC, which recently rose more than 6%.

The CoinDesk Market Index (CMI), a broad-based market index that measures the performance of a basket of cryptocurrencies, was down 0.9% over the past 24 hours.

Investors in crypto and other markets for risk assets continue to eye U.S. Federal Reserve efforts to tame inflation. In an interview with CoinDesk, GSR Markets Global Head of Product Benoit Bosc said that any lessening of the current dose of steep interest rate hikes would spur a “knee-jerk reaction.”

“It will be a sharp move higher for risk assets,” he said.

In traditional markets, U.S. stocks were buoyant for a second trading consecutive day amid faint signs that the U.S. central bank might ratchet back its current hawkish, monetary policies early next year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 closed up 1.3% and 1.2%, respectively. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was up almost a percentage point.

In commodities, Brent crude oil, a measure of energy markets, ticked up slightly to trade over $91 per barrel, down slightly from last week but still up more than 15% from the start of the year. Safe-haven gold sank 0.6% to trade at $1,650 per ounce.

The earnings season continues with Apple and Google parent Alphabet among the major tech companies scheduled to report. A number of major brands last week, including Goldman Sachs, offered a few nuggets of good news.

The U.S. Federal Reserve's next rate hike – a widely expected 75 basis points – is still two weeks away. But on Tuesday the Conference Board will release October's consumer confidence index – showing a likely decline. Toward the middle of the week, observers will be able to scrutinize housing starts and durable goods orders.

By Glenn Williams Jr

Veteran trader Peter Brandt told CoinDesk TV on Friday that bitcoin is likely to remain in a tight range for a while, and could even plunge to $13,000 support, or its lowest trading point, before rallying to new highs.

Finding a counter-argument to Brandt’s analysis is difficult. Bitcoin has been trading in a narrow range, and a catalyst to send the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization higher has yet to emerge. Volatility has dissipated substantially.

Bitcoin’s Average True Range (ATR), a measurement of overall price volatility, has declined 76% year to date, and sits at levels last seen in November 2020.

Read the full article by CoinDesk analyst Glenn Williams Jr.

Sector classifications are provided via the Digital Asset Classification Standard (DACS), developed by CoinDesk Indices to provide a reliable, comprehensive and standardized classification system for digital assets. The CoinDesk Market Index (CMI) is a broad-based index designed to measure the market capitalization weighted performance of the digital asset market subject to minimum trading and exchange eligibility requirements.