Ether Eyes $160 As BTC Oscillates And Altcoins Rally

The crypto market has mixed price actions. The altcoins continue to benefit from Bitcoin’s sideways movement. Most investors and traders who review the altcoin-to-Bitcoin pairings at various exchanges will notice that most of the altcoins are gaining double digits against the flagship token.

At this moment, THETA is up over 11%, KyberNetwork (KNC) 16% and TomoChain (TOMO) has rallied over 15%. However, Ether has failed to replicate these gains but as the end of the year approaches, ETH is still seeking to close 2019 with a 35% gain.

From November 27, the price of Ether has tracked closely just below the long-term descending trendline, registering lower daily lows. The December 12 plunge to $139 registered the fourth time the support has been significantly tested since November 22. The altcoin, however, remains at risk of falling to the last remaining strong support at $131.61.

The December 13 uptick in volume suggests that the bulls are ready to defend the $139 support. Currently, the price is trying to press against the descending trendline at $145.35 that is also aligned with a considerably high volume node on the volume profile visible range indicator (VPVR).

Indicators

In spite of Ether’s bearish bias, there is an interesting opportunity for a swing trade that may kick out a 10-12% return on investment. In the case that Ether can explode above the descending trendline and rise past the resistance at $150, the ETH price may run through the VPVR gap to $160.

This price action can also place Ether within a few dollars of setting a daily higher high. That is something that has not been seen since it plunged from $163 on November 24. Ether is also showing signs of approaching the moving average of the Bollinger Band indicator at $148. The upper band is located at $155.

Traders will also see that the moving average confluence divergence (MACD) histogram has formed a continuous increase in momentum. Also, the MACD continues to pull away from the signal line. As it is evident from the 6-hour chart, ETH is struggling to rise above the descending trendline and the 12-period exponential moving average.

On the other hand, the Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) oscillator has surged above 0. The MACD seems to be on the verge of a bull cross while the RSI bounced from the oversold region and it is not heading to 46. ETH just needs an increase in buy volume to rise through the high volume node at $146.

ETH/BTC has awakened

For just this one time, the Ether set up on the ETH/BTC pair appears to resemble the ETH/USD pair. Moreover, the price has also been limited between the descending trendline at 0.020190 (sats) and the 12-point EMA.

Earlier on December 13, the ETH price popped above the descending trendline briefly. Traders are set to notice the bull cross on the MACD and they will also see that the indicator’s histogram has flipped green. At the moment the indicator is above 0. The RSI (relative strength index) has gone into the bullish territory and it is climbing towards 60.

Ether will encounter strong challenges while trying to rise above 0.020829 (sats) but the 0.019577 (sats) support has held well. Most of the traders may choose to wait for the price to reach 0.021101(sats) or a higher high at around 0.021781 (sats) before considering any form of entry.

The same scenario can also be said for the ETH/USD pair. Traders may also wait for Ether to clear the descending trendline to set a higher high above $152 before entering the market. On the other hand, buying the dip on pullbacks to the $138.57, $131.50 has also proved highly profitable. Thus, traders may consider waiting for a less risky entry at any of these supports.