Cryptocurrency market update: Kicks of a dying horse as Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple remain suppressed

• The cryptocurrency market loses $9 billion in less than a week as bears remain largely in control.
• Bitcoin is lethargic under $8,000 although the bulls are ready to defend $7,800 support once again.

Cryptocurrencies continue to be depressed during this weekend’s session. Earlier in the week there was an attempt to push for a significant correction but bears interjected before the major cryptos formed viable support levels. The total market capitalization rose to $226 billion on Monday. The up and down trading over the week’s trading has seen the market cap thin to the current $217 billion.

Bitcoin market update

Bitcoin dipped below $8,000 on Friday. The drop came after a failed attempt to correct  above $8,100. The downtrend explored the levels towards the support at $7,800. A following shallow trend has seen the price retest $8,000 but BTC/USD has readjusted to $7,940 (current market value). As discussed earlier today, a bearish flag pattern is likely to send Bitcoin back to $7,800 unless the bulls clear the resistance at $8,000.

BTC/USD four-hour chart

Ethereum price analysis

Ethereum also made a swing towards $180 but failed. This left a gap to be explored by the bears. In turn, ETH retested the support $173. The trading activities have, however, been low since the drop, hence Ethereum is lethargic in the its recovery. For now, Ethereum is trading at $173.85 while the immediate upside is limited by the 50 Simple Moving Average (SMA) on the one-hour chart.

ETH/USD one-hour chart

Ripple market update

Ripple, on the other hand, was ejected from the levels slightly above $0.30. The crypto readjusted towards the short-term support at $0.29 before pushing for a shallow correction upwards. For now, Ripple is trading at $0.2965 but the intermittent momentum lacks the strength to clear $0.30 resistance.

XRP/USD one-hour chart