Ethereum price analysis: ETH/USD bears stole the initiative as Google searches for Ethereum dropped 70% in 2018

• ETH/USD failed to stay above $600.
• Ethereum search requests dropped 70% this year.

Ethereum is changing hands at $588, struggling to get above $600 handle amid global sell-off on the cryptocurrency market. The second largest coin is mostly unchanged since the start of the day and down 2.2% in recent 24 hours.

Looking technically, ETH/USD is back below $600 as the recovery proved to be short-lived. Buying interest spotted around that area failed to stop crypto bears that pushed the coin towards $572 during early Asian hours on Tuesday. 200SMA (hourly chart) located around that level, served as local support and helped to trigger an unimpressive upside correction towards $588. Above $600, the resistance is spotted at $630 (double top) and 23.6% Fibo at $652. On the downside, a sustainable move below mentioned 200-SMA will bring $500 handle into focus.  

Meanwhile, Google Trends data research, published by CNBC, shows that the popularity of cryptocurrency-related searches dropped dramatically with Ethereum losing 70%, Bitcoin – 75%; Bitcoin Cash and Ripple searches are down 82% and 87% respectively.

“We use Google Trends to track search queries for ‘bitcoin’ as a proxy for potential new buyers,” Nicholas Colas, co-founder of DataTrek Research explained.  

Basically, it means that cryptocurrencies need some new narrative or new bombshell to attract global interest.

ETH/USD, the hourly chart