Nonfarm payrolls rose by 209,000 in June, below economists’ expectations of an addition of 240,000 jobs. Although the figures show a cooling labor market, market observers remained concerned as the average hourly earnings growth held steady at 0.4% from May and 4.4% from a year ago.
The report did not alter expectations of a 25 basis point rate hike by the United States Federal Reserve in the next meeting, according to the FedWatch Tool. That kept the U.S. equities markets under pressure, with all three major indices falling for the week. The S&P 500 was down 1.16% and the Nasdaq was lower by 0.92%.
Another minor negative for the crypto markets was a report by JPMorgan managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, which said that a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) may not prove to be a game changer for the crypto space. Panigirtzoglou cites lackluster interest in the spot Bitcoin ETFs in Canada and Europe as the reason for a possible low impact even in the U.S.
Could bulls regroup and kick Bitcoin above the overhead resistance? If they do, select altcoins could join the march higher. Let’s analyze the charts of top-5 cryptocurrencies that are showing signs of moving up.
Bitcoin price analysis
Bitcoin remains stuck between the 20-day exponential moving average ($29,854) and the overhead resistance at $31,000. This suggests uncertainty among the bulls and the bears about the next directional move.
The BTC/USDT pair bounced off the 20-day EMA on July 7, indicating that the bulls continue to defend the level aggressively. Buyers will again attempt to overcome the resistance at $31,500. If they succeed, the pair may start the next leg of the uptrend. The pair could first advance to $32,400 and thereafter sprint toward $40,000.
The bears are likely to have other plans. They will try to protect the overhead resistance and tug the price below the $29,500 support. If this level gives way, stops of several short-term bulls may be hit. That could sink the pair to the 50-day simple moving average ($28,101).
The 4-hour chart shows that the pair is trading between $29,500 and $31,500. Generally, a tight range trading is followed by a range expansion but it is difficult to predict the direction of the breakout with certainty. Hence, it is better to wait for the price to escape the range before waging large bets.
If the price breaks…
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