Bitcoin market update: BTC/USD consolidating before the next breakout to $11k

Bitcoin is trading below the recently broken ascending channel support. Similarly, the uptrend is narrowing towards $10,000 critical level. The consequence of failing to break psychological levels at $13,000, $12,000 and $11,000 has been culminating in the formation of a lower high pattern.

Looking at the hourly chart for BTC/USD we see a negative gradient price action under a descending trendline which started on August 20. A breakout above the trendline on Monday surged above $10,600 but failed to complete the leg above $10,700. The price action below the 50 Simple Moving Average and the 100 SMA fueled losses towards $10,000 yesterday.

On defending the support at $10,000 the buyers have been fighting tooth and nail to thrust Bitcoin above the short-term barrier at $10,200. Meanwhile, its immediate upside is limited by the 100 SMA currently at $10,181. If Bitcoin manages to clear the resistance an emerges above $10,200, the 50 SMA will hamper growth.

From a technical perspective, Bitcoin is likely to continue moving sideways between $10,200 (limit) and $10,000 (support) in the coming sessions. Both the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) and the Relative Strength Index (RSI) signals suggest that indecision prevails over BTC price. The MACD is horizontal slightly inside the negative zone while the is pivotal at the average level (50).

BTC/USD 1-hour chart