Bitcoin Price Analysis: BTC/USD gains ground, ahead of options expiry

BTC/USD is changing hands at $9,211 after a short-lived dip to the intraday low of $9,079. Bitcoin has stayed mostly unchanged both on a day-to-day basis and since the beginning of Friday as the market waits for the massive options expiry later during the day. The mrket capitalization of the first digital asset exceeded $169 billion, while its market share settled at 64.4%.

BTC/USD: Technical picture 

Despite the recovery from the recent low, BTC/USD is still moving within the short-term bearish trend. The local resistance is created by 1-hour SMA50 currently at $9,250. Once it is out of the way, the upside is likely to gain traction with the next focus on $9,300 and $9,400. SMA100 and SMA200 located around this psychological barrier may slow down the recovery towards $9,500. Considering the flat RSI on the intraday charts, the coin may continue trading in a tight range ahead of the US opening. However, experts are getting ready for a potential increase of market volatility ahead of massive Bitcoin options and futures expiry.

On the downside, $9,000 is still regarded as a pivotal point. While BTC/USD dived below this line on several occasions, each time the sell-off attracted new buyers and helped to push the price back inside the range. The next support is created by the weekly low of $9,899 with the ultimate backstop created by weekly SMA50 at $8,700. This barrier has been limiting the decline since the beginning of May, which means it may slow down the bears and serve as a starting point for the recovery.

BTC/USD 1-hour chart