Top 3 Price Prediction Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple: Fresh crypto market bullish optimism as Bitcoin rebounds

The dust seems to have settled in the cryptocurrency market following the bulls' rush to defend crucial support levels and prevent losses from extending further. Bitcoin has recovered above $18,000, although the price is hovering under $18,500.

Ripple is among the biggest single-digit gainers in the last 24 hours, after rebounding incredibly from the support established at $0.5. The smart-contract giant, Ether is up almost 4% to exchange hands at $565.

On the other hand, Stellar (XLM), Waves (WAVES) and NEM (XEM) are the most improved tokens on Thursday, posting gains of $17%, 13% and 14%, respectively. The majority of cryptoassets have also started to nurture recoveries.

Bitcoin rebounds after the mid-week dip

The flagship cryptocurrency held firmly to the descending channel's lower boundary, thus averting possibly massive declines to $17,000. The 200 Simple Moving Average also played a critical role in ensuring that the sharp drop was curtailed.

BTC/USD commenced a recovery mission shortly after, stepping above $18,000. However, the 50 SMA caps the immediate upside alongside the seller congestion at $18,500. Bitcoin is trading at $18,413 at the time of writing, amid consistent attempts by the bulls to extend the bullish leg toward $19,000 (50 SMA).

The Relative Strength Index confirms a short-term bullish outlook after bouncing off the oversold area. Movement above the midline and heading to the overbought region will show that buyers have returned in masses and the bullish grip has intensified.

BTC/USD 4-hour chart

On the downside, Bitcoin will resume the downtrend if the price action slides under $18,000. Besides, closing the day under the 100 SMA and $18,500 would signal a growing bearish narrative. The primary support at the 200 SMA remains vital. Otherwise, if shattered, BTC might refresh the next anchor at $16,500.

Ethereum reclaims higher critical support

Ether plunged to $530 on Wednesday following a strong bearish wave that swept across the market. Our previous prediction suggested that the downtrend will go as far as $500, but the smart-contract token abandoned the breakdown slightly above the 200 SMA.

A bounce from the critical support elevated Ether but the price stalled within a whisker of $580. ETH/USD is currently holding support at $560 while exchanging hands at $565.

Ending the day above $560 is good enough for Ethereum, but stepping above $580 could trigger more buy orders in anticipation of gains beyond $600. The 100 SMA and the 50 SMA might limit the price action towards $600, delaying the foreseen breakout.

ETH/USD 4-hour chart

It is worth mentioning that if Ethereum slides under $560, the downtrend will resume and this time, the bearish leg could stretch to $500. Moreover, continued trading beneath the 100 SMA may leave the bulls exhausted, thus creating a gap that sellers can easily explore.

Ripple drawing closer to a breakout targeting $0.67

Ripple, like Bitcoin, is trading within a descending parallel channel as observed on the 4-hour chart. The recent recovery from the slump to $0.5 has already made it above the channel's middle boundary.

All the effort is now channeled to breaking above the upper boundary, which coincides with the 50 SMA. Trading past this critical level will see XRP resume the abandoned breakout to $1. However, bulls are likely to take a pit stop at $0.67 before continuing with the uptrend.

XRP/USD 4-hour chart

The expected breakout will be invalidated if XRP closes the day below the channel's middle boundary support. It is worth noting that XRP is not out of the woods yet despite the recovery over the last 24 hours. Lower anchor zones at $0.52, $0.5 and $0.45 might continue to play a vital role in keeping XRP focused on retesting $1.