Bitcoin traded at $103,895 on May 18, 2025, with a total market capitalization of $2.064 trillion. The 24-hour trading volume reached $19.865 billion, with an intraday range between $102,771 and $104,002, reflecting a narrow band of consolidation near historic highs. Bitcoin Bitcoin’s short-term outlook, as illustrated on the 1-hour chart, signals a gradual uptrend marked […]

Bitcoin Price Watch: Market Hovers Below $104K as Traders Eye Breakout

After a powerful rally earlier this month, Bitcoin’s price action has stalled 
just above $103,000 and has been caught in a tight consolidation range for 
over the past week. The daily chart shows consistent resistance just above 
$107,000, with the latest candles forming in a compressed horizontal band, 
indicating indecision and low momentum. Related Reading: ‘Judgment Day Is 
Coming’—XRP Set To Explode, Analyst Warns This price behavior could be seen as 
a pause before the next leg higher. However, it could also be a trap that 
could cause a reversal towards $98,000. Daily Close Above $107K A Clear 
Breakout Signal Bitcoin&#8217;s current consolidation around the $103,000 price 
level has dragged on for over a week, and an eventual breakout could happen 
into any direction. In a recent post on social media platform X, crypto 
analyst Ali Martinez noted the importance of a daily close above $107,000 for 
a bullish Bitcoin. His chart illustrates that price has approached this 
threshold multiple times since December 2024 but failed to sustain a close on 
the daily timeframe. This, in turn, has led to the formation of a horizontal 
barrier just beneath $108,000. Notably, even Bitcoin&#8217;s all-time high of 
$108,786 on January 20 failed to close above the $107,000 price level on that 
day. According to Martinez, a confirmed close above this level could open the 
door for further upside movement toward new all-time highs. However, until 
this threshold is decisively cleared, Martinez warns that traders should be 
cautious and avoid forcing positions. Image From X: @ali_charts Potential 
Bitcoin Trap Setup And Liquidity Sweep To $98K A separate technical breakdown 
by crypto analyst TehThomas, published on TradingView, presents a far more 
cautious outlook for Bitcoin. Similarly, the analyst noted that Bitcoin has 
spent more than eight days locked in a narrow range between roughly $100,000 
and $105,800. According to his liquidity-based framework, this range is likely 
being used as a trap to invite both long and short traders into premature 
breakout trades. His 4-hour candlestick timeframe chart shows a clear 
consolidation block, with price failing to escape either end, and liquidity 
pooling above $105,800 as well as under $100,000. TehThomas believes the equal 
highs near $105,800 are acting as bait for breakout longs. He expects Bitcoin 
to briefly sweep these highs, only to cause a fast and decisive move downwards 
into the lower demand zone between $98,000 and $97,500. This zone, marked as a 
large unmitigated fair value gap and golden pocket level on his chart, is 
where he expects the price to react next, once the liquidity on both sides is 
taken. Image From TradingView: TehThomas However, this short setup towards 
$98,000 would be invalidated if the Bitcoin price manages to hold above 
$105,800 and shows a continued strong volume and follow-through. Related 
Reading: Trump Token Mania: Over 6,000% Pump Or Classic Solana Trap? At the 
time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $103,914, down by 0.06% in the past 24 
hours. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

Bitcoin Must Close Above $107,000 To Confirm Breakout Or Risk Dropping To $98K

The Shiba Inu price rally has stalled as trading volume, futures open 
interest, and its burn rate continue to decline. Shiba Inu (SHIB), the second- 
biggest meme coin in crypto, has dropped to $0.000015, down from this week’s 
high of $0.00001750. …

Shiba Inu loses bark: Memecoin rally cools amid falling burns, bets

Dogecoin is currently showing signs of selling pressure after shedding much of 
the bullish momentum it had gathered in late April and early May. Technical 
analysis of the Dogecoin price shows that the meme cryptocurrency is 
precariously hovering just above a key support level that puts it one step 
away from a downtrend. Crypto analyst RLinda noted this level, set at $0.214, 
on the TradingView platform, labeling it a retest of the panic zone. Related 
Reading: XRP 100x Gains Coming? The Future Is Closer Than You Think—Analyst 
Panic Zone Under Retest Due To Dogecoin Correction According to RLinda’s 
analysis, Dogecoin&#8217;s distribution phase between May 9 and 11 ended in the 
$0.2600 range, eventually marking the end of its latest bullish impulse. 
During this distribution phase, Dogecoin squandered all the potential it had 
accumulated in late April and early May. From that point, the price has been 
falling steadily, entering what the analyst describes as the correction or 
dump phase. This has caused the meme coin to test the 0.214 level, the current 
panic zone. A confirmed breakdown below this panic zone, particularly beneath 
the 0.2135 support line, would not only liquidate long positions but also 
likely intensify selling pressure, eventually leading to what could become an 
uncontrolled price decline. Interestingly, this correction price action has 
been characterized by lower highs, leading to the formation of a triangle 
pattern that&#8217;s visible on the 2-hour timeframe. RLinda warned that if the 
triangle&#8217;s base is broken, this structural failure could reinforce bearish 
sentiment. This would open the door to downside targets closer to $0.20 and 
possibly even $0.19. Dogecoin Resistance And Support Levels To Watch The 
immediate resistance lies at $0.222 and $0.2307, representing key zones 
Dogecoin must reclaim to negate the current bearish setup. A move above these 
points, especially if the price consolidates above $0.23, will invalidate the 
bearish breakdown structure and could renew bullish sentiment. However, RLinda 
made it clear that such a scenario is only worth considering after a clear 
confirmation, as current momentum still favors sellers. Related Reading: Trump 
Token Mania: Over 6,000% Pump Or Classic Solana Trap? On the other hand, 
support levels of $0.2145 and $0.2135 are currently the final shields holding 
back further declines. A close below $0.2135 would confirm the continuation of 
the downtrend and push the Dogecoin price into a lower consolidation zone, 
with limited immediate support until $0.20126 and $0.19298. At the time of 
writing, Dogecoin is trading at $0.22, up 1.72% over the past 24 hours. This 
slight recovery hints at early signs of strength and may already be 
undermining the bearish setup. Although this slight recovery is not enough on 
its own to confirm a bullish reversal, it does show that buyers are attempting 
to regain some control. If this momentum can be sustained into the new week, 
it could gradually pave the way for a more sustained move higher for Dogecoin 
during the week. Featured image from Mashable, chart from TradingView

Dogecoin Price Tests Panic Zone At $0.21, Breakdown Could Lead To Price Crash

Hong Kong authorities busted a cross-border crypto laundering network that 
allegedly processed approximately HK$118 million in illicit funds.

$15m crypto laundering operation busted in Hong Kong

Key points:
 * Ether price rose 3% to $2,550 on May 18, triggering $22 million in short ETH liquidations.
 * A bull flag on the chart suggests a $3,700 target, with analysts predicting Bitcoin&#8217;s price to go as high as $5,000 in May.
Ether&#8217;s (ETH) price was up on May 18, rising more than 2.5% over the last 24 
hours to trade at $2,536. This recovery reinforces the optimism among traders 
that ETH price could hit $3,000 in May, citing strong technicals.
## Ether wipes out $7.5 million shorts in an hour
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and Bitsamp shows that ETH rose by more 
than 4.5% to an intraday high of $2,551 on May 18 from a low of $2,440 the 
previous day.
_ETH/USD daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView_
Accompanying Ether&#8217;s losses today are significant liquidations across the 
crypto market. According to data from CoinGlass, more than $158 million 
leveraged crypto positions have been liquidated over the last 24 hours, with 
$95 million representing long liquidations.
Short Ether liquidations amounted to $22.25 million, with the $7.5 million 
being wiped out in the last hour alone.
_Total liquidations across the crypto market. Source: CoinGlass_
This means that short traders were caught off guard by Ether&#8217;s return to 
$2,500.
Additional CoinGlass data showed several bands of seller interest above the 
spot price, with ask orders worth over $384 million building up all the way up 
to $3,000. This suggested that the ongoing recovery might be capped at this 
level.
_ETH liquidation heatmap. Source: CoinGlass_
## Is Ether&#8217;s recovery back?
Market analysts believe Ether&#8217;s recent drop was a technical correction to 
retest key support levels before continuing its uptrend toward $3,000 and 
beyond.
Titan of Crypto said that the weekly Stochastic RSI&#8217;s value at 79 suggests 
that ETH &#8220;still has more gas in the tank&#8221; to move higher.
&gt; #Ethereum might still have more gas in the tank ⛽️ 
&gt; 
&gt; The weekly Stochastic RSI suggests there&#8217;s still room before reaching 
&gt; extreme overbought territory, possibly a few more weeks to go. #ETH 
&gt; pic.twitter.com/atCm93napO 
&gt; 
&gt; &#8212; Titan of Crypto (@Washigorira) May 17, 2025
Ether&#8217;s downside may be capped at $2,400, according to pseudonymous analyst 
Chimp of the North.
The analyst shared a chart suggesting that the altcoin could continue its 
retracement to retest $2,400 support before launching another rally toward the 
$3,000-$3,300 range.
_ETH/USD chart. Source:__Chimp of the North_
Fellow analyst Crypto Patel projected a deeper retracement for Ether, saying 
that ETH price could potentially drop $1,800 before launching a move higher.
&#8220;This area is a high-probability zone for bullish re-entry if price shows 
support,&#8221; the analyst wrote as part of a May 17 post of X, adding:
&gt; &#8220;If demand holds here, the next leg up toward $4,000-$5,000 could follow.&#8221;
_ETH/USD daily chart. Source:__Crypto Patel_
As Cointelegraph reported, ETH could hit new all-time highs around $5,000, 
fueled by AI adoption, spot ETF inflows, and the latest improvements through 
the Pectra upgrade.
_**Related:**__**Price predictions 5/16: BTC, ETH, XRP, BNB, SOL, DOGE, ADA, 
SUI, LINK, AVAX**_
## Ether price bull flag is still in play
From a technical perspective, ETH price is still trading above a bull flag 
pattern in the four-hour timeframe, a bullish setup that forms after the price 
consolidates inside a down-sloping range following a sharp price rise.
The bull flag was confirmed on May 13 when the price broke above the upper 
trendline at $2,550. Ether is now retesting the upper boundary of the flag, 
currently at $2,470, which is acting as immediate support.
A daily candlestick close above this level could see the asset resume its 
uptrend toward the technical target of the bull flag at $3,720, up 50% from 
the current price.
_ETH/USD four-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/__TradingView_
Conversely, the RSI has dropped from 60 to 42 over the last 24 hours, 
suggesting that the ongoing correction may continue if profit-taking 
intensifies.
A daily candlestick close below the support level at $2,470 will increase the 
chances of a price drop to $2,400 and then to the flag&#8217;s lower boundary at 
$2,300.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every 
investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their 
own research when making a decision.