Price of ETH is Unlikely to Break Through $2,000, Analysts Say

[TL; DR]

The Ethereum price is unlikely to rise above $2,000 in the very near future.

The fear of worsening macroeconomic conditions and a risk of a recession has created neutral-to-bearish sentiment among ETH traders including crypto whales.

The recent crisis in the banking sector also contributed to the bearish market sentiment.

Introduction

Investor sentiment which can be bullish, neutral or bearish affects the price of cryptocurrencies and other digital assets. The dominance of a cryptocurrency can also influence its price momentum and demand. This article covers the recent and current price trend of ETH which has failed to break the $2,000 resistance level.

Recent Ethereum price momentum

Although the price of Ethereum was in an uptrend for the most part of 2023 it has failed to sustain itself above the $2, 000 level. Generally, the price of ETH was above $1,820 for the greater part of April and it registered a 13.7% correction between April 18 and 21.

eth price fell between 18 and 26 April - CoinGecko

Overall, ETH gained by 20.8% within the last three months which gave hope to traders that the price could rise towards or beyond the $2,000 mark. Although the eth price surged above $2,000 on 13 April, it dropped below that level again and struggled to support the $1,850 level.

Unfortunately the little gains that ETH registered during April has not created much confidence in the market. The sentiments of ETH Options and Futures traders have also remained neutral during April. There are several reasons for this.

Reasons why the ETH market is Neutral

Although the worsening macroeconomic conditions positively influenced the prices of cryptocurrencies from the beginning of 2023 that momentum has weakened. Earlier on, the banking crisis we witnessed in the last three months when banks like Silvergate collapsed made investors turn to cryptocurrencies.

Nevertheless, as the economic crisis continues the cryptocurrency market could be losing the confidence that better days are ahead. The slowing down of the United States economy which recorded a 1.1% annualized in Q, 2023, way below the expected 2.0% threatens the crypto market as it lowers investor confidence.

Apart from the lower than expected growth rate of the United States economy, its inflation continues to rise creating fear that the Fed will hike its rates again in May and the coming months. For example, the personal consumption expenditures price index increased by 4.2% in the first quarter.

As such, the failure of ETH to break above $2,000 may be showing the existing sentiment among the traders that the Federal Reserve is likely to increase the funds rate in May. To this effect, the chief economist and global strategist at Europac, Gold bug Peter Schiff, said “Today’s 1.1% Q1 #GDP growth confirms the economy is getting weaker as inflation is getting stronger.”

The slowing down in U.S GDP has affected the performance of other cryptocurrencies apart from ETH.

Diminishing total value locked

The diminishing total value locked (TVL) is causing crypto whales and market makers to reduce their investment in ETH. Also, the high average transaction fees for Ethereum, above $4,00, is dampening the spirit of the network users and investors leading to lower transaction volumes than before.

DefiLlama data shows a 30% decrease of TVL on decentralized applications from 22.0 million ETH six months ago to 15.3 million on April 4. For example, the price of Bitcoin also fell below the $30,000 mark which it attained previously.

Regulatory environment

The global regulatory changes may also have contributed to the slowing down of prices of cryptocurrencies like ETH. As an example, centralized exchanges like Bybit are now strict on Know Your Customers (KYC). Specifically, Bybit now requires all users to complete their KYC by 8 May in order to place their orders.

Ethereum network has its own problems

In addition to a decrease in total value locked for decentralized applications, the dominance of Ethereum has decreased from 64% in December 2022 to 54% in April this year. The increase in its average gas fees could be the main reason behind this.

Ether Futures lacking buying appetite

The Ether futures are currently trading at a slight premium to spot markets which shows that the sellers are asking for more money in order to delay settlement. Therefore, there is contango in the market, a situation where trades should be between 5% and 10% annualized premium in a healthy market. Therefore, there were no increases in demand for longs within the last few weeks.

Also, Ethereum futures premiums have worsened from a peak of 4.7% on 1 April to the current level of 1.8%. Basically, this shows that buyers are avoiding leveraged longs which create moderate demand for short positions using futures contracts.

Ether options traders flirted with bearishness

There is a need for traders to understand the effects of the recent market correction which helps them to handle emerging crypto risks. For example the market signals for ETH for the past weeks showed lack of buying appetite as well as flashes of bearishness.

Specifically, the ETH option 25% delta skew in the last week of April was neutral between protective puts as well as neutral-to-bullish call options as The Graph indicates.

30-day options 25% delta skew: Laevitas

Nevertheless, the indicator also had levels above 7% between 24 and 26 April. The reason for that was the fear the traders had that a significant price correction might follow.

The 25% options skew showed that there was moderate fear during the past month. However there had been an increase in confidence for the traders within the last week of April. According to the indications that prevailed in the last two weeks it is unlikely that the price of ETH will rise above $2,000 in the very near future. Basically, there was bearish sentiment among most ETH traders.

Conclusion

During the last weeks of April ETH traders maintained a neutral to bearish stance because they lacked confidence that ETH would surpass the $2,000 mark. The causes of the bearish sentiment are worsening macroeconomic conditions and a risk of a recession.

FAQs

What will Ethereum be in 2030?

Many analysts predict that Ethereum will be fluctuating around $35,000 in 2030. However, the real price will depend on the launch of the planned upgrades and the macroeconomic conditions between now and 2030.

How much will ETH be in 2025?

Crypto experts believe that the eth price will range between $6,661.55 and $9,242.99 in 2025. This prediction is based on the fact that the macroeconomic conditions will remain stable between now and 2025.

How much is ETH market now?

The current price of ETH is $1,920.86 and is expected to rise in the near future. The existing fear of a recession is reducing the ETH traders’ buying appetite.

How much ETH is left?

The current circulating supply of ETH is 118.09 million. However, it has decreased from last year’s supply of 118.98 million.