Bitcoin (BTC) Sideways Movement Prompts Analysts to Look at Macroeconomic Influences and Historical Patterns

Bitcoin's BTC/USD sideways movement over the past week has prompted analysts to look at macroeconomic influences and historical patterns for indicators of the next move.

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) price action has been relatively flat over the past week, prompting analysts to examine macroeconomic influences and historical patterns for clues on the next move.

Here's what some analysts are saying about BTC this week.

The Macro Impact: In a recent podcast appearance, Cowen trader Michael Como noted that Bitcoin is stuck in a broadening wedge formation, awaiting a strong catalyst to break out.

“When you look at Bitcoin, it's really stuck in this broadening wedge. It's waiting for a strong catalyst, whether it's macro or micro, to really break out of this formation.”

Como also highlighted a lag effect between Bitcoin and the global money supply, which may explain the lack of major price movement.

“I think the best way to trade Bitcoin is to look at global M2 money supply and then apply a seven-week lag to it. You'll see that Bitcoin is stuck in a broadening wedge formation, waiting for a strong catalyst.”

Como added that Bitcoin’s next major move could come after upcoming macroeconomic data releases.

“The next big catalyst for Bitcoin will probably be the upcoming macro data. We're going to get CPI, PPI, retail sales, and industrial production.”

Altcoins And Bitcoin Dominance: Cowen trader remains skeptical of an upcoming “alt season,” citing Bitcoin's continued strong performance and macroeconomic factors like inflation and interest rates as the main market drivers.

“I don't think we're going to get an alt season until Bitcoin stops performing so well and macro starts to turn around a little bit. Maybe we'll see a slight altcoin rally into March, but I wouldn't expect anything major.”

Bitcoin Price Action This Week: Trader CrypNuevo took to 4chan's /biz/ — also known as bizchan — on Monday to share his analysis for the week, predicting range-bound price action.

“We had a boring week last week, but I'm seeing a solid trading opportunity this week. We should expect range-bound price action with potential for a bounce at $94,700.

If BTC moves lower, the next key level to watch is $92,500. We could see a bounce there or continue lower.”

Statistics: Data from IntoTheBlock shows Bitcoin's large transaction volume and daily active addresses are down by 28.3% and 19.9%, respectively. Meanwhile, transactions greater than $100,000 declined from 7,980 to 6,703 in a single day.

Despite volatility and relatively flat performance, 90% Bitcoin holders are currently in profit and only 6% underwater.

Coinglass data shows 127,516 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours for $268.66 million. Bitcoin liquidations in the past 24 hours stand at $29.7 million, compared to the last peak of around $372 million on Feb. 3 when prices touched $101,293.