Market Sentiment and Bitcoin's Current State
The relief rally, triggered by dovish signals from the Federal Reserve, failed to flip market sentiment, and traders are now preparing for a choppy consolidation phase rather than a fast recovery.
Market Still Searching for Support
Cryptocurrency strategist Steven Ehrlich argues that Bitcoin remains deep in bear-pressure territory, noting that buyers have shown no convincing strength yet. Technical metrics, he says, point toward a prolonged correction rather than a reversal. What makes this decline especially notable, in his view, is Bitcoin’s impact on the rest of the market — “BTC is steering the ship this time,” not simply responding to broader sentiment.
Adding to the cautionary outlook, Ehrlich highlights the breakdown of Bitcoin’s multi-year ascending price channel, a structure that had cushioned BTC since 2023. Losing that key support, first built during the Trump-era bull run, now forces traders to identify a new foundational level from scratch.
A Range-Bound Battle May Come First
Popular market analyst Michaël van de Poppe has echoed similar caution but with a different angle. He expects Bitcoin to form a base only after weeks — possibly months — of turbulent sideways movement. In his breakdown, the market could repeatedly revisit both lower levels and the $87,000–$90,000 region before any real direction appears.
Things will take time.
However, in this area we're likely going to form a base for $BTC.
That means:
– Test the lows multiple times.
– Test $87-90K multiple times.Until that range-bound period is over (can be short) we'll likely have a direction.
I think we'll see a test…
Rather than a straight drop or clean rebound, van de Poppe anticipates a “grinding accumulation phase,” with BTC bouncing between extremes until liquidity clears. His analysis chart shows repeated tests across major support zones before a proper trend emerges.
Volatility Is Front and Center
The recent reaction to Fed rate-cut speculation shows that macro news still triggers short-term volatility — but it isn’t enough to overpower heavy selling pressure. Bitcoin’s intraday rebound faded quickly, reinforcing the idea that the market needs a deeper reset before the next bullish attempt.