Bitcoin price is marginally lower on Thursday, struggling for direction these days as trading volumes have been muted. There is a stiff resistance level around $9,300 that caps bullish attempts in BTCUSD. Once above this level, the leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization will likely encounter the next barrier in the form of the 50-daily moving average that comes around $9,400.
Despite heightened volatility in the global financial market, cryptocurrencies have been mostly stuck in tight ranges recently, suggesting some aggressive movements could take place following the current period of consolidation. The upside potential in the number one digital currency has been capped by the 50-DMA since mid-June, which adds to the significance of this resistance level. As such, this is the key hurdle for bulls, a decisive break above which could mark the beginning of a more robust upward movement.
However, there is another important barrier in the short term that continues to show its strength, as BTCUSD has been struggling to challenge the $9,300 region for a week already. Furthermore, earlier last month, this level served as a strong support level. In other words, bitcoin will probably need the additional catalyst to overcome this hurdle and turn it back into support.
On the downside, the inability to make a breakout could bring the BTCUSD back under the selling pressure and push the prices to the $9,000 psychological level. As long as the digital currency remains above this level, downside risks are limited, and the bullish potential persists. Once below it, the prices may dip towards $8,800.
On the one hand, the fact that bitcoin clings to the mentioned resistance of $9,300 signals its wiliness to exit the consolidative mode and resume the ascent. On the other hand, the longer the prices stay below this level, the stronger the downside risks are getting. In a wider picture, BTCUSD has been holding above the 50-weekly moving average since late-May, suggesting the least path of resistance is to the upside.
