Price analysis 3/19: BTC, ETH, BNB, ADA, DOT, XRP, UNI, LTC, LINK, BCH
Several altcoins are moving to new all-time highs as bulls struggle to lift Bitcoin price above $60,000.
A report by Deutsche Bank Research said that Bitcoin (BTC) has become “too important to ignore” and may attract regulation…
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Several altcoins are moving to new all-time highs as bulls struggle to lift Bitcoin price above $60,000.
A report by Deutsche Bank Research said that Bitcoin (BTC) has become “too important to ignore” and may attract regulation by the end of 2021. Deutsche Bank analysts expect Bitcoin to reach a turning point in about “two or three years” when it will be clear whether Bitcoin will evolve into an asset class or not. In the short term, the report forecast Bitcoin to “remain ultra volatile.”
A different report by Bank of America provided some insight into the possible reasons for Bitcoin’s volatility. Bank of America analysts estimated that Bitcoin price may rise by one percent when there is a $93 million inflow. Compared to that, gold needs about $2 billion worth of funds to move it by a single percentage point.
This large disparity in the price reaction to the inflow of funds is attributed to Bitcoin holders who have not parted with their coins during the current bull run.
While it is difficult to predict at what price the Bitcoin whales will book profits on their holdings, Kraken growth lead Dan Held said in a recent interview with Cointelegraph that Bitcoin could reach $1 million during the current supercycle.
Held believes that the confluence of events such as the coronavirus crisis, money printing by central banks and the rising lack of trust in legacy financial firms are the triggers supporting the crypto bull run.
Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to determine whether the uptrend will resume or is the bull run showing signs of exhaustion?
BTC/USD
Bitcoin rebounded off the 20-day exponential moving average ($54,844) on March 17 and rose above the $58,341.03 overhead resistance. But the advance to $60,102.15 witnessed profit-booking on March 18.
However, the positive sign is that the bulls purchased the dip and have again pushed the price above $58,341.03. A rise above $60,102.15 could retest the all-time high at $61,825.84.
The upsloping moving averages and the relative strength index (RSI) in the positive zone suggest the path of least resistance is to the upside. A break above $61,825.84 could start the next leg of the uptrend to $72,112.
Although the RSI is showing negative divergence, traders should follow the price action closely because a sharp rally from the current levels may invalidate this bearish development.
If the price turns down and breaks below the 20-day EMA, it will be the first sign of weakness. A deeper correction could be signaled if the bears sink and sustain the BTC/USD pair below the 50-day simple moving average ($48,578).
ETH/USD
Ether (ETH) has been trading just above the 20-day EMA ($1,756) for the past three days. This is a positive sign as it shows that the bulls are accumulating on dips to the 20-day EMA.
If the bulls can propel the price above $1,850, the ETH/USD pair could rise to $1,942.92 and then challenge the all-time high at $2,040.77. A breakout and close above this resistance could start the journey to $2,614.
The moving averages are sloping up and the RSI is in the positive territory, suggesting the bulls have a slight edge.
However, this positive assumption will be negated if the price turns down and breaks below the moving averages. Such a move could pull the price down to $1,289 and keep the pair range-bound for a few more days.
BNB/USD
Binance Coin (BNB) has successfully held the 20-day EMA ($251) for the past four days but the bulls are struggling to push the price above $280 and challenge the overhead resistance at $309.50.
However, the 20-day EMA is sloping up gradually and the RSI is in the positive zone, which shows a minor advantage to the bulls. A breakout and close above $309.50 will complete a bullish ascending triangle pattern. This setup has a target objective at $429.
On the contrary, if the price turns down from the current level and breaks below the trendline of the triangle, it will suggest the bears have overpowered the bulls. That could result in a drop to $189.
ADA/USD
Cardano (ADA) turned down from the all-time high at $1.48 on March 18 as traders booked profits. However, the positive sign is that the bulls are attempting to defend the breakout level at $1.23.
A strong bounce off the current level could increase the possibility of a break above the all-time high. The next target objective on the upside is $2.
The rising moving averages suggest the bulls are in command, but the negative divergence on the RSI shows the momentum is weakening.
If the bears can pull the price below the 20-day EMA ($1.14), it will indicate that supply exceeds demand. The trend may turn in favor of the bears if the ADA/USD pair plummets below the 50-day SMA ($0.94).
DOT/USD
Polkadot (DOT) has been sustaining above the 20-day EMA ($35) for the past two days, which is a positive sign. The bulls are currently trying to push the price above the resistance line of the symmetrical triangle.
If they succeed, it could resume the uptrend. The bulls may face stiff resistance at the all-time high at $42.28 but if they can thrust the price above it, the DOT/USD pair could rise to the pattern target at $55.
The 20-day EMA is moving up gradually and the RSI has risen above the downtrend line, which shows the bulls are attempting to gain the upper hand. This view will invalidate if the pair turns down and breaks below the support line of the triangle.
XRP/USD
XRP has been trading in a tight range for the past few days as the bears are defending the overhead resistance at $0.50 and the bulls are buying on dips to $0.42. The flat moving averages and the RSI just above 52 suggest a balance between supply and demand.
Usually, a tight range trading is followed by a trending move. In this case, if the bulls can propel the price above $0.50, the XRP/USD pair could rally to $0.65 where it is again likely to counter stiff resistance from the bears.
Alternatively, if the bears sink the price below $0.42, the pair could drop to $0.36. This is a critical support to watch out for because a break below it could intensify selling and clear the path for a slide to $0.25.
UNI/USD
Uniswap (UNI) is in an uptrend and it has been holding above the 20-day EMA ($29.41) for the past few days, which shows the bulls are buying the dips to this support. If the bulls can push the price above $32, a retest of the all-time high at $34.92 is possible.
A breakout and close above the all-time high could start the next leg of the uptrend that may reach $46. The upsloping moving averages suggest that bulls are in control but the negative divergence on the RSI warrants caution.
If the bears sink and sustain the price below the 20-day EMA, it could signal the start of a deeper correction. The first stop could be the 50-day SMA ($24.78) and if this support also cracks, the decline may extend to $22.
LTC/USD
The bulls are attempting to keep Litecoin (LTC) above the 20-day EMA ($199.41). If they succeed, the altcoin could move up to the resistance line of the symmetrical triangle where the bears are likely to mount a stiff resistance.
However, if the bulls manage to propel the price above the triangle, it will suggest a resumption of the next leg of the uptrend. The first stop could be $246.96 and if this level is crossed, the LTC/USD pair could rally to $300.
The gradually upsloping moving averages and the RSI in the positive zone indicate a minor advantage to the bulls. This positive view will invalidate if the price turns down and breaks below the triangle.
LINK/USD
Chainlink (LINK) once again turned down from the overhead resistance on March 18, which shows the bears are defending this level. However, the positive sign is that the bulls did not allow the price to dip below the 50-day SMA ($28.38), indicating buying at lower levels.
The LINK/USD pair has formed an ascending triangle pattern that will complete on a breakout and close above $32. This setup has a target objective at $43.20.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the current level or the overhead resistance and breaks below the trendline of the triangle, it will invalidate the bullish setup. That could result in a drop to $24 and then to $20.11.
The bulls and the bears are battling it out to gain the upper hand in Bitcoin Cash (BCH). Although the price had dipped below the moving averages for the past four days, the bears could not capitalize on the situation. This suggests selling dries up at lower levels.
The flat moving averages and the RSI just above the midpoint suggest the BCH/USD pair could remain range-bound for a few more days.
If the consolidation resolves to the downside and the price closes below $500, the pair could start a deeper correction to $440 and then to $320.
Conversely, if the bulls push and sustain the price above $560, the pair may again try to rally to $631.71 and then $745.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk. You should conduct your own research when making a decision.
Market data is provided by HitBTC exchange.
cryptocurrency bitcoin litecoin crypto btc xrp bch ltc link bnb coronavirus
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Wendy’s teases new $3 offer for upcoming holiday
The Daylight Savings Time promotion slashes prices on breakfast.
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Daylight Savings Time, or the practice of advancing clocks an hour in the spring to maximize natural daylight, is a controversial practice because of the way it leaves many feeling off-sync and tired on the second Sunday in March when the change is made and one has one less hour to sleep in.
Despite annual "Abolish Daylight Savings Time" think pieces and online arguments that crop up with unwavering regularity, Daylight Savings in North America begins on March 10 this year.
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Tapping into some people's very vocal dislike of Daylight Savings Time, fast-food chain Wendy's (WEN) is launching a daylight savings promotion that is jokingly designed to make losing an hour of sleep less painful and encourage fans to order breakfast anyway.
Image source: Wendy's.
Promotion wants you to compensate for lost sleep with cheaper breakfast
As it is also meant to drive traffic to the Wendy's app, the promotion allows anyone who makes a purchase of $3 or more through the platform to get a free hot coffee, cold coffee or Frosty Cream Cold Brew.
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Available during the Wendy's breakfast hours of 6 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. (which, naturally, will feel even earlier due to Daylight Savings), the deal also allows customers to buy any of its breakfast sandwiches for $3. Items like the Sausage, Egg and Cheese Biscuit, Breakfast Baconator and Maple Bacon Chicken Croissant normally range in price between $4.50 and $7.
The choice of the latter is quite wide since, in the years following the pandemic, Wendy's has made a concerted effort to expand its breakfast menu with a range of new sandwiches with egg in them and sweet items such as the French Toast Sticks. The goal was both to stand out from competitors with a wider breakfast menu and increase traffic to its stores during early-morning hours.
Wendy's deal comes after controversy over 'dynamic pricing'
But last month, the chain known for the square shape of its burger patties ignited controversy after saying that it wanted to introduce "dynamic pricing" in which the cost of many of the items on its menu will vary depending on the time of day. In an earnings call, chief executive Kirk Tanner said that electronic billboards would allow restaurants to display various deals and promotions during slower times in the early morning and late at night.
Outcry was swift and Wendy's ended up walking back its plans with words that they were "misconstrued" as an intent to surge prices during its most popular periods.
While the company issued a statement saying that any changes were meant as "discounts and value offers" during quiet periods rather than raised prices during busy ones, the reputational damage was already done since many saw the clarification as another way to obfuscate its pricing model.
"We said these menuboards would give us more flexibility to change the display of featured items," Wendy's said in its statement. "This was misconstrued in some media reports as an intent to raise prices when demand is highest at our restaurants."
The Daylight Savings Time promotion, in turn, is also a way to demonstrate the kinds of deals Wendy's wants to promote in its stores without putting up full-sized advertising or posters for what is only relevant for a few days.
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Inside The Most Ridiculous Jobs Report In Recent History: Record 1.2 Million Immigrant Jobs Added In One Month
Inside The Most Ridiculous Jobs Report In Recent History: Record 1.2 Million Immigrant Jobs Added In One Month
Last month we though that the…
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Last month we though that the January jobs report was the "most ridiculous in recent history" but, boy, were we wrong because this morning the Biden department of goalseeked propaganda (aka BLS) published the February jobs report, and holy crap was that something else. Even Goebbels would blush.
What happened? Let's take a closer look.
On the surface, it was (almost) another blockbuster jobs report, certainly one which nobody expected, or rather just one bank out of 76 expected. Starting at the top, the BLS reported that in February the US unexpectedly added 275K jobs, with just one research analyst (from Dai-Ichi Research) expecting a higher number.
Some context: after last month's record 4-sigma beat, today's print was "only" 3 sigma higher than estimates. Needless to say, two multiple sigma beats in a row used to only happen in the USSR... and now in the US, apparently.
Before we go any further, a quick note on what last month we said was "the most ridiculous jobs report in recent history": it appears the BLS read our comments and decided to stop beclowing itself. It did that by slashing last month's ridiculous print by over a third, and revising what was originally reported as a massive 353K beat to just 229K, a 124K revision, which was the biggest one-month negative revision in two years!
Of course, that does not mean that this month's jobs print won't be revised lower: it will be, and not just that month but every other month until the November election because that's the only tool left in the Biden admin's box: pretend the economic and jobs are strong, then revise them sharply lower the next month, something we pointed out first last summer and which has not failed to disappoint once.
In the past month the Biden department of goalseeking stuff higher before revising it lower, has revised the following data sharply lower:
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) August 30, 2023
- Jobs
- JOLTS
- New Home sales
- Housing Starts and Permits
- Industrial Production
- PCE and core PCE
To be fair, not every aspect of the jobs report was stellar (after all, the BLS had to give it some vague credibility). Take the unemployment rate, after flatlining between 3.4% and 3.8% for two years - and thus denying expectations from Sahm's Rule that a recession may have already started - in February the unemployment rate unexpectedly jumped to 3.9%, the highest since February 2022 (with Black unemployment spiking by 0.3% to 5.6%, an indicator which the Biden admin will quickly slam as widespread economic racism or something).
And then there were average hourly earnings, which after surging 0.6% MoM in January (since revised to 0.5%) and spooking markets that wage growth is so hot, the Fed will have no choice but to delay cuts, in February the number tumbled to just 0.1%, the lowest in two years...
... for one simple reason: last month's average wage surge had nothing to do with actual wages, and everything to do with the BLS estimate of hours worked (which is the denominator in the average wage calculation) which last month tumbled to just 34.1 (we were led to believe) the lowest since the covid pandemic...
... but has since been revised higher while the February print rose even more, to 34.3, hence why the latest average wage data was once again a product not of wages going up, but of how long Americans worked in any weekly period, in this case higher from 34.1 to 34.3, an increase which has a major impact on the average calculation.
While the above data points were examples of some latent weakness in the latest report, perhaps meant to give it a sheen of veracity, it was everything else in the report that was a problem starting with the BLS's latest choice of seasonal adjustments (after last month's wholesale revision), which have gone from merely laughable to full clownshow, as the following comparison between the monthly change in BLS and ADP payrolls shows. The trend is clear: the Biden admin numbers are now clearly rising even as the impartial ADP (which directly logs employment numbers at the company level and is far more accurate), shows an accelerating slowdown.
But it's more than just the Biden admin hanging its "success" on seasonal adjustments: when one digs deeper inside the jobs report, all sorts of ugly things emerge... such as the growing unprecedented divergence between the Establishment (payrolls) survey and much more accurate Household (actual employment) survey. To wit, while in January the BLS claims 275K payrolls were added, the Household survey found that the number of actually employed workers dropped for the third straight month (and 4 in the past 5), this time by 184K (from 161.152K to 160.968K).
This means that while the Payrolls series hits new all time highs every month since December 2020 (when according to the BLS the US had its last month of payrolls losses), the level of Employment has not budged in the past year. Worse, as shown in the chart below, such a gaping divergence has opened between the two series in the past 4 years, that the number of Employed workers would need to soar by 9 million (!) to catch up to what Payrolls claims is the employment situation.
There's more: shifting from a quantitative to a qualitative assessment, reveals just how ugly the composition of "new jobs" has been. Consider this: the BLS reports that in February 2024, the US had 132.9 million full-time jobs and 27.9 million part-time jobs. Well, that's great... until you look back one year and find that in February 2023 the US had 133.2 million full-time jobs, or more than it does one year later! And yes, all the job growth since then has been in part-time jobs, which have increased by 921K since February 2023 (from 27.020 million to 27.941 million).
Here is a summary of the labor composition in the past year: all the new jobs have been part-time jobs!
But wait there's even more, because now that the primary season is over and we enter the heart of election season and political talking points will be thrown around left and right, especially in the context of the immigration crisis created intentionally by the Biden administration which is hoping to import millions of new Democratic voters (maybe the US can hold the presidential election in Honduras or Guatemala, after all it is their citizens that will be illegally casting the key votes in November), what we find is that in February, the number of native-born workers tumbled again, sliding by a massive 560K to just 129.807 million. Add to this the December data, and we get a near-record 2.4 million plunge in native-born workers in just the past 3 months (only the covid crash was worse)!
The offset? A record 1.2 million foreign-born (read immigrants, both legal and illegal but mostly illegal) workers added in February!
Said otherwise, not only has all job creation in the past 6 years has been exclusively for foreign-born workers...
... but there has been zero job-creation for native born workers since June 2018!
This is a huge issue - especially at a time of an illegal alien flood at the southwest border...
... and is about to become a huge political scandal, because once the inevitable recession finally hits, there will be millions of furious unemployed Americans demanding a more accurate explanation for what happened - i.e., the illegal immigration floodgates that were opened by the Biden admin.
Which is also why Biden's handlers will do everything in their power to insure there is no official recession before November... and why after the election is over, all economic hell will finally break loose. Until then, however, expect the jobs numbers to get even more ridiculous.
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Shipping company files surprise Chapter 7 bankruptcy, liquidation
While demand for trucking has increased, so have costs and competition, which have forced a number of players to close.
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The U.S. economy is built on trucks.
As a nation we have relatively limited train assets, and while in recent years planes have played an expanded role in moving goods, trucks still represent the backbone of how everything — food, gasoline, commodities, and pretty much anything else — moves around the country.
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"Trucks moved 61.1% of the tonnage and 64.9% of the value of these shipments. The average shipment by truck was 63 miles compared to an average of 640 miles by rail," according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics 2023 numbers.
But running a trucking company has been tricky because the largest players have economies of scale that smaller operators don't. That puts any trucking company that's not a massive player very sensitive to increases in gas prices or drops in freight rates.
And that in turn has led a number of trucking companies, including Yellow Freight, the third-largest less-than-truckload operator; J.J. & Sons Logistics, Meadow Lark, and Boateng Logistics, to close while freight brokerage Convoy shut down in October.
Aside from Convoy, none of these brands are household names. but with the demand for trucking increasing, every company that goes out of business puts more pressure on those that remain, which contributes to increased prices.
Image source: Shutterstock
Another freight company closes and plans to liquidate
Not every bankruptcy filing explains why a company has gone out of business. In the trucking industry, multiple recent Chapter 7 bankruptcies have been tied to lawsuits that pushed otherwise successful companies into insolvency.
In the case of TBL Logistics, a Virginia-based national freight company, its Feb. 29 bankruptcy filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia appears to be death by too much debt.
"In its filing, TBL Logistics listed its assets and liabilities as between $1 million and $10 million. The company stated that it has up to 49 creditors and maintains that no funds will be available for unsecured creditors once it pays administrative fees," Freightwaves reported.
The company's owners, Christopher and Melinda Bradner, did not respond to the website's request for comment.
Before it closed, TBL Logistics specialized in refrigerated and oversized loads. The company described its business on its website.
"TBL Logistics is a non-asset-based third-party logistics freight broker company providing reliable and efficient transportation solutions, management, and storage for businesses of all sizes. With our extensive network of carriers and industry expertise, we streamline the shipping process, ensuring your goods reach their destination safely and on time."
The world has a truck-driver shortage
The covid pandemic forced companies to consider their supply chain in ways they never had to before. Increased demand showed the weakness in the trucking industry and drew attention to how difficult life for truck drivers can be.
That was an issue HBO's John Oliver highlighted on his "Last Week Tonight" show in October 2022. In the episode, the host suggested that the U.S. would basically start to starve if the trucking industry shut down for three days.
"Sorry, three days, every produce department in America would go from a fully stocked market to an all-you-can-eat raccoon buffet," he said. "So it’s no wonder trucking’s a huge industry, with more than 3.5 million people in America working as drivers, from port truckers who bring goods off ships to railyards and warehouses, to long-haul truckers who move them across the country, to 'last-mile' drivers, who take care of local delivery."
The show highlighted how many truck drivers face low pay, difficult working conditions and, in many cases, crushing debt.
"Hundreds of thousands of people become truck drivers every year. But hundreds of thousands also quit. Job turnover for truckers averages over 100%, and at some companies it’s as high as 300%, meaning they’re hiring three people for a single job over the course of a year. And when a field this important has a level of job satisfaction that low, it sure seems like there’s a huge problem," Oliver shared.
The truck-driver shortage is not just a U.S. problem; it's a global issue, according to IRU.org.
"IRU’s 2023 driver shortage report has found that over three million truck driver jobs are unfilled, or 7% of total positions, in 36 countries studied," the global transportation trade association reported.
"With the huge gap between young and old drivers growing, it will get much worse over the next five years without significant action."
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