Bitcoin touched its lowest intraday price since August 21 as a selloff in AI stocks and forced closures of leveraged bets hit crypto. CoinGlass data shows $1.05 billion in liquidations over 24 hours, with long positions accounting for most of them.
Bitcoin fell as low as $74,780.91 on Friday, its weakest intraday price since August 21, 77 days earlier. It was trading near $75,570 at the time of the report.
The retreat followed a selloff in AI stocks and another round of forced closures in derivatives markets, according to Decrypt.
Longs take most of the $1.05 billion in liquidations
CoinGlass data showed $1.05 billion in crypto liquidated over the preceding 24 hours. Long positions accounted for $930.04 million, or 88.2%, against $124.69 million in shorts.
Bitcoin made up $267.20 million of the total, with 88.9% from longs. Ethereum recorded $167.14 million, 81.1% of it long.
Sentiment matched the lopsided liquidations. The Fear and Greed Index stood at 28 out of 100, approaching extreme fear, after sitting at neutral a week earlier, before the midterm elections.
AI stocks drag crypto lower
U.S. technology stocks took the first big hit on Thursday. The Nasdaq Composite fell 5.52%, its worst session in 19 months, while the Philadelphia semiconductor index plunged more than 12% and Nvidia lost over 9%.
Democratic victories in Tuesday's midterm elections raised concerns that tougher AI regulation could slow construction of the data centers behind this year's chip rally. The S&P 500 lost 4.36% on Thursday.
Decrypt noted that simultaneous moves in stocks and tokens do not necessarily mean the equity rout alone caused Bitcoin's decline. A stronger-than-expected U.S. October jobs report also raised expectations of another Federal Reserve rate hike in December, and higher borrowing costs can weigh on speculative markets.
Charts suggest a building bearish trend
Bitcoin trades below both its 50-day and 200-day exponential moving averages, near $79,756 and $76,497 respectively. The Relative Strength Index reads 37.7, below the neutral 50 mark but above the 30 level generally considered oversold.
Immediate support sits at $74,780. A daily close below it would shift attention toward $73,000 to $72,500, then the $70,000 level if that zone fails.
On a recovery, Bitcoin first faces the 200-day average near $76,497, then a weak level near $80,000.
Source: Decrypt
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
