Leading cryptocurrencies traded sideways, while stocks climbed higher on Tuesday as optimism grew over a potential interest rate cut in December.
| Cryptocurrency | Gains +/- | Price (Recorded at 8:25 p.m. ET) |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) | -0.68% | $87,450.14 |
|
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) |
+0.19% | $2,949.09 |
| XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) | -2.75% | $2.19 |
| Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) | +0.22% | $138.85 |
| Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) | +0.23% | $0.1522 |
Crypto Market Settles After Uptick
Bitcoin traded sideways between $86,000 and $88,450, stabilizing after its recent uptick. Trading volume dropped 11% over the last 24 hours. Ethereum also consolidated around recent gains, as bulls failed to drive prices above the key $3,000 threshold.
Bitcoin's dominance dipped below 58%, while Ethereum's market share fell to 11.8%.
Shares of Bitcoin holding company Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR) shed 3.83% during the regular trading session.
Benzinga Edge delivers real-time stock alerts, trade ideas, and professional investing tools to help you navigate the market. Find out more about MSTR here.
Cryptocurrency liquidations exceeded $300 million in the last 24 hours, according to Coinglass, with nearly amounts in longs and shorts wiped out.
Bitcoin's open interest fell by 0.51% in the last 24 hours, roughly matching the dip in spot price.
The “Extreme Fear” sentiment prevailed in the market, according to the Crypto Fear & Greed Index.
Top Gainers (24 Hours)
| Cryptocurrency (Market Cap>$100 M) | Gains +/- | Price (Recorded at 8:25 p.m. ET) |
|---|---|---|
| Monad (MON ) | +47.18% | $0.04762 |
|
Story (IP) |
+19.77% | $2.94 |
| Waves (WAVES ) | +14.86% | $0.8675 |
The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $3.01 trillion, following a drop of 0.41% in the last 24 hours.
Stocks Extend Winning Streak
Stocks added to their gains on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 664.18 points, or 1.43%, to close at 47,112.45. The S&P 500 gained 0.91% to finish at 6,765.88, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed up 0.67% at 23,025.59
Expectations for a December rate cut have heightened following dovish remarks from key central bank officials, with traders pricing in a 84% possibility, according to the CME FedWatch tool. A week ago, the odds were only 50%.
Prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi have also leaned strongly in favor of a 25 basis point rate cut at the Federal Reserve’s meeting next month.
Altcoin Season Not Anytime Soon
Analysts at cryptocurrency company B2BINPAY saw a "very small chance" that the altcoin season would begin before the year-end.
"The problem is that liquidity is dormant. We don't see any rotation. Bitcoin dominance has been holding in the 58-61% range since early October, meaning capital is sitting in ‘storage mode,'" the analysts said in a note shared with Benzinga.
They set early 2026 as the "base case" for the altseason to begin.
Widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader Michaël van de identified $85,500 as a key support for Bitcoin, a move below which could result in a retest of $80,800-$82,000.
"Holding here = target zone of $90,000-$92,000 in the coming days," Van De Poppe predicted.
Ali Martinez, another popular cryptocurrency researcher, spotted a potential bearish flag pattern on Bitcoin’s 1-hour chart, with a projected drop of $79,000.
For the curious, a bearish flag is a chart pattern that signals the continuation of a strong downtrend.
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Photo: jira pliankharom / Shutterstock
