Ethereum (ETH) price retreats after hitting $2,000: What next?

ETH price perched above $1,850 after retreating from its recent peak of $2,036

Ethereum rallied to a new all-time high of $2,036 on 20 February, hitting the landmark price after a week of registering high after high.

However, bulls were unable to continue higher over the weekend and ETH prices have largely been range-bound below $1.9k. The consolidation could be what bulls need to build fresh momentum, in which case another leg up could see ETH/USD surpass the recent peak. On the flip side, bears could push prices to lows of $1,653.

In context, Ethereum’s consolidation also mirrors that being witnessed by last week’s super-performers Bitcoin (BTC) and Binance Coin (BNB). While Bitcoin hit a new peak at $58,330 on 21 February, BNB had seen its price skyrocket to a new all-time high of $342 two days earlier.

Both coins are now consolidating above crucial support levels and could rebound higher.

Ethereum price short term technical outlook

ETH/USD is trading around $1,850 at the time of writing, perched just above the base of a price range within which it has traded for most of the past 24 hours.

The price action follows the swift reversal from the historic peak of $2036. The technical picture for ETH/USD suggests the second-ranked cryptocurrency remains in an uptrend. This provides for a short-term positive outlook, although bulls have all the work to do if they are to avoid ceding control to the bears.

As the 4-hour chart shows, Ethereum price remains above a long-term ascending trend line formed since early February. Keeping prices above this support line is therefore crucial to retaining the advantage.

If the ETH/USD pair breaks above immediate resistance at $1,890, the next move would be to the 20-day exponential moving average ($1,919). Above this resistance zone lies the 0.236 Fibonacci retracement level ($1,950), where an influx of buy orders could help buyers target $2,140.

Bears might have it their way if prices fall below the ascending trend line support. From here, the potential bearish flip could strengthen if the Relative Strength Index (RSI) dips further alongside a negative divergence outlook.

The MACD is also showing a bearish divergence and could weaken further if ETH/USD falls below $1,800. A breakdown to the next support level ($1,736) could leave bears eyeing further damage towards $1,653.