Bitcoin Bulls Struggle With $72,000 Reclaim Despite US-Iran Ceasefire

Bitcoin (BTC) hit new three-week highs into Wednesday’s Wall Street open as stocks surged on a US-Iran ceasefire.

Key points:

• Bitcoin briefly hits new three-week highs before round-tripping its gains.

• Iran ceasefire relief fails to last as traders demand that bulls reclaim higher levels.

• More volatility is due thanks to US inflation reports.

BTC price fails to stay above $72,000

Data from TradingView captured BTC/USD reaching $72,865 on Bitstamp before cooling the day’s gains.

News of a minimum two-week ceasefire between the US, Israel and Iran sent risk assets higher in an instant, with the S&P 500 up by more than 2.5% at the open.

WTI crude oil declined to as low as $91 per barrel as oil-supply crisis fears eased and traffic began to resume through the Strait of Hormuz. This came despite reports of an attack on a Saudi oil pipeline.

“The S&P 500 is now set to open above 6,800, trading just 2.9% away from a new record high. The index has added +$1.6 TRILLION today,” trading resource The Kobeissi Letter wrote in its latest market coverage on X.

Among Bitcoin market participants, the relief was also palpable.

“I mentioned earlier that a ceasefire would be a clear direction on the markets. It happened,” crypto trader Michaël Van de Poppe wrote in an X response. 

“Bitcoin breaks through the crucial $71K level and builds a bullish structure. Oil is down and the Strait is open, which means that there’s a mean reversion play active on Bitcoin.”

Van de Poppe described the need to hold support at $69,500 as “crucial.”

“That would strengthen the entire theory of a higher lows, higher highs and continues the momentum upwards and is likely going to fall alongside a new all-time high on the Nasdaq,” he added.

More inflation volatility on the horizon

Trader Daan Crypto Trades meanwhile said that $72,000, a sticking point in recent weeks, needed to be cleared.

Related: Bitcoin RSI ‘nearly perfectly’ copying end of 2022 bear market: Analysis

“Another day another test of the $72K level. Let’s see if the bulls can push through this time around,” he told X followers. 

“I want to see a clean break and hold above that area. Ideally for more than 1-2 days this time.”

Earlier, Cointelegraph reported on other traders’ concerns about overall BTC price strength, which argued that Bitcoin bulls “still have a lot of work to do.”

The remainder of the week will see key US inflation releases, these set to show the initial impact of the Iran conflict and spark characteristic risk-asset volatility.