Ethereum (ETH) Price Halts Below $2,500 as Market Awaits Further Signals

Ethereum (ETH) price stagnated below $2,500 on Tuesday, down 1.8% from its recent weekly high. According to CoinGecko, ETH briefly touched $2,588 intraday

Ethereum (ETH) price dropped on Tuesday, consolidating below the $2,500 level as broader crypto market momentum remained tepid.

Key technical indicators show that ETH price could be at risk of massive liquidations if the $2,300 support caves.

Ethereum (ETH) price dropped 1.8% in the past 24 hours, consolidating below the $2,500 level as broader crypto market momentum remained tepid on Tuesday, May 20.

Data from showed that ETH dropped as low as $2,400, having recently hit a weekly high above $2,588. At press time, the second-largest cryptocurrency was trading at $2,482.

This cooling signaled further hesitancy among traders, particularly given the U.S. macroeconomic outlook. A Trump-China trade deal now faces new hurdles, while institutional sentiment will be closely watched following the U.S. Fed’s June rate decision and the SEC’s pending verdict on altcoin ETF applications next week.

Among the world’s top ten cryptocurrencies, only Solana (SOL) and Tron (TRX) posted better performances on Tuesday morning, adding 1.7% and 2.3%, respectively. Most other tokens, such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Binance Coin (BNB), dropped between 0.5% and 1%.

Ethereum Technical Analysis: Parabolic Moves Above $2,700, But $2,339 Buy-Wall Looms Large

On the daily chart, Parabolic SAR is now at $2,722, having moved higher as buyers remain largely absent. This is now valid as long as ETH stays below the PARABOLIC HIGH of $2,546.77, which is adjusted every time a new HIGH is made on the chart.

Relative Confidence Index (RCI) Ribbon shows short-term bearish divergence as the fast line slipped to -36.97, despite longer-term values remaining high (87.72 and 74.41). This divergence suggests a potential shift in short-term sentiment, even as medium-term trends are still bullish.

The $2,339 mark acts as a psychological and structural support floor—highlighted by previous consolidation zones and high-volume node activity. Breaking this zone could open the door for bears to target $2,100 next.

However, as long as bulls can defend $2,300, the broader uptrend from May remains in focus, especially with ETF catalysts and macro signals still developing.

Ethereum Derivatives Markets Signal Cautious Optimism, But Longs Face Liquidation Risks

Derivatives data showed a mixed outlook for ETH. While open interest climbed 1.72% to $30.94 billion, trading volume dropped sharply by 34.79% to $89 billion—signaling cooling conviction among active traders.

Options volume also declined 32.62%, despite open interest remaining stable at $7.69 billion. This signaled less interest in outsized price moves.

The long/short ratio on Binance is 0.9849, suggesting balanced sentiment, but deeper breakdowns showed top traders heavily skewed long, with a 2.77x account-based long/short ratio and a 2.68x position-based ratio.

Liquidation data reflected rising risk. In the past 24 hours, over $64.37 million in ETH derivatives were wiped out—$35.46 million from longs and $28.90 million from shorts. The most recent 1-hour window saw $1.54 million rekt, with long positions contributing 28% of that.

Despite bullish leverage from whales, the declining volumes and increasing rekt totals—especially $22.35 million in long liquidations over the past 12 hours—signaled fragility.

If ETH breaches $2,300, cascading liquidations could accelerate downside pressure and potentially drive prices towards the $2,100 level.