Bitcoin bulls continue to struggle with the $95,000 resistance level

Bitcoin bulls continued to struggle with the $95,000 resistance level as investors awaited a slew of key U.S. economic data due in the coming week.

The total crypto market cap barely moved, inching up just 0.13% to hover around the $3.05 trillion mark.

Sentiment also cooled off a bit, slipping from ‘greed’ to neutral on the crypto fear and greed index, which arrived at 51 at last check.

A handful of top altcoins posted small gains on the day, but most gave back some of the ground they had made last week, with market focus still largely on Bitcoin.

Why is Bitcoin struggling to break higher?

Bitcoin stayed rangebound between $92,953 and $95,490 as traders grew hesitant ahead of this week’s deluge of economic data.

It’s shaping up to be a busy week for U.S. macro, with Q1 GDP numbers, nonfarm payrolls, and major tech earnings all on deck.

But the real spotlight is on the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, due out on Monday, April 30.

With the PCE and GDP figures arriving just before the monthly candle close, markets are bracing for a potential volatility spike across crypto and other risk assets.

To add to the uneasiness, the ongoing U.S. trade tariffs have already been stirring sharp swings in crypto, stocks, and commodities, keeping investors on edge.

Unless and until the data drops and the inflation picture becomes clearer, Bitcoin looks set to stay largely trapped within the current range.

Some historical trends suggest that Bitcoin may have hit a local top.

Over the past week, Bitcoin ETFs pulled in $3.06 billion in net inflows, marking the highest weekly inflow since December last year. According to FalconX, ETF inflows generally have short-term predictive power for price increases but are not always a signal for a broader reversal.

Historically, a surge in inflows has often preceded local tops, such as in March and June 2024. For instance, in March, Bitcoin hit a new all-time high of around $73,300 shortly after spot ETFs recorded over $1 billion in daily inflows.

Similarly, in early June, another spike in ETF inflows helped drive Bitcoin from $67,000 to around $72,000, before it dropped sharply by 25% to $53,000 in the weeks that followed.

What’s next for Bitcoin?

Macro data is expected to play a key role in shaping Bitcoin’s short-term direction, but from a technical standpoint, BTC still needs to flip the $95,000 level into solid support to open the door for further upside.

According to crypto analyst Captain Faibik, Bitcoin was forming an ascending triangle on the 4-hour chart, typically seen as a bullish pattern.

Bulls need to clear the $95,300 horizontal resistance to confirm the breakout, which could then set the stage for a push toward the $100,000 mark.

Popular trader CrypNuevo shared a similarly optimistic view, forecasting an “interesting week” ahead for Bitcoin. He said momentum still looks intact and that BTC could see another leg up toward $97,000, where liquidity clusters are building.

CoinGlass data highlights a dense pocket of liquidity between $97,000 and $100,000.

If Bitcoin manages to reach the $100,000 mark, around $5 billion worth of short positions could be liquidated. This short squeeze could add extra momentum to the move, but may also set the stage for increased volatility once the liquidity is cleared.

If Bitcoin pulls back from current levels, it faces support at $92,000, which coincides with the lower band of the Bollinger indicator and could offer some defense against further downside.

On the other hand, if bulls manage to break above the $95,000-$95,300 resistance zone, the next target to watch will be the $97,000-$98,000 range, where a large cluster of sell orders is visible.

Pointing to a potential setback, fellow trader Johnny noted that Bitcoin still has an open CME gap around $92,000 that may need to be filled before any major upside move can continue.

CME gaps, created when Bitcoin futures close at one price and reopen at another, are often revisited by price action, meaning BTC could dip back toward $92,000 before making a fresh attempt at higher levels.

Nevertheless, long-term predictions for Bitcoin range well above $100k.