Cryptocurrencies react to Jackson Hole, Fed rate hike plans and a weakening bear

The European stock markets and the United States equities markets are both deep in the red on Aug. 22 as investors fear that aggressive rate hikes may not be off the table. 

Another thing keeping investors nervous could be the upcoming  Jackson Hole economic symposium, which is scheduled to begin on Aug. 25. Investors are concerned that Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell could further elaborate on the Fed’s hawkish stance and plans for future interest rate hikes.

This macro uncertainty has kept the institutional investors away from the crypto markets. CoinShares data showed that crypto investment products recorded weekly volumes of $1 billion, which is 55% lower than the yearly average.

On-chain analytics resource Material Indicators said that Bitcoin (BTC) has not broken below the July lows. This suggests that the bear market rally is not yet over. However, buyers will have to push the price above the 200-week moving average of near $23,000 to gain the upper hand.

Could Bitcoin and most major altcoins make a strong comeback in the next few days and what are the critical levels to watch out for? Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to find out.

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BTC/USDT

The buyers defended the support line of the ascending channel on Aug. 19 and started a bounce but the recovery stalled at $21,800. This suggests that bears are posing a strong challenge near the moving averages.

A minor positive is that the long tail on the Aug. 22 candlestick shows that bulls are attempting to defend the support line with vigor. If bulls push the price above $21,800, the BTC/USDT pair could rise to the 20-day exponential moving average (EMA) ($22,725).

If the price turns down from this resistance, it will suggest that the sentiment has turned negative and traders are selling on rallies. That could increase the possibility of a break below the channel. If that happens, the selling momentum could pick up and the pair could plummet toward the June 18 low at $17,622.

Conversely, if buyers thrust the price above the 20-day EMA, it will suggest that the pair may extend its stay inside the channel for a few more days. The bulls will then try to push the price toward the resistance line of the channel.

ETH/USDT

Ether (ETH) plunged below the 20-day EMA ($1,718) and the breakout level of $1,700 on Aug. 19, which suggests that traders who had purchased at lower levels were exiting their positions.

The bulls attempted to stall the decline at the 50-day simple moving average (SMA)($1,549) but the weak bounce off it suggests a lack of aggressive buying at the level. This increases the likelihood of a break below the support.

If that happens and the ETH/USDT pair breaks below $1,500, the selling could intensify as the bulls may wait for the price to reach the next strong support before buying again. The pair could therefore decline to $1,280.

Conversely, if the price bounces off the current level and rises above the 20-day EMA, traders who did not buy at the 50-day SMA may buy aggressively lest they miss out on the up-move. That could push the price toward $2,000.

BNB/USDT

Binance Coin’s (BNB) bounce off the strong support at $275 is facing stiff resistance at the 20-day EMA ($301) but a minor positive is that the bulls have not ceded ground to the sellers. This indicates that buyers expect the recovery to continue further.

If the price rises above the 20-day EMA, the BNB/USDT pair could rally to the overhead resistance at $338. This is an important level to keep an eye on because a break and close above it will complete the bullish inverse head and shoulders pattern. This setup has a pattern target of $493.

It may not be a straight dash to the target objective as bears may attempt to stall the rally at $420 and then again at $460.

Conversely, if the price turns down from the current…