Ethereum remained below the $2,400 threshold on Friday, as escalating Middle East tensions and fresh concerns over artificial intelligence spending weighed on risk assets across both crypto and equity markets. The second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization fell roughly 2% over the past 24 hours, erasing gains from the previous two sessions.
Data from CoinGlass showed that Ethereum liquidations reached $75.4 million, with long positions accounting for approximately $63.7 million of that total. The broader cryptocurrency market dropped about 2%, while total liquidations across all digital assets reached roughly $423 million during the same period.
The selloff followed President Donald Trump's rejection of negotiations with Tehran on Wednesday, which reignited geopolitical tensions. Additionally, further Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia intensified concerns about potential regional supply disruptions. As a result, Brent crude climbed 4% to $114 a barrel, while the Nasdaq fell 2.6% as worries about AI spending outweighed improved third-quarter technology earnings. Investors also moved into government bonds, pushing the benchmark US 10-year Treasury yield below 5%, its lowest level in nearly a month.
Exchange reserves decline despite price weakness
Beneath the market decline, Ethereum's onchain data offered a more constructive signal. CryptoQuant data showed that exchange reserves fell by approximately 170,000 ETH over 48 hours to 14.882 million ETH. This decline suggests that fewer coins were held in tracked exchange wallets, potentially reducing readily available selling supply. However, exchange withdrawals alone do not establish that investors are buying or holding for the long term.
Lookonchain separately identified several large wallets accumulating ETH during the previous 24 hours, indicating that some holders were adding exposure as prices weakened. One wallet highlighted by Lookonchain sold 246.25 BTC, valued at approximately $20.64 million, to purchase 8,286 ETH on Thursday. Over the preceding 11 days, the same wallet sold a total of 1,917.7 BTC and acquired 64,545 ETH, according to the tracker. These transactions show a substantial shift from Bitcoin into Ethereum by that wallet, though the activity represents one holder's allocation decisions and does not establish a broader market rotation.
The purchases nevertheless contrast with the liquidation-driven selling that dominated Ethereum's latest decline.
Ethereum technical forecast: ETH approaches the $2,355 support
On the daily chart, ETH/USD has been consolidating between two key levels in recent days. The pair weakened after buyers failed to maintain price above the convergence of the 20-day and 50-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs). Those short-term averages have repeatedly capped recovery attempts over the past week, keeping the near-term outlook bearish.
Attention now turns to the 100-day EMA and the nearby $2,355 horizontal support. That area has held through repeated tests over the past eight days. A sustained break below the support zone would bring $2,204 into focus, followed by the deeper base near $2,026.
For a recovery to gain traction, ETH would need to close above its short-term EMAs and subsequently hold them as support. If the bulls push price above the $2,491 resistance level, Ethereum could extend its rally and hit the next major hurdle at $2,571. An extended bullish scenario would bring the $2,773 resistance into play for the first time since October 2nd.
Momentum indicators continue to favor sellers. The 14-day Relative Strength Index sits near 40, while the Stochastic Oscillator is around 26.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
