Bullish Bounce off in Bitcoin Price!

The BTC/USD was closed at $32878.9 after placing a high of $33939.0 and a low of $32063.0. BTC/USD dropped on Thursday for the second consecutive session after the Deputy Director of the Central Bank of China stated that Bitcoin and stable coins were speculative tools with potential risks threatening financial security and social stability. He also stated that bitcoin and stable coins were also being used for money laundering and illegal economic activities.

According to the Deputy Director, Fen Yufei, the stable coins could potentially bring risks and challenges to the international monetary system. He acknowledged that the bank was worried about this fact and was taking some measures against it. Yufei said that the central bank was continually studying and observing the private digital currencies; however, at the same time, it was also vigorously promoting and improving its own central bank digital currency, Renminbi.

Meanwhile, Israeli officials have said that they will take action to seize cryptocurrencies from 84 wallet addresses. These wallets could hold millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrencies. Additionally, the officials suspected that these addresses belong to Hamas. The estimated accumulated amount held by the wallets is $7.7 million.

Furthermore, the Bank of Thailand issued the latest warning to crypto holders against using digital currencies for payments, adding extra pressure on BTC/USD. The bank warned crypto holders who use their digital assets as a medium of exchange that if their practices become widespread, it might take strong measures to regulate the cryptos. On Thursday, the central bank of Thailand said that anyone who is involved in the business of digital assets for goods and services, as a recipient or sender, could face risks, including money laundering, theft, and price volatility. The bank also reiterated that Bitcoin and Ether, including other cryptocurrencies, were not legal tender in the country and warned of consequences from regulators.

Additionally, Chinese regulators have issued a warning to citizens of the risks involved in crypto trading. After cracking down on crypto mining facilities, the regulators, including the Business Administration Department of People's Bank of China and the Beijing Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau, have set their eyes on companies providing crypto-related services. All these negative developments surrounding the crypto market added pressure on BTC/USD and dragged its prices downwards on Thursday.

BTC/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

31978.2 33854.2

31082.6 34834.6

30102.2 35730.2

Pivot Point: 32958.6

BTC/USD - Technical Outlook

On Friday, the leading cryptocurrency has bounced off the support level of 32,065 level to trade at 32,945. On the 4-hour chart above, Bitcoin has violated the symmetrical triangle pattern adding bearish pressure on the pair. The breakout of the 33,750 support level exposed bitcoin price towards the next support area of 32,065 level, and this double bottom support level pushed the pair back to the 32,934 mark. At the moment, Bitcoin's immediate resistance stays at 33,418 level that's being extended by 50 periods EMA level. Bullish crossover of 33,418 level exposes the BTC/USD price towards the resistance level of 34,999 level. All the best!

Unemployment Claims Ahead!

Gold prices were closed at $1802.10 after placing a high of $1810.20 and a low of $1794.10. Gold continued its bullish streak for the 6th consecutive session driven by a slide in the U.S. Treasury yields after the minutes from Federal Reserve’s June policy meeting revealed that the substantial further progress on economic recovery was not met yet. The minutes from the central bank of the U.S. essentially confirmed market expectations and failed to present additional hawkish surprises in the market. The threshold for tapering asset purchases has yet to be met while the rising inflation levels primarily reflected temporary factors that is why Fed remained cautious about being more hawkish in the minutes.

Last month, a surprise hawkish tilt dragged gold to the downside by 7% as the U.S. dollar and Treasury yields moved higher. However, on Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury yields on benchmark 10-year note fell to their lowest in more than four months and reached below 1.30%. At the same time, the U.S. Dollar Index that measures the greenback value against the basket of six major currencies remained green for the day and extended its gains to reach 92.84 level, its highest in almost 2-months.

On the data front, at 19:00 GMT, the JOLTS Job Openings declined to 9.21M against the expected 9.30M and weighed on the U.S. dollar that added further gains in gold prices. At 19:01 GMT, IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism dropped to 54.3 against the forecasted 57.3, which also weighed on the U.S. dollar, which pushed gold further. According to the minutes released on Wednesday, some Federal Reserve officials talked about tapering; however, some were in a rush to get the process going. The minutes could only provide a hint as to when the central bank decided to start reducing the pace of bond purchases. Most of the officials believed that the benchmark set by the Federal Reserve for any significant shifts in the policy I,e “substantial further progress” has not yet been met, so the supporting measures should be continued for a while.

The Federal Reserve, Open Market Committee, held the short-term interest rates near zero in its latest policy meeting, but it also indicated that it might adjust policy and increase the rates in the upcoming months. Currently, the rates are anchored in a range between 0% and 0.25%, and Fed did not change these rates in the meeting as expected. However, many officials suggested increasing the rate two times in 2023 to 0.6%.

Gold is susceptible to the rising interest rates as it increases the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion, and when this was revealed in the previous month, gold suffered by about 7%. However, the buying of gold from central banks around the world in recent months has offered some support to gold that is keeping its prices higher.

Gold Intraday Technical Level

Support Resistance

1794.06 1810.16

1786.03 1818.23

1777.96 1826.26

Pivot Point: 1802.13

Gold - XAU/USD - Technical Outlook

Gold is trading with a bearish bias at the 1,796 level on Thursday. In the 4 hour timeframe, the precious metal gold has violated an upward channel that’s suggesting bearish trend in gold. Gold’s immediate resistance continues to stay at 1,802 levels. At the moment, gold is gaining support at 1,793 level that’s being extended by a double bottom pattern. The 50 periods EMA is extending support at the same level of 1,783. Therefore, the traders are going to keep their eyes on the 1,796 level today. Below this, gold can find the next support at 1,790 and 1,783. Conversely, a bullish crossover of 1,802 levels can lead the gold price towards a 1,814 level. All the best!

Unemployment Claims in Focus!

The EUR/USD closed at $1.1789 after placing a high of $1.1839 and a low of $1.1782. EUR/USD extended its loss for the second consecutive session on Wednesday amid the strength in the U.S. dollar and the prevailing risk-off market sentiment. The currency pair EUR/USD dropped to its lowest in three-month at 1.1782 after the U.S. dollar resumed its advance on Wednesday. During early trading hours, the currency pair remained under pressure; however, after the release of FOMC meeting minutes, the pair finally found some ground and settled at around 1.1800 level.

The minutes released from the committee of the Federal Reserve showed that the policymakers were still committed to achieving substantial further progress towards their goals of economic recovery before changing the pace of the current monetary policy. At the same time, many members believed that the risks to their inflation expectations were tilted to the upside. After the release of U.S. Federal Reserve meeting minutes from June, the U.S. Treasury yields on benchmark 10-year note fell below 1.30% to its more than 4-months lowest level. However, the U.S. dollar remained green for the day as DXY reached 92.84 level amid the risk-off sentiment prevailing in the market.

On the data front, at 11:00 GMT, the German Industrial Production for May dropped to -0.3% against the forecasted 0.5% and weighed on the single currency Euro that added further loss in EUR/USD pair. At 11:45 GMT, the French Trade Balance declined to -6.8B against the projected -6.0B and weighed on the single currency Euro and dragged EUR/USD pair further on the downside. At 13:00GMT, the Italian Retail Sales fell to 0.2% against the anticipated 3.1% and weighed on the single currency Euro and kept the currency pair EUR/USD under pressure for the day.

From the U.S. side, at 19:00 GMT, the JOLTS Job Openings dropped to 9.21M against the estimated 9.30M and weighed on the U.S. dollar that limited the fall in EUR/USD. At 19:01 GMT, IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism declined to 54.3 against the anticipated 57.3, which weighed on the U.S. dollar and capped further loss in EUR/USD.

The single currency Euro failed to stage a recovery against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday as the data released from Euro-area was not in favor of the currency for the day. Furthermore, the prevailing risk-off market sentiment driven by the uncertainty in the market related to the Delta variant of the coronavirus also kept the riskier currency under pressure, and hence, EUR/USD suffered more during Wednesday’s trading session.

Furthermore, the European Commission said that the economic outlook has improved for the Eurozone since its previous forecast in May.

However, the pandemic was not over yet, and the new variants still pose a risk. In its updated economic forecast, the European Commission predicted the EU and Eurozone expansion at 4.8% and 4.5% in 2022, respectively. The previous projection in May suggested a 4.2% growth rate for the bloc while 4.2% for the Eurozone. The Commission expected that the real GDP would return to pre-pandemic levels in the fourth quarter of this year, despite the risks of pandemic remains.

EUR/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

1.1767 1.1824

1.1746 1.1860

1.1710 1.1882

Pivot Point: 1.1803

EUR/USD - Technical Outlook

The EUR/USD is trading with a bearish bias at the 1.1798 level. The EUR/USD pair has violated the symmetrical triangle pattern supporting the pair at the 1.1837 level. At the moment, the same support level is extending resistance to the EUR/USD currency pair. On the downside, the immediate support prevails at the 1.1780 level, and the bearish breakout of this level can expose the EUR/USD price further lower towards the 1.1736 level. The MACD is holding in a selling zone. Therefore, the pair is facing bearish pressure. Later today, the investor’s focus will remain on the U.S. Jobless claims figures as these have the potential to drive price action in the market. All the best!

Symmetrical Triangle Breakout

The BTC/USD was closed at $33886.0 after placing a high of $35076.0 and a low of $33826.0. BTC/USD remained under pressure on Wednesday and placed loss for the day as Goldman Sachs said might surpass bitcoin as a store of value, but not gold. The analysts at Wall Street Investment Bank Goldman Sachs have outlined the reasoning behind the claim that Ethereum could eventually become a better store of value than Bitcoin. The note issued by the bank suggested that the bank has believed that Ethereum has a higher real use potential than any other cryptocurrency, and it was the most popular development platform for smart contract applications.

The bank said that Bitcoin might have its first-mover advantage and strong brand name; however, BTC lacks the real-use case. The bank also stated the reason behind that as the slow transaction speed of the Bitcoin blockchain, which is just seven transactions per second, while on the other hand, Ethereum could process 15-20 transactions per second.

On the flip side, Visa Inc. said on Wednesday that in the first half of this year, its customers spent more than $1 billion on its crypto-linked cards as the payments processor was taking steps to make crypto transactions smoother. The company announced that it was partnering with 50 cryptocurrency platforms that will enable its customers to convert and spend digital currencies at 70 million merchants worldwide.

Meanwhile, the International Boutique Hotel Group, Pavilions Hotels & Resorts, said that its guess can now pay for their accommodation with over 40 cryptocurrencies, including BTC and ETH, and the service will be available from July 07. This was done with the partnership of a cryptocurrency trading platform, Coindirect, to provide its clients the option of digital asset payments. Another favourable news regarding bitcoin was that workers in Argentina might receive their salary in BTC and store their wealth without the fear of inflation. A member of Argentina's National Congress announced that he had submitted a bill that would allow workers in a dependency relationship and exporters of services to have an option of receiving their full or partial salary in bitcoin.

Despite many favourable pieces of news on its hand, BTC/USD declined on Wednesday amid the recent power in the U.S. dollar and the latest statement from Goldman Sachs Investment Bank. The U.S. dollar remained above 92.84 level on Wednesday and weighed on BTC/USD.

BTC/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

33449.4 34699.4

33012.7 35512.7

32199.4 35949.4

Pivot Point: 34262.7

BTC/USD - Technical Outlook

The leading cryptocurrency pair is trading with a bearish bias at 32,986. As we can see on the chart above, Bitcoin has violated the symmetrical triangle pattern suggesting bearish bias. The breakout of the 33,750 support level is exposing bitcoin price towards the next support area of 32,750 level. A bearish breakout of 32,750 mark can expose the BTC/USD pair until 30,219 triple bottom pattern that can extend support. Conversely, the resistance is being extended by 50 EMA levels at 34,195 level. The MACD has entered the selling zone below 0, supporting a solid selling trend in Bitcoin. On Thursday, the investor's focus will stay on a triple bottom support level of 32,750 below this, and selling bias can further dominate. All the best!

FOMC Meeting Minutes in the Limelight!

Gold prices were closed at $1795.45 after placing a high of $1815.70 and a low of $1790.30. Gold extended its gains and continued its bullish streak for the 5th consecutive session on Tuesday and reached its 3-weeks highest level. The rising prices of yellow metal could be attributed to the declining U.S. Treasury Yields for the day that approached its lowest level since February 21 and reached 1.34%. The sudden decline in U.S. Treasury yield could be because of the higher demand for gold from central banks worldwide.

The World Gold Council has said that monthly purchasing data showed that central banks started repurchasing gold after a long break. The report suggested that the organization has recorded higher monthly gold purchases from central banks throughout March and April. The organization also said that it was recording the latest data from May, which also followed the same trend.

Gold prices moved above the $1800 level on Tuesday after seeing some fresh gains and declining Treasury Yields. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve will issue the minutes from the latest meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. The outcome is expected to shake the market prices as after the meeting Fed revealed its hawkish interest rate changes that pushed the U.S. dollar higher and weighed on gold.

On the data front, at 18:45 GMT, the Final Services PMI remained flat with the expectations of 64.6. At 19:00 GMT, the ISM Services PMI dropped to 60.1 against the forecasted 63.4 and weighed on the U.S. dollar, adding further upward momentum in the yellow metal price. The U.S. Dollar Index was also strong on Tuesday despite the declining U.S. Treasury yields and poor-than-expected ISM Services PMI data release. The DXY plunged to 92.0 level during early trading hours but managed to recover its losses and reached 92.66 level on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, this week, many Democratic lawmakers in the House of Representatives signed a letter addressed to President Joe Biden, which urged Biden to include climate goals in the infrastructure plan as it was laid out in the early stages of the plan. The letter contained the signatures of more than 130 lawmakers and demonstrated that a series of bold actions were needed to take to deal with the climate crisis. However, Biden has recently attempted to reach a deal with a bipartisan group of lawmakers in infrastructure. In accomplishing so, he liquidated many of the environmental pledges he made in the American Jobs Plan. In its response, the Senate Democrats started considering a sweeping roughly $6 trillion reconciliation package that would advance the key elements of President Biden’s infrastructure plan. The plan also added some reforms targeting climate change, health care, and immigration reform.

After this news, speculations were raised that President Joe Biden will veto his $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Plan, which a bipartisan group of lawmakers just agreed after the President made many compromises of White House priorities. However, President Joe Biden refused such action and confirmed that even if a separate Democratic Spending plan doesn’t pass the Congress, he has no plans to veto a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan. These comments from Biden pushed the U.S. dollar higher as the investors remained optimistic about the continuing economic improvement from the coronavirus pandemic.

Gold Intraday Technical Level

Support Resistance

1785.26 1810.66

1775.08 1825.88

1759.86 1836.06

Pivot Point: 1800.48

Gold - XAU/USD - Technical Outlook

Gold is trading with a bullish bias at the 1,796 level on Wednesday. In the 4 hour timeframe, the precious metal gold has formed an upward channel that’s keeping the precious metal gold support. Gold’s immediate resistance continues to stay at 1,802 levels. Well, it’s the same level that has provided resistance a day before, and now gold is gaining support at 1,796 levels. The 50 periods EMA and upward trendline are extending support at the same level of 1,796. Therefore, the traders are going to keep their eyes on the 1,796 level today. Below this, gold can find the next support at 1,790 and 1,783. Conversely, a bullish crossover of 1,802 levels can lead the gold price towards a 1,814 level. All the best!

Fibonacci Retracement in Play

The EUR/USD closed at $1.1822 after placing a high of $1.1896 and a low of $1.1806. EUR/USD continued its bearish momentum and dropped for the 5th session in the previous seven sessions. The declining prices of the EUR/USD could be attributed to the strength of the U.S. dollar for the day along with the weak Euro amid dismal economic data. On Tuesday, the U.S. Dollar Index measures the greenback value against the basket of six major currencies to 92.66 level falling to 92.0 level on the day. The investors remained optimistic about the ongoing economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic as U.S. President Joe Biden refused to veto his $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill even if the separate democratic spending plan of $6 trillion did not pass the Congress.

The U.S. dollar remained strong across the board on Tuesday despite the poor-than-expected macroeconomic data and falling U.S. Treasury Yields. The U.S. Treasury yields on benchmark 10-year note fell to their lowest level since the ending week of February at 1.34%. On the data front, at 11:00 GMT, the German Factory Orders for May dropped to -3.7%against the expected 0.9% and weighed on single currency Euro that added further loss in EUR/USD pair. At 14:00 GMT, the ZEW Economic Sentiment for July dropped to 61.2 against the forecasted 79.0 and weighed on Euro that added further downward momentum in EUR/USD.

The German ZEW Economic Sentiment also declined in July and reached 63.3 against the predicted 75.0 and weighed on Euro, which added further loss in the EUR/USD pair. In May, the Retail Sales rose to 4.6% against the anticipated 4.3% and supported Euro that ultimately limited the downward pressure on EUR/USD pair. On the U.S. front, at 18:45 GMT, the Final Services PMI remained flat with the projections of 64.6. At 19:00 GMT, the ISM Services PMI declined to 60.1 against the anticipated 63.4 and weighed on the U.S. dollar, limiting the declining trend in EUR/USD pair.

The pressure surrounding the European currency increased after the release of the German and Euroland ZEW Economic Sentiment, which showed a weaker than expected future economic activity. The weak outlook for the Eurozone economy could be attributed to the rising number of cases across the region with the spread of the Delta variant of coronavirus. Europe has accelerated its vaccination rollout to fight the fast pace of Delta variant spread. However, it has not re-imposed restrictions that alarmed the investors and raised their fears about the economic recovery from the pandemic. This added weight on the Euro currency, and hence, the EUR/USD pair continued declining on Tuesday.

EUR/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

1.1786 1.1876

1.1752 1.1930

1.1697 1.1965

Pivot Point: 1.1841

**

EUR/USD - Technical Outlook**

The EUR/USD is trading with a bullish bias at the 1.1833 level. The EUR/USD pair has formed a double bottom pattern that’s extending support at the 1.1808 level on the hourly timeframe. The closing of candles above this level supports a strong buying trend in the EUR/USD pair. The direct currency pair has the potential to soar until the next resistance area of 1.1842 level that’s being extended by a 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level. On the higher side, the violation of the 1.1842 level can expose the EUR/USD pair towards the 1.1862 (61.8% Fibo) level. The MACD is holding a selling zone, but the recent histograms are smaller than the previous ones. This demonstrates that the bears are getting exhausted, and bulls are looming around the corner. All the best!

Symmetrical Triangle Pattern

The BTC/USD was closed at $34168.0 after placing a high of $34168.0 and a low of $34108.0. After declining for the previous two sessions, BTC/USD managed to recover some portion of its earlier losses on Tuesday. Bitcoin saw a plunge in its price during early trading hours after China's central bank issued a notice to stop a company's operations immediately, which was allegedly providing cryptocurrency-related services. The People's Bank of China and the regulators in the capital city ordered the closure of a Beijing-based software manufacturer, Beijing Quadao Cultural Development Co. Ltd.

The authorities in China suspended the operations of the software firm. They took down the company's website as it was suspected to have ties with the trading of cryptocurrency. The government of China has already announced a ban on any service related to cryptocurrency within the limits of its country. On Tuesday, the People's Bank of China stated that no company should have any direct dealings with any crypto-related entities. The statement also noted that any company should provide no crypto-related venues, commercial displays, or advertisements.

This move to suspend a firm's operations was the latest in a long-running crackdown by the Chinese government on cryptocurrency. In May, the Chinese authorities issued an official statement to impose tighter regulations on crypto assets. In June, the country's central bank announced to terminate the account of any customer involved in the crypto-related activity. Meanwhile, the bitcoin mining facilities operating in China were also severely affected. Most of the miners were forced to close down their operations, and some chose to transfer their operations abroad. The rest of the miners have been provided with a deadline to cease their operations until the end of the year. This FUD created by China has been weighing on BTC/USD since its value peaked in April.

Additionally, Chinese miners' recent turning-off has also led to a massive drop in bitcoin's hash rate. Furthermore, the Brazilian detectives have reported arresting the President of Bitcoin Banco Group for allegedly defrauding investors more than $300 million. Claudio Oliveira, the self-proclaimed "Bitcoin King," was accused of apparently masterminding a 1.5 billion Brazilian Reals fraud through a cryptocurrency scheme that accounts for about $300 million.

On a positive note, the Ukrainian e-bank Monobank has put forward its interest to offer customers bitcoin trading by July. The bank has already applied to the Bank of Ukraine seeking approval of its application for a bitcoin debit card. This came in after the government of Ukraine was progressing to legislate the cryptocurrency. The Ukrainian government has been making progress towards regulating the cryptocurrency in the country. An official December 2020 report had shown that the Parliament of the country was considering the ominous crypto regulations in the country.

BTC/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

33585.8 34776.6

33031.5 35413.1

32395.1 35967.4

Pivot Point: 34222.3

BTC/USD - Technical Outlook

On Wednesday, the leading cryptocurrency pair is trading with a slight bullish bias at 34,786, gaining support at 32,445. The technical side of Bitcoin remains primarily unchanged as it continues trading choppy in between a symmetrical triangle pattern. The support level is extended by an upward trendline on the 4- hour timeframe at 32,445 level. The Bitcoin is trying to cross below 50 periods EMA that's extending immediate support at 34,250. The bearish crossover of the 32,245 support level can expose Bitcoin price towards the next support area, 30,565 and 29.244 support areas. At the same time, the breakout of 36,650 resistance can expose BTC toward 38,555 areas. All the best!

Upward Channel Breakout

Gold prices were closed at $1791.30 after placing a high of $1794.65 and a low of $1784.75. Gold extended its gains and rose for 4th consecutive session on Monday. The gains were, however, very small as the yellow metal remained under consolidation. The surge in gold prices could be attributed to the latest weakness in the U.S. dollar after the latest U.S. jobs report eased investors' fears about earlier than an expected interest rate hike. The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) that measures the greenback value against the basket of six major currencies fell on Monday and turned red for the day.

The DXY fell and reached 92.14 level, which suggested weakness in the U.S. dollar against its rival currencies. Besides, the U.S. Treasury Yields on benchmark 10-year note also fell for the 6th consecutive session on Monday; however, the decline in yield was very little, which should be considered a flat movement for the day.

After a mixed data release on Friday from the U.S. Labor Department, the focus of investors shifted to minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's June policy meeting. The data revealed that companies in June hired many workers, the highest in 10 months; however, the unemployment remained higher than expectations. The pace of hourly earnings also showed slow growth, and workforce participation did not shift.

Meanwhile, the focus of investors on economic data and the next move from the Fed was strengthened by a rebound in the U.S. labor market. The markets were cheering the further evidence of strong economic recovery in worries about the persistent inflation. The minutes from Fed's latest June meeting are scheduled to release on Wednesday, which is expected to shed more light on policymakers' views on inflation and monetary policy.

Furthermore, the fast-spreading Delta variant of the COVID-19 has been driving up the number of cases in developing nations that also lack vaccine shots to fight the deadly surges. Their healthcare systems were also struggling to cope. In the past week, Indonesia has reached new highs in infection cases, and it has reported about 500 deaths per day. This daily average was also triple the size recorded in early June. Moreover, the Health Ministry of Israel revealed that it had recorded a steep drop in the efficacy rate of Pfizer and BioNtech vaccine in preventing coronavirus infections due to the spread of Delta variant and the easing of government restrictions. These developments raised fears in the market and supported the safe-haven metal prices on Monday.

Gold Intraday Technical Level

Support Resistance

1785.81 1795.71

1780.33 1800.13

1775.91 1805.61

Pivot Point: 1790.23

Gold - XAU/USD - Technical Outlook

Gold is trading with a bullish bias at the 1,802 level, having violated the resistance area of the 1,796 level. This exposes the precious metal gold towards the next resistance level of 1,825, extended by a 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level. On the lower side, the precious metal's support stays at 1,796 levels. On the 4 hour timeframe, gold has closed a bullish engulfing candle that's suggesting strong bullish bias in gold. The 50 EMA is also supporting buying trend along with the MACD. Therefore, gold has the potential to soar further higher until 1,825. All the best!

Symmetrical Triangle Pattern

The BTC/USD was closed at $33.668.0 after placing a high of$35,289.0 and a low of $33,479.2. Bitcoin dropped and reversed its course on Monday amid some negative developments surrounding the bitcoin environment. REvil, a Russian ransomware gang group, has reportedly pulled off the most significant ransomware attack in history. The hackers have deployed a vicious malware that has affected over 200 companies in the United States and over a million companies beyond the globe.

According to REvil, they have deployed a universal malware that has infected more than a million network systems. The hacker's group has now demanded to be paid in bitcoin worth $70 million before they would release the universal decryptor for more than a million infected systems.

Initially, the hackers asked each business to pay $45,000 in XRM, but now the group has revised its demands and was asking $70 million in bitcoin. The hacker group belongs to Russia that has been terrorizing businesses for a while now. This news added weight on BTC/USD, and the crypto suffered on Monday.

Furthermore, a 77-year-old woman in Indiana has reportedly become the latest victim of a cryptocurrency scam. She has approximately lost $12,000 to digital scammers who called her explaining that $500 had been withdrawn from her account by a cyberattack. The woman was provided with a number where she called and was instructed to buy $3500 in bitcoin from Coinbase. Nevertheless, the man on the other side offered the woman help through the buying process and got access to her smartphone and checking account. After that, a total of $12,300 was removed from her checking account. This news also added extra pressure on BTC/USD on Monday.

On the other hand, the bitcoin mining company named Marathon Digital Holdings recently revealed that the company mined about 265.6 bitcoin in June alone. The total amount for the whole second quarter is 654.3 bitcoins, out of which 265.6 were mined in a single month only. June's mining was 17% higher than the mining done in May.

Furthermore, a Dubai-based investment company named IBC Group has reportedly announced to end its bitcoin and ether mining operations in China. The decision came in after China banned the mining of cryptocurrencies in different provinces across the country. IBC Group has major mining facilities in China, and it has plans to distribute its operations to UAE, Canada, the USA, Kazakhstan, Iceland, and various South American countries. Recently, the group relocated its headquarters to Toronto, Canada.

Moreover, Pham Minh Chinh, the minister of Vietnam, has asked the State Bank of Vietnam to begin operating on a pilot project for a cryptocurrency. The blockchain-based project is expected to be completed between 2021 and 2023. The PM has taken the initiative as a development strategy towards a digital economy. The Prime Minister of Vietnam has reiterated the digital currency as "an inventible trend."

BTC/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

33001.8 34811.6

32335.6 359955.2

31192.0 36621.4

Pivot Point: 34145.4

BTC/USD - Technical Outlook

Technically, the Bitcoin pair hasn't changed much as it continues to follow the same trading levels. It's trading with a slight bearish at 34,2886, gaining support at 32,445. The technical side of Bitcoin remains primarily unchanged as it continues trading choppy in between a symmetrical triangle pattern. The support level is extended by an upward trendline on the 4- hour timeframe at 32,445 level. The Bitcoin is trying to cross below 50 periods EMA that's extending immediate support at 34,250. The bearish crossover of the 32,245 support level can expose Bitcoin price towards the next support area, 30,565 and 29.244 support areas. At the same time, the breakout of 36,650 resistance can expose BTC toward 38,555 areas. All the best!

Double Top Breakout

The GBP/USD was closed at $1.3845 after placing a high of $1.3863 and a low of $1.3817. GBP/USD extended its gains for the third consecutive session on Monday amid weakness in the U.S. dollar. The British Pound found support on comments from the U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who announced that all restrictive measures would be lifted on July 19. Johnson said that while the country was still very far from the end of the pandemic, it was now or never to raise restrictive measures by taking advantage of the vaccine roll-out.

Johnson also noted that people would not be instructed to work from home despite the rising number of coronavirus. However, a final decision will be made on July 12. Restrictions were decided to lift in the upcoming days. However, border control was being maintained for the time being along with the red list of U.K. Johnson stated that he had plans to work with the travel industry to lift the quarantine restriction for fully vaccinated travelers upon arrival from amber list countries. Under the plans, nightclubs will be allowed to reopen, and there will be no limits on the capacity for hospitality venues. He also said that people under 40 would be requested for their second COVID-19 shots from eight weeks following their first dose, rather than 12 weeks.

There was no macroeconomic data on the data front to be released from the U.S. because of the national holiday for Independence Day. However, from the British side, at 13:30 GMT, the Final Services PMI in June rose to 62.4 against the expected 61.7 and supported British Pound that added further upward momentum in GBP/USD. Meanwhile, the BOE (Bank of England) has said that it will only require staff to operate in the office one day a week from September, in contrast to many City banks asking their workers to return to work on a full-time basis.

GBP/USD Intraday Technical Levels

Support Resistance

1.3821 1.3867

1.3797 1.3887

1.3776 1.3912

Pivot Point: 1.3842

GBP/USD - Technical Outlook

The GBP/USD pair is trading with a bullish bias at the 1.3883 level. The Cable has violated the double top resistance level of 1.3772 level, and the bullish crossover of this level exposes the pair towards the next target area of 1.3926 level. The support level continues to stay at 1.3872 level along with a resistance area of 1.3926 level. The 50 EMA supports the Sterling at the 1.3840 level, suggesting a robust bullish bias among investors. The pair has also entered the overbought zone; therefore, a slight bearish correction is imminent. The MACD is still supporting buying trends in the GBP/USD pair. Therefore, the traders will be keeping their eyes on 1.3870. All the best!