Ether dropped to an intraday low of $2,679.29 before short sellers were forced out of their positions, part of a broader squeeze that wiped out $259.12 million across the crypto market in 24 hours. Bitcoin and XRP absorbed the same wave even as sticky U.S. inflation data gave traders reason to expect a pullback instead.
Ether slid to an intraday low of $2,679.29 as sticky U.S. inflation data triggered a wave of forced short liquidations across Bitcoin, Ether and XRP, catching leveraged short sellers on the wrong side of the move.
The August report on the core personal consumption expenditures index showed prices for more than half of the components in the PCE basket still rising faster than the target rate. But the market read the persistent inflation as a green light for risk assets rather than a reason to sell, and short sellers were quickly trapped.
Short sellers overwhelmed across BTC, ETH and XRP
Over 24 hours, CoinGlass data show the market liquidated positions belonging to 73,709 traders, wiping out $259.12 million in total. The damage concentrated in a single hour: short liquidations surged to $82.61 million while longs lost just $3.09 million, a 2,633% imbalance that turned an ordinary price move into a short squeeze.
Bitcoin, which holds nearly 59% of the total crypto market, reached $83,825.17 at the peak of the move, with its short sellers losing more than $51.69 million over the day. A single BTC-USDT position on the HTX exchange was forcibly liquidated for $6.91 million.
Ether added $16.39 million to the day's total liquidations during its dip to $2,679.29. XRP, meanwhile, settled at $1.4975 after taking its own share of the triggered stop orders alongside the most volatile altcoins.
Bitcoin holds firm despite reasons to sell
The squeeze exposed a paradox: Bitcoin had plenty of reasons to fall. U.S. stocks stopped rising, oil prices remain elevated, and the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds is hovering around 5.2%. The CLARITY Act's failure in the Senate should have sent crypto lower still, yet after a brief dip, Bitcoin held its ground and returned to its prior levels.
That resilience points to institutionalization already underway through ETFs, banks and funds that have entered the market for the long term. There appear to be reasons to sell, but for now there are simply no sellers left to sell to.
Source: U.Today
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