Litecoin (LTC) price is up today, hitting a fresh three-week high amid a broader cryptocurrency market rally.
On Sep. 19, LTC price rose 3.85% to nearly $68.50, outperforming the crypto market that gained 2% on the same day. Still, the Litecoin market has underperformed the broader crypto market in 2023.
It’s down 3.85% year-to-date (YTD) compared to the latter’s 39% gains in the same period.
LTC/USD daily price chart. Source: TradingView
Rate pause bets boost Litecoin’s price recovery
Most of this week’s attention in the market is on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting concluding on Sep. 20. There, Federal Reserve officials will likely decide to pause the ongoing interest rate hikes.
The rate pause bets have boosted investors’ appetite for risky assets, with U.S. stocks and most crypto assets rising ahead of the decision. At the same time, the U.S. dollar has underperformed against a basket of top foreign currencies, with its benchmark index down 0.5% week-to-date, including selloffs on Sep. 19.
U.S. dollar index daily performance chart. Source: TradingView
Litecoin and the dollar’s weekly correlation coefficient has been negative since December 2021, meaning their probability of trending opposite to one another remains high. LTC is, therefore, moving higher on Sep. 19 simultaneous to the dollar’s downside moves.
LTC/USD vs. U.S. dollar index weekly performance chart. Source: TradingView
LTC price: technical rebound
Litecoin’s market gains on Sep. 19 come as a part of a rebound trend that started last week.
Notably, the buying started near what appears to be a long-term ascending trendline support, which has capped Litecoin’s downside attempts since December 2018. The LTC price has bounced 18.5% eight days after testing the said trendline.
LTC/USD weekly price chart. Source: TradingView
Short liquidations
Litecoin’s price gains has resulted in short liquidations worth around $477,300 on Sep. 19. In comparison, only $87,850 worth of long positions have faced liquidations, as shown in the CoinGlass chart below.
LTC total liquidation chart. Source: CoinGlass
Liquidating short positions require derivatives traders to buy the underlying asset, which, coupled with the buying behavior in spot markets, boost the asset’s prices.
Litecoin price analysis for Q3/2023
From a technical standpoint, a Litecoin price bounce from its long-standing ascending trendline support could extend toward its multi-month descending trendline resistance, as shown below.
LTC/USD weekly price chart. Source: TradingView
As a result, LTC price can reach $78.50 as its next upside target in the coming weeks, up around 16.5% from current price levels. The $78.50-level has served as support in March 2023 and June 2023 and was also resistance in January 2023.
In addition, this level coincides with Litecoin’s 50-week exponential moving average (50-week EMA; the red wave in the chart above).
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
