Bitcoin bounces to near $41K after crypto sentiment gauge hits 6-week lows

Bitcoin (BTC) saw a welcome break from downside at the Wall Street open on April 13 as United States equities opened in the green.

Sub-$39,000 BTC price target remains

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD climbing to local highs of $40,965 on Bitstamp as trading began Wednesday, its best in over 24 hours.

After a frustrating rangebound period, volatility to the upside was a relief for support levels previously in danger of collapsing.

Traders, however, were not overly optimistic, having eyed lower entry levels for a potential long position.

looking as 39500 / 39k for long area

As Cointelegraph reported, popular trader Crypto Ed was also risk-off in tone on the day, previously forecasting a relief bounce before a deeper correction under $39,000.

"I expect a move, let's say, towards $41,000 and then I think most likely we do get that extra leg to the downside," he said in a YouTube update published subsequently. 

Ed added that the scenario would be invalidated should BTC/USD manage to hold above the $40,500 mark. At the time of writing, the pair was continuing to move towards the $41,000 target.

Video was made >2hrs ago, so I'm adding 1 more short term alternative here which is only a small detail:I do expect that move to red box, but in case we go down from here, BTC is doing that blue pattern. Doesn't change the bigger picture pic.twitter.com/3swJrppDlt

Macro triggers remained familiar, these coming in the form of inflation after Tuesday's U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) readout of 8.5% for March, its highest since 1981. In the United Kingdom, CPI quickened to 7%, a 30-year high, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.

Sentiment on the move from 6-week lows

Traders seemed prepared for the bounce, with data showing modest position liquidations for both longs and shorts over the past 24 hours.

Related: BTC stocks correlation ‘not what we want’ — 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week

The dip below $40,000 had conversely cost market participants dearly, with liquidations passing $500 million fueled by longs.

At the same time, sentiment was rising, as calculated by the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, this having reached 20/100 or "extreme fear" Tuesday. Such a low sentiment score was last recorded in late February.

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