Ether needs to reclaim the “macro” range above the $2,200 mark to amass more upside momentum as crypto markets remain pressured by global macroeconomic concerns until at least the beginning of April.

Ether (ETH) price is down over 51% during its three-month downtrend after it peaked above $4,100 on Dec. 16, 2024, TradingView data shows.

ETH/USD, 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

To stage a reversal from this downtrend, Ether price needs to reclaim the “macro range” above $2,200, wrote popular crypto analyst Rekt Capital in a March 19 X post:

“If price can generate a strong enough reaction here, then #ETH will be able to reclaim the $2,196-$3,900 Macro Range (black).”

ETH/USD, monthly chart. Source: Rekt Capital

Meanwhile, Ether’s open interest surged to a new all-time high on March 21, raising investor hopes that large traders are positioning for a rally above $2,400.

Ether futures aggregate open interest, ETH. Source: CoinGlass

Ether remains unable to gain significant momentum despite positive crypto regulatory developments, such as the US Securities and Exchange Commission dropping the lawsuit against Ripple.

Some analysts expect traditional and cryptocurrency markets to be pressured by global trade war concerns until at least the beginning of April, when countries may find a resolution to the retaliatory tariffs.

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ETH whales only ones buying: Nansen analyst

While some crypto traders often blame large investors, or whales, for market downturns, these participants are simply “playing the market in any direction,” according to Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at Nansen.

The analyst said during Cointelegraph’s Chainreaction daily X show on March 21:

“The ETH whales in the 10k to 100k have actually been accumulating ETH, whereas everyone else has been dumping.”

Related: Bitcoin’s next catalyst: End of $36T US debt ceiling suspension

The number of addresses with at least $100,000 worth of Ether started rising at the beginning of March, from just over 70,000 addresses on March 10 to over 75,000 on March 22, Glassnode data shows.

ETH: Number of Addresses with Balance ≥ $100k. Year-to-date chart. Source: Glassnode 

In comparison, there were over 146,000 wallets with over $100,000 in ETH balance on Dec. 8, when Ether’s price was trading above $4,000.

Despite the potential for short-term volatility, investors remain optimistic for the rest of 2025, VanEck predicted a $6,000 cycle top for Ether’s price and a $180,000 Bitcoin (BTC) price during 2025.

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