Bitcoin prices rose Friday afternoon, clawing back losses from the previous session and putting the cryptocurrency on track for its best week in two months.
Most recently, a single bitcoin BTCUSD, -0.75% was fetching $3,944.10, up 1.2% since Thursday’s level at 5 p.m. Eastern time on the Kraken exchange. The cryptocurrency is on track to notch its biggest weekly gain since the week ending Dec. 23, 2018.
What are analysts saying
“We are just in a consolidation period of the broad $3,200 to $4,200 range and because we are towards the top of that range I would say the downside risk is greater than the upside,” said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda.
Erlam said: “it wouldn’t surprise me if we hold inside this range for another few weeks or more.”
Altcoins and futures
Altcoins — the collective group of cryptocurrencies other than bitcoin — are trading higher on Friday. Ether ETHUSD, +0.69% is up 2.4% to $146.91, Bitcoin Cash BCHUSD, -1.69% is the best-performing altcoin, trading higher by 2.8% at $144.70, Litecoin LTCUSD, -2.25% LTCUSD, -2.25% has gained 1% to $48.89 and XRP, XRPUSD, -0.99% is trading at 32 cents, up 0.9% on the day.
The broad-based rally has added $10 billion to the total value of all cryptocurrencies since Monday, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
Bitcoin futures closed Friday in the green. The Cboe Global Markets March contract XBTJ9, +0.96% ended the session up 0.9% at $3,940 and the CME Group February contract BTCG9, +0.90% closed up 0.9% to $3,930.77.