Bitcoin, tech stocks brush off Nvidia nerves as analyst mulls $68K target

Bitcoin (BTC) returned above $75,000 after Monday’s Wall Street open as tech stocks rebounded.

Key points:

• Bitcoin bounced from 11-week lows of $73,500 on Monday as investors added tech-stock exposure.
• Stock markets moved beyond controversy surrounding Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, with the Nasdaq Composite Index gaining up to 2.6% on Monday.
• BTC price analysis saw the potential for a dip toward the 200-week simple moving average trend line at $67,755.

Bitcoin, stocks shake off Nvidia jitters

Data from TradingView showed BTC/USD up 0.8%, having dipped as low as $73,500 on Sunday, a level not seen since Aug. 21.

BTC/USD one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

The weakness accompanied news that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang may have been the target of a Chinese intelligence effort, a claim Beijing subsequently denied. Nvidia stock fell about 6% to $170.24 on Monday early trading, a level it last traded at on March 31, before rebounding to session highs of $179.92.

Nvidia stock one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

In a Sunday note, Dan Ives, senior managing director at merchant bank Yorkville Ives & Co., warned that the episode could create lasting headwinds for Nvidia’s share price.

“This is a black eye moment for Jensen and will spark multiple congressional inquiries at a minimum and will create an overhang on the stock for a myriad of reasons,” he said.

Gary Gensler, former chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said that Nvidia’s board would face “tough choices” based on the results of the company’s internal investigation.

Elsewhere, investors sought to buy the lows on tech stocks, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index shaking off the Nvidia claims to gain 2.5% in the first hour of the US trading session.

Nasdaq Composite Index one-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Falling oil prices helped spur renewed strength in equities and offered Bitcoin some respite from its own downside. US WTI crude fell to $86.19 per barrel on the day, its lowest since Sep. 1, before recovering to around $88.20.

CFDs on WTI crude oil one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

In his latest analysis, economist Robin Brooks reiterated gold, Bitcoin and the S&P 500’s negative correlation to oil following the attack on Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline, a key oil-transit route, in September.

“Even if these correlations fade somewhat going forward, it’s reasonable to think that a fall in oil prices will lift these risk assets,” he summarized.

BTC price gets new target near $68,000

BTC/USD acted in a narrow range between its 21-week and 50-week simple moving averages (SMA) on Monday, with these at $73,078 and $75,492, respectively.

Commenting on current market structure, Keith Alan, cofounder of crypto trading platform Material Indicators, eyed a potential dip toward the 200-week SMA at $67,755, a trend line that last interacted with price in mid-August. At the same time, Alan saw conditions slowly starting to improve on weekly time frames.

“The macro structure and thin order books leave room for lower prices before a breakout can be validated. That test is possible, not inevitable - and it doesn’t have to happen this week. In fact, the weekly view is starting to lean bullish,” he told X followers.

BTC/USD one-day chart with 21, 50, 200 SMA. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Crypto market liquidations remained elevated during the first half of Monday, with CoinGlass reporting the 24-hour total at $1.2 billion as of 5pm UTC.

Crypto liquidation history (screenshot). Source: CoinGlass