Market Overview: Chainlink/Tether (LINKUSDT) 24-Hour Analysis

• Price action showed a sharp sell-off and subsequent recovery over 24 hours, closing near 17.35
• RSI and MACD indicated mixed momentum, with oversold conditions early but divergences later
• Volatility expanded notably in the early session, with Bollinger Bands widening
• Volume spiked during the initial decline and surged again near the 17.30–17.40 price cluster
• No major reversal patterns formed, but consolidation near 17.35 suggests potential for a breakout

Chainlink/Tether (LINKUSDT) opened at 17.28 on 2025-10-31 12:00 ET and closed at 17.35 by 2025-11-01 12:00 ET, with a high of 17.44 and a low of 16.83 over the 24-hour period. Total trading volume reached 1,546,114.22, with a notional turnover of $26.92 million, indicating strong activity during key price swings and consolidation.

Structure & Formations

The 15-minute chart reveals a key support level forming around 16.83–16.90, where a significant volume spike and price rejection occurred. This area appears to act as a psychological floor for short-term traders. On the upside, resistance emerged at 17.35–17.44, where the price has spent a considerable portion of the session, with multiple failed attempts to break through the 17.44 level. A small bearish engulfing pattern was visible around 17:00 ET, followed by a bullish spinning top near the session close, indicating indecision and potential for a consolidation phase. A doji formed around 02:00 ET, suggesting exhaustion among sellers and possible reentry for buyers.

Moving Averages

On the 15-minute chart, the 20-period MA crossed above the 50-period MA around 04:00 ET, signaling a short-term bullish bias. The 50-period MA remained above the 100-period MA, reinforcing this view, while the 200-period MA acted as a long-term baseline with price hovering just above it. On the daily chart, the 50-period MA showed a gradual upward trend, while the 100- and 200-period MAs remained slightly lower, suggesting a potential for continued sideways-to-bullish movement in the near term.

MACD & RSI

The RSI oscillated between 25 and 80 over the 24-hour window, with a strong oversold reading near 25 at 17:00 ET triggering a rebound. However, a divergence formed around 08:00 ET where price continued rising but RSI peaked, hinting at weakening bullish momentum. The MACD line crossed above the signal line twice during the session, reinforcing short-term bullish tendencies, but failed to maintain a strong positive trend. This suggests a mixed momentum profile, with buyers entering at dips but sellers reemerging around 17.35–17.44.

Bollinger Bands

Bollinger Bands expanded significantly during the initial decline from 17.35 to 16.90, indicating heightened volatility. As price recovered, it moved closer to the upper band during the 08:00–11:00 ET period, suggesting a continuation of the bullish phase. However, by 15:00 ET, price had pulled back to the mid-band level, indicating a possible pause in momentum and the likelihood of a continuation of consolidation near the 17.35 level. This pattern may set up for a future breakout attempt toward 17.44 or a pullback toward 17.25.

Volume & Turnover

Volume spiked dramatically during the initial decline, peaking at 129,610.38 at 17:00 ET, which coincided with the lowest point of the session. This suggests a bearish exhaustion at that level. Conversely, volume dropped off during the subsequent recovery, suggesting a lack of aggressive buying. Turnover aligned with volume peaks and troughs, showing strong notional value during the initial sell-off and moderate activity during the recovery. A divergence between volume and price during the 04:00–08:00 ET period suggests that further confirmation is needed before assuming a breakout direction.

Fibonacci Retracements

Applying Fibonacci retracements to the 16.83–17.44 swing, the 61.8% level sits at 17.27 and the 78.6% level at 17.38. Price lingered near 17.27 during the 04:00–07:00 ET window, which acted as a short-term support, before moving up to the 17.38 level. This suggests that buyers are active around the 17.27–17.38 range, indicating a potential consolidation phase with a likelihood of testing 17.44 as a key psychological level.

Backtest Hypothesis

The backtest strategy based on RSI signals (buys at RSI < 30 and sells at RSI > 70) aligns well with the observed price behavior in this 24-hour window. For instance, the sharp dip to 16.83 corresponded with a strong oversold RSI reading, which could have triggered a buy signal, while the subsequent rise to 17.44 may have approached overbought conditions toward the end of the session. However, the strategy’s lack of additional risk controls, such as stop-loss or trailing stops, would expose it to volatility seen in the early sell-off. While the RSI-based swing strategy may capture short-term momentum swings, the frequent divergences and consolidation suggest that it could struggle in a more sideways market or during sudden liquidity shifts. This highlights the need for supplemental indicators or risk management tools to enhance the strategy’s robustness.