Bitcoin price rally to $88.5K obliterates bears as spot volumes soar — Will a tariff war stop the party?

Bitcoin price caught an unexpected bid by rallying to a session high at $88,500, but will the price gains be capped at a multimonth overhead resistance that is aligned with the 50-day moving average? 

Key points:

• Bitcoin extended its April. 1 gains as news that the Trump administration had not finalized its “Liberation Day” tariffs emerged. 

• Israel, Mexico and India have already rolled back their tariffs on US imports or suggested that they will not do “tit for tat” tariffs in response to the expected April 2 US tariffs. 

• Bitcoin (BTC) trades slightly below a 3-month descending trendline resistance where the price has consistentlybeen rejected during past rallies. 

• Total market liquidations over the past 12-hour trading period have reached $145 million, with $69.4 million of the figure being Bitcoin shorts.  

Data from Kingfisher, CoinGlass and Velo show short liquidations playing a role in today’s push above $88,500. 

Crypto market liquidations in the past 12-hours. Source. CoinGlass 

For the past few months, Bitcoin price has struggled to hold the gains accrued from rallies driven by leverage. Looking beyond futures markets, there are some positives that suggest that the market structure is slowly transitioning from bearish to bullish. 

As shown in the chart below, recent rallies were accompanied by a strong bid in the spot market and the return of the Coinbase Pro premium, leading some analysts to speculate that the shift was influenced by buying from Strategy and other companies focused on building Bitcoin reserves. 

Coinbase premium index. Source: CryptoQuant

Over the last two weeks, GameStop, MARA, Metaplanet and Strategy all announced plans to buy more Bitcoin, with GameStop being on the verge of purchasing and Strategy actively adding to its BTC position. 

GameStop secures $1.5B for possible BTC purchase. Source: Arkham

In the short-term, sustained spot buy volumes at Binance and Coinbase Pro, and the crypto and equities markets’ response to President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs are likely to be the most impactful factors that will influence the current bullish momentum seen in Bitcoin price.  

Related: Bitcoin price on verge of breaking 10-week downtrend — Is $90K BTC next?

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.