Every oscillation on the candlestick chart silently tells the story of the confrontation between bulls and bears.

Around 9 PM, Ethereum's price repeatedly hovered near $2960, like a brief calm before the storm. Staring at the cold screen light, my mind was in turmoil—this level is indeed critical.

The weekend market performance was very typical, with prices trapped in a narrow range between $2900 and $2950, repeatedly pushed back after attempts to break higher. Bitcoin was also struggling during the same period, oscillating between $86,500 and $88,000. In simple terms, this reflects the holiday effect—European and American traders have already entered Christmas mode, and market liquidity has clearly bottomed out.

Beneath the calm surface, there are hidden currents.

The trigger for today's decline was the US Q3 GDP data: a 4.3% growth rate far exceeding the expected 3.3%. This sounds like good news, but it turned out to be bad news—stronger economic resilience means the Federal Reserve has no reason to rush to cut interest rates, and high interest rates continue to drain liquidity from the crypto market. Even more painfully, over the past 24 hours, over $200 million in liquidations have occurred across the entire network, with longs being liquidated in chains. This kind of panic liquidation itself will further amplify the decline.

From a technical perspective, key support levels are especially important. On the four-hour chart, Ethereum is repeatedly testing the middle band of the Bollinger Bands, each time seemingly testing the patience of the bulls. If this suppression pattern continues, it could trigger a new round of liquidity crises.