Bitcoin (BTC) bulls seem firmly in the driving seat this calendar week every bit the largest cryptocurrency begins Monday at near $40,000.

Subsequently climbing through much of the previous week'south trading, BTC/USD is now up xv% compared to seven days ago — what's next?

Cointelegraph takes a await at five factors which may influence where Bitcoin heads in the coming few days.

Stocks hitting records merely dollar declines

Bitcoin's rising prior to the weekend was accompanied by a familiar scenario on macro markets.

Despite the coronavirus and its fallout continuing to wreak havoc on many economies worldwide, stock markets hit new all-time highs, with the S&P 500 closing its biggest weekly gain since last Nov. Oil climbed higher up $60 a barrel for the offset time in more than a twelvemonth on Monday.

The mood was buoyed by the prospect of fresh spending in the United states of america every bit lawmakers looked to finalize the details of President Joe Biden's $ane.nine-trillion stimulus package.

Equally Bitcoin proponents have consistently noted since the start of the pandemic and before, more than spending means more money full-bodied closer to the government and fundamental bank — a phenomenon known every bit the "cantillon effect" — paving the manner for connected interventions in stock markets among other areas.

At the same time, the U.S. dollar has suffered in recent days, part of an ongoing narrative that states that the world'south reserve currency will proceed to pass up.

The U.S. dollar currency alphabetize (DXY) abruptly fell below 91 on Monday, reversing its recent uptrend, which had begun in mid-January.

U.S. dollar currency index (DXY) one-day candle chart. Source: TradingView

Despite mixed views over stimulus, political sources appear to exist fully signed upwards to inflating the money supply every bit the only pick.

"I remain concerned, as a medium-term worry, with secular stagnation, believe that fiscal policy volition need to exist much more active in the years ahead, and certainly share the administration's view that policy should err very much on the side of expansion at a moment like this," Lawrence Summers, chief economical adviser to Barack Obama, wrote in the Washington Post on Sunday.

"But these kinds of qualitative considerations practise not provide a basis for judging whether $900 billion in short-term stimulus should be followed immediately by a $i trillion, $1.nine trillion or $five trillion measure, prior to an ultimate multitrillion-dollar public investment measure."

As Cointelegraph often reports, DXY weakness tends to issue in stronger performance on BTC/USD, though the negative correlation has noticeably diminished since September 2020.

BTC rolling xc-24-hour interval render correlations vs. USD, VIX, Gilt, Southward&P500. Source: Digital Assets Data

BTC price sees best weekly close

After biding its time, Bitcoin is thus offset to await similar it could soon exit its established brusque-term trading zone betwixt $30,000 and $40,000.

Signs that this is on the cards were already present — fundamentals were at best highs and diverse indicators pointed to the starting time of 2021 forming the first innings of a bull run, not the terminal.

This calendar week continues the trend, with network hash rates at record levels and difficulty set to increase past nigh v% at the adjacent readjustment in 10 days' time.

Lord's day's weekly shut officially forms Bitcoin'southward highest ever.

BTC/USD 1-calendar week candle nautical chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView

"There volition be pullbacks, perhaps even to retest the top of the flag as support," pop trader Scott Melker summarized about the market with a new chart prediction on Sat.

"But technically this is a confirmed breakout that should have $BTC to 63K eventually. Disclaimer - patterns rarely reach their targets, but the rules are the rules."

The weekend saw Bitcoin's outset decisive overshoot of $40,000 in almost a calendar month, fuelling anticipation that a restructuring of cost-functioning could follow.

D-24-hour interval for Ether futures

As stiff as Bitcoin looked, however, Monday was all almost altcoins and, in particular, Ether (ETH).

After passing best highs of its own last week, the largest altcoin has received its own dedicated Ether futures from CME Group.

With a moving ridge of professional traders now tipped to enter, excitement was already clearly visible on the market over the past calendar week as Grayscale added to a buying frenzy that sent ETH/USD above $one,750.

Now, notwithstanding, attention is turning to whether performance can continue, or if the futures launch volition be an anti-climax that conversely triggers corrective behavior.

"Personally, I'k non entering the markets at all here," Cointelegraph Markets analyst Michaël van de Poppe told Twitter followers on Sunday.

"Gradually taking profits have been my game recently on the swing trades through which I'thousand flexible in the coming weeks to come. I simply don't know how markets will react from tomorrow onwards with the CME futures."

Van de Poppe added that should a reversal ensue, likely support levels lay significantly below spot cost — at $1,100–$one,175 and $875–$950, respectively.

In 2017, the launch of the first Bitcoin futures coincided with a price build-up, followed past a comedown that triggered a year-long bear market. At the same time, futures uptake came much more than slowly than thought, only hitting its pace in 2019.

ETH/USD 1-day candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView

Bitcoin dominance points downwardly

Information technology is non just futures fuelling Ether, withal, and continued investment in DeFi and other major altcoins could continue to cause a headache for Bitcoin.

DeFi tokens have surged this year, and the past week has seen five altcoins gain in excess of 115%.

Equally such, Bitcoin's share of the overall cryptocurrency market cap is dwindling. Currently at 61%, its presence has returned to its position from October last year, just 5% off 1-year lows.

Cryptocurrency marketplace cap authorisation chart. Source: CoinMarketCap

"In January 2017, after the second halving, nosotros were simply a few weeks abroad from a HUGE Altcoin Season," pop Twitter commentator The Moon noted, calculation a chart comparing Bitcoin dominance now and 3 years ago.

"The #Bitcoin Authorisation dropped 60%, and Altcoins made 20X, 50X, 100X gains. What do you remember, tin can something similar happen again?"

Right on cue, the world's richest man, Elon Musk, returned with fresh publicity for meme-based altcoin Dogecoin (DOGE) on Monday.

"Doge appears to be inflationary, but is not meaningfully so (stock-still # of coins per unit time), whereas BTC is arguably deflationary to a fault," he claimed on Twitter.

"Transaction speed of Doge should ideally be a few orders of magnitude faster."

As Cointelegraph reported, the success of Ether and DeFi is non without its issues. Transaction fees in the class of gas have exploded equally prices accept increased, leading to issues for users and exchanges alike.

$ninety,000 by April?

Correct on track — that was the determination from quant analyst PlanB about Bitcoin's performance subsequently its most recent halving event terminal May.

In a Twitter update, the creator of the stock-to-menses family unit of price forecasting models showed that compared to the post-halving periods in 2013 and 2017, Bitcoin was right in the eye.

As such, depending on whether Bitcoin's next move is more akin to the quondam or latter, price targets range between an boilerplate of $100,000 or $288,000.

BTC/USD mail service-halving comparison. Source: PlanB/ Twitter

Bringing halving-based predictions closer to the present, meanwhile, pop commentator Bitcoin Archive devised a $90,000 aim for as soon as April this year.

The reason, the account claimed, is that BItcoin is in fact following 2017 mail-halving behavior, merely "much higher."

"If nosotros continue forth this path 90k in April/May is the target," it summarized, using data from Ecoinometrics.