According to Cointelegraph, Ethereum's price is currently experiencing challenges in maintaining levels above $4,000, as noted by a crypto analyst. The digital currency has repeatedly surpassed this psychological barrier, peaking at $4,077 on December 6, but has struggled to sustain this price, based on CoinMarketCap data.

The pseudonymous crypto trader, Rekt Capital, highlighted in a December 20 market report that Ethereum is likely to remain range-bound between two significant psychological levels. The $3,000 mark has emerged as a crucial support level, a price point last reached on November 9. Prior to this, Ethereum had been trading below $3,000 since August 3. Rekt Capital suggests that Ethereum might consolidate between $3,000 and $4,000 in the near term. However, there is a possibility of a short-term dip of over 10% from its current price of $3,466, potentially nearing the $3,000 region.

Rekt Capital also mentioned the potential for Ethereum to form a bottom around this area, which could lead to the development of a right shoulder in an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern. This pattern is typically a reversal indicator, suggesting a possible change in trend direction. Analysts have pointed to factors such as the decreasing supply of Ethereum on exchanges and the rising inflows into spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as potential drivers for strong price momentum.

On December 17, Cointelegraph reported that data from CryptoQuant, an on-chain market intelligence firm, indicated that Ethereum balances on exchanges had reached an 8.5-year low of 9.2 million ETH, marking a nearly 10% decrease over the past year. Meanwhile, some analysts remain optimistic about the growing momentum of spot Ether ETF inflows, which could potentially outperform Bitcoin ETFs by 2025.

Spot Ether ETFs have accumulated approximately $2.43 billion since their launch in the United States on July 23, according to Farside data. Analysts anticipate this upward trend to persist into 2025, particularly if regulators permit the funds to generate yields from staking. Asset manager VanEck has projected that Ethereum's spot price could reach $6,000 by the fourth quarter of 2025. When spot Ether ETFs were introduced in July, there was initial optimism that Ethereum might mirror Bitcoin's performance following the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January. However, the comparatively weak initial inflows have tempered expectations of Ethereum surpassing its all-time high and reaching $5,000 by the end of the year.