Everyone in the world is seemingly keeping a close eye on the cryptocurrency markets right now. One of the currencies for which many people have high expectations is Ethereum. While still the world's second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, things are not exactly going as planned. With a 3.51% loss since yesterday, the Ethereum price has dipped below US$290 at the time of writing. This trend will not last all that long, though; that much is certain.
When the Bitcoin price dips briefly, the rest of the cryptocurrency markets will do the exact same thing. In the case of Ethereum, the price of this token has taken a tumble over the past few hours. While the Ethereum price was well above US$300 not too long ago, maintaining that high price point has proven problematic. Volatility is the second nature of all cryptocurrencies, and it clearly shows as of right now.
As far as the Ethereum price is concerned, it's now hovering close to US$290 for the time being. That is still a more than respectable price, all things considered, but it remains to be seen if a return to US$300 will happen before, during or after this weekend. We saw a sharp price increase for Ethereum from US$250 to US$306 earlier this week, which means a correction was due at some point.
Although the Ethereum price has dropped by 3.51%, there is no reason to be concerned whatsoever. It is a bigger dip than most people would have liked to see right now, but things will recover eventually. Particularly when the Bitcoin price recovers in a few hours from now, the Ethereum price will see some upward momentum accordingly. Despite what some people may claim, all cryptocurrencies derive value based on the Bitcoin price momentum, and Ethereum is no exception in this regard.
One thing that is somewhat disconcerting, however, is the low Ethereum trading volume. Relative to a few weeks ago, the Ethereum trading volume has dropped from well over US$1 billion to about half a billion USD right now. More specifically, there was US$532 million in volume over the past 24 hours, which is not bad, but nothing spectacular either by any means. Then again, this lower trading volume is no big surprise whatsoever, nor should it affect the currency in the long run.
Looking over the Ethereum trading markets ranked by volume, Bithumb is in the lead by a small margin over Bitfinex. GDAX is a surprise in the number three slot, but it is good to see some more competition in the Ethereum marketplace these days. With three fiat currency trading pairs dominating the Ethereum trading volume right now, the popular altcoin follows the same path as Bitcoin. More fiat currency-based trading is always a positive sign, though, as it confirms the global demand for cryptocurrency is still there.
As of right now, it appears to be only a matter of time until the Ethereum price surpasses $300 once again. However, with the weekend almost upon us, no one can say for sure what the future may hold, which is always somewhat troubling. Ethereum is a cryptocurrency to be reckoned with, as it does things very differently from Bitcoin or any other top cryptocurrency. A bright future lies ahead, regardless of the current price movements.