Unfortunately for crypto traders, the rebound in crypto markets was only short-lived and many coins have started to give back some of their gains.
This has led to the entire value of the cryptocurrency market falling 2.5% since this time yesterday to US$321.1 billion according to Coin Market Cap.
Here is the state of play on Thursday morning:
The Bitcoin (BTC) price is down 1.8% over the last 24 hours to US$7,379.22 per coin. This has reduced the world's largest cryptocurrency's market capitalisation to US$125.8 billion.
The Ethereum (ETH) price has dropped 2.8% since this time yesterday to US$552.60 per token, leaving it with a market capitalisation of US$55.1 billion.
The Ripple (XRP) price has lost 2.1% of its value over the last 24 hours and is down to 59.5 U.S. cents. This has reduced Ripple's market capitalisation to US$23.3 billion.
The Bitcoin Cash (BCH) price is down 2.4% over the last 24 hours to US$971.13 per token, giving the Bitcoin spin-off a reduced market capitalisation of just under US$16.7 billion.
The EOS (EOS) price has dropped 2.8% since this time yesterday to US$11.95, leaving the fledgling alt coin with a market capitalisation of US$10.6 billion.
Outside the top five it was a sea of red once again with only two of the top 25 in positive territory over the last 24 hours.
The Litecoin (LTC) price is down 2.8%, the Cardano (ADA) price is up a fraction, the Stellar (XLM) price is off 2.3%, the IOTA (MIOTA) price is lower by 3.6%, and the TRON (TRX) price has been the worst performer in the top ten with a 5.2% decline.
What happened?
Bitcoin and the rest of the cryptocurrencies appeared to rally higher on Wednesday due to the turmoil on financial markets following the latest political developments in Italy.
With the political fears now easing and markets pushing higher, it appears traders have taken profit on cryptocurrencies and gone back to the share market again.
What's next?
I think the next 24 hours will be key for the cryptocurrency market. If it can stabilise or even move higher from here then it might be able to break out of its downtrend, but if not then I fear the market will drop through the symbolic US$300 billion mark in the coming days.
In light of this, I continue to believe it is best to watch on from the safety of the sidelines and focus on other investment opportunities.
