Bitcoin has closed a week below its 50-week moving average for the first time in about two months, ending a seven-week run above the closely watched level as large traders turned bearish.

Bitcoin traded near $74,704 on the Bitstamp exchange, down about 1.45% at the latest reading. Its weekly close of about $74,968 put it below the 50-week moving average, estimated at between about $75,200 and $75,500. Market data from Finnhub put bitcoin at $74,990.01 early on Tuesday, after trading between $73,750 and $75,599.22 on Monday.

Whale traders flip to net short

On-chain data from Glassnode shows that large traders on the Hyperliquid exchange have shifted their positioning in bitcoin perpetual futures from net long to net short, adding to the cautious tone. The shift in whale positioning came as bitcoin gave up the $75,000 level that traders had been watching as support.

The move lower followed a volatile weekend. Bitcoin fell to about $73,761 before recovering above $75,000 at points, and it has so far held just above its 200-day moving average of about $73,151. Even after the slide, bitcoin stands about 26% above its June 2026 low of $59,517.

More than $1bn in liquidations

Monday was a day of heavy selling across the crypto market, with more than $1bn in leveraged positions liquidated as prices fell. Bitcoin touched an intraday low near $74,780, while ether fell by more than 7% to trade at about $2,247.

The sell-off came despite a strong day for United States equities, where the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.74% and the S&P 500 gained 2.35%. Crypto has moved in the opposite direction to shares in recent sessions, with bitcoin down 6.96% over the past five sessions and 9.75% over the past month, according to Finnhub data. It is down 15.69% so far in 2026 and 29.35% over the past year.

All eyes on United States inflation data

Traders are now waiting for the United States October consumer price index, due at 8:30am Eastern Time on Tuesday. The report is expected to show a monthly rise of about 0.3% in headline prices and 0.2% in core prices, and it could move both equities and crypto as investors reassess the outlook for interest rates.

Technical levels such as the 50-week moving average are watched by traders as a gauge of the longer-term trend, but they are not a prediction of where the price will go next. Bitcoin has repeatedly swung sharply in both directions in recent weeks, and the market remains volatile.