Analyst and trader who works with cryptocurrency markets, Michael van de Poppe, has issued a social media post, suggesting that the recent approval of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds may propelling the Bitcoin price much higher than everybody expects.

He also shared key reasons why Ethereum is likely to reach new momentum within the upcoming few weeks.

The U.S. dollar dropped on Wednesday, taking a breather from recent gains, as investors consolidated positions and looked to economic data this week and the Federal Reserve policy meeting next week for more clues about the start of the easing cycle.

The currency, however, cut its losses after data showed business activity in the world's largest economy picked up in January and a measure of inflation eased. A gauge of prices charged by companies for their products fell to the lowest level in more than 3-1/2 years, data showed.

Gold prices demonstrated a slight increase in the face of a declining U.S dollar, with spot gold rising to $2,026.95 per ounce, while gold futures also experienced a rise, closing on COMEX at $2,028.60 per ounce. The precious metals market also saw both platinum and silver experiencing an uptick in value, with silver reaching $22.47 an ounce.

Oil prices settled lower on Tuesday as traders focused on rebounding crude output in parts of the U.S., along with rising supply in Libya and Norway, rather than risks to supply posed by conflict in Europe and the Middle East.

Brent crude settled at $79.55 a barrel, losing 51 cents, or 0.6%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $74.37 a barrel, shedding 39 cents, or 0.5%.

The U.S. dollar edged lower in early European trading Friday, but was on track for a second consecutive weekly gain on renewed doubts over early rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, while weak retail sales hit sterling.

At 04:00 ET (09:00 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded 0.1% lower at 103.212, but is up over 1% so far this week.

Oil prices settled lower Friday, but eked out a gain for the week as elevated Middle East tensions and a healthier demand outlook overshadowed worries about the impact of slowing global growth.     

By 14:30 ET (19:30 GMT), the U.S. crude futures settled 0.9% lower at $73.41 a barrel, though still ended the week in the green, while the Brent contract settled 54 cents lower at $78.56 a barrel. 

 There is ongoing mega accumulation of Ethereum (ETH) by whales within the crypto ecosystem. According to data from the crypto analytics platform Lookonchain, a whale with the wallet address "0xAA15" withdrew a total of 5,762 ETH worth approximately $15.06 million from Binance earlier today. Overall, this whale has bought a total of 50,733 ETH $99.2 million at an average price of $1,955 since Sept. 19, 2023.

Record crude output from the top U.S. oilfield and busy crude pipelines to export hubs are boosting the price of the country's flagship crude at the Gulf Coast, analysts and traders said.

West Texas Intermediate crude at Magellan's East Houston terminal (MEH), on average this month traded at a 45-cent premium per barrel to its price at Midland, Texas, the price point closest to the actual production of WTI.

Gold prices rose slightly on Thursday, steadying from a sharp tumble this week as strong U.S. data spurred increasing doubts over early interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

The yellow metal wiped out most gains made through December, and came close to breaking below the coveted $2,000 an ounce level as the dollar and Treasury yields rebounded this week.

The dollar index climbed for a fifth straight session on Thursday after labor market data showed job growth, keeping expectations for an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve in check.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 16,000 to a seasonally adjusted 187,000 for the week ended Jan. 13, the lowest level since September 2022, the Labor Department said on Thursday, short of the 207,000 expectation of economists polled by Reuters.