NEAR Protocol's 0.22% Price Increase to $1.13: Key Insights for September 3, 2023
NEAR Protocol's token NEAR saw a slight 0.22% price increase over the past 24 hours to $1.13, according to the latest market data. With a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, NEAR Protocol ranks as one of the top 30 cryptocurrencies by market cap. Let's take a closer look at the key metrics and trends for NEAR to better understand where the price may be headed next.
Over the past day, NEAR has seen relatively low trading volume of just $18.35 million. This suggests limited interest and momentum in the market right now. Short term price fluctuations have been minimal as well, with just a 0.43% decline over the past hour. However, zooming out shows NEAR has been on a downward trend for some time now.
Over the past week, NEAR's price has dropped 5.42%. The monthly view is even more bearish, with prices falling 18.26% over the last 30 days. And looking at the past 6 months paints an extremely negative picture, with NEAR down a staggering 46.38% since March.
This long-term downtrend indicates persistent selling pressure and declining enthusiasm for NEAR Protocol's blockchain platform and native token. The project aims to deliver high transaction speeds, low fees, and easy scalability using sharding technologies. But NEAR has struggled to keep up with competitors in the hotly contested smart contract platform space.
Technical indicators reflect NEAR's bearish momentum as well. The 50-day moving average just crossed below the 200-day MA, forming a "death cross" pattern that often precedes further drawdowns. And the relative strength index (RSI) sits around 35, signaling NEAR is oversold but not yet at extreme fear levels that often mark long-term bottoms.
Will NEAR Protocol Recover in 2023?
NEAR's multi-month downtrend provides little hope for a quick recovery ahead. The crypto markets remain risk-off given macroeconomic uncertainty, high inflation, and the fallout from various crypto bankruptcies and scandals this year.
However, NEAR Protocol retains a loyal community of developers building decentralized applications on its platform. As the macro climate improves in 2023/2024, increased adoption and usage of NEAR's network could lift prices off their lows. But in the short to medium term, technicals point to a continued downtrend or further sideways chop.
Upside for NEAR appears limited until the crypto market capitulates and washes out the excess leverage and speculation of the 2021 bull market. Only then can a new sustainable uptrend take hold. Conservative price targets for NEAR over the next 6-12 months sit around $0.80 to $1.20. Barring an unforeseen black swan event, NEAR likely remains rangebound between $0.50 and $1.50 through 2023.
How Can You Profit from NEAR's Current Price Trends?
Given the largely bearish outlook for NEAR Protocol over the coming months, what strategies can crypto traders employ to profit? Or at the very least, avoid losses in this environment?
For starters, limit buy orders can allow patient investors to accumulate NEAR at discounts compared to current prices. Orders in the $0.80 to $1.00 range have a good chance of filling during volatility spikes or temporary flash crashes.
Short-term swing traders should wait for oversold bounces to sell into, taking quick profits of 5-10%. NEAR's choppy price action allows this strategy as long as risk is carefully managed with stop losses.
Options traders can capitalize on NEAR's expected rangebound trading through short strangles and iron condors. These complex strategies profit from time decay as NEAR fluctuates within a predictable price channel.
Is Now a Good Time to Invest in NEAR Protocol?
Although NEAR appears positioned to continue trending lower or trading sideways, its smart contract capabilities and strong developer community make it an intriguing long-term investment. Dollar cost averaging into a position during these down periods can pay off tremendously in the coming years.
But ensure you sized any NEAR positions appropriately and have a multi-year time horizon. NEAR still carries substantial downside risks given its correlation to speculative crypto assets. Consider allocating only 1-5% of a diversified, risk-tolerant portfolio to NEAR at current prices.
Patience and discipline will be rewarded as NEAR Protocol continues maturing its technology and real-world usage grows over the long run. Just don't expect overnight gains in the fickle, high-risk crypto markets. Maintain a balanced perspective, stick to your plan, and let your NEAR investment thesis play out over years, not weeks or months.
