Summary:
Ethereum is holding above the $1,793 support as the Pectra upgrade approaches on May 7. The upgrade is expected to bring improvements to scalability, staking efficiency, and user experience, but Ethereum still faces challenges like decreased mainnet demand and fee revenue. The current trading level is critical for Ethereum’s recovery structure, with indicators showing mixed momentum.
Ethereum Faces Critical Test as Pectra Upgrade Approaches
Ethereum is holding firmly above the $1,793 support as the highly anticipated Pectra upgrade approaches on May 7.
After weeks of sideways trading, the $1,793 support has become a critical zone, and its ability to hold could dictate Ethereum’s (ETH) next move. Ethereum now faces a potential turning point after a difficult start to the year, down 43% year-to-date and underperforming both Bitcoin (BTC) and Solana (SOL). The market is keeping a close eye on whether the impending technical update can spark new growth.
The upcoming Pectra upgrade includes significant improvements that will enhance scalability, staking efficiency, and user experience. Notable features include EIP-7702 for better validator operations, a doubling of the blob count to increase rollup capacity, and enhancements to smart wallets like gasless and batched transactions.
Although these adjustments won’t change Ethereum overnight, they are expected to reduce friction especially in the decentralized finance and gaming sectors, which have both seen a drop in activity. Still, Ethereum faces deeper challenges.
The network has adopted a rollup-centric roadmap. As more activity shifted to layer-2 networks like Arbitrum (ARB) and mainnet demand decreased, on-chain fees fell to a five-year low in April. This shift has reduced Ethereum mainnet usage, which affects fee revenue and ETH burn rate.
At $1,804, Ethereum is currently trading just above a critical support level around $1,793. This support is near both its 20-day and 30-day exponential moving averages. Maintaining the current recovery structure depends on whether ETH can hold above this level, which has served as a short-term pivot. Holding steady could set up a move towards resistance around $1,852, where the 50-day EMA sits, while a drop below could lead towards the previous support at $1,750.
Momentum indicators are mixed. At 54, the relative strength index is in the neutral zone, suggesting that traders are being cautious. In contrast, the moving average convergence divergence shows a slight bullish bias. The low volume possibly implies that many traders are waiting until they are certain that the Pectra upgrade will bring a true breakout before making a move.
If the broader crypto markets and macro sentiment align, the Pectra upgrade might be the catalyst Ethereum needs. But the upgrade might also turn out to be a “sell-the-news” moment. Ethereum network developments will be crucial in determining whether the cryptocurrency can recover market confidence or stay trapped in consolidation.