Ethereum prints green, whales fold their shorts, and $1.7K just became the new support 🤝

Ethereum extended its recovery on Tuesday, pushing back above $1,700 after the level had recently capped gains. ETH traded at $1,756 at press time, up 3.02% over 24 hours, according to market data.

The move triggered a wave of short covering. Roughly $79 million in bearish positions were liquidated once ETH reclaimed the threshold, on-chain analytics account Onchain Lens reported. One whale in particular closed a $54.1 million ETH short, realizing a $9.386 million loss plus $36,000 in funding fees, in a bet that a continued climb would have squeezed the position further.

While leveraged shorts bailed, retail flow appeared to swell around the same price band. CryptoQuant's Ethereum Futures Average Order Size showed growing retail orders clustered near $1,600 and $1,700, while CoinGlass data put the aggregate long/short ratio at 1.03 and Binance's at 1.5, with longs outnumbering shorts across major venues.

Momentum indicators reinforced the picture. The daily Relative Strength Index climbed to 54, above the neutral 50 line, and ETH held above its MACD Signal Line Moving Averages at $1,630 and $1,671. If buyers sustain control, market technicians have flagged $1,800 as the next hurdle, with $2,000 cited as a stretch target.

Spot selling remained a counterweight. Onchain Lens also reported that Chun Wang deposited 9,876 ETH, worth $17.02 million, into Binance, a transfer that, if mirrored by further exchange inflows, could drag ETH back toward $1,640.