Monero taking the train out of consolidation station

Monero is showing new highs and strong interest through increased volume, putting this coin back at the top of my watchlist.

Traders taking notes took profit above 470 on December 20th (see related idea), hopefully reclaiming those liquidated shares on the monstrous wick created in the midst of the Bitcoin pullback just two days later (I bought everything I could under 200 USD).

After Bitcoin's big drop, XMRUSD's 2.618 fibonacci extension of the prior reaccumulation phase has provided solid support. Since then we have seen consolidating prices and volume in the form of an ever-tightening volatility funnel. That funnel has just been breached to the north, with immediate targets at

• resistance created by the previous all-time high at ~463 USD, and
  
• the target of the volatility funnel at ~572 USD (over 40% above current levels)
  

Note that the target of the volatility funnel aligns with the 1.5 extension of the large pitchfork -- we will see how much longer this pitchfork remains useful. XMRUSD is still looking quite bullish, and the improving fundamentals of Monero give me the impression there is plenty of room left for this rally in 2018.

XMRBTC is respecting its ascending trendline and finding support for the first time on prior resistance. Given that prices have been loitering near the center of the pitchfork (which represents a market equilibrium), this ratio has room to double. This does not surprise me, given Bitcoin's dwindling dominance in the total market-capitalization of cryptocurrencies.

$BINANCE:XMRETH is also breaking the downtrend that brought prices into a historical buy-zone. The rejection of this zone is quite notable given Ethereum's prolonged and consistent rally. Look for volume on this trade pair to gauge the strength of XMRUSD's uptrend.