Bitcoin recently hit a hard ceiling around $98,000. The bulls couldn't push further, and a pullback followed, playing out exactly as expected. Looking at the current trend, the highs and lows are continuously moving downward, with consecutive bearish candlesticks on the chart, clearly establishing a downtrend channel. The bears have taken control for now.

Speaking of key levels, the $95,500 mark cannot be ignored—it was previously a strong support level, repeatedly holding the price up. However, during this pullback, it was broken through, turning it into a resistance level. During the early rebound, the price touched $95,500 and then started to turn down again, further confirming the resistance here. Now, it has become the first line of defense for both bulls and bears.

How to operate? Keep an eye on the movements around $95,500:

**For bearish scenarios**: As long as the price stubbornly cannot break above $95,500, any rebound is an opportunity to reduce long positions or establish short positions. The key support to watch is $94,000—if the price shows signs of stabilizing with decreasing volume or a bullish engulfing pattern after a dip, then consider shifting to a bullish outlook.

**Conditions for turning bullish**: If the price forcefully breaks through $95,500 and the 4-hour candlestick closes above $96,000, it indicates the downtrend has been broken. Once confirmed, go long with targets around $97,000–$98,000.