Bitcoin held just under $77,000 in Asian trading Wednesday, largely range-bound even as global tensions and oil prices reacted to fresh geopolitical headlines. The flagship crypto was up roughly 0.1% over 24 hours and down about 0.8% for the week, trading in a tight band while Brent crude pushed above $111 a barrel after a Wall Street Journal report that President Donald Trump ordered aides to prepare for a prolonged U.S. naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The wider market showed more movement. Ether fell 2.6% on the week to $2,310, XRP slid 3.8% to $1.39, Solana dropped 3.2% to $84.57 and BNB lost 2.3% at $625. The lone top-10 gainer was dogecoin, up 5.5% for the week to $0.1016 — the only major token outside stablecoins to close the seven-day period in the green. Bitcoin’s market dominance is creeping higher, a common pattern when macro stress causes capital to rotate into the largest crypto. Analysts say bitcoin’s calm suggests a structural shift in market supply. Zaheer Ebtikar, founder of Split Research, told CoinDesk the “supply overhang has finally dried up” and many sellers spooked by earlier macro shocks have already exited, leaving a thinner sell-side. He added that bitcoin’s sensitivity to headlines is more a function of overall volatility than direct reaction to regulatory or central-bank developments, and that the current quieter range reduces the urgency to sell. Technically, traders are watching key levels. Bitget analysts flagged $75,000 as the critical downside pivot — a clean break under that level would likely open the door to further weakness. Conversely, a move back toward $80,000 would keep the rally structure intact and set up another test of the resistance that has held since February. Macro events could still swing price action. The Federal Reserve is set to announce its rate decision Wednesday, with the ECB following on Thursday, and U.S. equities showed some caution after a Tuesday sell-off amid questions about the payoff from AI-driven capital expenditure. Brent crude’s volatility and the Hormuz headlines have added upside pressure to inflation expectations heading into those central-bank decisions. Traders will be watching whether the apparent supply exhaustion holds if another macro shock arrives. If Ebtikar is right, bitcoin may trade on volatility rather than headline-driven selling; if not, $75,000 could be tested quickly and a downside break may materialize. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news