🔴 $BTC Stalling — Rally Lost Steam as Traders Exit Bets

Bitcoin hit $61,489 this morning on weak U.S. jobs data (only 57,000 added, way below forecast), but the rally just stopped climbing. It can't push past the $62,200 high set earlier today, and that matters because it shows buyers have run out of fuel.

The clearest signal: open interest — the total value of all active futures bets — dropped 1.3% in the last six hours. That means traders are closing positions, not opening new ones. When money is leaving a rally, it's usually a warning sign that it's coasting on old momentum, not fresh buying power.

Funding rates (the fee traders pay to hold bullish bets) have been falling steadily too, which confirms conviction is cooling. Even altcoins like ETH and SOL are outperforming Bitcoin today, which suggests traders are rotating into riskier bets instead of piling into the biggest coins — not the sign of broad strength.

The setup over the next few hours: Bitcoin should trade mostly between $60,820 and $62,160 with a slight lean up. But if it drops below $61,000, the picture flips fast — sellers are stacked at $60,500 and a pullback could accelerate toward that level. Watch for any hawkish Fed comments today, which could flip the rate-cut optimism that started this morning's move.

Bottom line: The bounce is real but tired. Without a new catalyst, this looks like a quiet grind, not a breakout.

$BTC $ETH $SOL