$ETH Looking at recent trends, many people have noticed that gold has hit a new high. However, the situation in the crypto circle is a bit different—popularity is declining, and trading volume isn't as high as expected.

The dog whales have indeed been active over the past two weeks, with the market cap being pushed up and trading volume improving, but honestly, the gains are not significant. At this price level, it's hard for Ethereum to go higher; the recent surge was more of a trap set for retail investors rather than a genuine market rally.

The current situation is quite interesting—$BTC, $SOL , and other mainstream coins are mainly creating volatility through large bullish and bearish candles, mostly consolidating sideways in between. Why is that? The big players are planning their next move. With the Spring Festival approaching in less than a month, they are likely to create a false bull market to attract new investors. Decreasing popularity means retail investors are more easily exploited, so artificially pumping the market to create an atmosphere has become a necessary move.

Right now (January 20th) is actually a window of opportunity. It might be wise to start accumulating some low-priced mainstream coins in advance, waiting for the market to pick up before and after the Spring Festival. Grasping the rhythm well will lead to more stable profits.