Shiba Inu price stuck in a range as Shibarium activity dries

Shiba Inu’s price has been consolidating at $0.00001718 as of October 9, marking a 21% decline from its peak earlier this month. This downturn has pushed the second-largest meme coin into what appears to be a local bear market, especially as it struggles to compete with newer meme coins like Popcat, Neiro, and SPX6900.

The recent surge in these newer coins has likely contributed to Shiba Inu’s underperformance. For instance, SPX6900 has skyrocketed over 300% in the past week, achieving a market cap exceeding $562 million. Popcat, particularly popular within the Solana ecosystem, has experienced an astonishing rise of over 13,500% since its lowest point in January. Other noteworthy new entrants include Neiro (NEIRO), Gigachad, and Apu Apustaja.

Adding to Shiba Inu’s challenges is the diminishing interest in Shibarium, its layer-2 network. Data from ShibariumScan indicates that active accounts have fallen below 500, with only 33 new accounts created on October 8. Moreover, the average transaction fee on Shibarium has plummeted to 0.005 BONE, down from a high of 0.062 BONE last month—a staggering 91% decrease. The decline in transaction volume is concerning, particularly since a portion of BONE fees is converted into SHIB and burned, which could impact Shiba Inu’s supply dynamics.

In the futures market, Shiba Inu’s open interest has also seen a significant decline, dropping to $44 million from a high of $70 million earlier this month. This shift further underscores the current sentiment around the token as traders appear to be repositioning their investments.

Shiba Inu price has stalled

The daily chart for Shiba Inu (SHIB) indicates that the token found its lowest point at $0.00000108 on August 5 but has since rebounded above the upper boundary of a falling wedge pattern, depicted in black.

Currently, SHIB is trading above both the 50-day and 100-day Exponential Moving Averages, signaling a potentially bullish trend. Additionally, the MACD indicator remains above the zero line, further suggesting positive momentum.

For a stronger confirmation of this rebound, SHIB needs to break through the key resistance level at $0.0000187, which represents its highest swing from October 6. A successful move above this level could pave the way for additional gains, possibly targeting $0.000021, the token’s peak from September 27.