Bitcoin faced the threat of breaking down below the $61,000 level on May 9, testing familiar trendlines for fresh support. The BTC/USD pair depicted a gradual decline, erasing the gains made over the past week. Despite occasional volatility in low-timeframes affecting order book liquidity, the overall momentum lacked upward drive. Investors monitored key support levels, particularly the 100-day simple moving average (SMA) and the short-term holder realized price (STH-RP), which are considered indicative of bull market support. Last week's temporary dip to $56,500 did not significantly breach these levels.

At the time of writing, the 100-day SMA and STH-RP were at $61,200 and $60,100, respectively, drawing attention from market analysts. The monthly open at $60,600 was also identified as crucial on high timeframes. Traders observed a concentration of 100BTC bids around these levels but awaited confirmation of absorption of selling pressure to ascertain strong demand. Bid liquidity around the $61,000 mark suggested ongoing efforts to drive prices lower while attracting liquidity for selling on rebounds.

The decline in Bitcoin's price also impacted network fundamentals, with the mining difficulty poised to undergo a significant 5.5% decrease – the largest since the end of the 2022 bear market. Despite this adjustment, the difficulty remained at all-time highs of 83.23 trillion. Observations from mining analysis accounts indicated a decline in hash rate, suggesting a reduction in mining activity. Miners awaited a downward adjustment in difficulty, which occurs approximately every 2016 blocks (around 14 days), to improve their efficiency and profitability. Despite the challenges in price and network activity, market participants closely monitored developments for potential opportunities in the cryptocurrency landscape.