XRP and Stellar Struggle for Momentum as Bearish Sentiment Builds – Here Is What Traders Are Watching

• XRP and Stellar continue facing bearish pressure as derivatives sentiment weakens across both markets.
• Negative funding rates and low long-to-short ratios suggest traders remain cautious about upside moves.
• Analysts still see possible contrarian opportunities as fear and uncertainty rise around XRP sentiment.

Ripple’s XRP and Stellar’s XLM are both trading lower again on Tuesday as bullish momentum across the altcoin market continues fading. While traders briefly attempted recovery moves earlier in the week, broader market uncertainty and mixed sentiment have kept both assets stuck in a fragile position without a strong catalyst powerful enough to shift direction decisively.

Right now, the mood across derivatives markets leans cautiously bearish. According to CoinGlass data, XRP’s long-to-short ratio has dropped to around 0.80, while XLM sits near 0.83. Those are the weakest readings seen in more than a month, and since both ratios remain below 1, it suggests traders are increasingly positioning for downside rather than upside.

Funding rates are also beginning to reflect that growing caution. XRP funding rates turned negative on Tuesday, while Stellar’s rates have slowly drifted closer toward negative territory as well. Negative funding rates generally mean short sellers are paying long traders to keep positions open, which usually signals bearish sentiment building underneath the surface.

That doesn’t necessarily guarantee another sharp selloff immediately, but it does show traders remain hesitant about chasing higher prices right now. Without a clear bullish catalyst entering the market, many participants appear stuck waiting for stronger confirmation before committing aggressively either way.

Fear and Uncertainty Continue Dominating Sentiment

Interestingly though, not every indicator points entirely bearish. Some analysts believe the growing fear surrounding XRP could actually become supportive if sentiment becomes too negative.

Data from Santiment showed that fear, uncertainty, and doubt — often referred to as FUD — recently climbed to its highest level in roughly three weeks. Historically, periods of excessive pessimism surrounding XRP have sometimes acted as contrarian signals, especially after weaker hands finish exiting positions during emotional pullbacks.

According to analysts tracking social sentiment, when traders across platforms become overwhelmingly fearful, much of the panic selling may already be exhausted. That can occasionally create conditions where price stabilizes simply because fewer sellers remain active in the market.

Previous dips into what Santiment described as “FUD zones” were often followed by periods of stabilization or temporary rebounds shortly afterward. Of course, sentiment alone doesn’t guarantee reversals, but many traders still monitor these crowd behavior shifts carefully because crypto markets tend to react emotionally at extremes.

Meanwhile, Stellar’s outlook appears slightly more balanced. CryptoQuant data shows XLM spot markets still maintaining mild buy-side dominance even while several broader altcoin indicators remain relatively neutral. The overall picture for Stellar isn’t strongly bullish, but there are still small signs that buyers haven’t completely stepped away yet either.

XRP Technical Structure Still Leans Bearish

From a technical standpoint, XRP continues trading inside a weak short-term structure. The token currently sits around $1.339 while remaining below all three major exponential moving averages, including the 50-day, 100-day, and 200-day EMAs.

Price recently slipped away from the descending parallel channel area near $1.391 and now remains capped by multiple layers of resistance overhead. The first major dynamic resistance zone starts near the 50-day EMA around $1.399, which bulls would likely need to reclaim before any stronger recovery discussion begins.

Momentum indicators haven’t helped much either. The Relative Strength Index continues hovering close to 40, signaling weak momentum without fully entering oversold conditions yet. Meanwhile, the MACD remains trapped in negative territory, reinforcing the idea that downside pressure still dominates the current trend.

If XRP attempts another rebound, traders will likely focus first on resistance around $1.391, followed closely by the 50-day EMA near $1.399. Higher up, additional barriers remain near the 100-day EMA around $1.468 and the 200-day EMA closer to $1.672.

On the downside, immediate support remains near the psychological $1.300 zone. A decisive break beneath that floor could expose XRP to a much deeper extension of its ongoing correction phase.

Stellar Momentum Also Weakens Beneath Major Resistance

Stellar’s chart structure looks fairly similar right now. XLM continues trading around $0.148 while staying below its 50-day, 100-day, and 200-day EMAs positioned near $0.158, $0.168, and $0.197 respectively.

The Relative Strength Index remains near 42, showing weak but not completely collapsed momentum. At the same time, the MACD indicator continues printing slightly negative readings, which suggests sellers still maintain short-term control even as price consolidates above support.

Immediate downside attention remains focused on the nearby support zone around $0.148. If that level breaks cleanly, traders may start targeting the next horizontal support near $0.143, followed by the deeper Fibonacci anchor around $0.1362.

On the upside, Stellar first needs to reclaim the 50-day EMA around $0.158 before stronger recovery momentum can really develop. Above that, additional resistance levels appear near the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement at $0.164 and the 100-day EMA around $0.168.

For now, both XRP and XLM remain trapped between weakening momentum and cautious optimism, with traders still searching for a catalyst strong enough to finally break the market out of its current indecisive phase.

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