Ether Faces Headwinds Despite Institutional Interest and S&P Gains

Ethereum (ETH) has been trading within a tight range of $4,200 to $4,500 over the past two weeks, after reaching its all-time high of $4,956 on August 24th. This consolidation period coincides with the S&P 500 hitting new highs this week on less bullish U.S. labor market data. Despite these developments, Ether has struggled to gain momentum, with traders hesitant about further price increases. Futures markets show a 5% premium compared to spot prices for ETH, suggesting low demand from leveraged traders. This is unusual as typically, futures premiums are between 5% and 10% under neutral market conditions due to the longer settlement period.