Why is Dogecoin (DOGE) price up today?
2025.01.17 08:05
Dogecoin (DOGE), the largest memecoin by market capitalization, is leading the recovery in memecoins just days before US President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Currently trading at $0.40549, DOGE has reached its highest value since mid-December 2024, marking a 10% climb over the last 24 hours and 22% gains over the last week.
DOGE/USD daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Let’s take a closer look at the factors driving DOGE price up today.
DOGE rises alongside other memecoins
The bullish sentiment was not only exclusive to Dogecoin as crypto prices also rallied across the broader memecoin sector, following Bitcoin’s recovery above $100,000.
Shiba Inu (SHIB), the second-largest memecoin by market capitalization, followed in DOGE’s footsteps and has jumped 9.5% over the last 24 hours to trade at $0.00002418. Pepe (PEPE), the Ethereum-based memecoin, has rallied more than 5.5% over the last 24 hours to trade at $0.00001944.
24-hour performance of top-cap memecoins: Source: CoinMarketCap
Other top-cap memecoins, including Solana-based Bonk (BONK) and Dogwifhat (WIF), have also posted significant gains over the last 24 hours. Fartcoin (FARTCOIN) posted the highest daily gains among the top-cap memecoins, rising 17% over the last 24 hours to trade at $1.45.
Similarly, the total memecoin market cap has increased by 8.6% over the last 24 hours and 22% in seven days, to rest at $115 billion at the time of publication.
Total memecoin market capitalization and volume. Source: CoinMarketCap
The uptick in memecoin prices on Jan. 17 was preceded by an increase in open interest (OI), with Fartcoin leading the charge, rising 30% in OI over the last 24 hours.
Open interest refers to the total amount of pending derivative contracts that have not yet been settled. In a futures contract, for every seller, a buyer is required to settle the contract.
DOGE saw its OI jump by over 9% in an hour and 22% on the day to an all-time high of $5.4 billion, approximately 10 times PEPE’s $547 million in OI, which had increased by 14% over the same period.
Memecoin OI chart. Source: CoinGlass
The rise in OI for memecoins typically indicates bullish momentum in the market as leverage traders open more positions, anticipating the trend will continue.
Note that the last time Dogecoin experienced such a surge in OI was on Dec. 2024, when the price hit a four-year high at $0.48.
DOGE’s bull flag points to new all-time highs
Meanwhile, DOGE price technicals show the formation of a bull flag pattern on the weekly timeframe, as shown below.
A bull flag is a bullish continuation setup that forms after the price consolidates inside a down-sloping range following a sharp price ascent.
The pattern resolved after the price broke above the upper trendline of the flag at $0.39 on Jan. 17. If DOGE produces a close above this level, it could rise by as much as the previous uptrend’s height toward the technical target of the flag at $1.75, marking new all-time highs for the memecoin.
DOGE/USD daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
DOGE’s daily relative strength index is still below the overbought threshold (70) at 65. This suggests that the chances of a higher move are high as momentum increases.
Crypto analyst Wealthybrains.sol made similar observations on DOGE’s price action since mid-December 2024.
After setting a local high of 0.50, DOGE “had a retest of breakout at 0.30,” he said in a Jan. 17 post on X.
“Now, ready for the next leg up to $1.”
DOGE/USD weekly chart. Source: Wealthybrains.sol
DOGE “is showing a bullish outlook with a key support around $0.35,” said Gemxbt, adding:
“The RSI and MACD suggest bullish momentum, and increasing volume confirms this trend.”
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
