$ETH *Ethereum Surges: A Look at the Pectra Upgrade and Market Trends*

Ethereum, the pioneering blockchain platform, has been making waves in the cryptocurrency market. Recent developments, particularly the successful deployment of the Pectra upgrade, have sparked significant interest and investment in Ether (ETH).

*What is Ethereum?*

Ethereum is a decentralized, open-source blockchain with smart contract functionality, powering transactions and fueling innovation across various crypto sectors. Its native cryptocurrency, Ether (ETH), is the second-largest cryptocurrency and number one altcoin by market capitalization ¹.

*Pectra Upgrade: Key Features and Benefits*

The Pectra upgrade, successfully deployed on May 7, introduces several significant improvements to the Ethereum network:

- *Scalability*: Pectra makes the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) more scalable, faster, and cheaper.

- *Deflationary*: A portion of transaction fees will now be burned, making ETH deflationary.

- *Validator Rewards*: The possibility of collecting validator rewards on up to 2048 staked tokens, attracting more robust validator pools.

- *Transaction Fees*: The recipient of a transaction can now pay for gas fees, solving a recurrent issue where wallets couldn't transfer assets without enough ETH to cover fees.

*Market Trends and Price Analysis*

Ethereum's price has surged over 20% following the US-UK trade agreement announcement, outperforming other top cryptocurrencies. The current price is around $2,200, with analysts predicting a potential rally to $3,000 in the near future. Key resistance levels to watch are $2,250 and $2,550 ¹ ².

*Technical Indicators and Forecast*

- *Relative Strength Index (RSI)*: Nearing overbought levels, signaling strong bullish momentum.

- *Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD)*: Positive momentum, but decelerating, increasing the odds of a short-term correction.

- *Fair Value Gaps (FVGs)*: Two significant FVGs could serve as support for ETH if the price drops.

*Conclusion*