$BTC price pulled back after briefly breaking above $82,000 on Sept. 4, as traders took profits following a short squeeze driven by softer Federal Reserve expectations and renewed demand for US spot Bitcoin ETFs.

#bitcoin price pulls back after testing $82,000
According to data from crypto.news, Bitcoin ($BTC ) price traded near $81,150 at the time of writing, having failed to hold an intraday move above the $82,000 psychological level. The pullback left the asset about 1% below its local high but still well above the $80,000 mark reclaimed during the previous session.

The rally accelerated after Bitcoin moved out of a range around $77,000–$79,000. Short sellers were forced to close leveraged positions as the price crossed $80,000, adding automatic buy orders to the market.

CoinGlass data cited by market reports showed that the broader crypto market recorded more than $500 million in liquidations during the rally, with short positions accounting for most of the total. Bitcoin shorts reportedly absorbed about $415 million of those losses.

Price action has since slowed near a technically important area. Galaxy Research data shared by analyst Quinten François placed Bitcoin’s 50-week moving average near $81,041, almost level with the current market price.

According to François, Bitcoin has not closed a weekly candle above that moving average since November 2025. He said a move through $82,800 would also produce the first higher high of the broader downtrend and bring $90,000 back into consideration.

Fed expectations and ETF inflows supported the rally
Bitcoin’s recovery followed a drop in expectations for another US interest-rate increase in September. Fed Governor Christopher Waller said policymakers could keep rates unchanged if incoming inflation data confirms that price pressures are cooling.

The probability of a September rate increase fell from about 63% to nearly 50% after Waller’s comments, according to CME FedWatch. Lower Treasury yields and a weaker dollar accompanied the shift, improving conditions for risk assets.