The Bitcoin Network hash rate is now at its highest level since the start of the year amidst growing optimism about the fate of the broader cryptocurrency market in 2019. While the hash rate continues to rise, mining difficulty remains fairly stable but with a slight uptick in revenue for miners. Meanwhile, Nvidia says it is anticipating the return of massive demand for cryptocurrency mining chips and is confident of reaching its revenue goals for the year.
Bitcoin Network Hash Rate on the Rise
Data from Blockchain.com shows that the Bitcoin network hash rate has climbed to a new three-month high. Currently, the number of tera hashes per second (TH/s) being performed on the network stands at 45.5 million TH/s.
This present figure is the highest recorded on the Bitcoin network since mid-February 2017. The growing increase could mark a significant upturn in mining activity on the blockchain given the recent price gains experienced by BTC to move above the $4,000 mark.
Even with this increase in hash rate, the network is still a few million away from its highest recorded hash rate over a 7-day period which stands at 54.8 million TH/s. The present growth is, however, profound given the massive plummet it suffered in December after the mid-November price crash that saw BTC fall from $6,000 to $3,000.
At that time, many miners were forced to shutter their operations causing a 35 percent drop in the network’s hash rate. At the base of the drop, the Bitcoin hash rate fell to 35 million TH/s – its lowest level in since mid-2018.
Nvidia Maintains Positive Projection for Mining Hardware Sales
While hash rate continues to increase, Nvidia is sticking to projections made at the start of the year, concerning its revenue forecast for the 2020 fiscal year. According to Bloomberg, the chip manufacturer anticipates an increased appetite from cryptocurrency miners for its mining chips.
Nvidia predicts that its total inventory of cryptocurrency mining chips would be cleared out before the end of Q1 of the 2020 fiscal year. At the moment, the company says it is examining its unsold inventory to see the extent of the progress made in the sales arena.
However, even if the company achieves this goal, Colette Kress, Nvidia’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) believes the chip manufacturer would see flat revenue growth for the year. Apart from dwindling demand from cryptocurrency miners, other chip consumers like data centers have also reduced orders for high-end computer chips.
Bitcoin Optimism Continues to Grow
The growing hash rate comes at a time when there is renewed optimism among Bitcoin bull over the prospects of the cryptocurrency in 2019. During 2018, the top-ranked cryptocurrency fell by more than 80 percent as the market experienced a prolonged bear market.
According to acclaimed derivatives trader and Bitcoin analyst, Tone Vays, BTC could go as high as $6,000 in its current mini-rally. Vays, a former Wall Street Trader and Vice President of JPMorgan, believes that if Bitcoin breaks $4,200, then the $6,000 could potentially become attainable.
Providing his forecast, Vays opined:
“I do think we can break out on the price and go as high as $5000, possibly even as high as $6000, but I still think we will see lower lows sub $3000 prices sometime this year.”
The possibility of lower lows is indicative of the market still being under bearish conditions with no long-term bottom yet to be established. Vays isn’t the only one calling Bitcoin at $6,000 as TRON CEO recently predicted that BTC will spend 2019 trading in a tight range between $4,000 and $6,000.
