2025-12-27 15:26:30

Trading is never about what has already happened, but about the market's expectations for the future.

Just look at this round of market movements. The Federal Reserve's rate hike has become a certainty, and major institutions have long been unable to hold back. They won't foolishly wait until March to act; they've already quietly started planning their retreat. Can the market wait? Obviously not.

Certain bad news will continuously create pressure. This isn't just about one or two big drops, but a sustained and repeated psychological assault. Bulls are exhausting their confidence every day, like a water pipe slowly dripping—seemingly insignificant, but over time enough to drain everything.

What is the most frightening? Liquidity has already dried up before the rate hike has truly taken effect. By then, it's impossible to escape. This kind of "preemptive move" phenomenon is common in the market, and the power of expectations is often more brutal than reality.

View Original

This page may contain third-party content, which is provided for information purposes only (not representations/warranties) and should not be considered as an endorsement of its views by Gate, nor as financial or professional advice. See Disclaimer for details.

8 Likes

Reward
8
6
Repost
Share

Comment

0/400

CryptoPunster

· 10h ago

Laughing at the big institutions rushing ahead early, we retail investors are just here to serve as a backdrop for their withdrawal plans. --- On the night before liquidity dries up, I am all too familiar with the feeling of slow dripping—that's called "account evaporation." --- I believe that expectations are more brutal than reality; anyway, I've experienced both, and they are equally tragic. --- Will I be unable to escape when the time comes? I don't even have money to escape now; I've already exited early. --- Constant bad news is just like my continuous losses—perfectly matched. --- Before the rate hike even takes effect, liquidity is gone. The pace is so fast that I can't even keep up with my own sell-offs.

View OriginalReply0

GmGmNoGn

· 15h ago

Expected to kill, that's correct. There's no way out anymore.

View OriginalReply0

BlockBargainHunter

· 15h ago

The expected destructive power is indeed terrifying. Big institutions are playing psychological warfare with this move. --- Liquidity is almost gone, and the market is still falling. When it happens, it will be truly heartbreaking. --- It's always the early movers; retail investors are always the last to know. --- Don't wait for the rate hike to actually take effect. The current panic is enough to trap people. --- Dripping water wears through stone; this is more torturous than a rapid plunge. --- Thinking back to the last liquidity crisis, that scene was truly inescapable. --- Institutions have already slipped away secretly. Are we still holding the bag?

View OriginalReply0

bridge_anxiety

· 15h ago

The expectation is really incredible, more deadly than the actual event itself, invisible to the naked eye. --- Major institutions have already started to run away, and we're still here wondering when the rebound will happen. --- The analogy of liquidity drying up is perfect; by then, it's really impossible to escape even if you want to. --- Being psychologically hit every day is just absurd. --- Instead of waiting for bad news to land, it's better to prepare for the worst in advance. --- The destructive power of expectations is greater than the reality itself, and this is the cruelty of the market. --- The slow drip process of draining away looks harmless but is the most deadly. --- Honestly, this wave of market movement is testing psychological resilience. --- I've seen through the institutions' tricks long ago, but I still can't resist the power of expectations. --- Even before the rate hike actually happens, the market has already begun to self-destruct.

View OriginalReply0

AlwaysQuestioning

· 15h ago

Expectations to beat reality, there's nothing wrong with that. But the problem is, how can retail investors compete with institutions? The information gap is too big. No matter how eloquently you put it, one fact remains unchanged — we are always the last to know. Institutions are quietly retreating, and we're still asking whether to add to our positions. That's hilarious. The drying up of liquidity is indeed frightening; at that point, it will be a feeling where you really can't sell even if you want to. Is the expectation more brutal than reality? Then my expectation is to keep losing.

View OriginalReply0

FallingLeaf

· 15h ago

Expectedly, this thing is a self-fulfilling curse. Once panic starts, no one can escape. --- Big institutions have already started to run away, what are we retail investors still waiting for? --- They start to rush out before liquidity dries up. When there's truly no money left, that's when you'll regret it. --- That's right, what is being traded now is the story of the future, not the current facts. --- The analogy of slow dripping water is brilliant. A big drop isn't as scary, but the constant drip of this kind of slow torture is what’s frightening. --- Rushing out early happens every round, but someone always steps into the trap.

View OriginalReply0