Bitcoin hits new October high near $87,800 as short liquidations top $120M

The move is notable less for the headline print than for the mechanics behind it: a short squeeze doing the work, with forced liquidations creating the kind of reflexive buying that can fade once the fuel is spent. That distinction matters for anyone treating this as a demand-driven breakout. The immediate question is whether spot bidding can absorb the ask wall overhead that now defines resistance, or whether the rally simply borrowed from the next leg down.