The patterns we have relied on when early adopter "whales" with no trading specialization were able to pump and dump reliably are no longer in control of the market.
I disagree. The major p&d cycle that made us wealthy is still there, and will remain there until the adoption curve slows significantly. That has happened in several coins, but has not yet happened in Monero. It has to rise simply because the fundamental value continues to rise.
I was thinking in terms of the broader market, specifically bitcoin which seems to be driving the prevailing crypto currency down trend. My theory is a suspicion at best, based on analysis of pedestrian information sources, and is clearly unsubstantiated. I would love to have access to the data at the big exchanges. I am happy to be corrected and defer to you analysis.