Candlestick Basic ~ forex 4 hour trading system
How is a candlestick constructed? The basic parameters of the candlestick include a body circumscribed by the open and the close and two wicks or shadows that demarcate the high and the low. If the close is lower than the open, then the candle is dark or bearish (see Picture 1). If the open is higher than the close, then the candle is white or bullish (see Picture 2).
There are numerous candlestick formations, but all of them essentially fall into three categories:
1. Breakout patterns
2. Indecision patterns
3. Reversal patterns |
| Bearish Candle |
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| Bullish Candle |
What is the differences between bar chart and candlestick chart?
Both the bar chart and the candlestick chart contain exactly the same information, only its presented to the trader in different form. Both the bar chart and the candle chart contain the same data: the high for the period (the day), the low, the open and the close. In a candlestick chart, however, the names are changed. The difference between the open and the close is called the real
body. The amount the stock went higher beyond the real body is called the upper shadow. The amount it went lower is called the lower shadow. If the candle is clear or white it means the
opening was lower than the high and the stock went up. If the candle is colored then the stock went down. This information is shown below in picture 3:
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| Differences between bar chart and candlestick chart |
What is the meaning of candlesticks patterns?
Japanese candlesticks offer a quick picture into the psychology of short-term trading, studying the effect, not the cause. This places candlesticks squarely into the category of technical analysis. One cannot ignore the fact that prices are influenced by investors psychologically driven emotions of fear, greed, and hope. The overall psychology of the marketplace cannot be measured by statistics; some form of technical analysis must be used to analyze the changes in these psychological factors. Japanese candlesticks read the changes in the makeup of investors interpretations of value. This is then reflected in price movement. More than just a method of pattern recognition, candlesticks show the interaction between buyers and sellers. Japanese candlestick charting provides insight into the financial markets that is not readily available with other charting methods. It works well with either stocks or commodities.
What are the advantages of candlesticks chart how tool for trading in the financial markests?
There are three major advantages of candlestick charts |when compared to to bar charts.
First - Candlestick charts are much more "visually immediate" than bar charts. Once you get used to the candle chart, it is much simpler to see what has happened for a specific time frame be it a day, a montlhy or 30 minutes. With a bar chart you require to mentally fill in the price action. You need to say to yourself, "The left tick says thats where it opened, the right tick where it closed. Now I see. It was an up day." With a candlestick chart it is done for you. You can spend your energy on analysis, not figuring out what happened with the price.
Second - With candles you can spot trends more quickly by looking for whether the candles are clear or colored. Within a period of trend, you can easily tell what a stock did in a specific period. The candle makes it easier to spot "large range" days. A large candlestick suggests something "dramatic" happened on that trading day. A small range day suggests there may be relative consensus on the share price. When I spot a large range day, I check the volume for that day as well. Was volume unusual? Was it say 50% higher than normal? If so, it is very likely that the large range day may set the tone for many days afterward.
Third -Most important, candles are vital for spotting reversals. These reversals are usually short term precisely the kind the trader is looking for. When traditional technical analysis talks about reversals, usually it is referring to formations that occur over long periods of time. Typical reversal patterns are the double top and head and shoulders. By definition, these involve smart money distributing their shares to naive traders and normally occur over weeks or even months. Candlesticks, however, are able to accurately pick up on the changes in trend which occur at the end of each short termswing in the market. If you pay meticulous attention to them, they often warn you of impending changes.
Candlesticks is most powerful when the markets are at an extreme, that is when they are overbought or oversold. I define overbought as a market which has gone up too far too fast. Most of the buyers are in and the sellers are eager to nail down profits.
An oversold market, on the other hand, is one in which the sellers have been in control for several days or weeks. Prices have gone down too far too fast. Most of the traders who want to sell have done so and there are bargains -- at least in the short term -- to be had. But these issues will be discussed in the advanced tutorials.
Candlestick Basic Quiz
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