Price Fields

Technical traders base actions on price and volume analysis. The fields, which define a security's price and volume, are explained below:

Open - The price of the first trade during the period.

Close - The last price that the security traded during the period.

High - The highest price that the security traded during the period.

Low - The lowest price a security traded during the period.

Volume - The number of shares (or contracts) traded during the period.

Bid - The price that a buyer is prepared to purchase at; the price offered for a currency.

Ask - The price, or rate, that a willing seller is prepared to sell at.

Line chart

A line chart plots single prices for a select period. The daily chart, for instance, generally illustrates the daily closing prices. The obvious problem with the daily chart is its inability to show intra-daily price activity.

Bar chart

The bar chart is the most widely used Forex chart. Each bar represents a certain time period, with the timeframe's high and low represented by the upper and lower boundary of the bar. A small line extends to the left and right of the bar, representing the opening and closing prices of the period, respectively. The closing horizontal line of one period will always be at the same level as the open of the next, forming a price continuum.

Candlestick (Japanese) chart

The candlestick chart is closely related to the bar chart. It also illustrates the high, low, open and close of each period. The opening and closing prices form the rectangular 'body' of the candlestick. Extending from the upper and lower sides of the body are two legs, the boundaries of each representing the high and low of the period. If the close is lower than the open, the body will be shaded; if the close is higher than the open, the body is left blank.