{"id":175387,"date":"2020-08-27T15:10:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-27T19:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ibkrcampus.com\/trading-lessons\/basic-chart-reading\/"},"modified":"2026-06-30T15:03:58","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T19:03:58","slug":"basic-chart-reading","status":"publish","type":"trading-lessons","link":"https:\/\/www.interactivebrokers.com\/campus\/trading-lessons\/basic-chart-reading\/","title":{"rendered":"Basic Chart Reading"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

New to Interactive Brokers?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Open Account<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n

From Data to Charts<\/h3>\nMarket data is a (more or less) continuous flow of price data.\n
    \n \t
  • Prints (trades)<\/li>\n \t
  • Quotes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nHumans have limited ability to process this raw data.\n\nSo many traders use charts as a way to read market data.\n

    Why Charts?<\/h3>\nCan give good insight into market direction (trends).\n\nCan give some heuristic assessment of volatility.\n\nSome patterns may have a statistical edge that could offer opportunities for profits.\n

    Candlesticks<\/h3>\n\"\"\n

    Reading Candlesticks Factors to Consider<\/h3>\nSize of body\n\nSize of shadows in relation to the body\n\nPosition of open and close within day\u2019s range\n\nRelation of candlestick to overall trend\n
      \n \t
    • Context<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nSpecific Patterns\n

      Candlestick Patterns<\/h3>\n\"\"\n

      Candles vs. Bars<\/h3>\n\"\"\"\"\n

      Classical Chart Patterns:<\/h3>\n

      Rectangle<\/h4>\n\"\"\n

      Head and Shoulders<\/h4>\n\"\"\n

      Rounding Top<\/h4>\n\"\"\n

      Descending Triangle<\/h4>\n\"\"\n

      Pivot Points:<\/h3>\nThe Building Blocks of Market Structure\n
        \n \t
      • Pivot high: bar with a lower high before and after.<\/li>\n \t
      • Pivot low: bar with higher low before and after.<\/li>\n \t
      • Indicates short-term exhaustion of buying and selling pressure.<\/li>\n \t
      • Are important levels to watch for potential<\/i> support and resistance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        What Is The Structure?<\/h3>\n\"\"\n\n \n

        Pivots Outline Structure<\/h3>\n\"\"\n

        Intermediate-Term Pivots<\/h3>\n\"\"\n

        Intermediate-Term Swings<\/h3>\n\"\"\n

        Review<\/h3>\nBars and Candles\n\nBasic Patterns\n
          \n \t
        • Candlesticks\n
            \n \t
          • Single<\/li>\n \t
          • Combination<\/li>\n \t
          • In context<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nChart\n\nMarket structure\n
              \n \t
            • Swings and pivots<\/li>\n<\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              In this lesson we will cover basic chart reading. We\u2019re going to look at candles, then we\u2019re going to compare those candles to bars. We\u2019re going to review some basic candlestick patterns, then chart patterns from traditional technical analysis. At the end of the lesson you\u2019ll have a way of looking at chart patterns that focuses on market structure.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":899,"featured_media":221510,"parent":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"contributors-categories":[13612],"traders-academy":[13125,13128,13132],"class_list":["post-175387","trading-lessons","type-trading-lessons","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","contributors-categories-marketlife","traders-academy-beginner-trading","traders-academy-level","traders-academy-trading-lesson"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nArchives | Traders' Academy | IBKR Campus<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In this lesson we will cover basic chart reading. 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