Sunday, 1 July 2018

Time Frames - Technical Analysis

We discuss about what is technical analysis , assumptions in technical analysis , the chart types of technical analysis and candle stick anatomy in the last posts . Today we are going to discussion about time frames .

A time frame is defined as the time duration during which one chooses to study a particular chart. Some of the popular time frames that technical analysts use are:

o Monthly Charts
o Weekly charts
o Daily or End of day charts
o Intraday charts – 30 Mins, 15 mins and 5 minutes


Time Frames - Technical Analysis


One can customize the time frame as per their requirement. For example a high frequency trader may want to use a 1 minute chart as opposed to any other time frame.

Monthly Time Frame :


Open :


The opening price on the first day of the month

High :


Highest price at which the stock traded during the entire month


Low :


Lowest price at which the stock traded during the entire month


Close :


The closing price on the last day of the month


No. Of Candles :


12 candles for the entire year


Weekly Time Frame :



Open :


Monday’s Opening Price


High :


Highest price at which the stock traded during the entire week\


Low :


Lowest price at which the stock traded during the entire week


Close :


The closing price on Friday


No. Of Candles :


52 candles for the entire year


Daily or EOD Time Frame :



Open :


Opening price of the day


High :


Highest price at which the stock traded during the day


Low :


Lowest price at which the stock traded during the entire day


Close :


The closing price of the day


No. Of Candles :


One candle per day, 252 candles for the entire year


Intraday 30 Minutes :



Open :


The opening price at the beginning of the 1st minute


High :


Highest price at which the stock traded during the 30 minute duration


Low :


Lowest price at which the stock traded during the 30 minute duration


Close :


The closing price as on the 30th minute


No. Of Candles :


Approximately 12 candles per day


Intraday 15 Minutes :



Open :


The opening price at the beginning of the 1st minute


High :


Highest price at which the stock traded during the 15 minute duration


Low :


Lowest price at which the stock traded during the 15 minute duration


Close :


The closing price as on the 15th minute


No. Of Candles :


25 candles per day


Intraday 5 Minutes :



Open :


The opening price at the beginning of the 1st minute


High :


Highest price at which the stock traded during the 5 minute duration


Low :


Lowest price at which the stock traded during the 5 minute duration


Close :


The closing price as on the 5th minute


No. Of Candles :


75 candles per day

As you can see from the above as and when the time frame reduces, the number of candles (data points) increase. Based on the type of trader you are, you need to take a stand on the time frame you need.

The data can either be information or noise. As a trader, you need to filter information from noise. For instance a long term investor is better off looking at weekly or monthly charts as this would provide information. While on the other hand an intraday trader executing 1 or 2 trades per day is better off looking at end of day (EOD) or at best 15 mins charts. Likewise for a high frequency trader, a 1 minute charts can convey a lot of information.

So based on your stance as a trader you need to choose a time frame. This is extremely crucial for your trading success, because a successful trader looks for information and discards the noise.

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