Reading the numbers
Volume profile, POC, value area and VWAP
Where the market traded most, the fair-value range around it, and the day's average price.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Volume profile | Volume traded at each price across the visible range, drawn from the right edge. Scroll or zoom and it recomputes. |
| POC (point of control) | The price with the most volume. The market's fairest price for that range; price often returns to it. |
| Value area | The band around the POC holding 70% of the volume. Its top and bottom (VAH, VAL) act as edges. |
| High-volume nodes | Thick parts of the profile. Price slows down and rotates there. |
| Low-volume nodes | Thin parts. Price moves through them fast. |
| VWAP | Σ(price × volume) ÷ Σ(volume) since the session start: the average price everyone paid today. |
- Above VWAP, the average buyer today is in profit, and dips to VWAP often find buyers. Below it, the reverse.
- Opening outside yesterday's value area and failing to get back in often means a trend day. Opening inside it usually means rotation.
- TPO shows the same idea by time rather than volume: letters mark each period the market spent at a price.