Electronic trading major IG has launched another poll – this time, it is dedicated to trading indicators. The broker would appreciate it if you could take part in the poll as it is continuously working on adding more indicators to the IG trading platform to make your trading experience better.
Traders are invited to vote on what they would like IG to work on offering next.
- 1. Logarithmic Scale
A logarithmic price scale, also referred to as a “log scale”, is a type of scale used on a chart that is plotted such that two equivalent price changes are represented by the same vertical distance on the scale. Logarithmic price scales are a type of scale used on a chart, plotted such that two equivalent price changes are represented by the same vertical changes on the scale.
They are generally used for the long-term perspective analysis of price changes. They differ from linear price scales because they display percentage points and not dollar price increases for a stock.
- 2. Hull Moving Average
The Hull Moving Average (HMA) is a directional trend indicator. It captures the current state of the market and uses recent price action to determine if conditions are bullish or bearish relative to historical data. The Hull differs from more traditional trend indicators like the Exponential Moving Average (EMA) and the Simple Moving Average (SMA). It is designed to reduce the lag often associated with those MAs by providing a faster signal on a smoother visual plane.
- 3. Client Sentiment
A sentiment indicator is designed to represent how a group feels about the market or economy. Sentiment indicators gauge market psychology in the form of investor or consumer behavior and beliefs that may influence the market. When a sentiment indicator is moving in the same direction as what it is analyzing, that typically helps confirm that trend.
Extreme readings on a sentiment indicator may cause some traders to take a contrarian view; for example, “buy when there is fear, sell when there is greed”. Sentiment indicators are used to analyze trends, assets, and the economy from the perspective of the participants involved, instead of just looking at an asset or data point isolation.
- 4. Volume at Price
A price by volume (PBV) chart is a horizontal histogram plotted on a security’s chart, showing the volume of shares traded at a specific price level. Often times, price by volume histograms are found on the Y-axis and are used by technical traders to predict areas of support and resistance.
Price by volume charts are used to illustrate high buying and selling interest at specific price levels. They are indicative of price levels over a certain period of time. They are generally used in conjunction with other forms of technical analysis.
- 5. Renko
A Renko chart is a type of chart, developed by the Japanese, that is built using price movement rather than both price and standardized time intervals like most charts are. It is thought to be named after the Japanese word for bricks, “renga,” since the chart looks like a series of bricks. A new brick is created when the price moves a specified price amount, and each block is positioned at a 45-degree angle (up or down) to the prior brick. An up brick is typically colored white or green, while a down brick is typically colored black or red.
Renko charts are composed of bricks that are created at 45-degree angles to one another. Consecutive bricks do not occur beside each other. A brick can be any price size, such a $0.10, $0.50, $5, and so on. This is called the box size. Box size can also be based on the Average True Range (ATR).
Renko charts have a time axis, but the time scale is not fixed. Some bricks may take longer to form than others, depending on how long it takes the price to move the required box size. Renko charts filter out noise and help traders to more clearly see the trend, since all movements that are smaller than the box size are filtered out. Renko charts typically only use closing prices based on the chart time frame chosen. For example, if using a weekly time frame, then weekly closing prices will be used to construct the bricks.
- 6. Fractals
The fractal indicator is based on a simple price pattern that is frequently seen in financial markets. Outside of trading, a fractal is a recurring geometric pattern that is repeated on all time frames. From this concept, the fractal indicator was devised. The indicator isolates potential turning points on a price chart. It then draws arrows to indicate the existence of a pattern. The bullish fractal pattern signals the price could move higher. A bearish fractal signals the price could move lower. Bullish fractals are marked by a down arrow, and bearish fractals are marked by an up arrow.
- 7. Volume Profile
Volume Profile is an advanced charting study that displays trading activity over a specified time period at specified price levels. The study (accounting for user defined parameters such as number of rows and time period) plots a histogram on the chart meant to reveal dominant and/or significant price levels based on volume. Essentially, Volume Profile takes the total volume traded at a specific price level during the specified time period and divides the total volume into either buy volume or sell volume and then makes that information easily visible to the trader.
- 8. Order Book
An order book is updated in real time because it’s an important indicator of the market depth – the amount of trades at any given moment – which is why they are sometimes called a ‘continuous book’. Order books can also identify the buyers and sellers behind each individual exchange.
IG regularly updates its platforms. Earlier in December, the broker announced the go live of a notional value feature on its web trading platform. Clients of the broker can now view the notional value of their open position.
Notional value allows traders to see the true value of their exposure to the market. By adding this feature to the positions window, IG is providing its clients with greater transparency of their exposure – both total size and per position.
The feature is released globally across leveraged accounts on the web trading platform.
Earlier this year, the broker enhanced its web trading platform and mobile app, with the improvements likely to be appreciated by fans of technical analysis, as Super Trend and Volume Weighted Average Price Indicators were made available to use on the web platform and mobile app.