Trading & Markets
Candlestick
The standard price bar showing open, high, low, and close for a time period, with a body and wicks. The visual language nearly all futures charts speak.
In plain English
Each candlestick compresses a period's auction into four prices: the body spans open to close, the wicks mark the high and low. Green (or white) bodies close above the open; red (or black) close below.
Wicks tell prop traders where price was rejected, and clusters of candles form the patterns other concepts build on: sweeps are wicks through levels, fair value gaps are spaces between candles, structure is drawn from candle swings. Timeframe changes the story: the same move looks different in 1 minute and 30 minute candles.
- A 5 minute ES candle opens 5002, drops to 4998, and closes 5006: a long lower wick showing the dip was bought aggressively.