SPY Candles Direction Market!State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETFBATS:SPYTheCandleMan1STRENGTH, Control SHIFT, INDECISION Candles!!! STRENGTH A "strength candlestick" (or strong candle) in trading refers to a price movement with a large body and very short (or no) wicks. It indicates decisive dominance by either buyers or sellers. A strong bullish (green) candle means aggressive buying, while a strong bearish (red) candle means aggressive selling with little to no resistance. Why Candlestick Strength Matters Understanding candlestick strength is essential for price action analysis because it reveals the momentum behind a price move, rather than just the pattern itself. The Real Body: This reflects the distance between the open and the close. A tall body shows high urgency and conviction. The Wicks (Shadows): These indicate price rejection. Short wicks mean the winning side maintained control throughout the entire time period without pulling back. Common Types of Strength CandlesMarubozu: A candle with a maximum-sized body and no wicks at all. A bullish Marubozu indicates buyers controlled the price from the open to the close. Momentum Candles: A sequence of large-bodied candles that show a strong directional trend. Reversal Momentum: Sometimes a single strength candle is so large it engulfs the previous two or three candles, signaling a powerful shift in market sentiment. Control SHIFT A "shift control candle" (or "control shift") refers to a specific candlestick that signals a decisive change in market momentum, showing that either buyers or sellers have taken full control of the price action. These candles often appear near major turning points. Key characteristics include: *Bullish Control Shift: A candle forms with a long lower wick and closes near its high. This indicates that sellers tried to push prices down, but buyers stepped in aggressively, rejecting lower prices and taking control. *Bearish Control Shift: A candle forms with a long upper wick and closes near its bottom. This shows that buyers initially pushed the price up, but sellers overwhelmed them, forcing the price down and taking control. *The Breakout: Traders often look for this candle to "sweep" or break above/below the high or low of the previous candle. This confirms the shift in power. INDECISION Candle An indecision candlestick indicates that neither buyers nor sellers are in control, resulting in a small body where the opening and closing prices are almost identical. The long wicks on both sides show the market tested higher and lower prices but couldn't commit, signaling a potential shift in momentum. Types of Indecision Candlesticks Doji: The most common indecision candle. The open and close are exactly (or nearly) equal, forming a plus-sign (+) shape with long wicks. Spinning Top: Has a slightly larger body than a Doji but features upper and lower wicks of similar length. It indicates an intense battle between buyers and sellers that ended in a stalemate. High Wave Candle: Similar to a Spinning Top but features exceptionally long wicks. It signals high volatility alongside market uncertainty.