Four prices in one candlestick
A candlestick summarizes prices over a chosen period. Its body represents the open and close, while the ends of its wicks show the highest and lowest prices reached during that period.
- Open: the price at the start of the period.
- Close: the price at the end of the period.
- High and low: the highest and lowest prices recorded during the period.
Read the prices, then the colors
Colors depend on your chart settings. Check the convention to understand whether a candle closed above or below its opening price.
Illustrative example: the open is 100, the close is 104, the high is 106 and the low is 98. The body runs from 100 to 104; the full candle spans 98 to 106. These are hypothetical price units, not a quote for any instrument.
A simple observation exercise
Choose a completed candle and write down its four prices. Then check the timeframe: a five-minute candle and a daily candle summarize different periods. This exercise is about reading data, not making a buy or sell decision.