Field Notes
Up and down volume as a second opinion
Price can look decisive while volume breadth disagrees. A short field note on how we teach up/down volume ratios in clinic reviews.
In private clinics, traders often bring charts where the candle closed strongly but up/down volume was closer to even than the price suggested. That mismatch is a useful teaching moment: the close answered “where,” volume breadth asks “with how much conviction across the list.”
What we do not do
We do not convert a single ratio print into a trade ticket. One session of heavy downside volume after a long advance can be digestion rather than regime change. The clinic habit is to stack the ratio against the prior fortnight and against the advance-decline path on the same dates.
Classroom tip
When homework asks for a volume-breadth note, we insist on naming the universe — ASX200 constituents, a sector basket, or another defined list. Without a named universe, the ratio is a floating number that cannot be audited later.