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Technical analysis

Volume Profile

By Jarosław Wasiński • Published: • Updated:
A distribution of reported trading activity across price levels for a chosen window. The feed may represent actual venue volume or a proxy, and the bin size and session settings change the result. A value area such as 70% is a convention; the highest-volume level is not guaranteed support or resistance.
Example. An illustrative profile has three price bins with activity of 100, 300 and 100 units. The middle bin is POC, with 60% of the total 500. This does not establish support or by itself define a 70% value area; a neighbouring-bin inclusion algorithm is required.

Bins and activity type

A profile groups activity into price intervals for a chosen window. Bin width, session start, history length and available lower-resolution data alter the histogram. V can represent trades on a particular venue, tick volume or another measure. One FX feed’s profile is not a consolidated global transaction record.

POC and value area

POC has the highest reported activity under the selected partition. VAH and VAL bound the area covering a chosen share, often 70%, under the platform algorithm. Rounding and adding whole bins may exceed the exact share. This is a descriptive convention rather than a confidence interval for future price or a guaranteed fair-value region.

Labels do not reveal complete flow

Up/down volume can be assigned from lower-bar direction rather than observed buy/sell flow. POC and high- or low-activity nodes can serve as strategy references but guarantee no response. The profile of a complete future session was unavailable at its start; retain the state actually available when the decision was made.

Source of the definition

TradingView: volume-profile conventions. Documentation of the construction or concept is not a guarantee of strategy results.

FAQ

Does a 70% value area mean a 70% chance of remaining there?
No. It describes historical activity under the calculation convention.
Does spot FX profiling show the world’s complete turnover?
No. Coverage depends on the feed and measure.

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Jarosław Wasiński

Editor-in-chief, ForexMechanics.com • Macro & FX analyst

Independent analyst and practitioner with over 20 years of experience in financial markets. Actively involved in Forex since 2007, with a focus on fundamental analysis, OTC market structure, and disciplined capital risk management.

  • Creator and editor-in-chief of MyBank.pl, providing reliable financial education since 2004.
  • Author of hundreds of in-depth market commentaries, structural analyses, and educational materials for traders and investors.
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All content is educational and informational only – it does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation. Remember: leveraged trading (Forex/CFD) carries a high risk of rapid capital loss.