Ichimoku Kinkō Hyō Wave Theory Introduction and Indicator BasicsIchimoku Kinkō Hyō Wave Theory Introduction and Indicator Basics Cheat Sheet.
Note that there are 5 Waves in the Ichimoku Kinkō Hyō System.
1: I Wave
2: V Wave
3: N Wave
4: P Wave
5: Y Wave
I Wave = 1 directional movement in price up or down over a period of time.
V Wave = 2 directional movements in price over a period of time so 1 direction movement up over a period of time and 1 directional movement down over a period of time. Or 1 directional movement down over a period of time and 1 directional movement up over a period of time. Note that a V Wave is made from 2 I Waves.
N Wave = 3 movements in price over a period of time so 1 price movement up over a period of time, 1 shorter price movement down over a period of time and 1 longer price movement back up over a period of time. Or 1 price movement down over a period of time, 1 shorter price movement up over a period of time and 1 longer price movement back down over a period of time. Note that an N Wave is made from 3 I Waves.
P Wave = 2 Converging trend-lines. The P Wave is similar to the Bullish/Bearish Pennant but note that with the Ichimoku P Wave it does not matter the amount of times that the price hits the upper and lower trend-lines.
Y Wave = 2 Diverging trend-lines. The Y Wave is similar to the Bullish/Bearish Inverted Triangle Pattern or Megaphone Pattern but note that with the Ichimoku Y Wave it does not matter the amount of times that the price hits the upper and lower trend-lines.
Please look at the above chart if this all sounds a little confusing and it will all become clear.
For those interested, the 3 basic and most important Waves I, V and N are used in Ichimoku Price Theory for both Negative and Positive price directions.
V Calculation: V = B + (B-C) for Positive and V = B - (C-B) for Negative.
N Calculation: N = C + (B-A) for Positive and N = C - (A-B) for Negative.
E Calculation: E = B + (B-A) for Positive and E = B - (A-B) for Negative.
NT Calculation: NT = C + (C-A) for Positive and NT = C - (A-C) for Negative.
Here is a post with some examples of the Ichimoku Price Theory in action.
Back to Basics for those who are new to The Ichimoku Kinkō Hyō. Note that i’ll be using the original Ichimoku settings 9,26,52,26 in this write up but not on the actual chart.
The Ichimoku Cloud is comprised of 5 indicators, The Conversion Line (Tenkan Sen), The Base Line (Kijun Sen), The Leading Span A (Senkou Span A), The Leading Span B (Senkou Span B) and the The Lagging Span (Chikou Span) with 3 areas of interest, the Bullish Zone, The Bearish Zone and the Equilibrium Zone.
The Conversion Line (Tenkan Sen) is the midpoint of the last 9 Period highs and 9 Period lows in whatever timeframe you are in. As well as being a potential support or resistance level, the Conversion Line (Tenkan Sen) also gives you a sense of potential short-term price momentum in whatever timeframe you are in as well as potential reversals. So if the Conversion Line (Tenkan Sen) is pointing either upwards, sideways or downwards, then this gives you a sense of what the short-term price momentum is in whatever timeframe you are in. Note that the Tenkan Sen is not an SMA or EMA and should not be treated as such.
The Base Line (Kijun Sen) is the midpoint of the last 26 Period highs and 26 Period lows in whatever timeframe you are in. As well as being a potential support or resistance level, the Base Line (Kijun Sen) also gives you sense of potential mid-term price momentum in whatever timeframe you are in as well as confirmation of a trend change if the Tenkan Sen crosses under the Kijun Sen. So if the Base Line (Tenkan Sen) is pointing either upwards, sideways or downwards, then this gives you a sense of what the mid-term price momentum is in whatever timeframe you are in. Note that the Kijun Sen is not an SMA or EMA and should not be treated as such.
The Lagging Span (Chikou Span) is a momentum indicator and also a 2nd confirmation indicator that enables you to see potential trend changes. The Lagging Span (Chikou Span) is the current price shifted 26 periods in the past. If the Lagging Span (Chikou Span) indicator is above where the price was at 26 periods ago then that is considered an uptrend for the timeframe you are in. If the Lagging Span (Chikou Span) indicator is below where the price was at 26 periods ago then that is considered a downtrend for the timeframe you are in. A Bullish and Bearish confirmation signal can be seen if the Lagging Span (Chikou Span) indicator crosses up (Bullish) or under (Bearish) for that previous 26 period price respectively, but also using the other indicators as confirmation. If the Lagging Span (Chikou Span) is inside the previous Price from 26 Periods ago, then that is considered sideways trading, choppy or trend-less.
The Leading Span A (Senkou Span A) is a Leading momentum indicator and is calculated from the Conversion and Base Line values. Note that the Leading Span A (Senkou Span A) is plotted 26 Period into the future and identifies future areas of support and resistance.
The Leading Span B (Senkou Span B) is calculated using double the periods of 26 so 52 Periods and is again plotted 26 Periods into the future and also identifies future areas of support and resistance.
The Leading Span A (Senkou Span A) & Leading Span B (Senkou Span B) make up the Cloud (Kumo). If the Cloud (Kumo) is green, that indicates we are potentially in a Bullish Trend for that timeframe. If the Cloud (Kumo) is red, that indicates we are potentially in a Bearish Trend for that timeframe.
The area above the cloud is the Bullish Zone & the area below the cloud is the Bearish Zone. The area Inside of the cloud is the Equilibrium Zone, which can be seen as trend-less, uncertainty or trading sideways. A key move to look out for is if the Leading Spans A,B are Crossing/Twisting from either a green cloud into a red cloud or vice versa to indicate a trend reversal for the timeframe you are in. Note the Cloud (Kumo) can be Red or Green while the price action is in the Equilibrium Zone depending on if it dipped down or up into the Cloud (Kumo). Note that because we dip downwards outside of the Cloud (Kumo) that doesn’t mean the Cloud will turn red because we may rebound before the Leading Span A (Senkou Span A) gets a chance to cross Leading Span B (Senkou Span B) and vice versa. If the Cloud (Kumo) is thin pointing upwards or downwards then this is a good sign of momentum. When the Cloud (Kumo) starts getting wider, that means momentum is slowing down.
An important thing to note is that the Conversion Line (Tenkan Sen) & Base Line (Kijun Sen) are not SMA’s or EMA’s they are X amount high/low calculated period midpoints, so they should not be used as SMA or EMAs.
I hope this basic quick introduction is helpful with your trading and hodl-ing.
