How to read unusual volume without chasing the candle

A bar printing three times its recent average tells you participation changed. It does not tell you whether buyers or sellers won, or whether the move can continue.

Compare completed candles with a consistent lookback. An incomplete live candle can look extreme simply because it is still accumulating.

Pair the volume spike with the candle range, close location, and the next one or two bars. High volume with a close near the high and clean follow-through is different from high volume with a long upper wick and immediate rejection.

Also check whether the move is occurring at a meaningful level. Volume in the middle of a range is less informative than volume at a tested boundary.

Wait for a close, define the level that must hold, and size from the stop rather than from excitement. If the stop becomes too wide after the spike, the correct action may be to wait for a retest or skip it.

Use the Unusual Volume Scanner to find candidates, then open the chart and run the setup through Analyst and Pre-flight. The scanner narrows attention; it does not replace a trade plan.