A funny thing happens when you put up a price chart and ask people to define what the trend is.Even when it seems completely obvious without question, you still will get many different answers to the same chart which should not happen.  This stems from many people not knowing the proper method to actually find the trend on a chart.  It is actually quite simple, and is a key thing to know if you want to learn to trade.

and Invoice Factoring The first thing that needs to be done is to size the chart in the right manner.  There is no point of putting up 5 years of data if you are looking for a daytrade to hold for 5 minutes - that is completely pointless.  So here is a guide for what you need as far as time loaded on a chart:

Daytrade:

1. 1 min chart:  Have at least 2 hours of data (120 bars) on the screen but no more than 6 hours (1 full day).
2. 2-5 min chart: Have at least 3 hours of data, but no more than 2 days up.
3. 10-15 min chart:  Have at least 3 days of data up, but no more than 1 week.

Swing Trades (longer term hold) you will want a 10 to 30 minute chart up and you will want at least 10 days of data up on the screen.

Once you have the data up on the screen, make sure you are looking at a "bar chart" and not a "candlestick chart".This makes it much easier to identify the trend.Start by looking for every V bottom area.  Anytime there is a low with a V bounce, make note of it.Additionally, look for / top areas where the price spikes up and then sells off sharply.  Concentrate on the major ones (meaning it makes a significant move away from that area in a short time).  Next, get your drawing tool and connect the V to each other V.Connect the / to each other /.Connect the low areas on the V, and then the highs of the /.  Again, this is a key to learn how to trade.

Lines that slope up to the upper right corner mean the stock is currently in an uptrend.  Lines that slope from the upper left down to the right means the stock is in a downtrend.Another easy method: Go to the first bar on the left, and then to the very last price on the right hand side.  Draw a line between the two.  If the line is sloping up - its an uptrend.  If the line is sloping down, its a downtrend.  The other key thing to look at is the oscillations around this trendline.  Does it go +/- 2pts, +/- 1pt, +/- .50 etc - on average, not exact.This gives you a decent sense of the trend strength.  The lower the oscillation, the stronger the trend.  The theory here is the buyers (in an uptrend) or the sellers (in a downtrend) are so strong that it hardly budges against the buying or selling.

Another thing to keep in mind the more you practice, the faster it gets – the lines are no longer necessary.I can glance at a chart and know the trend and approximate strength within seconds.  In addition, you will always want to know the trend on the next higher timeframe than you are trading.One example would be on a 5 minute chart the stock is in an uptrend, while on a longer view (15,30 min) its actually in a downtrend.This needs to be focused on, because a longer term trend can often pull the shorter term trend back in line.  In general, you want a higher term chart to be a multiple of 3 vs the chart you are trading.  So if you are on a 1 min chart, you watch the 3 min chart also, if on a 5 min chart, you watch the 15 min chart.  Once you can easily tell the trend of any chart, other aspects of learning to trade become much easier.