How To Trade the Cup and Handle Chart Pattern

A V-bottom, where the price drops and then sharply rallies, may also form a cup. Some traders like these types of cups, while others avoid them. Those that like them see the V-bottom as a sharp reversal of the downtrend, which shows buyers stepped in aggressively on the right side of the pattern. It shows the price found a support level and couldn’t drop below it. It helps improve the odds of the price moving higher after the breakout. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) printed two non-traditional cup and handle patterns in 2014.

Secondly, you need to learn to identify the length and depth of a true cup and handle, as there can be false signals. Lastly, illiquidity also restricts the cup and handle from fully forming as trading volume also affects an asset’s price. No technical pattern works all the time, which is why a stop-loss is used to control the risk on trades that are less efficient.

Cup with handle pattern

The pattern is a bullish continuation formation that marks a consolidation period, with the right-hand side of the pattern typically experiencing lower trading volume. The cup part of the pattern forms after a price rally and looks like a gradually rounded bottom of a bowl. After the inverse cup and handle’s completion, the price moves downward. You can enter short positions after the breakout from the lower trendline or after price reversal from the handle. Otherwise, it is also an excellent signal to exit a long position.

But, ultimately, if the price breaks above the handle, it signals an upside move. A good time to buy is when the price of the asset moves up and exceeds the price levels seen previously at the top of the right side of the cup. You’ve identified a cup and handle pattern, but before you jump into the trade, you must wait for a handle to form completely.

How to trade when you see the cup and handle pattern

Ensure the resistance levels hold and the pattern doesn’t break down. The handle on the inverted cup and handle patterns form on the right side, just like its counterpart pattern, https://www.bigshotrading.info/ the cup and handle. The handle could also form secondary patterns, such as a flag or wedge. The 2008 bear market affected most of the economies, and China is not an exception.

The cup and handle is one of many chart patterns that traders can use to guide their strategy. Inverted cup and handle patterns can take a few months to form. They’re great to spot on daily chart time frames because the cup and handle reversal chart pattern can take up to 6 months to form. Since the inverted cup and handle pattern is a bearish pattern, traders trade it to the short side. This example shows a short entry as the price failed the handle area.

Trading The Inverted Cup And Handle In A Downtrend

Sometimes the downtrends are so steep that you can’t find any obvious highs. Traders use the height of the cup added to the upper boundary of the setup to determine a target. Technical setups, when appropriately used, can be a powerful tool to generate profits in financial markets. Now let’s consider a real-world historical example using Wynn Resorts, Limited (WYNN), which went public on the Nasdaq exchange near $13 in October 2002 and rose to $154 five years later.

• In that case, you would likely withstand a pullback that touched the handle’s top at 0.125.
• Trading contains substantial risk and is not for every investor.
• The upward momentum carried through following the cup and handle.
• That small pause (in this case the bull flag) gives us a good low risk opportunity to get into the trade to ride the next wave of uptrend.
• The cup and handle is considered a bullish signal, with the right-hand side of the pattern typically experiencing lower trading volume.
• You could also use the larger height for an aggressive target.
• What we really care about is helping you, and seeing you succeed as a trader.

In the final leg of the pattern, the stock exceeds these resistance levels, soaring 50% above the previous high. In my opinion, the cup and handle pattern can be both a continuation pattern and a reversal pattern. This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk.

Cup and Handle chart pattern: Where do you enter your trade?

The currency pair was trading in a bullish channel from March to June. Then, the price dropped, creating a perfect formation of the cup. In the last step, the price increased again, forming the handle – completing the Inverse cup and Handle chart formation.

From June through mid-July an inverted handle formed inside the range of the inverted cup which looks like a vertical ascending price range channel. The breakdown of the lower vertical trend line support signaled a new swing down in price action from the middle of July through August. This is when the pattern forms an inverted handle inside a trading range.

What is an Inverted Cup and Handle Pattern?

If a cup and handle forms and it is confirmed, the price should see a sharp increase in the short- to medium-term. Consider a scenario where a stock has recently reached a high after significant momentum but has since corrected, falling almost 50%. At this point, an investor may purchase the stock, anticipating that it will bounce back to previous levels. The stock then rebounds, testing the previous high resistance levels, after which it falls into a sideways trend.

• However, due to the unique nature of the bear markets, it can be challenging to spot this pattern.
• In this article, we backtest the cup and handle pattern strategy.
• This example shows a short entry as the price failed the handle area.
• This is a bearish pattern and it looks different to the traditional cup and handle.