Types of Price Gaps

Common gaps: Common gaps are ‘common’ and ‘uneventful’. If a Gap is formed when the markets are moving in a narrow range, it is called a Common Gap.

Breakaway Gaps: A “breakaway” gap ends a consolidation pattern and happens as prices break out. Often, they would be accompanied by huge volumes. Break-out Gaps are generally not filled for a long time, i.e. in the case of an uptrend, the price does not fall back to wipe off the gains. They may be filled as and when the prices retrace after a substantial up move. If the breakout happens to be a downtrend, the prices may not rise soon to wipe off the loss.

Runaway Gaps:Runaway gaps are best described as gaps that are caused by increased interest in the stock. For runaway gaps to the upside, it usually represents traders who did not get in during the initial move of the up trend and while waiting for a retracement in price, decided it was not going to happen. Increased buying interest happens all of a sudden, and the price gaps above the previous day’s close. This type of runaway gap represents an almost panic state in traders. Also, a good uptrend can have runaway gaps caused by significant news events that cause new interest in the stock. Runaway gaps can also happen in downtrends. This usually represents increased liquidation of that stock by traders and buyers who are standing on the sidelines. These can become very serious as those who are holding onto the stock will eventually panic and sell – but sell to whom? The price has to continue to drop and gap down to find buyers. So, in either case, runaway gaps form as a result of panic trading.

Exhaustion Gap: An “exhaustion” gap occurs at the end of a price move. If there have been two or more gaps before it, then this kind of gap should be regarded very skeptically. A genuine “exhaustion” gap is filled within a few days to a week. It is generally not easy to distinguish between the Runaway and Exhaustion Gaps. Experience in reading charts will help in due course. The best clue available is that Exhaustion Gaps are not the first Gaps in the chart, i.e. they follow the Runaway Gaps and usually occur when the runaway Gap is nearing completion. Exhaustion Gaps do not indicate whether the trend will reverse, they only call for a halt in the price movement.

 

 

 

 

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