PVT (Price Volume Trend)

An indicator that keeps a running total of “% move × volume” for each candle, showing whether volume pushed more on the rising side or the falling side.

Weapon tier: Standard
Slots used: Sub-charts 1/2

Concept

One line is drawn in a lower panel. It is like OBV, but where OBV adds the whole volume of an up day, PVT adds only “as much as the price rose” — a day that rose 1% adds 1% of its volume.

The number itself means nothing; you read the slope. If the price barely moves while the line rises, trading was heavier on the up days.

Charts by TradingView Lightweight Charts™

During the shaded stretch PVT rises more gently than OBV would — small moves add only small amounts. This chart was picked because the price rose afterwards; it does not always happen. Drag the chart sideways with a finger or the mouse to move it, and pinch with two fingers to zoom in. With a keyboard, click the chart, then use ←/→ to move and +/− to zoom.

How it is calculated

For each candle, take (close − previous close) ÷ previous close, the % move.

Multiply that by the candle’s volume. Down candles give a negative value.

PVT = the previous candle’s PVT + this candle’s value. It is a running total from the start.

Parameters

There are no parameters to change. In the game’s weapon screen it is equipped without options.

Trading ideas

Backed by volume: when the price rises and PVT rises with it, the rise is seen as backed by trading. When only the price rises and PVT moves sideways, traders become suspicious.

Moving first: when the price is stuck in a narrow range but PVT keeps climbing, many read it as getting ready to break upward. The chart on this page shows that scene.

Common traps

A single day with a big rise or fall moves the line a lot. Look for a steady slope rather than one such day.
In stretches where the price barely moves, the line goes almost flat and there is little to read.
None of these are sure signals. Read them together with the price trend (lesson 2).

In the game

“PVT” is a “Standard” weapon and uses 1 of the “Sub-charts” panels (limit 2). Volume in the starting setup already uses 1, so adding it brings it to 2 (0 left).
It has no settings to change, so you equip it as it is on the “Weapons” screen too.
A running total depends on where the counting started, so do not compare its numbers between matches or stocks. Only read its slope within the same chart.

Related indicators and lessons

Volume Profile — An indicator that shows with horizontal bars which price levels saw the most trading, to find “the prices where many people bought and sold”.
OBV — An indicator that keeps a running total, adding the volume of up days and subtracting the volume of down days, to show whether trading leaned toward buyers or sellers.
MFI — An indicator that multiplies price moves by volume to show, from 0 to 100, whether more money has recently flowed in on the buying side or the selling side.
Volume Oscillator — An indicator that shows how many % the short-term average volume is above (or below) the long-term average, telling you whether trading is heating up or cooling down.
Volume Ratio — An indicator that shows the volume of recent up days as a % of the volume of down days, telling you whether trading leaned toward buyers or sellers.
AD Line — An indicator that keeps a running total of each candle’s volume, weighted by where the close ended between the day’s high and low, to show buying pressure (accumulation) and selling pressure (distribution).
EOM — An indicator of “how easily the price moves”, showing whether the price rises (or falls) easily even on light volume.
CMF — An indicator that weighs, by volume, whether closes over the last 20 candles mostly ended near the top or the bottom of each day, shown between −1 and +1.
VWAP — An average-price line that gives more weight to prices from high-volume candles, showing roughly what people paid on average recently.
Force Index — An indicator that multiplies how far the price moved by volume, showing whether the “force” was behind the rising side or the falling side.
4. Volume and volume MA