Point of control (POC)

The longest row

In a TPO profile, the point of control is the row with the most letters. When two rows tie, the one nearest the middle of the profile wins.

It is the price both sides found easiest to trade at, the centre of gravity of the session. On the morning shown, the POC was 24,070.

A POC that moves is a market that moves

During the session the POC can migrate. Early in the day it often sits near the open; as the auction develops it follows the business.

A POC climbing through the day says value is moving higher and buyers are accepting it. A POC that stays put while price swings around it says the market is balanced. Watching the developing POC is a simple way to see whether a move is being accepted or merely visited.

Naked POCs

When a later session never trades back through an earlier session's POC, that POC is called naked, or virgin.

Naked POCs act like unfinished business. Price often returns to them, because they mark a price the market once found very fair and then left in a hurry. Many profile traders keep the last few naked POCs on their chart as reference levels.

POCs in AXL Charts

AXL Charts draws each session's POC and can keep it extended until a later bar trades through it, which is exactly a naked POC. It can also show the developing POC as the session builds, and highlight a POC that stands out from the rows around it.