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Gap classifier

Tell the five kinds of gap apart, which matters more in India than in most markets because our stocks gap almost daily.

About 3 min to an answer Free, no sign-up Runs in your browser
Read the lesson: Gaps
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Runs entirely in your browser — nothing you type is sent anywhere. Educational only, and not investment advice.

How to use this calculator

Each step names a control you will find on screen above.

  1. Cycle through the five types

    Common, breakaway, runaway, exhaustion and the news gap. Each has a different implication and a different correct response.

  2. Read where each occurs

    Position is what identifies a gap. The same size of gap means opposite things at the start of a move and at the end of one.

  3. Check the volume that came with it

    A breakaway gap on heavy volume is a genuine repricing. The same gap on light volume is usually filled within days.

  4. Note the fill statistics

    Common gaps fill most of the time. Breakaway gaps often do not. "All gaps get filled" is one of the market’s most confidently repeated wrong statements.

Worked example: The same 4% gap in two places

A stock gaps up 4% at the open. Compare it occurring after three months of sideways trade against occurring after a 60% run.

What to enter

Gap type
Breakaway, then exhaustion

What it shows you

After a long range
Breakaway

on heavy volume, often the start

After a long run
Exhaustion

often the last buyers arriving

Same size
4%, in both cases
Correct response
Opposite in each

Where this is taught

A calculator gives you a number. These explain what the number means and when it misleads you.

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