What Is Technical Analysis?

Patrick Curtis

Reviewed by

Patrick Curtis WSO Editorial Board

Expertise: Investment Banking | Private Equity

Technical analysis is the technique of analyzing an asset based on the statistics of its trading pattern and history. This includes things such as:

  • Candlestick Charts
  • Support & Resistance Lines
  • MACD

The idea behind technical analysis is that the historical movements, trends and patterns of an asset can give you some idea of the future behavior of the asset price. This is a flaw as although assets USUALLY repeat their historical behavior, past activities are no guarantee of future behavior. Traders who use technical analysis tend to rely heavily on charts and trading data.

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Patrick Curtis

Patrick Curtis is a member of WSO Editorial Board which helps ensure the accuracy of content across top articles on Wall Street Oasis. He has experience in investment banking at Rothschild and private equity at Tailwind Capital along with an MBA from the Wharton School of Business. He is also the founder and current CEO of Wall Street Oasis. This content was originally created by member WallStreetOasis.com and has evolved with the help of our mentors.

technical analysis