Pivot Points: Six Formula Sets on Gold

What it shows

Flat horizontal lines across each period: the pivot P in the middle, resistance lines R1 to R5 above it and support lines S1 to S5 below it, each with a label and a price. Which lines exist depends on the formula set, and by default the last 15 periods are drawn side by side.

How Pravex works it out

1. The chart’s candles are grouped into periods by the period length, using UTC dates. Daily is one UTC day, Weekly starts on Monday, then Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, Biyearly (2 years), Triyearly (3), Quinquennially (5) and Decennially (10).
2. Auto picks the period from the candle size: candles of 15 minutes or less use Daily, longer intraday candles use Weekly, daily candles use Monthly, and weekly or longer candles use Yearly. So an hourly chart gets weekly pivots.
3. For each period, Pravex takes the previous period’s high (H), low (L), close (C) and open (O), and range r = H − L. The levels then hold for the whole of the current period. The first period on the chart has no previous one, so it has no lines.
4. Traditional: P = (H + L + C) ÷ 3, R1 = 2P − L, S1 = 2P − H, R2 = P + r, S2 = P − r, R3 = H + 2(P − L), S3 = L − 2(H − P), R4 = 3P + (H − 3L), S4 = 3P − (3H − L), R5 = 4P + (H − 4L), S5 = 4P − (4H − L).
5. Fibonacci: P as above; R1, R2, R3 = P + 0.382r, P + 0.618r, P + r; S1, S2, S3 = P − 0.382r, P − 0.618r, P − r. Classic: P as above; R1 and S1 as Traditional; R2 = P + r, R3 = P + 2r, R4 = P + 3r, with S2 to S4 the same distances below P.
6. Woodie: P = (H + L + 2 × open of the new period) ÷ 4; R1 = 2P − L, S1 = 2P − H, R2 = P + r, S2 = P − r, R3 = H + 2(P − L), S3 = L − 2(H − P), R4 = R3 + r, S4 = S3 − r. It is the only type that looks at the new period’s open.
7. DM (Demark): compare the previous period’s close with its open. If close < open, X = H + 2L + C. If close > open, X = 2H + L + C. Otherwise X = H + L + 2C. Then P = X ÷ 4, R1 = X ÷ 2 − L, S1 = X ÷ 2 − H. DM has only these three lines.
8. Camarilla: P = (H + L + C) ÷ 3 with k = 1.1 × r. R1 to R4 = C + k ÷ 12, C + k ÷ 6, C + k ÷ 4, C + k ÷ 2; S1 to S4 = C minus the same amounts. R5 = (H ÷ L) × C and S5 = C − (R5 − C).

Settings

Setting	Default	What changing it does
Formula set	Traditional	Which formulas are used: Traditional, Fibonacci, Woodie, Classic, DM or Camarilla. Traditional and Camarilla give 11 lines, Woodie and Classic 9, Fibonacci 7 and DM only 3.
Period length	Auto	The length of each period: Auto, Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly, Biyearly, Triyearly, Quinquennially or Decennially. Longer periods give wider levels that change less often.
Periods drawn	15	How many periods are drawn, counting back from the current one. Raise it to see more history, lower it for a cleaner chart. Up to 5000 periods can be drawn.
Work from daily data	on	Shown greyed out. Pravex always works the levels out from the chart’s own candles, so this option cannot change the result.
Level names	on	Writes the name of each level (P, R1, S1 and so on) at the end of its line.
Price on each level	on	Writes the price of each level next to its line.
Text side	Left	Whether the names and prices sit at the left or the right end of each line.
Line thickness	1	The thickness of the lines in pixels, up to 100. The Style tab can set a thickness per level, and the larger of the two is used.

How traders read it

Pivot levels are used as a ready-made map of the next period. Traders watch the pivot P as the line between a bullish and a bearish tone: price trading above it is read as buyers in control, price under it as sellers. R1 and S1 are the first places price is expected to stall, with R2 and S2 as the next targets.

Example with made-up numbers: yesterday’s high was 105, the low 95 and the close 102. The Traditional pivot is (105 + 95 + 102) ÷ 3 = 100.67, R1 = 2 × 100.67 − 95 = 106.33 and S1 = 2 × 100.67 − 105 = 96.33. With r = 10, R2 = 100.67 + 10 = 110.67 and S2 = 90.67. Those five prices are what you carry into today.

When it misleads

Pravex cuts days at midnight UTC, but the gold trading day opens at 17:00 New York time, so the Daily levels come from a UTC day and may differ from daily pivots on a platform that uses the gold session. Gold has no weekend candles, so a Weekly period holds five days. The levels are only as good as the last period’s range: after a very quiet period they sit close together, after a violent one they spread far apart. No pivot type predicts anything, and price often ignores a level.

Questions and answers

How are pivot points calculated?

From the previous period’s high, low and close. For the Traditional type, P = (H + L + C) ÷ 3, R1 = 2P − L and S1 = 2P − H. The other levels are listed in the calculation steps above.

Which pivot point type is best for gold?

There is no best one. Traditional, the Pravex default, is the plainest of the six. Camarilla puts its levels close to the previous close, so it suits traders who look for reversals near it, while Fibonacci gives a wider spread.

What is the best timeframe for pivot points?

Match it to how long you hold: Daily for a day trade, Weekly for a swing trade. Auto picks Daily up to 15-minute candles and Weekly on longer intraday candles, so an hourly chart gets weekly pivots.

Why do my pivot levels differ from another site’s?

Pravex cuts the Daily period at midnight UTC and works from the chart’s own candles, and sites differ on the type of pivot and on where the trading day starts. Match the type and the day first.

Related: Pivot Points High Low, Auto Fib Retracement, Gaps, Trading Sessions, every indicator.