How to Read China A-Share Market Movements After Opening: One Article Teaches You to Understand Intraday Language

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Every day after the A-share market opens, do you feel lost staring at the screen? What market messages are hidden in the ups and downs of stock prices? The goal of this article is to provide a simple and practical intraday judgment framework. It will help you quickly grasp the day’s market pulse and escape the dilemma of not knowing what to do.

Key Takeaways

• The opening price is the first step in judging the day’s market sentiment; gap-up, gap-down, or flat openings all have different meanings.
• The first 30 minutes after opening are the “golden half-hour”; observing trends during this period helps you grasp the day’s direction.
• The yellow and white lines, price line, and average price line on minute charts, along with volume changes, are important tools for judging market strength and weakness.
• Inner and outer disks and order ratio help you understand real buying and selling sentiment, but beware of illusions created by the main force.
• Comprehensive analysis of opening price, first 30-minute trend, and volume-price relationship helps you more accurately judge market intentions.

Interpreting the Opening Price: First Step to Insight into Bulls and Bears

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The opening price is the market’s first answer after a night of fierce battles between bulls and bears yesterday. It is not just a number but the first window into the day’s market sentiment and main fund intentions. Learning to interpret it gives you the first-mover advantage in judging the trend.

Dual Interpretation of Gap-Up: Strong Attack or Luring Bulls to Ship Out

When you see a stock’s opening price higher than yesterday’s close, this is technically called a “gap-up.” It usually indicates the market has positive expectations for the stock, possibly stimulated by good news. However, the meaning behind a gap-up needs to be judged in combination with the stock price’s position:

• At a long-term bottom or breaking key resistance: A gap-up here, especially an “upward gap” where the opening price directly exceeds yesterday’s high, is often a strong signal. It means bullish forces are powerful and may herald the start of an upward trend.
• At a stage high: A gap-up here requires heightened vigilance. It may be the main force using optimistic sentiment to pull up the price to attract retail investors to take over, smoothly selling their chips. This is called “luring bulls to ship out.”

Beginner Tip: What is “Luring Bulls to Ship Out”? Simply put, the main force deliberately creates the illusion of a big rise (luring bulls) to attract you to buy while quietly selling (shipping out). A sharp pull-up at opening followed by a quick drop is a typical feature.

Potential Opportunity in Gap-Down: Panic Selling or Main Force Washing

Opposite to gap-up, a “gap-down” means the A-share opening price is lower than yesterday’s close. This usually triggers pessimistic market sentiment. But like gap-up, gap-down also requires dialectical viewing:

• At a stage high: If the stock price gaps down at a high with negative news, it may be a trend reversal signal; consider avoiding risk.
• At a long-term bottom or in an uptrend: A gap-down here may be the main force deliberately creating panic to scare out unsteady holders and collect cheaper chips. This process is called “main force washing.” After washing, the stock price often resumes rising.

Beginner Tip: What is “Main Force Washing”? Imagine the main force needs to clear out unsteady “passengers” before pulling up the price to prevent early selling that affects the rise. The main force deliberately suppresses the price (washing) to make these people sell out of fear, concentrating chips.

Flat Opening Market Signal: Bull-Bear Balance and Subsequent Observation

A flat opening means the opening price is basically the same as yesterday’s close. This situation indicates the market is temporarily in bull-bear balance, with everyone watching. Rushing to decide is meaningless here. Focus observation on the first 30 minutes after opening, watching whether the price breaks upward or downward and volume changes to judge the day’s possible trend.

Focus on the First 30 Minutes After A-Share Opening: Capture Key Intraday Trend Clues

If the opening price is the market’s first greeting, the first 30 minutes after opening are the most important “golden half-hour” for the day’s trend. Trends during this period often set the tone for the entire day’s bull-bear battle. Learning to observe intraday language in these 30 minutes helps you catch key intraday trend clues earlier.

Yellow and White Lines on Minute Charts: Judging Market Style and Sector Strength

Opening any trading software, you’ll first see the jumping yellow and white lines on the index minute chart. They are the most intuitive indicators for judging overall market sentiment and style.

• White Line (Weighted Index): Represents the real-time true index but is easily influenced by heavyweights (like banks, securities, and other large-cap stocks).
• Yellow Line (Non-Weighted): Represents the average gain/loss of all stocks, better reflecting the true situation of most individual stocks.

You can simply interpret their relationship as:

1. White line above, yellow line below: Large-cap stocks outperform small- and mid-caps. Market capital may concentrate in heavyweights, causing “index up, no money earned.”
2. Yellow line above, white line below: Small- and mid-cap stocks outperform large caps. Market activity is higher, with widespread individual stock gains and better money-making effect.
3. Yellow and white lines entangled or moving together: Large and small caps move in sync, with overall trend more consistent.

Price Line and Average Price Line: Finding Intraday Support and Resistance

When observing an individual stock’s minute chart, you’ll also see two lines: the white price line representing real-time price and a yellow average price line. This yellow line is technically called “Volume Weighted Average Price” (VWAP) and is the “cost lifeline” of bull-bear battles that day.

What is the Average Price Line (VWAP)? It is calculated by dividing the total transaction amount from A-share opening to now by total shares traded, yielding a weighted average price. Simply put, it represents the average holding cost of all investors who bought the stock today.

Volume Weighted Average Price = Σ(Typical Price × Volume) / Σ(Volume)

Where Typical Price = (High + Low + Close) / 3

The average price line is a very important dynamic support and resistance level intraday. You can use it to formulate trading strategies:

• As Support: When the price line pulls back to near the average price line and finds support without falling further, it may be a potential buying opportunity. This indicates the price has returned to the market average cost zone, with bulls willing to take over here.
• As Resistance: When the price line continues below the average price line, with each rebound blocked by the average price line, it shows bears dominate. The average price line becomes a hard-to-cross resistance wall.
• Judging Trend: When the price line stably runs above the average price line for a long time and the average price line itself gradually rises, this is a characteristic of a strong intraday trend. The opposite is a weak trend.

Volume Changes: Understanding True Fund Intentions from Volume-Price Relationship

Price rises and falls without volume support are like castles in the air—unstable foundations. Volume represents true fund attitude, especially in the first half-hour after A-share opening, where volume changes are highly referential.

• Volume Surge with Rising Price: After opening, the price rises while volume bars below continue to expand, higher than recent days’ average. This is the healthiest “volume-price rise” pattern, indicating incremental funds actively buying in, making the upward trend more reliable.
• Shrinking Volume with Rising Price: The price rises, but volume shrinks. This may mean insufficient upward momentum and weak follow-through from bulls; beware of potential pullback risk.
• Volume Surge with Falling Price: The price falls while volume sharply expands. This is usually a panic sell or main force shipping signal, indicating strong selling willingness; avoid risk short-term.

Beginner Tip: Beware of “Volume-Price Divergence”** When you see the price hitting a new intraday high but volume not following and lower than the previous high’s volume, this is “volume-price divergence.” It is a potential trend weakening signal, suggesting upward momentum is fading and low chase willingness; stay vigilant.

Inner and Outer Disks and Order Ratio: Thermometers for Market Buying and Selling Sentiment

Inner disk, outer disk, and order ratio are the most immediate data for measuring market buying and selling sentiment.

When outer disk volume far exceeds inner disk, buying strength is strong; otherwise, selling dominates.

The order ratio is a composite indicator showing the ratio between all buy and sell orders.

Order Ratio Formula: Order Ratio = (Total Buy Orders - Total Sell Orders) / (Total Buy Orders + Total Sell Orders) × 100%

• Positive Order Ratio: Total pending buy orders exceed pending sell orders; buying sentiment slightly dominates.
• Negative Order Ratio: More pending sell orders; selling pressure is greater.
• Larger Absolute Value (e.g., +80% or -70%): Greater gap in buying/selling strength, more extreme sentiment.

Remember, these data change instantly and can sometimes be illusions created by the main force. Use them as auxiliary judgment tools, combined with price trends and volume for comprehensive analysis.

Intraday Practical Drills: Understanding Typical Trend Charts

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No matter how much theory you learn, it ultimately returns to market practice. Now, let’s apply the knowledge of opening price, golden 30 minutes, volume-price relationship, etc., to several typical minute trend charts, teaching you how to connect clues for more accurate judgments.

Case Study: Gap-Up Then Down—Risk-Avoidance Signal

Gap-up then down is a common intraday “trap.” When you see a stock gap up sharply, don’t rush to celebrate—it may be the start of main force shipping.

When a stock’s close is below the opening price, the daily K-line forms a red solid K-line (black in some software). The top of this K-line is the opening price, the bottom is the close; it intuitively depicts the price drop process and is a bearish sell signal.

Three-Step Analysis Method:

1. Step 1: Check Opening Price. The stock gaps up sharply due to good news, attracting market attention.
2. Step 2: Check First 30-Minute Trend. The price briefly surges after opening but soon lacks follow-through, falling below the yellow average price line. You’ll find volume on declines significantly exceeds volume on rises, indicating very strong selling willingness.
3. Step 3: Comprehensive Judgment. The price remains suppressed by the average price line, unable to rebound. This is a typical “lure bulls to ship out” signal, indicating the main force is using the gap-up to attract retail investors. Consider avoiding risk here.

Case Study: Gap-Down Then Up—Reversal Pattern

Opposite to gap-up then down, gap-down then up is often an intraday reversal opportunity. It frequently appears when main force washing ends or market sentiment shifts from panic to optimism.

Three-Step Analysis Method:

1. Step 1: Check Opening Price. The stock gaps down due to negative news or sentiment, creating panic.
2. Step 2: Check First 30-Minute Trend. After gap-down, the price doesn’t continue falling but quickly finds support and breaks above the average price line with volume. The price line steadily stays above the average price line, showing buying strength beginning to dominate.
3. Step 3: Comprehensive Judgment. The average price line shifts from flat to upward, providing strong support for the price. This usually means panic selling has been digested, and a new upward rally may start—an attractive potential buy point.

Case Study: Opening at Daily Low—Strong Characteristic

This is an extremely strong trend. From the moment A-shares open, the price moves upward all day without ever falling below the opening price.

This pattern clearly tells you one thing: buying strength has dominated from the start. There is almost no selling pressure; all sell orders are quickly absorbed by surging buy orders. This usually accompanies major good news or strong sector drive and is the most powerful trend manifestation. When encountering this trend, going with the flow is usually the best strategy.

Mastering post-opening trends is never about looking at a single indicator. You must comprehensively analyze “opening price level,” “golden 30-minute trend,” and “volume-price indicators” for three-dimensional analysis to piece together the market’s true intentions.

However, intraday technical analysis is an important part of decision-making but not everything. Smart investors use fundamental analysis to decide “what to buy” and technical analysis to judge “when to buy”.

Market language requires patient learning and repeated practice. Starting today, try using this article’s methods to observe the market, and you’ll see a clearer investment world.

FAQ

What if the opening price is flat?

A flat opening represents temporary bull-bear balance. Focus on the first 30 minutes’ trend and observe the price’s direction. Don’t rush to trade; wait for the market to give clearer signals.

Does a positive order ratio mean it will definitely rise?

Not necessarily. A high order ratio only shows stronger pending buy willingness, but it can also be an illusion created by the main force. You must combine volume and actual price trends for comprehensive judgment to avoid being misled by fake orders.

Do these analysis methods apply to all stocks?

These methods are universal, but when applying them, consider the stock’s own characteristics:

• Large Blue-Chip Stocks: Trends are usually steadier, less prone to extreme volatility.
• Small- and Mid-Cap Thematic Stocks: More active, with potentially sharper price swings.

Why is analyzing A-share post-opening trends so important?

The golden 30 minutes after opening is when institutional funds and active hot money concentrate trading. Trends during this period often set the tone for the day’s market. Understanding it helps you seize the initiative earlier.