How to read a candlestick chart#

A candlestick summarizes how a quoted token price moved during one time interval. It shows the opening, highest, lowest, and closing price, but it does not guarantee that you could trade a large amount at every displayed price.

How a candle works#

Each candle contains four values:

Open: the first recorded price in the interval.
High: the highest recorded trade price.
Low: the lowest recorded trade price.
Close: the last recorded price.

The rectangular body spans the open and close. The thin lines, often called wicks, extend to the high and low. An upward candle closes above its open; a downward candle closes below it. The chart's interval might represent one minute, one hour, one day, or another period, so always check the selected timeframe.

Step-by-step#

Confirm the token pair and quote direction. CTN per token is the inverse of token per CTN.
Confirm that the chart is for the Centurion blockchain and the intended token contract, not merely a matching symbol.
Select a timeframe appropriate to your question. Short intervals show microstructure and noise; longer intervals show broader movement.
Read the open, high, low, and close values for the candle under your pointer.
Review volume and liquidity alongside price. A dramatic candle on tiny volume may represent one small trade.
Compare the chart price with the live CenturionDEX quote for your actual amount before signing.

Worked example#

Suppose a one-hour CTN/token candle opens at 50 tokens per CTN, trades as high as 56, falls as low as 48, and closes at 54. The body shows a rise from 50 to 54, while the wicks show that trades occurred outside that range during the hour.

That does not mean a swap of 500 CTN would execute near 54. The executable price depends on current v2 reserves or the active v3 liquidity across ticks, plus the pool fee and your trade's price impact.

Why charts can differ#

Chart providers may use different pools, sampling rules, token orientations, or methods for excluding anomalous trades. A token can also have several v3 fee-tier pools with different liquidity. Thin pools are easier to move, so their candles can diverge from deeper markets.

Rebasing or transfer-restricted tokens may create additional display problems. A chart is historical information, not an oracle or promise of execution.

Common mistakes#

Reading an inverted pair and assuming the price moved in the opposite direction.
Treating a long wick as available liquidity for a large order.
Ignoring the contract address when two tokens share a symbol.
Using a past closing price instead of the current swap quote.
Confusing chart movement with slippage tolerance.