Internal Market Bias (Indices) v1.0Internal Market Bias (Indices) v1.0 — TICK + VOLD Market Internals Indicator
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DESCRIPTION
Market sentiment is an integral part of trading indices — whether you're in futures, equities, or options. Traditionally, monitoring the health of the broader market requires watching multiple tickers and mentally synthesizing what they're telling you in real time. This takes attention away from the chart that actually matters — the one you're trading.
This indicator consolidates two of the most widely used NYSE market internals — TICK (the net count of stocks upticking vs. downticking) and VOLD (the net volume flowing into upticking vs. downticking stocks) — into a single visual pane that gives you an at-a-glance read on overall market bias and conviction.
Rather than watching separate TICK and VOLD charts and trying to interpret them independently while also managing your trades, this indicator synthesizes both data points and presents a clear, easy-to-read composite signal. It's designed to sit below your price chart and answer one simple question: is the broad market leaning in a direction with conviction, or is it undecided?
This indicator is a directional bias tool — not a buy/sell signal. It helps you understand the environment you're trading in so you can make better decisions using your own strategy and analysis.
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HOW TO READ THE INDICATOR
There are four visual components, each designed to be understood at a glance.
1. THE HISTOGRAM (Green and Red Bars)
This represents the smoothed tendency of the NYSE TICK — not individual prints, but where TICK is spending most of its time.
• Green bars = TICK is trending above zero. The broad market has more stocks upticking than downticking.
• Red bars = TICK is trending below zero. More stocks are downticking.
• Brighter bars = the tendency is strengthening.
• Faded bars = the tendency is weakening or flattening.
Think of this as "where is the crowd leaning right now."
2. THE LINE (Blue or Orange)
This represents the direction and momentum of VOLD — whether real volume (money) is flowing into buying or selling across the NYSE.
• Blue line = VOLD is rising. Money is actively flowing into buying.
• Orange line = VOLD is falling. Money is actively flowing into selling.
Think of this as "is money confirming what the crowd is doing." TICK tells you what participants are doing. VOLD tells you if they're backing it up with real capital.
3. THE BACKGROUND COLOR
This is the composite signal that synthesizes both TICK and VOLD into a single bias read.
• Green background = both TICK and VOLD agree on bullish conditions. The crowd is leaning long and money is confirming it.
• Red background = both agree on bearish conditions. The crowd is leaning short with money behind it.
• Gray/neutral background = TICK and VOLD disagree. The market is undecided or sending mixed signals.
This is the primary visual to check before making any trading decision. A quick glance at the background color tells you the state of the overall market.
4. THE DASHBOARD (Top Right Corner)
A compact readout showing:
• BIAS — the current composite direction (LONG / SHORT / NEUTRAL)
• CONV — conviction percentage (how strongly the internals agree)
• TICK — the current smoothed TICK value
• VOLD — whether volume flow is currently rising (UP) or falling (DN)
5. BIAS SHIFT LABELS
When the composite bias shifts direction, a label appears on the indicator:
• "LONG" label at the bottom = bias has shifted to long
• "SHORT" label at the top = bias has shifted to short
These mark the moments where the internals transitioned from one state to another. They are useful for reviewing how the session developed and identifying when the market's character changed.
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HOW TO INTERPRET WHAT YOU SEE
SCENARIO: Sustained green background with rising conviction
The broad market is consistently leaning bullish with money behind it. This environment generally favors strategies that align with the long side. The longer the background stays green and the higher the conviction, the more the market is committing.
SCENARIO: Sustained red background with rising conviction
The inverse. Broad market pressure is to the downside with real selling volume. This environment generally favors caution on long positions and is more supportive of bearish strategies.
SCENARIO: Gray/neutral background
TICK and VOLD disagree. This can mean the market is transitioning between states, or it can mean there is no directional conviction at all. Proceed with caution — there may be no clear edge in either direction during these periods.
SCENARIO: Rapid flipping between LONG and SHORT labels
When you see multiple bias shift labels appearing close together in a short time period, this indicates the market is indecisive and choppy. The rapid flipping itself is the signal — it tells you that neither buyers nor sellers can maintain control. These tend to be difficult environments for directional strategies.
SCENARIO: Conviction percentage is very low (below 30%)
Even if the bias label reads LONG or SHORT, a low conviction percentage means the readings are barely above the threshold. The signal is weak and may not be meaningful. Higher conviction readings (above 50-60%) indicate stronger agreement between the internals.
SCENARIO: Green background but the line is orange (or vice versa)
This can happen briefly during transitions. When the histogram (TICK) and the line (VOLD) are pointing in different directions, it often means one is leading the other. Watch which one resolves — does the lagging indicator catch up and confirm, or does the leading one reverse? This can provide early clues about where the market is heading next.
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IMPORTANT CONTEXT
WHAT THIS INDICATOR IS:
• A broad market sentiment and conviction tool
• A way to understand the environment you're trading in
• A filter to help you evaluate whether conditions support your trading thesis
• Best used alongside price action, volume profile, or other structural analysis
WHAT THIS INDICATOR IS NOT:
• A standalone buy/sell signal generator
• A replacement for your own analysis and risk management
• Predictive of specific price levels or targets
This indicator reads NYSE market internals, which means it reflects the behavior of the overall stock market — not any individual instrument. It is most useful when trading index-related products (NQ, ES, YM, SPY, QQQ, etc.) where the broad market's direction directly influences price. It may be less informative for individual stocks or non-equity instruments that can diverge from broad market behavior.
The data is sourced from NYSE TICK and NYSE VOLD indices. Data quality and real-time accuracy may vary depending on your TradingView subscription and data plan. It is recommended to verify that the data matches your expectations before relying on it for live trading decisions.
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SETTINGS
TICK Settings:
• TICK Symbol — default is USI:TICK (NYSE TICK index)
• TICK Smoothing EMA Length — controls how smoothed the histogram is (lower = more responsive, higher = smoother)
• TICK Extreme Thresholds — the high and low levels considered "extreme" readings
VOLD Settings:
• VOLD Symbol — default is USI:VOLD (NYSE Up Volume minus Down Volume)
• VOLD Slope Lookback — how many bars back the slope is measured over
• VOLD Slope Smoothing — smooths the slope calculation to reduce noise
Visual Settings:
• Background Transparency — adjusts how prominent the background bias color appears
All settings are configurable to suit your preferred timeframe and trading style. The defaults are optimized for 15-minute charts.
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RECOMMENDED USAGE
1. Add the indicator to your chart below the price pane
2. At the start of each session, observe the indicator for the first 15-30 minutes to establish whether the internals are committing to a direction or oscillating
3. Use the background color as your primary reference for overall market conditions
4. Monitor conviction percentage to gauge the strength behind any bias reading
5. Pay attention to the behavior of the bias over time — sustained bias is more meaningful than a single reading, and rapid flipping indicates difficult conditions
6. Combine with your preferred technical analysis on the price chart — the indicator provides context for the environment, your analysis provides the specific trade idea
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This indicator is provided as an analytical tool for educational and informational purposes. It does not constitute financial advice. Always conduct your own analysis and manage your own risk. Past performance of any indicator or strategy is not indicative of future results.
Indicateur Pine Script®






















