What is Market Profile?
Market profile displays TPO or volume distribution across prices for a session.
Formula
Price TPOs 5,301 G 5,300 FGH 5,299 EFGH 5,298 DEFGH ← Value Area High (VAH) 5,297 CDEFGHI 5,296 BCDEFGHIJ 5,295 ABCDEFGHIJ ← Point of Control (POC) — most TPOs 5,294 ABCDEFGHI 5,293 ABCDEFGH 5,292 BCDEFG ← Value Area Low (VAL) 5,291 CDEF 5,290 DE 5,289 D
Indian market context (NSE)
Reference levels: Nifty 50 at 24,300, Reliance Industries at ₹1,300, Bank Nifty futures at 55,000 (lot size 30). Examples below show how Market Profile shows up on Indian index, equity, and futures books — update to live quotes in your journal.
Nifty 50 perspective
Market Profile on Nifty (24,300): on the 15-minute chart, combine with session VWAP and 9:15–10:00 liquidity — index market profile signals misfire on expiry Tuesdays without volume confirmation.
Reliance Industries perspective
Market Profile on Reliance at ₹1,300: daily vs hourly settings diverge around results and ex-dividend dates; note corporate events in journal when market profile readings spike.
Bank Nifty futures perspective
Market Profile on Bank Nifty futures (55,000): first-hour signals differ from post-14:30 behaviour; avoid standalone entries when banking names lead the move.
How to validate
- Validate Market Profile fills against broker contract notes monthly.
- Measure median slippage in points/₹ for Market Profile on Bank Nifty vs mid-caps.
- Flag sessions with abnormal rejections or partial fills for separate review.
- Compare limit vs market tags only on symbols with similar liquidity.
How to track in TradeLyser
- Record order type, limit price, fill price, and latency on the trade.
- Tag “slippage > plan” when Market Profile fills worse than expected.
- Monthly slippage report by symbol and order type in analytics.
- Reconcile with broker order log quarterly.
Best practices
- Choose Market Profile before the move, not after FOMO entry.
- Default to limits on illiquid mid-caps; markets on urgent exits only.
- Log rejected orders — they reveal unrealistic limit discipline.
- Review slippage in R-multiples, not only rupees.
Common pitfalls
- Chasing with market orders after Market Profile already moved.
- Using limits on fast Bank Nifty breaks without timeout rules.
- Not recording partial fills — skews performance stats.
- Assuming broker fills match intended Market Profile every time.
How to use this in TradeLyser
Screenshot profile with POC/VA; review trades initiated from value edges.
Related terms
Opening range records session extremes over set window (e.g. 15 minutes post 9:15).
Point of control is price with greatest traded volume in profile period — fair value anchor.
Volume profile histogram displays volume at price levels over chosen session or range.
Volume Weighted Average Price averages traded price weighted by volume from session open. Many intraday desks use it as fair-value reference.
FAQ
Profile vs volume profile?
Related family — define tool used consistently.
Profile on 30m Nifty?
Session profile common — log session date.
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