Price never moves in a straight line. It bounces around specific levels that act as psychological magnets. These two concepts, support and resistance, are the backbone of technical analysis.
Support & resistance
Support is a price area where buying pressure typically strong enough to halt a decline. Resistance is the opposite: an area where selling pressure typically caps a rise.
Levels tested several times tend to hold stronger. But remember: no level is eternal. The more often a level is tested, the higher the odds it eventually breaks.
Channels
A channel is two parallel lines framing price movement. There are three main types: ascending (up), descending (down), and horizontal (range).
Breakouts and fakeouts
When price breaks out of a channel or key level with strong volume, that's a breakout. When the break fails and price returns inside, it's a fakeout, a classic trap that takes out beginners' stop-losses.
Wait for confirmation, not news. A candle closing outside a key level is more reliable than a wick that briefly pokes through.