Force Index - FRC: description, adjustment and application

Technical indicator Force Index (FRC) measures the bulls` strength during every rise and the bearish strength during every fall. It connects the main elements of the market information: price trend, its drops and transactions` volumes. This indicator may be used independently, however, it is better to smooth it with the help of the moving average. Best moments for opening or closing of the position are easy to find using the short moving average. If the smoothing is made with the help of the long moving average (for example, 13-period) index reveals trends changes.

Buy when during the uptrend Force Index becomes negative (falls below the zero level);

Reaching the new high the indicator warns that uptrend continues;

Sell when during the downtrend Force Index becomes positive;

Falling to the new trough Force Index warns about the bearish strength and downtrend continuation;

In case price changes are not backed by the same changes in volume Force Index remains at the same level and this is a signal that trend reverse is expected soon.

Calculation

The force of every market movement is characterized by its direction, scale and volume. If the closing price of the current bar is higher than the preceding bar, the force is positive. If the current closing price if lower than the preceding one, the force is negative. The greater the difference in prices is, the greater the force is. The greater the transaction volume is, the greater the force is.

FORCE INDEX (i) = VOLUME (i) * ((MA (ApPRICE, N, i) - MA (ApPRICE, N, i-1))

where:

FORCE INDEX (i) - Force Index of the current bar;

VOLUME (i) - volume of the current bar;

MA (ApPRICE, N, i) - any Moving Average of the current bar for N period:

Simple, Exponential, Weighted or Smoothed;

ApPRICE - applied price;

N - period of the smoothing;

MA (ApPRICE, N, i-1) - any Moving Average of the previous bar.