What is Support & Resistance?

Horizontal levels where price has repeatedly stalled — support below as a floor, resistance above as a ceiling.

Support is a price level below current price where falling markets have repeatedly stalled and bounced; resistance is a level above where rallies have repeatedly stalled and turned. These levels work partly because of memory and self-fulfilment — thousands of traders watch the same obvious levels and act at them — and partly because genuine orders cluster around prices where business was done before. When a level finally breaks, it often flips roles: old resistance becomes new support, and vice versa.

The honest caveat is that the most obvious levels are also the most exploited. Because so many stops rest just beyond well-watched support and resistance, price frequently pierces the level to collect that liquidity before making the real move — which is why we teach students to think of these as zones rather than exact lines, and to expect the fakeout rather than be surprised by it. Support and resistance remain the foundation on which range, breakout and liquidity concepts are built; the refinement is learning when a break is genuine and when it is a sweep.