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Glossary · Indicators

Ichimoku Kinko Hyo

A Japanese all-in-one indicator with five lines — Tenkan, Kijun, two Senkou spans forming the cloud, and Chikou — showing trend, momentum and levels.

By Sky Trade editorial teamUpdated

Ichimoku Kinko Hyo (roughly “equilibrium chart at a glance”), developed by Goichi Hosoda, plots five components:

  • Tenkan-sen: the midpoint of the 9-period high and low;
  • Kijun-sen: the midpoint of the 26-period high and low;
  • Senkou Span A and B: two lines projected 26 periods ahead that form the kumo, or cloud;
  • Chikou Span: the close plotted 26 periods back.

The basic reading: price above the cloud suggests an uptrend, below it a downtrend, inside it uncertainty. Tenkan crossing Kijun is a momentum signal, and the cloud's edges act as support and resistance zones.

Ichimoku looks overwhelming at first, and the most common mistake is trying to use every line at once. Start with the cloud as a trend filter and add the rest gradually. The system was designed for daily charts; on very short timeframes it produces many conflicting signals. And because it is built from past highs and lows, all of its lines lag — even the ones drawn into the future.

The Sky Trade terminal includes Ichimoku among its trend indicators. The detailed guide is Ichimoku explained; compare it with simpler ways of reading a trend.

Example

On H1, EUR/USD trades at 1.0890 above a cloud spanning 1.0860–1.0875, with Tenkan (1.0885) above Kijun (1.0878). Every component leans bullish, which is still not a forecast for the next five minutes.

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