Reading the market regime before prices move

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CHART PATTERN · Continuation patterns

Bear flag

Bear Flag
Slope: falling Span: days to weeks

Terms on this page: Volume · Structural Invalidation (Structural Invalidation)

Bear flag: a chart with a worked exampleWorked example of a Bear Flag over 64 sessions. Trigger at the close of session 38 near $56.8. Target $42.4. Invalidation $59.2.SignalTargetInvalidationPoleFlag59.2$42.4$50$Volume03264 sessions
Bear flag: a chart with a worked exampleWorked example of a Bear Flag over 64 sessions. Trigger at the close of session 38 near $56.8. Target $42.4. Invalidation $59.2.SignalTargetInvalidationPoleFlag59.2$42.4$50$Volume03264 sessions
A worked example that explains the rule, not a stock price. The circle marks the first close beyond the level. The blue line is the target. The orange line is the invalidation. Prices are in the right-hand column, and sessions sit under the volume bar. Hollow green candles closed above their open, and filled red candles closed below it.

Numbers in the example chart

From the same calculation that draws the shape and writes the "Measuring the target" section below.
Trigger level $56.8 · at the close of session 38
Target 42.4$
Invalidation 59.2$
Pattern height 14.4$
Chart span 64 sessions

What it is

A sharp drop followed by a narrow bounce sloping up. The bounce is not a recovery. It is a pause while sellers reposition.

When the trigger starts and when it fails

Signal

A close below the flag's lower boundary.

Invalidation · Structural Invalidation

A close above the highest high in the flag.

Reading it stage by stage

  1. Pole A sharp drop on heavy volume.
  2. Flag A narrow bounce sloping up on shrinking volume · a repositioning, not a recovery.
  3. Break A close below the flag's lower boundary. ⚠ Enter at the break, not inside the flag: bear-market bounces are violent and shake out early entries.

Recognition rules

  • A sharp falling pole on heavy volume.
  • The flag is a narrow channel sloping up.
  • Volume fades during the bounce.
  • Confirmation is a break below the flag's lower boundary.

Measuring the target

The pole's length is subtracted from the break point.

Where it fools you

  • Sharp bounces in falling markets are violent, and a bounce can easily stop out an early seller before the pattern plays out. Enter at the break, not inside the flag.

Where to find it on the platform

  • Technical terminal · drawing tools Members only
    Open the daily timeframe for any symbol and draw the pattern yourself. Your drawing is saved per symbol in your browser, and the terminal does not name or detect the pattern.
    • ╱ Trendline Flag
    • ⇕ Measure Target equals pattern height
We do not detect chart patterns with a numeric rule: telling them apart takes judgment on the chart. Candlestick patterns with a numeric rule are detected daily by the candlestick pattern scanner.

Patterns from the same family

Bull flag Bull Flag Bull pennant Bull Pennant Bear pennant Bear Pennant Ascending Triangle Ascending Triangle Descending triangle Descending Triangle Rectangle (sideways range) Rectangle / Trading Range

Back to the chart pattern encyclopedia or Japanese candlestick patterns.