When a pullback is deep enough to abandon

Traders often ask for a percentage: “Is a 50% retracement too deep?” Percentages ignore the shape of the prior impulse. In swing trading chart analysis we grade pullbacks against the last impulsive leg and the nearest broken level that should now act as support or resistance.

A deep pullback that still holds above a freshly broken consolidation can remain a continuation candidate. A shallower pullback that slices back through that same zone and closes beyond it usually ends the thesis, even if the percentage look “mild.”

During the intensive we practise labelling pullbacks as A, B, or C quality before discussing entries. Letters force a decision; vague language allows hope to linger on charts that have already failed.