Poor high (poor low)
Volume Profile Analysis glossary · Auction Theory & Market Profile (TPO)
Definition
A session extreme characterized by multiple tests, a flat or extended ceiling/floor, and elevated volume at the extreme; signals incomplete auction and likely future breakout.
Poor high (poor low) in plain English
A "poor high" (or "poor low") is a price ceiling or floor that looks unfinished — the market pokes at the exact same top several times, leaving a flat edge with lots of trading right at the extreme, instead of one clean spike-and-reject. It's like a crowd pressing against a door that only opens a crack each time: because so many people are still stacked there wanting through, the door probably gets shoved wide open later. In market terms, that flat, heavily-tested extreme signals the auction didn't fully finish, so price is likely to come back and break through it in the future rather than treat it as a firm boundary.
Also called: poor low
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