Market Manipulation
Volume Spread Analysis glossary · Supply & Demand / Smart Money
Definition
Professional probing of the market — most often early morning, late session, before holidays, or around news events when thin participation lets operators move price without committing capital. Stops at irregular numbers (e.g. $48.37 instead of $49.90) avoid the obvious round-number levels that manipulation runs through.
Market Manipulation in plain English
Big operators sometimes nudge prices around not because they truly want to buy or sell, but to test how the market reacts and to trip other traders' safety nets. They do this when few people are trading — early morning, late in the day, before holidays, or during news — because with hardly anyone around, a small push moves the price a lot without them spending much money. A clever defense is to place your exit order at an odd number like $48.37 instead of a tidy $49.90, since these fishing expeditions tend to sweep through the obvious round numbers where everyone clusters.
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