Market StructureTick Volume
Volume
A measure of trading activity - genuine contracts traded on an exchange, but only tick counts on a retail forex platform.
What Volume means
On a centralised exchange, volume is the number of contracts or shares actually traded in a period, reported by the venue and identical for every participant. It is a direct measure of participation and is used to confirm breakouts, validate trends and build tools such as volume profile and volume-weighted average price. Currency futures publish this genuine volume alongside open interest.
Spot forex has no central exchange and no consolidated tape, so retail platforms cannot show true traded volume. The histogram labelled volume in most forex terminals is tick volume: the count of price updates in each bar, not the amount transacted. It correlates reasonably well with real activity because busy markets update more often, so it remains useful for gauging relative intensity across the session. It is not comparable between brokers, however, since each receives a different feed.
Worked example
An hourly EUR/USD bar showing volume of 1,450 in a forex terminal means 1,450 price updates arrived in that hour, not 1,450 lots traded.
Related terms
- TickA single change in the quoted price - in forex any new quote update, and on an exchange the minimum price increment.
- Open InterestThe total number of derivative contracts still outstanding and not yet closed or settled at the end of a session.
- Currency FuturesStandardised, exchange-traded contracts to exchange currency at a set price on a fixed future settlement date.
- Volume ProfileA histogram of traded volume at each price level, highlighting the point of control and the value area.
- VWAP (Volume Weighted Average Price)The average price weighted by volume across a session, used as an execution benchmark and intraday fair-value line.
Frequently asked questions
What does Volume mean in forex trading?
A measure of trading activity - genuine contracts traded on an exchange, but only tick counts on a retail forex platform.
How does Volume work in practice?
Spot forex has no central exchange and no consolidated tape, so retail platforms cannot show true traded volume. The histogram labelled volume in most forex terminals is tick volume: the count of price updates in each bar, not the amount transacted. It correlates reasonably well with real activity because busy markets update more often, so it remains useful for gauging relative intensity across the session. It is not comparable between brokers, however, since each receives a different feed.
What is an example of Volume?
An hourly EUR/USD bar showing volume of 1,450 in a forex terminal means 1,450 price updates arrived in that hour, not 1,450 lots traded.
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