What it means
Watch the word distribution: in Wyckoff it is a topping range, in ICT's AMD it is the day's real move.
In practice
Wyckoff described how large operators build a position quietly in a sideways range before a trend, and unload it in another range at the top. Traders use his phases to judge whether a range is more likely accumulation or distribution.
The spring, a brief drop below the range that quickly recovers, is the classic entry point. Volume plays a major part: effort without result is a warning.
What to watch for
The schematics are tidy and real ranges are not; the same range can be read either way until it breaks. It takes patience, because the phases can last weeks.
Related terms
3 terms- Power of 3ICT's idea that a candle forms in three phases: accumulation, manipulation (a false move) and distribution (the real move).
- Liquidity sweepPrice wicking through an obvious high or low to take the stops, then closing back inside and reversing.
- Dow theoryCharles Dow's ideas, developed by Hamilton in 1922: trends defined by highs and lows, three trends at once, and confirmation.