Exponential Moving Average: How To Leverage It In Crypto Market?

EMA is used to track and respond to the most recent changes in the price of a particular asset, stock, or cryptocurrency.

By Coingape Staff
Updated on March 15, 2023

Several indicators are available for cryptocurrency to help traders hone their skills, but one, in particular, stands out is EMA, or Exponential Moving Average.

Technically, an asset, stock, or cryptocurrency’s Exponential Moving Average (EMA) highlights recent price changes and data points while maintaining older chart observations. While a SMA only calculates the average of an asset’s closing prices over a specified period, an EMA also takes into account the most recent price movements. For instance, to determine an asset’s SMA for the previous 20 days, we would divide the closing prices by 20. Calculating the Exponential Moving Average of the same asset requires a few extra steps. Let’s examine the exponential moving average formula and how to use it to our advantage when trading cryptocurrencies.

Key Takeaways

The EMA is a moving average that increases the importance and weight of the most recent data points.

Like all moving averages, this technical indicator produces buy and sell signals based on crossovers and divergences from the historical average.

A few examples of the various EMA lengths that traders frequently use are the 10-day, 50-day, and 200-day moving averages.

What Is an EMA (Exponential Moving Average)?

The moving average (MA) type, known as the exponential moving average (EMA) gives more weight to recent price information. As a result, traders who are looking for recent price changes of an asset prefer it.

The exponential moving average (EMA) responds quickly to changes in asset prices in the financial market, in contrast to other moving averages. Traders who want to monitor and react to the most recent changes in the price of a specific asset, stock, or cryptocurrency draw an EMA line using the indicator.

An uptrend, or to put it simply, a bullish signal, is represented whenever the candles are above the EMA lines. Look at the above chart and note how the yellow line responds to sudden price changes. From the left, note how a bullish pattern developed after two candles formed above the yellow EMA line. As long as the price of this asset didn’t drop below the point at which the purple EMA line was crossed, it remained bullish. A sizable candle, however, fell below the purple line near the graph’s end, and the market kept falling. Due to its ability to predict future prices by examining past price trends of an asset on the financial markets, EMA is highly regarded by traders.

Exponential Moving Average formula

The mathematical formula for the exponential moving average is –

Here EMA is the exponential moving average.

What does the exponential moving average calculation indicate?

The most frequently cited and studied short-term averages are the exponential moving averages (EMAs) of 12 and 26 days. Indicators like the moving average convergence divergence (MACD) and the percentage price oscillator (PPO) are made using the 12- and 26-day. Generally, long-term trend indicators are used with the 50- and 200-day EMAs. It is a technical indicator of a reversal when a stock price crosses its 200-day moving average.

An EMA does help to lessen the detrimental effects of lags. The EMA calculation “hugs” the price action a little bit more closely and reacts faster because it gives more weight to the most recent data.

EMAs work much better in trending markets than all other moving average indicators. The EMA indicator line will display an uptrend when the market is strong and prolonged and a downtrend when it is the opposite. A watchful trader will focus on the direction of the EMA line and the relationship between the rate of change from one bar to the next. For example, a strong uptrend’s price action starts to flatten and turn around. It might be time to change to a more bullish investment from the perspective of opportunity costs.

Examples of using the exponential moving average

EMAs in conjunction with other indicators validate important market movements and assess their veracity. The EMA is more useful for traders who trade within one day and in volatile markets. Traders frequently use EMAs to establish a trading bias. A trader who trades intraday may only do so on the long side if an EMA on a daily chart exhibits a solid upward trend.

Here is a perfect illustration of EMA on the Ethereum chart. A bullish reversal pattern called “three inside up” is formed by the price of Ethereum on the daily chart. If the buying pressure remains constant, the price will eventually reach the 50-day EMA (Exponential Moving Average), which is located at $2,820.

Conclusion
Moving averages are extremely helpful and insightful for traders using technical analysis properly. However, they know that if these signals are used improperly or are misinterpreted, they can cause havoc. Technical analysis frequently employs moving averages, which are all lagging indicators.

As a result, conclusions drawn from using a moving average on a particular market chart should either confirm a market move or show how strong it is. The best time to enter the market has typically passed before a moving average signal a trend change.

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Disclaimer

CoinGape comprises an experienced team of native content writers and editors working round the clock to cover news globally and present news as a fact rather than an opinion. CoinGape writers and reporters contributed to this article.

The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.