Trading volume refers to the total number of shares or contracts traded in a given period. It's used to measure the market's activity and liquidity.

Nearly every trading and charting platform displays trading volume in a bar chart at the bottom of the price chart. Here is an example of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares from Stockcharts.com.

Understanding how to read a candlestick chart can be a real asset during your investment journey. With that in mind, we'll ...