Why Recording a Chart's Reference Time Makes Analysis Verifiable
Distinguish the exchange time zone, chart display time, and retrieval time. Learn to avoid treating unfinished candles as final data and record the sequence of disclosures and price observations.
Chart analysis should record not only the instrument and candle timeframe but also the time of the latest trade included. An intraday current price differs from a confirmed close, and the date on screen does not always match the exchange's trading date. Separating when you viewed the data from the data's own reference time makes later verification easier.
Record three times separately
The first is the market time when the trade occurred, the second is the time zone configured for the chart display, and the third is when the analyst retrieved the data. Viewing an overseas market from Korea can put these on different calendar dates. A screenshot created today does not mean its latest price comes from a trade today. Check whether the data is delayed or shows the last close while the market is shut. If the chart provides no reference time, consult the data provider's guidance. If the timing cannot be verified, do not describe the price as real time.
Define what completes the observation period
For daily analysis, check whether the candle's trading session has ended; for weekly analysis, check whether it includes the week's final trading day. An unfinished candle's high, low, and current price can keep changing. If you use intraday alerts, record the signal time and the closing-confirmation result on separate lines. If your condition requires the close but you evaluate an entry at a brief intraday crossing, you have changed the rule. Data may also be corrected later, so for important analyses preserve the source and figures as they were when retrieved.
Align disclosure release times with price data
Knowing which quarter earnings cover is a separate question from when those results became public to the market. Applying post-announcement information to a pre-announcement chart prevents you from reconstructing the decisions possible at the time. Check whether the disclosure came during trading or after the session, then observe the subsequent price reaction separately. If international time zones or seasonal clock changes make the sequence confusing, convert the dates and record them with explicit time zones. Do not establish the order of events merely because a news date matches a chart date.
Worked example
Hypothetical example: Suppose your analysis notes record retrieval at 22:12 Korean time, a price timestamp of 09:12 in the market's local time, and an end time of 09:10 for the last completed 5-minute candle. You also need to check whether the on-screen 09:10 label indicates the candle's start or end. If a disclosure was released at 09:11 local time, a candle already completed at 09:10 cannot include the reaction to it. These illustrative times do not represent any particular exchange's operating hours.
What to check
- Record the retrieval time separately from the data's reference time.
- Distinguish the exchange time zone from the chart's display time zone.
- Check whether the last candle's timestamp marks its start or end and whether it is complete.
- Do not mix information learned later into prices observed before a disclosure's release.
Sources and primary materials
This is educational material about research methods. For an actual company decision, verify the filings and primary sources for the relevant period.