CVD (Cumulative Volume Delta)
The running sum of delta (aggressive buys minus sells) across the session.
CVD adds delta candle after candle to show net pressure over time. A divergence between price and CVD (price up, CVD down) often reveals a move without conviction, ready to reverse.
In depth
Where a candle's delta is a snapshot of the balance of power, CVD is the movie: it stacks those deltas to draw a curve of net pressure since the session's start. A rising slope = aggressive buyers dominate over time; a falling slope = sellers. CVD turns a noisy input (delta candle by candle) into a readable underlying trend.
Its main value is reading divergences and absorption at session scale. Price climbing while CVD stalls or falls signals a rise with no aggressive buying behind it, often driven by sellers simply stepping aside, a fragile fuel. Conversely, CVD rising hard while price doesn't follow reveals absorption: someone is passively selling everything buyers throw at the market.
On DeepCharts, overlay CVD on price across the day and compare their highs and lows. The most actionable signals show up at extremes: a new price high not matched by CVD (buyer exhaustion), or a new price low while CVD turns up (absorption, possible bullish reversal).
Price makes a new high but CVD stays flat → buyers running out of steam.
Comparing CVD across instruments or across days as if on the same scale. CVD is relative: its absolute value only means something within a given session and instrument. What matters is its slope and divergences, not the raw number.
Frequently asked
CVD vs delta: what's the exact difference?
Delta is the net pressure of a single candle. CVD is the cumulative sum of all deltas since the session's start: it shows the underlying trend of pressure, where delta only shows one moment.
Does CVD reset each day?
Usually yes, at the session open, to stay comparable within a day. Some traders also use an event-anchored CVD to measure pressure from a specific point.
Is a CVD divergence a reliable sell signal?
It's a context warning, not an entry order. The divergence can last. Pair it with a level (liquidity wall, VWAP) and a price trigger to turn it into a trade.
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