Overview
Bullish Opening Marubozu
Yoritsuki Marubozu
Also known as: Opening Shaven Bottom, No Lower Shadow Candle
The Opening Marubozu is a bullish candle with no lower shadow — the open IS the low — showing that from the moment the session opened, buyers were in control and never let price trade below the open.
The Opening Marubozu (also called Shaven Bottom) opens at the session's low and advances higher, potentially closing with a small upper shadow. The critical feature is the absence of any lower shadow: buyers controlled price from the very first trade. Unlike the full Marubozu that has no shadows at all, the Opening Marubozu allows a small upper shadow, indicating some profit-taking near the close but not enough to negate the bullish signal. The open-at-the-low characteristic shows that demand was present from the opening tick, which is a strong bullish signal, especially in the context of an uptrend or breakout.
History & Etymology
The Opening Marubozu is one of the fundamental candle types documented in Japanese candlestick analysis. The distinction between opening, closing, and full marubozus reflects the Japanese attention to the significance of different parts of the candle.
Marubozu means 'bald head' in Japanese. 'Opening' refers to the shaven side being at the open (bottom of the candle) — the open has no shadow 'hair.'
How It Forms
Formation Steps
- 1A bullish candle where the open price equals the session low (no lower shadow)
- 2The candle may have a small upper shadow
- 3The body is long, showing strong buying throughout the session
Prerequisites
- No lower shadow — open is at the absolute low of the session
- A bullish (green/white) body
- The body should be significantly larger than any upper shadow
Confirmation Signals
- Next candle continues higher
- Above-average volume
- Part of an uptrend or breakout
Invalidation Signals
- Immediate reversal next session
- Large bearish engulfing follows
- Low volume
Candle Breakdown
Opening Marubozu
A bullish candle opening at the session low with no lower shadow
Buyers dominated from the opening tick. There was never a moment of weakness or hesitation. Any upper shadow shows minor profit-taking but does not negate the signal.
Psychology
The Opening Marubozu shows that buyers were present and aggressive from the very start of the session. Not a single tick traded below the open, indicating strong pre-session demand.
Buyer Perspective
Buyers had conviction from the open. They never had to defend lower prices because demand was so strong that the open was the lowest price of the day.
Seller Perspective
Sellers never gained even momentary control. Any selling was absorbed instantly, preventing any decline from the open.
Smart Money Action
Institutional buy programs executing from the open create this pattern. The lack of any lower shadow shows their orders provided a floor at the opening price.
Retail Trader Trap
Retail traders waiting for a pullback to enter never get one — the open was the pullback.
Emotional Cycle
Trading Strategy
Aggressive Entry
Enter at the close of the opening marubozu.
Conservative Entry
Wait for any pullback to the marubozu's body midpoint.
1:1 R:R.
Next resistance level.
2:1 R:R.
Best Conditions
- Timeframe: daily
- Timeframe: 4h
- Timeframe: weekly
- uptrend continuation
- breakout confirmation
- bullish market
- Asset: stocks
- Asset: forex
- Asset: indices
- Asset: crypto
Avoid When
- Timeframe: 1m
- Timeframe: 5m
- end of extended move
- overbought
- declining sector
Confluence Factors
- Uptrend context
- Breakout from a pattern
- High volume
- Sector strength
- Momentum indicators positive
Scale In Strategy
Enter on the marubozu, add on pullbacks to the open price.
Scale Out Strategy
Scale out at resistance levels.
Risk Management
Volume Analysis
Volume Confirmation
Above-average volume confirms institutional buying.
Volume Profile
Heavy volume throughout the session is ideal.
Volume Divergence
Low volume reduces significance.
Technical Confluence
Support Resistance
The open price (session low) becomes a precise support level.
Fibonacci Levels
Pullbacks to the 38.2% of the marubozu body often hold.
Moving Averages
Opening marubozu breaking above a MA confirms the MA as new support.
Rsi Confirmation
RSI rising above 50 or trending higher confirms momentum.
Macd Confirmation
MACD positive and rising on the marubozu day.
Bollinger Bands
Breaking above the upper band shows strong momentum.
Vwap
Entire session above VWAP confirms institutional buying.
Ichimoku Cloud
Above the cloud with a marubozu confirms trend strength.
Elliott Wave
Often appears in Wave 3 candles.
Wyckoff Phase
Can be the sign of strength in markup.
Market Profile
Creates a one-time frame (trending) day on the market profile.
Order Flow
Continuous buy aggression with no sell-initiated pullbacks.
Open Interest
Rising OI confirms new long positions.
Multi-Timeframe Analysis
Higher Timeframe Alignment
A daily opening marubozu in a weekly uptrend is a strong continuation signal.
Lower Timeframe Entry
Use 4H for pullback entries to the marubozu's open.
Timeframe Confluence
Opening marubozus on multiple timeframes are extremely bullish.
Top-Down Approach
Confirm weekly trend, trade daily opening marubozus in that direction.
Statistics
Historical Examples
Google Opening Marubozu Breakout
successGoogle printed an opening marubozu on earnings day, opening at the session low and rallying throughout. The pattern confirmed the breakout and Google continued higher.
Lesson: Opening marubozus on earnings days are strong confirmation signals.
Variations
Full Marubozu
No shadows at all — both open=low and close=high.
Closing Marubozu
No upper shadow but may have a lower shadow.
Confusion Matrix
Patterns commonly confused with Bullish Opening Marubozu and how to distinguish them.
Bullish Marubozu
9000% similarCheck for an upper shadow. If none, it's a full marubozu. If there's a small upper shadow but no lower shadow, it's an opening marubozu.
Key Differences
- Full marubozu has no shadows at all
- Opening marubozu may have an upper shadow
Bullish Belt Hold
8000% similarBoth open at the low. The opening marubozu is slightly stricter about having no lower shadow at all.
Key Differences
- Belt hold may have a slightly larger upper shadow
- Opening marubozu has a stricter no-lower-shadow requirement
The bearish opening marubozu is a single candle where the open equals the high (no upper shadow), showing that sellers took immediate control at the open and maintained pressure throughout the session. A small lower shadow may be present.
The Bullish Belt Hold is a single-candle reversal pattern that opens at the low of the session and rallies strongly to close near the high, signaling a potential shift from bearish to bullish control.
The Bullish Closing Marubozu is a single-candle pattern where the close equals the session high (no upper shadow), signaling that buyers maintained control through the closing bell with zero pullback.
The Gap and Go occurs when price gaps up on a catalyst, and instead of filling the gap, continues higher as momentum buying drives the stock to new levels throughout the session.
The Bullish Marubozu is a single candle with no shadows — it opens at the low and closes at the high, representing complete buyer dominance throughout the entire session with no seller resistance.
The Bearish Belt Hold is a single bearish candle that opens at its high and closes near its low with a long body, indicating that sellers dominated from the opening bell and controlled price action throughout the session.
Pro Tips & Common Mistakes
Pro Tips
- The open price is the key level — if price pulls back to the open and holds, it's a buying opportunity
- In practice, a tiny lower shadow (under 5% of the body) is acceptable for a 'near' opening marubozu
- Opening marubozus on breakout days from consolidation patterns are particularly powerful
- Volume matters — an opening marubozu on low volume is less reliable than one on heavy volume
- The upper shadow, if present, should be small relative to the body
Common Mistakes
- Buying at the close when the upper shadow is large (indicates selling pressure at the high)
- Not checking that the open truly equals the low (even a small lower shadow changes the pattern)
- Ignoring context — an opening marubozu after a huge run-up may signal exhaustion
- Setting stops too far from the open, degrading risk-reward
- Confusing with a belt hold when the distinction doesn't materially affect the trade
Advanced Techniques
- Use the opening marubozu's open price as a future support level for pullback entries
- Combine with market profile analysis — an opening marubozu creates a trending day profile
- Track opening marubozus at breakout levels to confirm the validity of the breakout
- Use the body's midpoint as a trailing stop reference
Institutional Perspective
The absence of any lower shadow on a bullish candle is a hallmark of institutional buy programs executing from the open. The 'no lower shadow' characteristic means institutional bids prevented any decline from the open price.
Fun Facts
- The term 'shaven bottom' refers to the candle's bottom (open/low) being perfectly smooth with no shadow.
- Opening marubozus are more common than full marubozus because some profit-taking at the close is natural.
- Algorithmic trading has made opening marubozus more frequent as buy programs often activate at the market open.
Frequently Asked Questions
A bullish candle where the open equals the session low (no lower shadow). It may have a small upper shadow. This shows buyers controlled price from the opening tick.
A full Marubozu has no shadows at all (open=low AND close=high). An Opening Marubozu only requires open=low; it allows a small upper shadow.