GlossaryIntermediate
Commodity Channel Index (CCI)
An unbounded oscillator measuring how far price has deviated from its statistical average, used to flag overbought/oversold extremes and emerging trends.
The Commodity Channel Index (CCI), developed by Donald Lambert, measures how far a typical price has deviated from its own statistical average over a set period, scaled relative to that deviation's normal variability.
Unlike RSI or the Stochastic Oscillator, CCI is unbounded rather than fixed to a 0-100 range, which lets it register increasingly extreme readings during a strong, sustained move rather than capping out. See Kaavon's dedicated CCI article for the full calculation.
Examples
- CCI readings above +100 or below -100 are commonly discussed as the start of a potentially strong trending move, rather than a fixed overbought/oversold boundary.
- Because CCI is unbounded, it can continue registering more extreme readings throughout a strong, sustained trend, unlike a capped 0-100 oscillator.