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Squeezed

Being forced out of a position by an adverse move, particularly a short forced to cover into rising prices.

Getting squeezed means the move against you compelled the exit - through margin requirements, a broker buy-in, or simply a loss too large to carry. The forced buying then pushes price further, which squeezes the next participant, which is the mechanism of a short-squeeze.

It can happen to longs too, in a fast decline where liquidation cascades. What makes it a squeeze rather than a loss is that the exit was not chosen: position size and leverage decided it. Sizing to survive the plausible adverse move is the only defence that works in advance.

Related: short-squeeze, liquidation, margin-call, weak-hands

See it drawn

Original diagrams for the ideas on this page. Illustrative, not real market data.

Bollinger bands squeezing and then expandingA price line between three curves: an average in the middle and a band above and below it that pinch together in the centre of the chart and then spread apart as the price runs higher.PRICE WITH BOLLINGER BANDS (20, 2)SQUEEZEupper bandpricemiddle band20-day averagelower bandbands widen asvolatility risesIllustrative prices. The bands sit two standard deviations from the average.
Bollinger bands: squeeze and expansion. The middle line is a 20-day average and the outer bands sit a set number of standard deviations away, so they measure how far price has recently been straying. When moves are small the bands pinch together; when moves grow they spread apart.
Margin and leverageA small deposit controlling a much larger position, and the point at which losses trigger a margin call.Position you controlnotional value $100,000your margin deposit: $5,000$100,000 / $5,000 = 20:1 leverageYour deposit absorbs every dollar of loss$5,000$2,500$0Equity leftMARGIN CALLequity has fallen to $2,5000%1%2%2.5%3%4%5%How far the price moves against you
Margin and leverage. A $5,000 deposit can control a $100,000 position, which is 20:1 leverage. Because the loss is measured on the full $100,000, a 2.5% move against you halves the deposit and brings a margin call, and a 5% move uses all of it.

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