You’ve been staring at price. But the smart money’s staring at something else entirely.
You’re watching the S&P 500 Futures (ES) tick up and down like a hawk.
You’ve got your RSI, your trendlines, your support/resistance.
Maybe you even bought a course or two.
But here’s the cold, hard truth:
You’re obsessing over the wrong data.
And the stuff that actually matters?
The data that serious futures traders obsess over?
No one teaches it.
Why? Because it’s not sexy.
It doesn’t make for clickbait YouTube thumbnails.
It doesn’t fit neatly in a “MACD crossover” trading system.
But it’s the difference between reading the market…
…and reacting to it after the damage is already done.
Let’s talk about the 3 things that elite S&P futures traders track religiously — but 90% of retail traders never even hear about.
1. Open Interest: The Market’s Hidden Heartbeat
You know volume, right?
Cool.
Now forget volume for a second.
Open interest is what tells you where the real money is planted.
Unlike volume (which just tells you how much traded), open interest tells you how many contracts are still open — aka, how many traders haven’t exited.
Here’s why this matters more than you think:
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Rising price + rising open interest?
That’s new money betting the move continues. -
Rising price + falling open interest?
That’s a short squeeze or exit rally — not conviction buying.
Most retail traders ignore this completely.
Most pros watch it before entering a position.
2. Settlement Prices: The Invisible Line Everyone Respects (Except You)
You look at the day’s high and low.
You mark VWAP and maybe some fibs.
But if you’re not looking at settlement price, you’re missing a battle line.
Settlement is where institutions settle their P&L.
It’s also:
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Where margin is calculated
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Where many large traders “mark” their books
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Where open interest often resets
Think of it like a magnetic field.
Price can stray, but it’s constantly pulled back toward settlement the next day — especially in choppy, low-volume environments.
Want to know where price will gravitate overnight?
Settlement is your best clue.
And yet… how often is it on your chart?
3. Market Internals: The X-Ray Vision Retail Traders Don’t Know Exists
You’re watching ES.
Maybe even NQ.
You think you’re watching the market.
You’re not.
The real story is underneath.
Market internals are like a polygraph for price action.
They expose fake rallies, weak breakouts, and impending reversals before they happen.
Here’s what pros look at daily:
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$ADD (Advance/Decline Line): Tells you if the whole market is moving, or just a few heavyweights.
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$TICK: Shows how many stocks are ticking up vs down at any moment.
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Volume delta: Whether buying or selling is actually dominating the tape.
Pro tip:
If ES is ripping but $ADD is flat or red?
It’s probably a low-quality move.
You just avoided getting faked out.
Why No One Teaches This (Even Though It’s All That Matters)
The short answer?
It doesn’t sell.
People want:
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Instant gratification
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Indicators with arrows
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10-minute strategies that promise the moon
They don’t want to learn how to read open interest reports, interpret settlement structure, or track $TICK charts in real time.
So educators skip this stuff.
Influencers avoid it.
Brokers ignore it (until you’re liquidated).
But you know who doesn’t?
The people trading millions every single day.
They’re not watching RSI.
They’re watching internals, positioning, and structure.
And when you lose money, they’re the ones taking it.
Want to Level Up? Here’s Where to Start
Forget trying to master everything overnight.
Start with this simple routine:
🔍 Daily Checklist:
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Mark yesterday’s settlement price on your chart (it’s published by CME after 4:00 PM ET)
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Track open interest changes — rising vs falling alongside price
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Watch $ADD and $TICK if you're trading intraday moves (ThinkOrSwim and TradingView have these)
🧠 Mental Shift:
Stop asking:
“Is the price going up or down?”
Start asking:
“Is the price move backed by real participation and conviction?”
That’s the pivot from a guessing game to a trading career.
Final Thoughts: The Game Was Never About Price Alone
If you're obsessing over S&P 500 futures price movement — you're only playing half the game.
The other half is:
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Who’s behind the move?
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Are they serious?
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And are they still in?
The market is not a puzzle to be solved. It’s a story to be read.
The day you start reading open interest like a plot twist, settlement like a scene change, and market internals like character motives…
That’s the day you stop being retail.
💬 Let’s Get Real
Are you using open interest in your trading?
Have you ever checked the $TICK before taking a trade?
If not — you’re not alone.
Drop a comment, ask a question, or follow for more truths no one’s putting on their course landing pages.
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