PLUS_DI: Plus Directional Indicator

TL;DR

Measures upward directional movement strength as a percentage (0-100).

Introduction

The Plus Directional Indicator (+DI) measures the strength of upward price movement relative to the true range. It is one of the components of the Directional Movement System developed by J. Welles Wilder Jr.

When +DI is rising, upward price pressure is increasing. When +DI crosses above -DI, it signals a potential bullish trend. The +DI line is commonly plotted alongside -DI to visualize directional balance.

Calculation

+DI = Smoothed(+DM) / Smoothed(TR) × 100

Where:

+DM (Plus Directional Movement) = max(High - PrevHigh, 0) when High - PrevHigh > PrevLow - Low, else 0
TR (True Range) = max(High - Low, |High - PrevClose|, |Low - PrevClose|)
Smoothing uses Wilder's method: Smooth = Smooth - Smooth/N + Input

Parameters

Parameter	Default	Range	Description
Period	14	2-∞	Wilder smoothing period

Interpretation

Rising +DI: Strengthening upward movement
+DI > -DI: Bulls dominate; potential uptrend
+DI crossover above -DI: Bullish signal
High +DI (>40): Strong upward momentum

References

Wilder, J. Welles Jr. "New Concepts in Technical Trading Systems" (1978)

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