Bluffers/flippers/flashers...

What are they?

They are an above average number of orders placed at the bid/ask price in order to influence the market in a certain direction without the intention of being hit/filled. These orders are often refreshed in order to keep them at the back of the queue so that the person asking/bidding the large size isn't hit.

The following is a Time and Sales printout from 26 August 2004 at 10:07 EST. I'll tell you what was happening below.

The prices and quotes are scrolling from the top down so read from the bottom up. At 10:07:11 there are 4676 contracts bid at 1104.75 and 2870 offered at 1105.00 (4 lines from the bottom). We then see the offer side drop in the following form in less that a second:

Bid Change
4675
4600 -75
4300 -300
3825 -475
2625 -1200
1350 -1275

This is what the 1 minute chart looked like at that time:

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