What is a Bearish Harami Candlestick Pattern?
A bearish harami is a two-candle reversal pattern that forms at the top of an uptrend. You get a large bullish candle, then a smaller bearish candle whose real body sits fully inside the first candle's body. The first candle closes higher. The second one closes lower while staying inside the prior session's range.
What Does a Bearish Harami Candlestick Pattern Indicate?
A bearish harami shows buyers losing momentum. After a strong push higher, sellers stepped in hard enough to close the next session lower without breaking the prior candle's range.
Candle one shows demand and momentum. Candle two shows hesitation, profit-taking, and sellers grabbing enough control to print a lower close. The trend remains intact, and momentum has shifted.
Is the Bearish Harami Candlestick Pattern Bullish or Bearish?
The pattern is bearish. It functions as an early warning and requires confirmation before action.
At the top of an uptrend, sellers have entered and buyers have hesitated. Until you get follow-through on the next candle, treat the pattern as a setup that requires confirmation.
How to Identify a Bearish Harami Candlestick Pattern?
Look for a large green candle inside an uptrend, immediately followed by a smaller red candle whose body sits fully inside the green one's body.
- Prior context: a clear uptrend or rally pushing into a swing high or overhead supply.
- Candle 1: long bullish real body with a strong close relative to its open.
- Candle 2: bearish close with a smaller real body than candle 1.
- Containment rule: candle 2's open AND close both sit between candle 1's open and close. Wicks don't count for this rule.
How to Trade a Bearish Harami Candlestick Pattern?
Don't short the harami itself. Wait for a confirmation candle that proves sellers can break the structure, define your risk above the pattern, then aim for the next support area below.
- Entry: short on a close below the low of the two-candle formation. Or wait for a break-and-retest of that low from below for a cleaner setup.
- Stop loss: above the high of candle 1 (the bullish "mother bar"). If the nearest swing high is tighter and still valid structure, use that instead.
- Targets: first target at the nearest prior support or swing low. Extended target at the base of the prior impulse leg or the next demand zone.
- Invalidation: a close back above candle 1's high cancels the trade.
What Happens After a Bearish Harami Candlestick Pattern?
Two outcomes follow: price breaks down into a real pullback or reversal, or it compresses into a tight consolidation before picking a side.
Clean follow-through produces a downside break that accelerates as late buyers exit and sellers hammer the weak spots in the prior rally.
The common failure produces a brief pause that resolves higher, with the next candles holding above the harami low and reclaiming the upper range of the mother bar. When that happens, the reversal has failed.
What are the Different Types of Bearish Harami Candlestick Patterns?
The main variant is the bearish harami cross — same structure, but the second candle is a doji instead of a small bearish body. That tightens the indecision signal and produces a stronger reversal signal at tops.
Traders also discuss looser "inside body" versions where the second candle is small and contained but barely closes red. These are weaker signals. They require stronger confirmation before you commit risk.