what is a line graph 
a line graph also known as a line plot or a line chart is a graph that uses lines to connect individual data points a line graph displays quantitative values over a specified time interval in finance line graphs are commonly used to depict the historical price action of an asset or security line graphs can be compared with other visualizations of data including bar charts pie charts and in trading candlestick charts among others understanding line graphsline graphs use data point markers which are connected by straight lines these data points connected by straight lines aid in visualization while line graphs are used across many different fields for different purposes they are especially helpful when it is necessary to create a graphical depiction of changes in values over time line graphs are often used in finance to create visual representations of values over time including changes in the prices of securities company revenue sheets and histories of major stock indexes they are also useful for comparing different securities in investing specifically with respect to the field of technical analysis line graphs are used by investors to visualize trends which can greatly aid them in their analyses there are some limitations to line graphs for example line graphs often lose clarity when there are too many data points it is also easy to manipulate them visually in order to achieve certain effects for example the apparent degree of change can be visually manipulated by adjusting the range of data points on the axes line graphs can be constructed manually or by using software such as microsoft excel the latter greatly improves the speed and accuracy of the end product constructing a line graphline graphs consist of two axes x axis horizontal and y axis vertical each axis represents a different data type and the points at which they intersect is 0 0 the x axis is the independent axis because its values are not dependent on anything measured the y axis is the dependent axis because its values depend on the x axis s values each axis should be labeled according to the data measured along that axis then each axis should be divided in appropriate increments e g day one day two etc for example if measuring the changes in a stock s prices for the previous two weeks the x axis would represent the time measured trading days within the period and the y axis would represent stock prices 