Most anchored VWAPs are intraday. Anchor one to the yearly open (or the quarterly open) and you get the volume-weighted average price of everyone who has traded this year — a major line that separates a market broadly in profit from one broadly underwater. It's the big-picture context behind your fast trades.
Why the yearly anchor is a major level
Price above the yearly-open anchored VWAP means the average participant this year is green — a bull backdrop where dips get bought. Below it means the average is red — a bear backdrop where rallies get sold. It's one of the most-watched macro reference lines, so approaches to it draw reactions, and a decisive reclaim or loss of it is a regime-scale event. It anchors the whole higher-timeframe picture your multi-timeframe read hangs on.
How it frames scalps
You don't scalp the yearly VWAP directly — you use it as backdrop bias. When SPY is comfortably above it (bull backdrop), lean toward buying dips and trusting up-moves; below it (bear backdrop), respect downside and be quicker to fade rallies. And when price approaches the yearly line intraday, treat it as a major level — expect a reaction, and watch for a big rejection or a decisive reclaim.
The yearly-open VWAP is the market's cost basis for the year. Above it is a different world than below it — and it colors every scalp inside.
The frame
Like every VWAP, it's context, not a trigger — a big-picture bias line, not an intraday entry. It's most powerful when a major approach to it lines up with a dealer level or a weekly volume shelf. Use it to set your default lean for the session and to flag the rare day price tests a level this significant.