Why Is a Sudden, Large Price Change More Detrimental than a Gradual One for Impermanent Loss?

The magnitude of impermanent loss is determined solely by the final divergence of the price ratio from the initial deposit ratio, not the speed of the change. Therefore, a sudden, large price change is detrimental because it immediately results in a large price divergence.

A gradual change reaching the same final divergence would result in the same total impermanent loss. However, a sudden change might mean less time for fees to accumulate to offset the loss.