Sunday, August 9, 2009
Changing your life with Forex Trading
Forex is simple and our course keeps it that way. But far too often people are frightened because they think it's too much for them to grasp.
My Forex Training Works course is designed especially for the 'know NOTHING' beginner. Much of the course material is sent out in picture form and Iuse videos a lot too. It's simply a great way to get points across without information overload. The course is fun and gives you loads of free time too.
Deadly Forex Mistakes That Assure Failure
First of all, make sure you don't have a trading system. Having a trading system might increase the odds of your success. If you have a system, you will have an objective way to get in and out the market. When traders create their trading systems they think objectively since there is no position to be taken at the moment. If there is no position to be taken, there is also no money at risk, if there is no money at risk, we do think objectively and are open to every possibility, thus we are able to find low risk trading opportunities. So make sure you don't have a system and trade based on a randomly approach.
If you have already created your system, then don't follow it, be undisciplined. If you follow your system, there is a possibility that you can profit from the Forex market based on the trading opportunities you have found. If you want to fail on your trading, be sure to be undisciplined.
Don't get educated. Most successful traders are very well educated in the market they trade (stocks, Forex, futures, etc.) If you get educated, you might acquire the knowledge and experience you require to master the Forex market. Don't read about the Forex market, don't enroll into Forex training programs and don't even look at historical charts.
Don't use any money management technique. The purpose of money management is to avoid the risk of ruin, but at the same time it helps you boost your profits, allowing them to grow geometrically. For instance, by using no money management techniques, there is a possibility that in loosing 10 trades in a row you could empty your trading account. On the other hand, by applying simple money management techniques you can avoid it. So make sure, if you want to fail, don't even consider money management.
Main Drawbacks of Forex Traders
The main purpose of this article is to guide you through some important aspects of Forex trading. But in a different way, instead of telling you what to do or the best way to do it, it will tell you what to avoid. Sometimes it is better to identify the main drawbacks on a discipline and then isolate them so we have the best results at a certain level of development.
The Holy Grail
Many traders spend years and years trying to find the Holy Grail of trading. That magic indicator or set of indicators, only known by a few traders, that will make them rich in a short period of time.
Fact: Well, there is no magic indicator, nor a set of indicators that will make anyone rich in a short period of time. The main reason of this is because market changes, every single moment is unique. Every Forex trading system will fail from time to time. Our work here is to find a Forex trading system that fits our personality as traders, otherwise the trader will find it hard to follow it.
Looking for Easy Money
Unfortunately most traders are attracted to the Forex market for this reason. Mainly because of the publicity showing or rather trying to show how easy is to trade and make money in the Forex market.
Fact: Yes, it is very easy to trade, anyone can do it. It is as hard as one click. But the second part of it isn’t that easy. Making money or achieving consistent profitable results is hard. It requires lots of education, patience, discipline, commitment, and this list could go to infinite. In a few words, it is possible to have consistent profitable results, but definitely it is not easy.
Forex Trading System: Choosing between Mechanical and Discretionary Systems
We will first analyze the pros and cons about each system approach.
Mechanical systems
Advantages
This kind of system can be automated and backtested efficiently. It has very rigid rules. Either, there is a trade or there isn’t. Mechanical traders are less susceptible to emotions than discretionary traders.Disadvantages
Most traders backtest Forex trading systems incorrectly. In order to produce accurate results you need tick data.
The Forex market is always changing. The Forex market (and all markets) has a random component. The market conditions may look similar, but they are never the same.
A system that worked successfully the past year doesn’t necessary mean it will work this year.
Discretionary systems
Advantages
Discretionary systems are easily adaptable to new market conditions. Trading decisions are based on experience.
Traders learn to see which trading signals have higher probability of success.Disadvantages
They cannot be backtested or automated, since there is always a thought decision to be made.
It takes time to develop the experience required to trade successfully and track trades in a discretionary way.
At early stages this can be dangerous.
Now, which approach is better for Forex traders? The one that fits better your personality. For instance, if you are a trader that finds it hard to follow your trading signals, then you are better off using a mechanical system, where your judgment won’t play an important role in your system. You only take the trades that your system signals.
If the psychological barriers that affect every trader (fear, greed, anger, etc.) puts you in unwanted scenarios, you are also better off trading mechanical systems, because you only need to follow what your system is telling you, go short, go long, close a trade. No other decision has to be made.
On the other hand, if you are a disciplined trader, then you are better off using a discretionary system, because discretionary systems adapt to the market conditions and you are able to change your trading conditions as the market changes. For instance, you have a target of 60 pips on a long trade. But the market suddenly starts trending up pretty strongly, then you could move your target to say 100 pips.
Forex Strategy: Trading with Stochastics
George Lane developed this indicator in the late 1950s. Stochastics measure the current close relative to the range (high/low) over a set of periods.
Stochastics consist of two lines:
%K - Is the main line and is usually displayed as a solid line %D - Is simply a moving average of the %K and is usually displayed as a dotted line
There are three types of Stochastics: Full, fast and slow stochastics. Slow stochastics are simply a smother version of the fast stochastics, and full stochastics are even a smother version of the slow stochastics.
Interpretation:
Buy when %K falls below the oversold level (below 20) and rises back above the same level.
Sell when %K rises above de overbought level (above 80) and falls back below the same level.
The interpretation above is how most traders and investors use them; however, it only works when the market is trendless or ranging. When the market is trending, a reading above the overbought territory isn't necessary a bearish signal, while a reading below de oversold territory isn't necessary bullish signal
Monday, August 3, 2009
FX Greece
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The recipients of the analysis must acknowledge and accept that investment choices of any kind, especially concerning the FOREX market, contain risks (high, low and occasionally zero) of reduction or even loss of their investment. Therefore, they should always be cautious prior to any kind of action.
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Currency Technical Report
*STRATEGY: Buy orders could be tried at 1,4130-50 with target at 1,4200 and stops below 1,4100. However, sell orders could be tried at a possible reach of 1,4300-20 with target at 1,4250 and stops above 1,4350...
FX Thoughts for the Day
Anything called the Best strategy for trading?
Do UK-Based Forex Traders Have It Easy?
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
The Seven Most Traded Currencies in FOREX
Currencies are always traded in pairs in the FOREX. The pairs have a unique notation that expresses what currencies are being traded. The symbol for a currency pair will always be in the form ABC/DEF. ABC/DEF is not a real currency pair, it is an example of a symbol for a currency pair. In this example ABC is the symbol for one countries currency and DEF is the symbol for another countries currency.
Here are some of the common symbols used in the Forex:
USD - The US Dollar EUR - The currency of the European Union "EURO" GBP - The British Pound JPN - The Japanese Yen CHF - The Swiss Franc AUD - The Australian Dollar CAD - The Canadian Dollar
There are symbols for other currencies as well, but these are the most commonly traded ones.
A currency can never be traded by itself. So you can not ever trade a EUR by itself. You always need to compare one currency with another currency to make a trade possible.
Some of the common PAIRS are:
EUR/USD Euro / US Dollar "Euro"
USD/JPY US Dollar / Japanese Yen "Dollar Yen"
GBP/USD British Pound / US Dollar "Cable"
USD/CAD US Dollar / Canadian Dollar "Dollar Canada"
AUD/USD Australian Dollar/US Dollar "Aussie Dollar"
USD/CHF US Dollar / Swiss Franc "Swissy"
EUR/JPY Euro / Japanese Yen "Euro Yen"
The listed currency pairs above look like a fraction. The numerator (top of the fraction or "left" of the / however you want to SEE it) is called the base currency. The denominator (bottom of the fraction or "right" of the /however you want to SEE it) is called the counter currency. When you place an order to buy the EUR/USD, for instance, you are actually buying the EUR and selling the USD. If you were to sell the pair, you would be selling the EUR and buying the USD. So if you buy or sell a currency PAIR, you are buying/selling the base currency. You are always doing the opposite of what you did with to base currency with the counter currency.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Forex Swing Trading with Elliott Wave
Forex Trading, The Best Chance Of Trading Success
Definition-In a foreign exchange market different currencies are traded on an electronic platform which has no fixed location, but allows you to buy and sell these currencies on a 24 hour basis, from Monday to Friday throughout the year. This is what is generally referred to as forex trading. The Internet has made forex trading very simple and people from all over the world can trade in currencies. This has made forex trading very widespread and popular.Who is a forex trader?The amount of currencies that are exchanged every day is about two billion dollars, and almost everyone with an inclination to trade has got into it. The individual private traders trading in the forex trading market are linked up to forex brokers who in turn are linked up to MNC's and big banks from all over the world. If you want to become a forex trader and indulge in forex trading you would have to look for an authorized forex broker. These brokers are generally authorized by statutory bodies in their country of origin and are subject to the laws in that particular country.Traditional money exchangeThere has always been a traditional method of buying and selling currencies. These are still now available in some exotic Eastern and Middle Eastern markets where the money changer is the part of the activity in that market. Forex trading is just a new spin to this traditional activity and not limited to the small markets. Money changers mainly exchanged currencies which allowed local customers to exchange the currencies they had for the local currency in use in that particular market to enable them to make purchases. Forex trading has taken this to a much higher level and it allows banks and other institutions to exchange currencies depending on the requirement of each of these from various big companies and even governments.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
FOREX: Exiting positions at a right time
The presented article covers one of the most important (in author's opinion) aspects of trading in general and Forex trading in particular — managing of orders and positions. This includes choosing entry points, making decisions about exit points, stop-loss and take-profit of the trader. I hope this article will help new traders, who just began to work with Forex, and also to experienced traders who trade regularly and regularly make or loose their money to the market.
When I started to trade Forex and made my first big losses and profits I began to notice when very important thing about the whole trading process. While the right time to enter a position was rarely a problem for myself (nearly 80% of all my open positions had gone into the "green" profit zone), the problem was hidden in the determining the right exit point for that position. Not only was it important to cut my risk on the potential losses with stop-loss orders, but to limit my greediness and take profit when I can take it and make it as high as I can. There are many known guidelines and ways to enter a right position at a right time — like major economic news releases, global world events, technical indicators combinations, etc. But while the entering into a position is optional and trade can decide to miss as many good/bad entry point moments as they wish, this is untrue if we talk about exiting a position. Margin trading makes it impossible to wait too long with an open position. More than that, every open position in a certain way limits trader's ability to trade.
Choosing the good exit points for positions could be an easy task if only the Forex market wasn't so chaotic and volatile. In my opinion (backed by my trading experience) exit orders for every position should be toggled constantly with time and as the new market data (technical and fundamental) appear.
Let's say, you took a short position on EUR/USD at 1.2563, at the time you are taking this position the support/resistance level is 1.2500/1.2620. You set your stop-loss order to 1.2625 and your take-profit order to 1.2505. So now, this position can be considered as an intraday or 2-3 days term position. This means that you must close it before it's "term" is over, or it will become a very unpredictable position (because market will differ greatly from what it was at the time you have entered this position). After the position is taken and initial exit orders are set, you need to follow the market events and technical indicators to adjust your exit orders. The most important rule is to tighten the loss/profit limit as time goes by. Usually if I take a middle term position (2-4 days) I try to lower the stop and target order by 10-25 pips every day. I also monitor global events, trying to lower my stop-losses when very important news can hurt my position. If the profit is already quite high, I try to move my stop-loss the entry point, making a sure-win position. The main idea here is to find an equilibrium point between greed and caution. But as your position gets older the profit should be more limited and losses cut. Also, trader should always remember that if the market began to act unexpectedly, they need to be even more cautious with exit order, even if the position is still showing profits.
Forex Software Packages
If you plan to start trading FOREX online you will of course be using a software system. This system will make it easy for you to get information quickly about market prices and make trades. There are two types of FOREX software available, client based and web based.
As the FOREX market is a fast moving market and you will need up to the minute information to make informed transactions, it is up to you to see you have a high speed internet connection. Dial up internet access will absolutely not work for this. Another consideration could be the location of the servers used by your broker. If your broker's servers are located quite a distance from you, say in another country, this could potentially slow down your transmissions. If you plan to trade online you will need a modern computer and high speed internet connection.
The next consideration would be which type of software, client based or web based? Web based software is housed on your brokers website. You will not have to install any software on your own computer. A web based software program will allow you to log in from any computer that has an internet connection. A client based software program, or one that you download into your own computer will limit you to transactions only on the computer it is downloaded on. Web based software programs are preferred by most brokers who think they are more safe and reliable. Web based software tends to be less vulnerable to attack from viruses and hackers during transmissions than client based software.
Any FOREX software should offer you real-time quotes and offer means to quickly enter and exit the market. These are minimal requirements of any trading software. Upgraded software packages are usually offered at an extra monthly fee by brokers.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Forex Glossary
Forex Trading Tips
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Forex Club goes to the Queens Business Expo (New York
Forex Patterns and Probabilities
Friday, June 5, 2009
Forex Popularity Increasing
Popularity: 11%
Forex Trading Advantages Over Stock Trading
Forex Justice - The Fair Forex Trading Forum
Forex has no central exchange
Forex trading can be done around the clock
Forex has no overseeing regulatory commission, such as the SEC
The forex market is a wild, open arena without rules, laws, or a governing body. No one cares if your money is taken. No one will lose any sleep if you’ve been lied to. There are no repercussions if you’re treated unfairly. Investors trade at their own risk and have no legal recourse to enforce justice. I know. I’ve been there. The scammers have burned me more than once. In an attempt to further my own knowledge, I fell for the magical software sales pitches and followed the crooked paths to the stolen treasures, only to be let down ad nauseam.I served my time as a forex broker, which was an eye-opening experience. I heard and saw the manipulation of client profits that was business as usual. It quickly shifted my interest in trading and brokering forex to that of protecting forex traders. I redirected my efforts from studying daily forex signals to researching forex websites. I was determined to devise a resource on which forex investors could rely for honest, fair information exchange.
Forex News and Events:
Forex - A Rewarding Money Potential
Thursday, June 4, 2009
IFX Markets
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We additionally provide a telephone service* to clients interested in trading options on Forex and Bullion in market amounts.
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Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Forex Scalping
The purpose of scalping is making small profits while exposing a trading account to a very limited risk, which is due to a quick open/close trading mode.
There wouldn’t be any point in scalping for many traders if they weren’t offered to trade with highly leveraged accounts. Only ability to operate with large funds of, actually, still virtual money, empowers traders to profit from even a 2-3 pip move.
How do they do it? Suppose a scalper opens a trading position of 100 000 units with EUR/USD. For each pip he will now earn $10… Closing in with only a 3 pip profit brings it up to $30 — not bad for less than a minute of work…
Forex watching Italy and the Euro
Forex Money Management
Like dieting and working out, money management is something that most traders pay lip service to, but few practice in real life. The reason is simple: just like eating healthy and staying fit, money management can seem like a burdensome, unpleasant activity. It forces traders to constantly monitor their positions and to take necessary losses, and few people like to do that. However, as Figure 1 proves, loss-taking is crucial to long-term trading success.