Saturday, November 29, 2008
Six mistakes losers do!
1. Trusting $100 Forex Robot
Want to lose money? Then this is simply one of the best ways to wipe out your money.
The cheap, heavily promoted Forex trading systems you see online, have never been traded and only have back tests that are made up in hindsight. They have made no real gains, despite claiming you will make some if you use the system.
Think you will make money with one? Try it and see the market doesn't allow you to make up your track record in real time.
2. Scientific Theories
These are loved by the wacky far out crowd and the theory goes like this ...
Human nature conforms to some mystical law which means there is a scientific theory and if you follow it you will win.
Well of course there is no such theory that works - because markets don't move to science! Markets only move to odds and if there was a scientific theory that worked, there would actually be no market, as we would all know the price in advance.
This doesn't stop traders though they love theories like Gann, Fibonacci and Elliot Wave which claim to be scientific but are not.
3. Prediction
Goes with the above you have lots of predictive theories that tell you they can spot price changes in advance but they will about as accurate as your horoscope, as prediction is just guessing.
If you want to win trade the reality of price change and don't guess!
4. Day Trading and Scalping
The dumbest way of trading you can get - let's try and predict what millions of traders will do in minutes or hours - hard job? It's impossible!
Sure you get lots of day trading systems that say they can make money - but guess what? There track records are all simulated backwards.
5. Trading Breaking News
The traders who do this need to learn the following - markets move to perception of the news not the news itself and how far it is already discounted. Markets always crash when the news is most bullish and rally when its most bearish and trying to trade on the back of it is a waste of time.
6. Not Understanding the Importance of Discipline
Most traders are followers and hate responsibility for their own financial destiny and never have confidence in what there doing.
When they hit some losses they cannot trade with discipline let their emotions take over and lose. Trading discipline is vital - if you have a trading system, you must execute it with discipline or you will lose.
Understand this and Win!
Most traders believe the rubbish they are told that Forex trading is easy and its obvious its not and they fail to understand that success is built on a solid forex education and confidence in what their doing which leads to discipline.
If you understand the above, you can achieve currency trading success and avoid the losing majority
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Learn online how to trade on forex market
More and more Americans are realizing how much they can earn by joining the Foreign Exchange (Forex) market. However, not all have taken action to actually become one of the many individuals and companies trading from all parts of the globe. There are some who are still hesitant to join because they don’t know how to start in the first place.
Well, thanks to the wonders of technology and the power of Internet, you can now readily access information on how to do forex trading. With just a few clicks of the mouse, you can learn Forex trading online.
Most forex trading websites give you the chance to try out Forex trading by allowing you to register for a free forex practice account. This way you can get the feel of Forex without risking your money. It also gives you the opportunities to become familiar with the various options available on that online forex trading platform.
Other forex websites offer access to Forex trading platforms, real-time Forex charts, Forex market research done by experts, and the most recent, high-tech Forex trading tools. There are also Forex training programs, seminars, and courses on the Internet that you can avail of.
Forex trading may not be suitable for everyone, as this kind of money-making exercise involves risk, time and requires nerves of steel and experience. It’s best to avail of Forex trading resources online before you put your money on an full online forex account.
You can also visit forex trading forums to learn more about where to learn forex trading online and which are the best websites to trade forex. It is possible to make money from forex trading only if you are well equipped with the knowledge.
Monday, November 17, 2008
How to Learn Forex in 4 Simple Steps?
The first thing you have to do if you want to learn Forex basics is to get an account with a reputable Forex broker. There are lots of online currency trading brokers out there that allow free sign-ups and membership. Once you activate your account, you will be able to utilize the broker’s practice trading platform. You can experience actual Forex trading using virtual money provided by the Forex broker. In this way, you can certainly learn Forex trading faster because you are participating directly in the currency market.
To complement your practice trading, you can also look for an online school that provides Forex training and education. Actually, you can request a list of online Forex School from your Forex broker. You can use this list to refine your search for a suitable program to learn Forex trading. You can also make an independent search for an online institution that can teach you how to trade at the Forex market. A formal education on Forex will systematize your learning process which is advantageous for you.
Self study is also a good way to learn Forex basic and advanced strategies. Again, if you have chosen an excellent Forex broker, you can get lots of reading materials and online resources from it. You can still do this yourself and search for good online articles that could teach you how to trade at the Forex market. Simply visit any article database site and browse for topics about Forex. Choose the ones that provide detailed instructions on how to trade currencies. This is also the best way to learn Forex trading for free.
Lastly, if you have acquaintances that are actively trading at the Forex market, it is best to seek their opinions and advices. You can ask them about the jargons used in Forex trading. If you are lucky enough, they can also teach you the finer points of developing an effective Forex strategy. Their experience in trading could help you a lot especially in finding opportunities to gain significantly from Forex. Be sure however to get advice from those who are successful at the Forex market.
Trading currencies at the Forex market is not a simple venture. You need to learn Forex basics as well as advanced techniques to earn from the market. Although it is a little difficult to learn Forex, the task is not impossible and you may find it enjoyable also. In fact if youinvest a little of your time in learning how to trade effectively, it is not impossible to earn your first million at the Forex market.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Trading Forex - Exploiting Weekend Gaps
Most trading is done using some type of technical analysis. There is an almost infinite number of indicators which can be used in myriad of ways. Trend lines, retracement levels, Fibonacci numbers, Elliot wave analysis, candlestick patterns, point and figure charting are also widely used. Just about any form of technical analysis can be used for trading forex. Yet there is a trading application popular in other in other financial markets that is not widely used in currency trading - price gaps.
There are couple of reasons for that. Forex is a 24 H market, therefore markets don't stop, providing continues stream of price quotes. Even during important fundamental announcements, when it is possible for price to move substantially, creating gap, it would only be visible on tick charts and hidden on any larger magnitude graphs. Most traders wouldn't even notice it, making it useless for any practical approach. Also, Forex market is the most liquid and deep of all financial markets. This means that just at about any price level there are enough buyers and sellers to make price gaps almost impossible to form.
The only time when gap analysis and trading is of any value happens at the start of a trading week. Typical retail platform closes at 17:00 EST on Friday and opens at 17:00 EST Sunday. Some banks start trading 3 or even 4 hours earlier, which might create price gap when platforms open for trading. Also, heavy order build up on one side will create sudden price shift, a gap. In most instances these events can be exploited.
Most of the time these gaps are filled within 4-8 hours. If the gap is to the downside, one can establish a buy position and hold it until the price fills the empty spot. It is not advisable to chose an arbitrary buy point, but rather look for shorter term reversal signs on 5M or 15M chart. Also, the target should not be the absolute width of the gap, but rather a point about 2/3 into the gap. For example, if GBP-USD closed on Friday at 1.6200 and opened on Sunday at at 1.6140, we wouldn't try squeeze every possible pip, but rather settle for an objective around 1.6180. This vastly improves success rate.
Another trading strategy is "fading the gap". This means, that as the gap is filled, we are looking for a trade in opposite direction. Using the GBP-USD example from above, we would try to sell it when the price is inside the gap. Here also the 2/3 rule applies- our sell order would not be placed at at 1.6200 but rather 1.6180 or so. Target for this trade would be an area of the low formed before this gap was filled. This technique is even easier to use than the first one.
Few additional rules are helpful when qualifying gap for a trade. Small ones are not good candidates for trading. This will vary form currency to currency, but anything under 20 pips will be better left alone. We are looking for 40+ pips in difference. Gaps not filled within 24 Hours are no longer considered for "fading" trade. Statistically, price tends to keep on going rather than reverse in this situation. Perhaps most importantly- confirm gap existence on at least one more platform. Once it is confirmed on another charting server, chances for successful trade are greatly enhanced.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
How to Set the Right Forex Trading Strategy?
Online forex trading is a business venture. As a specific online business, you need to have set strategy for your trades. If you are new at the Forex market, your Forex trading broker could teach you how to develop a basic forex strategy. But as your skills advance and the money at stake becomes greater, you will certainly need to develop your own currency trading strategy to maximize your profit and minimize losses.
You can adopt a short term hit and run Forex trading strategy adopted by some Forex traders. Sometimes, this type of strategy is called scalping. It involves opening and closing trades within a very short span lasting for only several minutes. Essentially, you have to open a favorable position then after taking a short run profit you need to close your trade immediately. This kind of Forex trading strategy could bring small but numerous profits. You need to have lots of capital also to get considerable profit.
Another Forex trading strategy you can adopt is long term trading technique. You need to get lots of data from your Forex trading broker to implement this strategy. Long term trading involves holding a set position for several months. Some high roller Forex traders hold their positions for over a year. You will depend on fundamental analysis because you have to predict the long term movements of currencies. You also need to have lots of capital to cover the volatility of the market and avoid busting out.
The safest Forex trading strategy you can adopt is the medium risk – medium term trading system. Essentially, you will rely on your set trading positions for a day or couple of days. You can get technical data from your Forex trading broker to predict short term currency movements. This Forex trading strategy will not involve lots of capital and you can trade on the margins with large leverage. Be very sure though to seek advice from your Forex trading broker if this technique is suitable for your capital.
Another safer Forex trading strategy is the combination of medium term and tight trading. You will have to use a stop loss order though for this Forex trading system. It is important therefore to ensure that your Forex trading broker has a utility for stop loss order. In this strategy, you should hold a position for several days. But to avoid disastrous losses, apply a stop loss position. It would be very helpful if your Forex trading broker can automate the stop loss order for you.
Forex trading is a dynamic system. You can still utilize other forms of strategies to take a solid profit from the Forex market. If your Forex trading broker has a practice platform, then it is best to dry run your Forex trading strategy on it. If you see that your trading strategy is working, then implement it on your real money trading. Be ready also to revise your Forex trading strategy if it cannot generate a huge windfall for you.
Best Forex Trading Indicator - for Trend Followers Simple Moving Averages
indicators if used correctly...
Here we will look at the best periods to use and how to apply them but first let's take a look at the the equation for a moving average is very simple and is:
The closing price is added up and divided by the period of the moving average.
You can of course use as many days as you like, traders typically use between 5 and 200 days but which ever time frame is used, the aim is the same:
To identify trends over specific periods of time and smooth out the day-to-day price fluctuations caused by market volatility.
This is based on the concept that short term price spikes, are simply caused by human emotion and don't last and prices will return back to the moving average or fair value. The real value of moving averages is in finding value areas to buy or sell back into in strong trends and when, a moving average is broken, to indicate when a trend is over.
What are the best Time periods?
This of course is all down to personal preference and to a degree how volatile the market is you are trading.
My own view based around 20 odd years of trading, is that short term averages are of little use i.e. under 10 days. Why? Because you are trying to get the longer term value and if the average used is to short, it ends up being part of the price spike!
Two Periods I Like are:
20 Day MA
When a market is trending strongly and you want to get in a trend - look at a 20 day Moving average to buy or sell back to. This is an excellent one to use, simply wait for the move to the value area and time your trading signal. If a market is trending strongly, this will give you plenty of opportunities to get in at good risk to reward.
40 Day MA
I like this one as my last line of defense in a trend to trigger a stop loss and go flat and also to indicate if a new counter trend may be emerging.
The two above are time periods I like to use - but everyone has there favorite period to put into their forex trading strategy.
Simple Yes but Very Effective if Combined with Momentum
Moving averages maybe simple but the logic is timeless. Price spikes are emotional and don't last and prices will always come back to fair value again and a look at any forex chart will show you this. This repeats over and over again, as human nature never changes and moving averages allow you to spot areas of value.
While we consider it one of the best forex trading indicators for trend followers and use it - never simply buy or sell, without confirming price momentum is in your favor first. It identifies the area to watch NOT the trading signal.
In the next article in this series we will look at the best momentum indicator to use with moving averages for better market timing.
Forex Broker Review: Understanding the Risks Involved in Foreign Exchange Trading
Let us address these forex-related questions one at a time. First, what are the things that you need to remember about the forex trading system that you should use? Basically, this is the primary tool used by investors and traders who would like to take a part of the financial success brought about by the foreign exchange market. When looking for the best forex trading system, take into consideration the success rate of the system itself. This is when forex broker reviews online have proven to be helpful. When you check out these online reviews, you would know whether the forex trading system will tell you when and how to enter and exit a forex trade. You would also have an idea about the quality of support that you will get by subscribing to a particular forex trading system.
As you can see, consulting the online forex broker reviews is an important part of your success in forex trading. Now, after taking a look at the forex broker review sites to determine which broker will give you your money's worth in forex trading, the next thing that you should take into consideration are the risks involved in the foreign exchange market. Just as it is with any other type of financial market, there are risks involved in forex trading. This is where forex broker reviews come in handy. The live forex chat sites and forums will give you an idea about the things that you should watch out for when dealing with the foreign exchange market.
One of the risks involved in forex trading is the fact that despite the fact that it is a 24/7 market – it is almost impossible to monitor the currencies by the minute. Another risk that you need to take is that even if the principle behind forex trading seems to be quite simple, you do need to learn about the ins and outs of the market before it can turn out to be a financial success. At the end of the day, entering the foreign exchange market with an open mind and heart will give you a better forex trading experience overall.
Forex Trading - Ordinary People Made Millions After Just 14 Days Training! How?
There has always been a debate around whether great traders are born or made and trading legend Richard Dennis thought anyone could learn, they just needed the right training and mindset.
His experiment was simple - take people from all walks of life, of both sexes, all ages and with varying levels of intelligence and education and make them successful. This group became known as "the turtles" and they were soon to become part of trading history.
He taught them a simple method (a long term breakout trading system) and then gave them the logic it was based to give them confidence and some money management rules. This took him 14 days and he then set them up with accounts and the results were outstanding, as this group made hundreds of millions of dollars.
Dennis proved anyone could learn to trade successfully - but you are probably thinking:
If that's so - why do 95% of traders lose?
Dennis knew why and its simple - Learning a method is easy, applying it is hard and while many traders have bad methods, most fail due to having the wrong mindset. So what's the right mindset?
The right mindset is one that is highly disciplined.
This means you need to trade through long periods of losses (many weeks or even months) stay on course and keep losses small until you hit profits again.
Most new Forex traders believe the rubbish they read online about automatic Forex profits, no drawdown etc - but this is fantasy not reality.
As a trader to win, you need to learn to lose, keep those losses small and stay on course and that's hard. You need to keep putting your trading signals in, despite the market making you look a fool and handing you losses.
Discipline is not easy!
It's hard - but if you have learned the basics, have confidence in what you are doing; you can ride these losses out and make huge long term gains.
You may not become as rich as the group above, life simply isn't like that - but you can enjoy success and earn a great income in just 30 minutes a day.
The story above inspired me to trade over 20 years ago and I hope it inspires you too and you enjoy success in the worlds most exciting and lucrative business global Forex trading. Good Luck!