Anyone here into FOREX?

[~Shard~]

In case I'm wasting my time, can anyone offer me a reason as to why this might never work?

I wouldn't say it would never work, but just keep in mind that when you get into the hedging game, you're always going lose to some degree, as you found out. I realize the aim of course is to make more than you lose, but that is easier said than done. That being said, don't let me dissuade you! Have fun with it (since it is a game accuont and all!) and see what happens.

 

[Music_Producer]

In case I'm wasting my time, can anyone offer me a reason as to why this might never work?

Because you're messing with crosses. Trust me, I've been there.. I've done all these experiments Everything.. trading the spike.. trading *before* the spike.. even trading *after* the spike on the rebound

I've even placed limit orders 10 seconds before the news.. with stop loss and t/p set.. and everytime I have been wiped out.

Nothing works like what I do right now, trading right when the news comes out. Sure, I don't get to make 20 pips, 30 pips, 40 pips.. whatever.. I am satisfied with even 1 pip. But most of the time I do make from 5 to 15 pips.

The key here is to be consistent. Everyone makes losses.. I know I will one day. But it will have to be very tough for me to make a loss.. because I don't try out different things.

Experiment all you want elfin.. on your game account of course, as much as possible. Unfortunately I wish I had done all that playing around on my game account when i was a rookie!

Crosses are not that significant when it comes to trading. When the GBP news came out worse than expected.. banks *sell* the pound and *buy* the dollar. They don't sell the pound and buy euros. Everything is paired to the US$. Well, almost. Oil is traded in $.. so USD/OIL (lol) will move significantly during war time, or short supply of oil. will EUR/USD move when oil moves? Hardly.

 

[Music_Producer]

I wouldn't say it would never work, but just keep in mind that when you get into the hedging game, you're always going lose to some degree, as you found out. I realize the aim of course is to make more than you lose, but that is easier said than done. That being said, don't let me dissuade you! Have fun with it (since it is a game accuont and all!) and see what happens.

Yeah.. and that loss can often lead you into 'revenge' trading "The bloody EUR should have gone up instead of down! Well screw you! I'm gonna buy more EUR and make up for my losses!" and it goes on..

 

[~Shard~]

Yeah.. and that loss can often lead you into 'revenge' trading "The bloody EUR should have gone up instead of down! Well screw you! I'm gonna buy more EUR and make up for my losses!" and it goes on..

It's funny cuz it's true. Or "not funny" in this case. So many people get emotional over the markets, and that's pretty much the worst thing you can let happen. When emotion gets invoved, logic and reason go out the window and no good can come of that. Many people get burned by a trade, and then revenge trade to "make up for it". A word from an experienced investor - the markets owe you NOTHING. Never forget that.

 

[njmac]

Cool ... used real money this time? ... How much did you ended up funding your account for? Just curious, about to step into the deep myself

I was going to start with $50.00 but then I didn't really think that was much different than a game account so I funded with $1000.00. I made $56.00. Each pip was worth $2.00. I could have gone to $3 a pip but I wanted to have a little margin left.

I would loooove to start with $10,000 but unfortunately can't swing that right now.

 

[elfin buddy]

I was going to start with $50.00 but then I didn't really think that was much different than a game account so I funded with $1000.00. I made $56.00. Each pip was worth $2.00. I could have gone to $3 a pip but I wanted to have a little margin left.

I would loooove to start with $10,000 but unfortunately can't swing that right now.

I take it you like to live dangerously, Mr. Bond?

 

[njmac]

I take it you like to live dangerously, Mr. Bond?

danger is my middle name...

 

[Curren~Sea]

I was going to start with $50.00 but then I didn't really think that was much different than a game account so I funded with $1000.00. I made $56.00. Each pip was worth $2.00. I could have gone to $3 a pip but I wanted to have a little margin left.

I would loooove to start with $10,000 but unfortunately can't swing that right now.

It may not seem like much right now, but you want to keep an eye on your rate of return each month. For instance, if you grew your account by $100 in August, that's a 10% increase per month. I would venture to say that most people would be pretty darn happy about that! If you grew your initial $1000 account by 10% per month for a year, you would end up with over $3000. Most people would be happy with 300% returns for the year.

If you can achieve 10% per month every month for several consecutive months, you might feel confident that you could in fact dip into your savings and fund a larger account. It is easier, however, to simply watch your account grow incrementally. You get used to seeing the larger dollar values of each trade. This gradual increase feels more natural than jumping right into trades that are $100 per pip, for example.

It's all about consistency and compounding.

 

[~Shard~]

It may not seem like much right now, but you want to keep an eye on your rate of return each month. For instance, if you grew your account by $100 in August, that's a 10% increase per month. I would venture to say that most people would be pretty darn happy about that! If you grew your initial $1000 account by 10% per month for a year, you would end up with over $3000. Most people would be happy with 300% returns for the year.

If you can achieve 10% per month every month for several consecutive months, you might feel confident that you could in fact dip into your savings and fund a larger account. It is easier, however, to simply watch your account grow incrementally. You get used to seeing the larger dollar values of each trade. This gradual increase feels more natural than jumping right into trades that are $100 per pip, for example.

It's all about consistency and compounding.

Very well said. Eventually you will get to a point where you are investing in future trades with money which is 100% profit from previous trades, meaning that you aren't even touching your own principle anymore. It's totally putting your money to work for you - to make more money. As Curren~Sea eluded to, never underestimate the power of compounding.

 

[~Shard~]

So, what are people preparing to trade this week? Looks like several USD announcements on Thursday and some JPY ones on Friday as well. Any thoughts on what the week will bring?

 

[Music_Producer]

Hey Shard, I might trade the Canadian retail sales today (5.30 am PST) .. I say 'might' because the spread on USD/CAD usually widens a lot. If its way too much, its not worth it.. and then again, I'm a little wary of the Canadian timing when it comes to news releases.. they might just release the number when i'm busy munching on a cheeseburger!

 

[Music_Producer]

23 pips on the USD/CAD trade Simple trade.. USD is still climbing, massive deviation in canadian retail sales.. expected number was 0.3%.. came out at -0.2% .. hence the nice spike. ( 2 spikes actually)

This was also the first time i traded a demo account with another forex broker.. wanted to see if the spreads widen like oanda's.. stayed at 5 pips on USD/CAD and oanda widened it to 15 pips.. which was pretty sick. I'm going to trade a few more times with this demo account and see what happens to the spreads and the execution. I might leave Oanda, if i get better spreads and the same execution as oanda.

Did anyone trade today's news?

 

[elfin buddy]

Damn, slept in again this morning and missed that CAD announcement! No worries though, always more trades...

Lots of EUR announcements tomorrow morning, as well as some more CAD ones. Think we'll see any big deviation on those?

 

[~Shard~]

23 pips on the USD/CAD trade Simple trade.. USD is still climbing, massive deviation in canadian retail sales.. expected number was 0.3%.. came out at -0.2% .. hence the nice spike. ( 2 spikes actually)

This was also the first time i traded a demo account with another forex broker.. wanted to see if the spreads widen like oanda's.. stayed at 5 pips on USD/CAD and oanda widened it to 15 pips.. which was pretty sick. I'm going to trade a few more times with this demo account and see what happens to the spreads and the execution. I might leave Oanda, if i get better spreads and the same execution as oanda.

Did anyone trade today's news?

No trading for me today - probably later in the week. Nice pip collection there though!

As for using another broker, I have signed up for a demo account with CMC Markets Canada. Besides the fact that they are based in Canada and the money stays in Canada (which makes things a bit better/easier for me), they seem to have a pretty solid platform, so I'm going to give it a go in the next week or so, when I have some time, and will see how it compares to Oanda.

Their pip spreads seem to be very competitive, however I am curious to find out if they widen them as well during lucrative trading times. For now though, EUR/USD is at 2 pips, USD/CAD is at 4 pips, GBP/USD is at 3 pips, and so forth, so not too bad on the surface.

The other reason I like the looks of them is that they trade CFDs for both shares and commodities. I can outright buy precious metals (not deal with precious metal funds), 24/7, or go long or short on any stock I want, or even an entire index. For instance, I might be shorting the NASDAQ itself in the near future! And, all with only 5% margin (and yes, I am well aware of the inherent dangers of margin. )

I haven't tried the platform out yet at all, but it looks good, so we'll see. Since I'm big into the markets and am new into Forex, this might be a good well-rounded comprehensive platform. Or it might suck Oh, and it is Windows only, but I still have my PC so it's not a huge deal for me. Worst case I run VPC on my PPC Mac, or Parallels on my wife's new MacBook when she buys it in a couple months (if she lets me use it! )

I'll let you know how it goes...

 

[Music_Producer]

Shard, don't look at the regular spread between currencies in your new account. Monitor the spreads before important news releases. The spread between USD/CAD shot up to 15 pips at exactly 5.29 am. Before that, it was 5 pips. The regular spread between USD/CAD otherwise is 4 pips, and EUR/USD is 1.5 pips. So check your CMC account at 5.29 am-5.30 am for increase in spreads. (all this talk about 'spreads' is making me hungry )

Oanda provides the best spread I have ever seen.. except during news releases. I tried out Swiss forex - AMC.. but it honestly sucked. The whole platform looked like it was a toy platform.. and I just didn't like it. So I'm sticking with Oanda. I'm only going to trade with a new broker for non EUR/USD currencies.. for EUR/USD.. Oanda stays. The spread goes to only 7 pips during news releases.. which is not significant. Its GBP/USD and USD/CAD that pushes the spread to 15 pips and thats irksome.

I think you'll realize that as you try different brokers, you'll always come back to Oanda. Atleast thats whats happening to me!

 

[Music_Producer]

Damn, slept in again this morning and missed that CAD announcement! No worries though, always more trades...

Lots of EUR announcements tomorrow morning, as well as some more CAD ones. Think we'll see any big deviation on those?

We need some kind of a macrumors alarm..where we can 'buzz' each other if we're asleep. "Wake up sleepyhead!!! trade's coming up!" Lol.

 

[njmac]

Actually, we should start a .mac group

I did not trade today because right now I am only looking at EUR/USD. Once I get better at that I will look at other currencies.

Any luck with Deutch Bank? (DBFX)

 

[~Shard~]

Shard, don't look at the regular spread between currencies in your new account. Monitor the spreads before important news releases. The spread between USD/CAD shot up to 15 pips at exactly 5.29 am. Before that, it was 5 pips. The regular spread between USD/CAD otherwise is 4 pips, and EUR/USD is 1.5 pips. So check your CMC account at 5.29 am-5.30 am for increase in spreads. (all this talk about 'spreads' is making me hungry )

Luckily I just had lunch, so it isn't affecting me as much...

Well, funny you should say that, as I just confirmed my observations with the CMC Support Staff directly - their pip spreads DO NOT move. Ever. EUR/USD is 2 pips and that's all the spread will ever be. Guaranteed. I was impressed by this, so I'm definitely going to be trying them out further with the little game/demo account I set up.

I think you'll realize that as you try different brokers, you'll always come back to Oanda. Atleast thats whats happening to me!

We'll see how my trial goes with CMC. I think it will honestly have a hard time competing with the overall interface and simplicity of Oanda, however it does already beat it in terms of pip spreads, it's Canadian (which is more advantageous for me) and it allows me to trade many other instruments as well in addition to Forex, which is of interest to me as well (not you, I realize.) So, I'll let you know how it goes. I'll be trading the EUR/USD with it Thursday, I think, so we'll see if that 2 pip spread holds.

 

[Music_Producer]

That reminds me.. Shard, since you're looking to trade other entities.. such as gold, silver, oil, etc.. take a look at Saxo Bank. Apparently they're the best when it comes to trading commodities, metals and so on.. I have not opened a demo account with them so I don't know what platform looks like.

Let us know how the spreads are during news events on that CMC account I'm trying out GFT Forex right now (demo obviously) They provide a 400:1 leverage, which might sound scary.. but hey, if you're an elite macrumors forex member.. you'll make tons of money

 

[~Shard~]

That reminds me.. Shard, since you're looking to trade other entities.. such as gold, silver, oil, etc.. take a look at Saxo Bank. Apparently they're the best when it comes to trading commodities, metals and so on.. I have not opened a demo account with them so I don't know what platform looks like.

Thanks will do! I aprpeciate the info. Gotta keep your options open after all! (No pun intended there... options... ah, nevermind... )

Let us know how the spreads are during news events on that CMC account

Oh, I will, don't you worry! If they stay solid I may have found my new trading platform! That being said, pip spreads could indeed stay the same, but trade execution could absolutely suck, so we'll just have to see.

I'm trying out GFT Forex right now (demo obviously) They provide a 400:1 leverage, which might sound scary.. but hey, if you're an elite macrumors forex member.. you'll make tons of money

... Or lose tons of money. Sounds interesting, let us know how it goes. 400:1 leverage though I'm guessing stop losses are key with them! CMC has 5% (20:1) for all shares and 1% (100:1) for commodities, so that would be good enough for me. As I said, I'll report back once I've had a chance to play around with them more...

 

[Music_Producer]

Actually, we should start a .mac group

I did not trade today because right now I am only looking at EUR/USD. Once I get better at that I will look at other currencies.

Any luck with Deutch Bank? (DBFX)

Just created one

http://groups.mac.com/macforex

Lol, i couldn't think of anything else. I've never used this group feature before.

Deutsche bank nj.. not deutch bank (if they ever knew how you spelt it, they would close your forex account hehe) .. next thing you know, you'll be referring to them as douche bank

Their platform didn't look too inviting to me. I need one-click execution, so thats the first thing i look out for. And then, one-click closing of trades. With many forex accounts, there are too many procedures to do these two things.. i mean ..geez..they're the most important! Why not make it simple?

For e.g. I have to click 'new order' .. then obviously 'buy' or 'sell'. .and then an annoying confirmation window pops up. And then there's a lag where everything freezes (you know how windows is) and the trade gets executed. Then I have to navigate to 'open orders' and then click on my order.. then another bloody confirmation window!!!! And so on..

Edit - Lol on that options pun

 

[elfin buddy]

We need some kind of a macrumors alarm..where we can 'buzz' each other if we're asleep. "Wake up sleepyhead!!! trade's coming up!" Lol.

Ahaha, that would be nice, actually

 

[~Shard~]

Their platform didn't look too inviting to me. I need one-click execution, so thats the first thing i look out for. And then, one-click closing of trades. With many forex accounts, there are too many procedures to do these two things.. i mean ..geez..they're the most important! Why not make it simple?

This is one thing I'm going to be looking out for with that CMC platform. I know their share/commodity trading is one-click (after entering in # of shares, S/L, etc.) but I don't know what their Forex is like. For instance, if I buy a currency pair, can I just close the trade, as Oanda lets you do, or do I have to open up a complementary order to sell the same # of currency units I just bought, and then go through that process again. Hopefully it's painless as well, as seconds count in this game.

Edit - Lol on that options pun

Yeah, didn't realize that one until after I typed it...

 

[elfin buddy]

Just created one

http://groups.mac.com/macforex

Lol, i couldn't think of anything else. I've never used this group feature before.

I'm having trouble accessing that group...the .Mac website says that anyone with an internet connection can use the Groups, but I think it wants people to sign up with a trial account first. I signed up anyway, but it still won't let me see the group. Keeps giving me an error

 

[~Shard~]

I'm having trouble accessing that group...the .Mac website says that anyone with an internet connection can use the Groups, but I think it wants people to sign up with a trial account first. I signed up anyway, but it still won't let me see the group. Keeps giving me an error

Yeah, I think you need a .Mac account of some form. Sorry guys, but I won't be able to join ya on that one. It's great that you set it up though Music_Producer!