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Getting Started in the FOREX (Foreign Exchange) Market
I was first introduced to the FOREX (4X) market, the cash market for currencies, at a “4X Made Easy” seminar. The speakers made it sound easy to profit in the market using their trading systems and software, but I was discouraged by the high cost (several thousand pounds) to get started and the recurring monthly fees to continue using their systems and software, so I began to do some research of my own. With a little bit of searching, I found resources that were of little or no cost to get started. It took a little more time and effort, but I was able to gain the knowledge and information necessary to feel comfortable investing in the FOREX market. The purpose of this article is to share with you the resources I found so you can begin investigating this lucrative financial market as soon as possible.
I began my quest with an internet search using such key words as FOREX, FX market, FOREX trading systems, charts etc. This search pulled up a multitude of resources, many requiring and additional investment to access their knowledge, but many free resources were also revealed. One of my favorite sites that I frequent often is fxstreet.com. This site is mostly free giving one access to free live and delayed streaming quotes, free access to real-time charts, free education and training and links to many other sites that can help as well. They are also linked to many of the preferred trading sites that you can actually use to get your trading business started as well.
Before investing real pounds into this market, I would suggest doing two things first: 1) develop a trading system and plan that will allow you to get in and out of the market with the least amount of risk or loss possible; and 2) paper-trade the market to test drive your systems before you invest real pounds into the market. Unfortunately, most of the free information regarding trading systems is basic and introductory; you will have to invest in some training and courses to get started, but you do not have to spend thousands of pounds to get the information. The 4X Profit Professor is one site that is dedicated to on-going 4X education at a fraction of the price other sites are charging. Many of the trading sites will provide you with free access to a paper trading account as an incentive to register with their site. I won’t make a specific recommendation here, but browse through several of the links on fxstreet.com and find one you are comfortable with. Realistically, you should plan on paper-trading for three to six months before ever investing any real money into the market.
Many people ask, “Why would I want to invest in the FOREX market anyway?” To conclude, I would like to share with you some of the reasons I think the FOREX market is one of the best investment opportunities around today. 1) Easy of entry into the market. You can get started for as little as three-hundred pounds, where most other markets require an opening balance of five thousand or more to get started.
2) You can big money just working a few hours a week from you computer. You don’t have to wait weeks and months for the investment to grow and give you a positive return.
3) The FOREX market is highly liquid with 1.8 trillion pounds exchanging hands daily, you can get in an out of a position at a fair price and have access to the market daily, 24×7, because there are markets open around the world, which you can easily access with an internet connection from you computer.
4) Because of the liquidity of this market, you can leverage your account 100:1 allowing you to invest smaller amounts (compared to stocks 1:1; commodities 15:1) and have higher returns quicker.
5) You can paper-trade the market first, without risking any of your own money, so you can develop the trading systems and plans that will work best for you. Technical analysis works very well in this market and you can make money whether the market is moving up or down, or not moving at all.
6) Finally, once you have a proven trading system down, you can supplement or replace your income, increase your savings and retirement accounts and retire from your regular job much sooner than you ever thought possible.
Take a serious look at the FOREX market. It is real. People are making a ton of money and so can you.
Sincerely,
Steve Scoresby
ForexTester – professional forex training software.
Recently new forex software, which could be useful for many traders, was released.
ForexTester – is a professional forex trading simulator. It reproduces fluctuations of currency exchange rates for any chosen period of time with regulated speed of quotes updating. A user can make trading decisions on historical data, develop and test trading strategies.
This software – is an excellent tool for quick and convenient study of trading, for gaining and improving trading skills without risking real money.
The main purpose of this forex software is to provide a trader with opportunity to develop individual discretionary methods of market analysis and making corresponding trading decisions. Such trading strategies usually are very difficult to be realized as mechanical trading systems, but they are of high potential to be ignored.
Generally, for achieving stable positive results in trading, it is necessary to have a confluence of several important factors: method of analysis, system of making decisions for openingclosing positions, risk- and moneymanagement, discipline in implementing of worked out rules.
Forex trading, as a profession, demands possessing professional knowledge and professional skills. That is why it is naive to expext stable positive results after practicing on demo-accounts, provided by forex-brokers, reading news feed or useless articles on fundamental analysis.
There are hundreds of books written on the theme of technical analysis methods, but just a few programs, which provide the opportunity for full studying the efficiency of these methods and working-out concrete rules of making corresponding trading decisions.
It is difficult to study the technical analysis methods objectively because of two reasons. First, particular features of human psyche in subjective perception and interpretation of graphical information, and second, psychology of decision making.
When a person studies charts with historical data in retrospective, he presumes himself of being able to analyze the situation and make the best possible trading decision. He tries to look at things with optimism and overestimates information sufficiency. But in real-time conditions a trader confronts with uncertainty and suddenly recognizes insufficiency of information, which can drive to doubtfulness and increasing of mistakes at decision making.
It is necessary to posess special way of thinking, precision and unambiguity in judgements, to eliminate emotions out of trading process. This task is not for one day. Only through deliberateness of actions, striving for objectivity and by systematical training such tasks can be realized.
Development of technical analysis methods and making corresponding trading decisions often implies thorough studying of price patterns and indicator signals. Subsequently, there are systematization of observations and then the determination of clear and unambiguous rules, which heshe can apply to eventually become professionally qualified and profitable trader.
Would you like to study how to correctly use Andrew’s Pitchfork, fibonacci retracements, trendlines, Bill Williams’ set of indicators (including Alligator, fractals, Awesome oscillator) from Trading Chaos, Regression Channels or simple signals, such as moving averages crossover, ForexTester (www.forextester.com) could help you. Ability of convenient using of graphical studies and option to add custom indicators via open interface, contribute to comfortable and flexible environment for gaining knowledge and skills, which are necessary to a professional forex trader.
Forex Training: Deadly Forex Mistakes That Assure Failure
Before venturing into your trading journey there are some things you need to be aware of, otherwise you could succeed on your trading adventure, and we don’t want that to happen, do we? This Forex training guide will help you track the most costly mistakes Forex traders do.
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.
Forget about psychological issues. You need to get every trade to win. Successful traders know that they don’t need to win every trade in order to profit from the market. This is one characteristic that is hard to understand and really apply. Why? Because we are taught, since kids, that any number below 70% is a bad number. In the Forex trading environment, this is not true.
Don’t even consider using a Risk-reward (RR) ratio greater than 1-1. If you use a RR ratio of 1-2 (willing to make twice the amount risked in one trade) then you only need a system that is right around 50% to make money. If you use a RR ratio of 1-3 (willing to make three times the amount risked in one trade) then you will need a system that is right around 40% of the time to make money. So make sure to use a RR ratio below 1-1.
By applying every point outlined in this Forex training guide, you will almost assure your failure in your Forex trading journey. Do the opposite, and you will have the possibility to achieve what every trader is looking for: consistent profitable results.
Forex Trading System: Discretionary vs. Mechanical Systems
There are basically two types of Forex trading systems, mechanical and discretionary systems. The trading signals that come out of mechanical systems are mainly based off technical analysis applied in a systematic way. On the other hand, discretionary systems use experience, intuition or judgment on entries and exits. But which one produces better results? Or more importantly, which one fits better your trading style? These are the answers we will try to answer on this article.
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 isnt.
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 doesnt 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 wont 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.
Does it mean that trading a discretionary system has no rules? This is absolutely incorrect. Trading discretionary systems means that once a trader finds hisher setup, the trader then decides what to do. But every trader still needs certain rules that need to be followed, such as the size of the position, conditions that have to be met before thinking to get in the market, and so on.
I am a discretionary trader. The main reason I chose a discretionary system is that my trades are based on price behavior, and as you already know, the price behaves similar to the past, but it is never identical, therefore the outcome of every trade is unknown. However, I do have rigid rules on my system, certain conditions have to be met before I even think in getting in a trade. This keeps me out of trouble, once my setup is present and in accordance with the rules I have set, then I closely watch the price behavior and finally decide whether it is a good opportunity or not.
Whether you choose to be a discretionary or a mechanical trader there are some important points you should take in consideration:
1.You need to make sure the Forex trading system you are using totally fits your personality. Otherwise you will find yourself outguessing your system.
2.You also need to have some rules and most importantly have the discipline to follow them.
3.Take your time to build the perfect system for you. Its not easy and requires time and hard work, but at the end, if done correctly, it will give you consistent profitable results.
4.Before going live, try it on a demo account or even on a small account (I will go for the second option, since psychological barriers will be present.)