My Forex Journal

An honest and consistent forex journal to improve trading results

NZDUSD 15 Jan 12

NZD USD looking bearish. My entry, pending price action, will be around .7964. We already have some price action with a daily pin formed Friday. We are now watching this trades event area to see how we can enter for a long set up.

AUDUSD 15 Jan 12

 

These three charts clearly show my thinking on the AUDUSD.

I am bullish on this pair at the moment and some nice price action has formed on the daily and weekly chart. A conservative entry would be to enter on the 123 so let price dip slightly then enter on the break.

 

These graphs tell the story on m thinking s

any questions let me know.

GBPUSD Set Up 15 Jan 12

Here is the weekly chart for the GBPUSD. We can see strong resistance around 1.5356 which has been broken by last weeks bar which is quite significant. The bias here is the continuation of a move down. Price action on the weekly is week for the British pound.

 

I will be looking for price action on the daily and 4 hour charts for a short entry. However if I do play this off the weekly I must consider the the position size because I will have a wider stop than usual.

 

Please leave any comments or ask any questions.

Choosing the Right Broker

Choosing a Broker to Trade With

Choosing a broker can a daunting task. There are so many things to thing about that sometimes the decision-making process can get confusing. The task itself needs to be broken down first into two elements being personal choice and general choice. The personal choice is related to how you trade. So if you are a part-time trader only being at your screen morning and evenings then you may want a broker that is able to give excellent mobile platforms. Conversely you may have the privilege of trading for a living so you may believe the pip spread is a more salient competitive factor in your decision-making process. Whichever factors are important to you by reading on you will have some tools and information to be able to make the correct broker decision that is right for you.

Spread

The spread is the difference between the Ask and the Bid. This is effectively how the brokers make money. Generally the less traded the pair then the higher the spread. If you have a pair with high volume in the market then the likelihood is the spread will be lower than others with a lower amount of transactions. The important note here is the higher the spread the more you need to make before you are in profit. If the spread is 3 pips then you start out the trade at negative 3 pips so you need to make this back to break even. This is especially important when you are deciding what to trade.

Education

Finding a broker with a strong level of educational resources may appeal to you especially if you are a new trader. However you maybe seasoned pro and not get any real benefit from the educational resources. Even if you do not use the educational resources it is still a good idea to find a broker who has the knowledge bank. This is because it demonstrates the professionalism of the broker. It is also a good idea to want to keep learning and brushing up on your knowledge and understanding is never a bad idea.

As part of the education offered online some brokers also provide either live or web seminars. These are an excellent resource for meeting fellow traders or gaining knowledge from someone else’s opinion and expertise. Trading is a dynamic industry so a broker that provides an opportunity to continue learning by sharing expertise is definitely worth further investigation.

There is so much to learn in trading so having a broker that provides an unbiased forum for learning can be a great resource to help you become a consistently profitable trader. You must also consider information overload so if you know the broker provides excellent education then you may not need to waste time and possibly money looking for development material elsewhere.

Platforms

The main types of platform offered are

 

 

 

 

 

  • Web-based
  • Program download – usually MT4
  • Mobile


 

 

The type of trader you are will dictate the platform you favour. So if you are trading part-time and would like to log on at work or in your breaks then you may find that the broker offering a mobile and web platform the best option. If you are at home most of the time then a program download will probably suit address your needs. I would recommend that trading on MT4 as early as possible is the best way forward. Most reputable brokers supply MT4 so downloading this should not be a big issue.

Licensed

You must ensure you broker is correctly licensed before you commence trading with them. This may seem obvious and most brokers are. However there are some brokers on the internet that are not registered and could well be unethical processing your orders. Ensuring the correct licensing and that the broker is part of the syndicate of financial authorities is essential for your protection.

Leverage

A very important aspect of trading that you must be careful of is over leveraging. Trading can offer great returns however it can also lead to losses that you may not be prepared for. Speak with your broker and understand the leverage being offered. Be sure to understand that the higher the leverage is not always the best because you are ultimate putting more at risk. Some brokerage firms offer 400:1 or more leverage which if you trade at this level could lead to substantial profits or losses.

Friendly Help Desk

You will be conducting a business transaction with your broker possibly on a daily basis. It could even be that you are dealing several times in one day. Although I would not recommend trading too often because it is quality of trade as opposed to quantity. However there will be times, especially in the early days, that you want to discuss certain things with your broker. You will want to ensure the helps desk of the broker is professional and helpful so you are able to trade as effectively as possible. After all trading is difficult enough without having to deal with any uneccessary nuances.

Money Transfer

The exciting part! Taking money out. For sure you do not want to be waiting or debating for days on end when you have finally mastered trading and you wish to take money out of the account. When deciding which broker to use be sure that money transfers happen in a timely and accurate manor. The method of transfer must also be acceptable so you will need to understand how this process works. The quality of the broker can often be shown in how they manage the financial transactions and the external support they have to do this.

This guide should help you out in finding the right broker for you. It is essential that you do your homework thoroughly. Choosing the correct broker that suits your trading style is a difficult process however following the above guidelines should put you well on your way to making the correct choice. Getting the correct broker will enable you to concentrate on the important aspects of trading. With the right broker you can rest assured you can do your analysis and trade efficiently and effectively. By following the above detail you will well on your way to find the perfect broker for you and your trading style.

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Article Source:?http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Adam_Michael_Gallagher

ECMarkets Trading Platform

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Trading Platforms
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Trading Accounts
ECMarkets offer 3 different multi-currency trading accounts according to deposit size. Minimum deposit is a low $100 and there is a practice account with $100,000 for a no risk, no obligation method of fine-tuning your trading skills and strategies.

Tradable Assets
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Trading Conditions
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Making the platform suitable for both beginners and experts, ECMarkets offer a full education resource center aimed at installing knowledge and confidence into the novice trader and improving the skills and strategies of the expert trader. The ECMarkets education center includes:

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ECMarkets provide a professional, secure and fully regulated environment in which to trade with many features aimed at helping you become a better trader, regardless of experience or financial knowledge. Suitable for both novice and expert traders, ECMarkets offer a trusted and innovative platform with plenty of choice, features and benefits simply not found elsewhere.Who is ECMarkets?
ECMarkets-is a fully licensed and regulated Forex broker based out of Cyprus. Operated by SafeCap Ltd, it is registered with the world

GBPUSD Daily Set Up

 

 

I am now short GBPUSD – especially with the Euro losing ground I believe we will now see the pound fall further. There is historic support at the 1.53800 level so I am aiming for around this number as my take profit.

 

Some good trades to be had on both the GBPUSD and EURUSD by looking out for inside bars, fakey’s, and pin bars. I will see how these candles form then enter in line with the trend.

 

Please feel free to ask any question about this trade or the other trades I have been in. Always happy to help and discuss trading.

EUR USD Daily Chart

 

 

 

This is the EUR USD daily chart. You can see from the red box I have highlighted some interesting price action. Two inside bars have formed then a third candle progressives aggressively however with the movement back down this is now setting up to be a fakey move.

 

I will wait until the New York close at 10pm UK time and see how the next candle opens. I am looking at a break below the the large green candle to confirm a trade entry.

 

I will be looking at a RR here of 3:1.

 

The trade has good price action at the moment and the direction of the trend so this has some good confluence attached.

 

Any questions give me an email and I am happy to help.

 

 

 

 

GBPJPY 15th December 11

 

Another long term trade. I am expecting the Yen to strengthen against the British pound. This is a short trade with the expectation that price will be heading towards a previous support level at around 119.

 

The chart for me is bearish and I am looking for price to pick up the down trend that occurred November. A slight concern is we are around the intervention level on this pair however I think it is the USD price that will have more significance on any action from the Japanese Government.

 

Going to keep this over night and see how it has played out in the morning. May take a small profit on this in the morning if price does not appear to be moving strong.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GBPAUD 15th December 11

This long position is the type of trade I am starting to look at more and more. I can place the trade for the longer term maybe 2 – 4 days and go about my business. So long as price is in the right place with a wide stop this trade should move nicely to 250 plus pips.

 

The only downside to this is the wide stop means you must only trade with a small position size. In saying that though the stress of trading is removed and you can have several trades on moving at once. This is the most consistence strategy I have been using.

 

Let me know if you have any questions. I will be posting my excel journal with results on this and other trades soon.

Gold 7th December 11

Here is potential set up for Gold. You can see from the chart the possible long entry at around 1735 with the stop below the daily pivot at 1720. This is not the usual long term strategy. This is more of an intra-day trade.

 

This strategy along with the others I trade can be learned from my mentor Dan Armitage. If you would like more information on these strategies and how you can join the study group then get in touch or visit the Forex 121 page on this blog.

 

Happy trading!!!!