Out of the DOW
Got out of all long DOW positions. Bought near the lower line of the trading range, sold near the upper one.
I have to remember that a trading range would follow a up/down phase. It's not always the case but then it's also not always the case that the up phase would be followed immediately by a down one and vice versa.
Got out of all long DOW positions. Bought near the lower line of the trading range, sold near the upper one.
I have to remember that a trading range would follow a up/down phase. It's not always the case but then it's also not always the case that the up phase would be followed immediately by a down one and vice versa.
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An arbitrary decision
I made a decision not to trade any more after my last post and logged out of my account. It was not a good one. When I saw the price coming down to the lower line, I decided to buy but when I logged in again, it already moved to the middle of the channel. It was a 20 point move in matters of minutes.
I made a decision not to trade any more after my last post and logged out of my account. It was not a good one. When I saw the price coming down to the lower line, I decided to buy but when I logged in again, it already moved to the middle of the channel. It was a 20 point move in matters of minutes.
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LSE revised
Will have to revise my LSE order. The stock dropped a bit more so my stop buy order was not filled. I am in no hurry to buy and the more it drops, the better.
And when I listed its PE ratio as one of the reasons to go long, someone has a different view.
Will have to revise my LSE order. The stock dropped a bit more so my stop buy order was not filled. I am in no hurry to buy and the more it drops, the better.
And when I listed its PE ratio as one of the reasons to go long, someone has a different view.
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Hung, From my experience you have too many views on too many different products. Traders tend to loose because of a term called churning. Churning is like a punter walking into Ladbrokes and winning £100 off the first trade, then re-punting that cash back into another trade. You are better off perhaps concentrating on a market that you are good at taking a decent and proftiable view on. If you can find good channels on 1 market it may skew your trading pattern by trading something you are not so good on. Do not think a trade just trade what is in front of you! This is a small part of the learning process, and no matter how many seminars or trading academy's you attend the bottom line is learning patterns. All markets have patterns, whether they are obvious or not you have to weight these patterns into your trading thought process. Instinct is 9 tenths of the key to formulating a winning strategy, churning is 9 tenths towards formulating a loosing strategy. My views and you don't have to listen....
Thanks a lot, Marvin.
I am trading and learning hard at the moment. All I am focusing on now is about 10 UK stocks, the FTSE and the DOW. Is this too much?
With regards to patterns, I haven't seen one in the last four weeks or so. Where have they gone
Thanks again for your advice.
Have a good weekend!
Hung
I am trading and learning hard at the moment. All I am focusing on now is about 10 UK stocks, the FTSE and the DOW. Is this too much?
With regards to patterns, I haven't seen one in the last four weeks or so. Where have they gone
Thanks again for your advice.
Have a good weekend!
Hung
When we cross a road we all look, listen then cross. Trading is the same, it is all about using basic senses. We start off as infants then mature into the markets, some quicker than others! Traders have to let go of modern life greed and simplicity. We all live easy well nurished lives, and to a certain extent as per the title of this thread "Diary of a swing spread better" - we all rest on our laurels. Human nature is to strive upon the easy option and sometimes to strive for the hardest option. A traders life is not the easy option, and most traders cannot afford the luxury of trading full time. Most of us work and trade, and thus we do not have to rely on trading as a full time salary. Winning from trades is not impossible but keep your expectations realistic.
You should write a book about trading, Marvin! Will be a best seller!
I've become more realistic now having doubled my tiny capital in three weeks then given it all back plus a bit more. Marc Rivalland said in his swing trading book that his style produces 6-42 per cent gains a year.
And I'll have to 'write off' all my loss and start fresh. With the pressure to recoup the losses, I can't make good trading decisions.
Have a good night!
H
I've become more realistic now having doubled my tiny capital in three weeks then given it all back plus a bit more. Marc Rivalland said in his swing trading book that his style produces 6-42 per cent gains a year.
And I'll have to 'write off' all my loss and start fresh. With the pressure to recoup the losses, I can't make good trading decisions.
Have a good night!
H
hungvir said:
Fins has an 11 point spread on LSE Jun. Will have to check CMC's quote. Both Fins and CMC have been very good at filling my stop and limit orders.
It's less painfull to let the SB companies take me out of a wrong trade than to do it myself. I've once rolled over a losing position just to double my losses. If I sit in front of a screen to see the price coming near my stop loss level I am not sure if I won't do it again.
In hind sight, stop loss orders on the DOW made me take unnecessary losses. The two long positions that turned me from a winner into a loser overnight proved to be profitable as soon as I was stopped out. But the market could come crashing down and I'll be writing the opposite here.
hungvir said:
That happens!
I don't know the answer to that unless it is to make a study of where everyone else's stops are, because the reason for those spikes is to take all the stops out.I am following the advice of another trader who stated that, over a year, he is in pocket by not using stop losses. That would not be my advice, though, for anyone trading US stocks and indices. I lost 80 points on DMGT at the beginning of this thread, if you remember, on a morning gap but I don't think that a stop would have helped me much and I have got that back again.
So, remember to ask yourself, before entering. "Where are everyone else's stops" and try to go beyond them. I believe that most traders follow a herd pattern and, after reading all the books, put the stops fairly close to each other.
Split
Nothing interesting
Just scanned thru the FT Weekend and there's nothing I can trade on in there. Prudential and LSE still have lots of coverage. Both are my long candidates and both are dropping.
There's a story about trading in shares got hit by the growing popularity of spreadbetting. I wonder who will be there driving shares' price up or down if people keep moving to SB/CFD firms.
Just scanned thru the FT Weekend and there's nothing I can trade on in there. Prudential and LSE still have lots of coverage. Both are my long candidates and both are dropping.
There's a story about trading in shares got hit by the growing popularity of spreadbetting. I wonder who will be there driving shares' price up or down if people keep moving to SB/CFD firms.
What the Apprentice and spreadbetting have in common?
Many.
1. One big win/loss means a great deal.
In one of the episodes, both competing teams had to sell calendars that they designed themselves to three major retailers. One team was able to sell to all the three companies while the other was able to sell to just one. But that one order was huge and they won the task.
I had about 10 winning trades with small stakes but two losing trades with big stakes were enought to put my account in the red.
2. Understanding/Criticising oneself is easier said than done.
One of the fired candidates saw nothing wrong with his approach in leading a team. He was either in denial or not bright enough to seperate the right from the wrong.
If traders do not own up to their mistakes and does not take accountability (to themselves) seriously, failure is just around the unlucky corner.
3. Doing homework is crucial
In the latest episodes, two teams had to come up with an ad campaign for Sir Sugar's jet card. Both campaigns were said to be 'sh..' with one less than the other. And of course there should be a winner. One team at least understood the instructions and proved to be more creative.
In trading, making sure we understand what the market is really telling us and act accordingly is very important. If we're not sure, we have to double check. And if double checking does not increase understanding then a trade is not worth our while.
Creativity is very important. In the long run, it will seperate winners from losers. No system that does not evolve over time can be a sustainable one. And I think no system can be applied universally with the same degree of success.
Just some thoughts when being idle. (Not really, will have to start working from now till midnight
Many.
1. One big win/loss means a great deal.
In one of the episodes, both competing teams had to sell calendars that they designed themselves to three major retailers. One team was able to sell to all the three companies while the other was able to sell to just one. But that one order was huge and they won the task.
I had about 10 winning trades with small stakes but two losing trades with big stakes were enought to put my account in the red.
2. Understanding/Criticising oneself is easier said than done.
One of the fired candidates saw nothing wrong with his approach in leading a team. He was either in denial or not bright enough to seperate the right from the wrong.
If traders do not own up to their mistakes and does not take accountability (to themselves) seriously, failure is just around the unlucky corner.
3. Doing homework is crucial
In the latest episodes, two teams had to come up with an ad campaign for Sir Sugar's jet card. Both campaigns were said to be 'sh..' with one less than the other. And of course there should be a winner. One team at least understood the instructions and proved to be more creative.
In trading, making sure we understand what the market is really telling us and act accordingly is very important. If we're not sure, we have to double check. And if double checking does not increase understanding then a trade is not worth our while.
Creativity is very important. In the long run, it will seperate winners from losers. No system that does not evolve over time can be a sustainable one. And I think no system can be applied universally with the same degree of success.
Just some thoughts when being idle. (Not really, will have to start working from now till midnight
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