John Starks

5 QUALITIES OF A TOP TRADER

Talking about qualities of top traders means talking about some of the characteristics that you will find in successful traders. During my research I found out about some five strong qualities that affects a traders performance in the market.

1. ACCEPTING TRADING RESULTS AS THEIR OWN PRODUCE

Top traders believes that they are responsible for any of their trading result. They will never shift blames on any form of external source or any other thing. This is the mistake most traders do they often play the blame game, blaming one indicator or the other for their flaws in the markets. This is what you will not find in top traders, they accept responsibility for the results they come out with in the markets.

2. THE INTERSET AND DESIRE TO REALLY UNDERSTAND THEMSELVES

No one can really understand how he/she creates results if the person does not first understand himself/herself intimately. This is also true in the trading world. The desire to truly know yourself will greatly improve your results in the markets.

Great traders continually study and challenge themselves, their thinking, their actions and their reactions.

3. DISCIPLINE TO CONTINUALLY WORK TO IMPROVE THEMSELVES

Discipline creates excellence. Top traders continually work to improve themselves. The study and research never stop. The market is dynamic so it needs to be followed day in day out with a lot of study and research. A top trader or potential top traders always work to develop a discipline that makes them improve themselves.

4. THE ABILITY TO STRATEGIZE WELL

Top traders execute their strategies based on robust business plans that they have created to guide their trading. They have taken the time and effort to form meaningful objectives. They have also developed effective strategies to reach those objectives by understanding the multiple scenarios that are possible and how they will respond.

5. THE ABILITY TO GET IN THE ZONE

Top traders can become one with the market and accurately sense what it is doing. They have the ability to live in the present moment without being influenced by the past or the future. It's a very intuitive state and often gives them a total sense of how successful their moves will be in the market even before they make them.

Now, take a look at yourself and consider honestly if you have what it takes to be a top trader. Are you one of them ?

Have a splendid time trading.

When you're short on time, you can always go Emeril Lagasse and "kick it up a notch." Forex is known for making people really poor, really fast. However, quick profits can be had for the disciplined trader. There is a school of thought that says that said quick profits are achievable by using "the Fibonacci method." The method, of course, gets its name from the Italian Mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci, but how does it work?

When To Use This Method

This type of trading is normally used when you want a trading session that is over five minutes but under four hours. Ideally, it should last less than three hours. You can use any currency pairs you want, but your weighted moving average (WMA) should be 5.

How To Use The Fibonacci Trading Method

You'll need to follow some basic forex trading rules. First, discover whether you are in an uptrend or downtrend. Then, figure out the highest and lowest swings in the chart formation. Finally, make the trend your friend by trading on it.

Fibonacci retracement tools help you determine your entry and exit points. When you use a retracement tool, you're trying to figure out how far will the price retrace and then reverse in the opposite direction. To get your retracement levels, you'll need to use a Fibonacci calculator. This will tell you levels for 0 percent retracement, 23.8 percent, 38.2 percent, 50 percent, and 61.8 percent.

To be safe, the price must touch 5 WMA. Typically, you'll want three retracement levels. However, the top-most retracement level must not fail. For example, if you had retracement levels of .382, .500, and .618, then you would not want the .618 level to fail. You'll also want to define extension levels so that you know when to take your profits. Set your stop order 4 to 5 pips above your retracement level in a downtrend and 4 to 5 pips below your retracement level in an uptrend.

Once you have your retracement and extension levels defined, you're ready to go. Buy in once the trend indicates that it will not break through your retracement level. Ride the wave all the way up to your extension level and sell.

Caution

Many forex traders are quantitatively inclined. However, when you trade based solely on technical analysis, you might be leaving out some important data (and information). Technical analysis does not account for political instability, major news events, and other information that can dramatically influence currency trends.

There is no one tool or method that will work 100 percent of the time. The theories about market movement, using technical analysis, are based on pure mathematical analysis. If the assumptions being made are wrong, then the trade will turn against you. Don't think for a minute that a trend means you're guaranteed profit. By the same token, don't ignore trends as meaningless. What's important is to assume that the Fibonacci sequence will work when the trend is already there in your favor. All this strategy will do is give you yet another way to determine entry and exit points so that you can set some type of rules for yourself. You should use Fibonacci expansion Levels as a way of estimating where the where the movement will eventually reach. Fibonacci expansion basically has two critical levels, firstly at 61.8% and secondly at 100% profit taking level. The purpose of these specific levels are solely aimed at where you should use the information to take a profit. From the example chart shown below Fibonacci expansion levels are plotted between points 1, 2 and then 3. Following the direction of Forex trend, on this example it is upward, the expansion is then also plotted upwards. You will note that the Fibonacci expansion levels are shown above the price , giving an indication of the profit taking areas. From the example used , working on Fibonacci expansion 100 , a healthy proft would have been generated. Good advice would be to practice your strategies and hone your skills in this area. You can do this by finding a Forex chart and plotting your way to a profit, something you should quickly be able to do in real time. Here is an example of Fibonacci expansion levels on an upward forex trend and you can also search out examples of how the strategy works on a downward trend, as the same principle applies of following a trend up or down.

Source: fxstreet.com

FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - According to NAB research team, there is still plenty of commentary about renewed risk to the UK’s AAA sovereign status as a result of endemic economic weakness.

As reported by NAB in a morning note: "The UK AAA debate is of course relevant for Australia, where, in the wake of yesterday’s ratings warnings by Moody’s against Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, now the increased risks to the UK’s AAA status inevitably draws even closer attention to the stability of Australia’s AAA status."

NAB adds: "We can well imagine that amid the rising risk of falling sovereign ratings elsewhere, the speculation of a further increase in demand for Australian bonds is going to be a ‘cap that fits’ - for the time being at least.

Forexpros - U.S. stock markets closed higher Thursday, despite weak economic data, as market sentiment was boosted by stronger-than-expected earnings by corporate leaders such as IBM and eBay.

During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.27%, the S&P 500 index added 0.27% while the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.79%.

Better-than-expected earnings from corporate bellwethers such as IBM and eBay released after U.S. market closed on Wednesday helped boost appetite for riskier assets.

However, pressuring equities, U.S. existing home sales fell unexpectedly in June, underlining concerns over the health of the U.S. housing sector, industry data indicated Thursday.

In a report, the National Association of Realtors said that existing home sales fell by 5.4% to a seasonally adjusted 4.37 million units in June, defying expectations for a modest increase to 4.63 million units.

Existing home sales in May totaled 4.62 million units, upwardly revised from a previously reported 4.55 million units.

Online auction site eBay saw shares rally 9.5% after it said second quarter profit more-than-doubled, thanks to higher revenue from its PayPal online payments business and its e-commerce websites.

Shares in tech giant IBM jumped 3.4% after the company raised its full-year earnings outlook, despite reporting a 3% decline in second quarter revenue.

Shares in Finnish phone maker Nokia surged 11.85% in New York after reporting second quarter sales fell 19% from a year ago to USD9.2 billion, beating expectations for a decline to EUR8.97billion.

Sales of its flagship Lumia smartphone totaled 4 million in the March-to-June period.

Shares in mobile phone chip maker Qualcomm climbed 4.35% after reporting a 15% increase in fiscal third quarter earnings. Revenue rose 28% to USD4.63 billion.

Elsewhere, shares in Walgreens soared 12.8% after the firm said that it has reached a new agreement with Express Scripts Holding on rates and terms for a multi-year pharmacy network agreement.

Express Scripts Holdings Company shares rose 1.75% on the news, while shares in competitor CVS Caremark tumbled 4.5%.

On the downside, Wall Street investment bank Morgan Stanley saw shares drop 2.8% after reporting second quarter revenue fell to USD7 billion from USD9.2 billion in the preceding quarter. Excluding debt valuation adjustments, revenue in the latest quarter totaled USD6.6 billion.

Wall Street analysts expected the investment bank to post revenue of USD7.54 billion.

Yum! Brands shares fell 2.3% after reporting lower-than-expected second quarter, as a slowdown in demand from China weighed in results.

Meanwhile, stocks battled weak manufacturing numbers. Manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia-region in July contracted for the third consecutive month in July, adding to concerns over the pace of the U.S. economic recovery, official data showed on Thursday.

In a report, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said that its manufacturing index improved by 3.7 points to minus 12.9 in July from June’s reading of minus 16.6.

Analysts had expected the index to improve by 8.6 points to a reading of minus 8.0 in July.

On the index, a reading above 0.0 indicates improving conditions, below indicates worsening conditions.

Across the Atlantic, the EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.68%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.77%, while Germany’s DAX 30 jumped 1.02%

Investors were looking ahead to a German vote on approving the country’s part in an aid package for Spanish banks later in the day.

Earlier Thursday, Spain saw demand weaken and borrowing costs rise sharply at an auction of two, five and seven-year government bonds, fuelling fears that the country could be locked out of international credit markets.

Following the auction the yield on the country’s 10-year bonds was at 7.02%, breaching the critical 7% threshold, widely viewed as unsustainable in the long run.

In the U.K., official data showed that retail rose less-than-expected in June, inching up 0.1%, below expectations for a 0.6% gain, as wet weather hurt demand for outdoor products.

Friday is a slow day for economic releases with traders anticipating the Canadian core CPI and a few lesser economic reports.

FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - USD/JPY is last at 78.71 bids, off recent fresh 1-month lows at 78.66, 2 pips lower of previous weekly lows from Monday. The pair is down by -0.48% since previous Asia-Pacific open yesterday, and -0.61% for the week. Next lower low can be found on June 15 at 78.61, just 3 pips below current levels as the pair keeps breaking lower.

Natural yen correlation has changed as of late, making a divergence with yen rising while risk appetite is on and equities are rising, Nikkei index higher by +0.94% at the moment, barely above the 8800 points, along with rest of local share markets. As Haruya Ida from IFR Markets says: “USD/JPY off a bit o/n on lower US yields and changed correlation to risk,” adding: “Risk not really off currently but certainly not on.”

Immediate support to the downside for USD/JPY shows at mentioned 15 June lows at 78.61, followed by May 31 lows at 78.21, and June 04 lows at 77.98. For the upside, nearest term resistance comes at Monday's lows 78.68, followed by yesterday's NY session/Tuesday’s lows at 78.78, and yesterday's London session lows at 79.94.

FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - USD/JPY is last at 78.71 bids, off recent fresh 1-month lows at 78.66, 2 pips lower of previous weekly lows from Monday. The pair is down by -0.48% since previous Asia-Pacific open yesterday, and -0.61% for the week. Next lower low can be found on June 15 at 78.61, just 3 pips below current levels as the pair keeps breaking lower.

Natural yen correlation has changed as of late, making a divergence with yen rising while risk appetite is on and equities are rising, Nikkei index higher by +0.94% at the moment, barely above the 8800 points, along with rest of local share markets. As Haruya Ida from IFR Markets says: “USD/JPY off a bit o/n on lower US yields and changed correlation to risk,” adding: “Risk not really off currently but certainly not on.”

Immediate support to the downside for USD/JPY shows at mentioned 15 June lows at 78.61, followed by May 31 lows at 78.21, and June 04 lows at 77.98. For the upside, nearest term resistance comes at Monday's lows 78.68, followed by yesterday's NY session/Tuesday’s lows at 78.78, and yesterday's London session lows at 79.94.

Just seeing if anyone use either the HTC Touch or the HTC PPC 6800 smartphones for trading. In my area the choices are limited to those 2 phones. What I would like to use MT4 for charting then FXSoL mobile platform for trading. Unless there is a way to run MBT trading platform on one of the phones.

So in short anyone have any experence with either the phones for trading or the mobile platforms??

Money moves the market$$$$$

Yup, that's the very simple answer, "MONEY"

FXstreet.com (San Francisco) - The Australian dollar gained on the greenback Monday following weak U.S. retail data, which sparked another round of speculation about more easing from the Fed.

Later today, at 14:00 GMT, market participants will be listening closely to testimony by the head of the Federal Reserve. In the more immediate future however, focus remains on the latest RBA minutes, scheduled for release at 01:30 GMT.

So far this Tuesday in Asia, the pair has traded a very limited range around the 1.0240 mark ahead the RBA minutes. Farther to the downside, support levels lie at 1.0175 and 1.0140, while further resistance comes in at 1.0280 and 1.0330.

The 4-hour chart illustrates a bullish technical outlook, “with momentum heading strongly north above its midline,” comments Valeria Bednarik, Chief Analyst at FXstreet.com. “The AUD strength will be tested later today by RBA Minutes, where a dovish stance, or suggestions more rate cuts may be needed, will likely jeopardize current bullish trend.”

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The forex market is a high-volume market that is not stationary and have many players/participants both big and small.

The cause for this thread is to know who and what is responsible for the movements in forex.

The forex market is a high-volume market that is not stationary and have many players/participants both big and small.

The cause for this thread is to know who and what is responsible for the movements in forex.

Great!! thanks for sharing..money management is very important in every aspect in life...

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Do not be mistaken that you can only create wealth from short term forex trading and not long term trading. In fact, you can make money from both type of trading style but what I am going to show you are how you can create wealth from short term forex trading strategies like scalping and day trading.

The benefits of short term forex trading strategy are the ability to win you money within a shorter time frame. In addition, you will be spared from the sudden price movement that occurs during news release which is what the long term trades have to withstand.

Because of the short term nature of each trade, the entry and exit position must be well timed and properly executed and this is where most traders lost their money in short term trades.

If you enter a trade too early, there is a high chance that you will be stopped out due to false signal. If you enter a trade too late, the market has moved quite a lot and there is a high chance that it may reverse. Therefore having a good entry is very important for your success in short term trading.

Here is how you can plan your entry:

1) Drawing Trend Line: The trend line is one of the commonly used entry technique. A lot of people like to rush into a trade and tend to enter their position before a trend line break occurs. In the end, they find the market being repelled by the trend line and did not break through it. Therefore waiting for a valid trend line break is a must before you enter your position.

In the case where you have missed the golden opportunity to enter your trade at the breach of the trend line, you should always wait for the market to retrace back to retest the trend line to enter your position.

2) Using MACD Technical Indicator: This is an indicator that I like to use for my entry. I usually use the crossover of this indicator to place my entry. Whenever I have the setup that is according to my trading plan, I will wait for the MACD histogram to flip to the other side before I enter a position.

Having a good entry is only half the game; you need to have a good exit to complete the strategy. There is no point in having a good entry but your exit is too far away which is unrealistic. In the end, the price reverses and takes back all the profit and eventually stops you out.

Here is how you can plan your exit:

1) Using Support and Resistance: The support and resistance are great places to exit a position as these are usually where the market will meet with some sort of repulsive force. Usually I will exit my position at the nearest major support or resistance. In fact you can also make use of Fibonacci levels as well as pivot points for your exit.

2) Using MACD Technical Indicator: Similar to how you use this indicator for entry, you can use the flip over of the histogram to exit your position.

With a well defined entry and exit strategy, you will be able to create wealth from short term forex trading. To find out more about the various strategies you can use for short term trading, you can refer to my blog post on forex scalping system and forex breakout strategy.

If you have anything to share about this post, do feel free to give your comment below. Every comment is valuable to all the readers of this blog as we will be able to learn and grow together.

Source: how-to-trade-currency.com

Forexpros - U.S. stocks on Friday fell on news the economy added fewer jobs than predicted in June.

At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 0.96%, the S&P 500 index was down 0.94% while the Nasdaq Composite index was down 1.30%.

The U.S. added a net 80,000 nonfarm payrolls in June, below market forecasts for a gain of around 90,000.

April figures were revised to 68,000 from 77,000 nonfarm payrolls, while May's numbers were revised to 77,000 from 69,000.

The numbers sent investors selling equities and snapping up safe-haven dollar positions on fears the U.S. economy continues to show signs of cooling.

The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.66% at 83.48.

Monetary policy decisions outside of the U.S. sent investors racing to the dollar and selling stocks worldwide as well.

The European Central Bank cut its benchmark interest rate 25 basis points to 0.75%.

A Bank of England decision to inject GBP50 billion into the economy via stimulus measures followed by interest rate cuts in China also fueled the risk-off trading session.

The weak U.S. employment figures fueled fresh talk the Federal Reserve will consider stimulating the economy via quantitative easing, which would normally send stocks rising.

Under quantitative easing, the Fed buys assets from banks, injecting the financial sector full of liquidity to push long-term interest rates down to foster investment and job creation, weakening the dollar in the process and sending stocks gaining.

The next Federal Reserve monetary policy decision is not until Aug. 1, which kept stock-market bulls at bay on Friday.

Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average gainers included Kraft Foods, up 2.39%, McDonald's Corp., up 0.44%, and Wal-Mart Stores, up 0.38%.

Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average decliners included Hewlett-Packard, down 3.50%, Caterpillar, down 2.53%, and Alcoa, down 2.13%.

European indices, meanwhile, finished down.

After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 2.15%, France's CAC 40 fell 1.88%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished down 1.92 %. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 closed down 0.53%.

welcome aboard.... :)

FXstreet.com (San Francisco) - AUD/CAD closed the American session well off its lows on Thursday, finishing with its first daily gain of the week at 1.0432 from 1.0402 after bouncing from a 4-day low of 1.0380, recording a 0.3% gain on the day.

“The technical signals continue to lean towards the risk of a top/reversal forming in the mid 1.04 area, right around retracement resistance,” comments TD Securities.

TD also observes that Wednesday’s “shooting star” top “supports the weak-ish price action seen around this level in the past few days,” and that “more information is needed” but they believe “short-term price action supports our generally bearish bias here.”

AUD/CAD sits quietly around the 1.0435 mark this Friday in early Asia, with the May 26 peak at 1.0485 suggesting a level of selling interest should the pair break above immediate resistance in the 1.0450 area (29 June high). Support levels lie at 1.0406 (12 April high), 1.0377 (17 Aug high), and 1.0334 (15 Aug high).