The Importance of Currency Trading Research

January 27, 2010 · Posted in Forex Exchange · Comments Off 

Here we are going to look at the importance of currency research and how to implement in a trading plan for big gains over the long term.

Currency trading research falls in to specific categories – currency research before you trade, research for traders executing a vendors signals and research for traders who want confirmation for their own trading.

Getting the right currency research will have a big influence on your trading success, so lets look at each area in more detail.

Currency Trading Research – Before you start

All traders need to know the basics, you wouldnt try to drive a car without lessons, and neither should you try to trade currencies without a bit of study.

There are plenty of good books on trading and here we are going to give you some books that you may like to consider.

Good books to read include any by Larry Williams, Jake Bernstein and Ken Roberts while not specific to currency trading their easy to read and digest and give you an idea of what trading is all about.

You also need to read some good books on trading psychology and there is no better place to start than Jack Shwagers Market Wizards and New Market Wizards that complies some stories of some of the great traders of all time including: Ed sekoyta, Richard Dennis and the famous turtletraders. These books are essential reading for any trader.

Other good books on psychology include ones by Alexander Elder and Dr Van Tharpe

And the classic reminiscences of a stock operator by Edwin Le feuvre

Good overall reference books to have are fundamental market analysis and technical both again by Jack Shwager.

Currency Trading Research – Following Mechanical Signals

Many traders like to follow currency research in the form of newsletters and currency trading systems from vendors and then act upon the signals they provide.

If you are doing this make sure you:

1. Have full confidence in the method they are using to generate the signals and know as much about the logic as you can.

2. You also should study trading history to see how successful trades have been and make sure you are happy with the risk reward.

3. Keep in mind if you are following signals or trades you need to follow them EXACTLY and this means having full confidence in the method used.

Currency Trading Research – To help you with Entry and Exit Levels

If you dont want to follow someone else and you wish to make your own trades then there is plenty of currency trading research services on the net.

There are services that you can pay for, but much of it is available free and in many instances, this information is the best.

Many of the larger brokers and banks have great research and cover both technical and fundamental factors affecting currency movements.

Do a search, and you will be able to find good daily, weekly and monthly currency research reports.

A Word of Warning on Currency Trading Research!

The amount of currency trading research on the net is vast and many traders feel that the more research they have the better and try to use 5, 10 or even more different services to help them with their trading.

The result? – They end up with to much information, much of it conflicting and get confused and unsure what to do.

The best way to use currency trading research if you are trading for yourself is follow a few services only, that reflect your trading style and use them as a filter for your own trades.

Currency Research – Helping to Make your Trading Profitable

If you are simply following signals or trades of someone else, you need to spend time doing your homework, so you have full confidence to execute trades with discipline.

Research is needed regardless of whether the method is totally mechanical or reasons are given for the trades.

To get the most from this type of research you need to follow ALL the trades, not just a few! Otherwise, you may miss the best opportunities and your track record will not reflect that of the service, which you bought.

The real problem for traders who want currency research to just help them confirm their own trading material, is the sheer volume of research available.

You need to be SELECTIVE and just have a couple – too many will confuse you and give you conflicting information.

As stated there is no need to pay, many banks and brokers offer great research and its totally free and in many instances better than the paid for services.

Author: Stephen Todd
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: How Electric Pressure Cookers Work

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Currency Trading Systems – Making Money from the Longer Term Trends

January 12, 2010 · Posted in Forex Exchange · Comments Off 

Currency markets never sleep and several trillions dollars are traded everyday, making currencies the worlds biggest and most exciting investment market.

In recent years, mechanical currency trading systems, using technical analysis to predict trend movements have become increasingly popular as a way of locking into, and profiting from the longer term currency trends.

Making Money from the Longer Term Trends

Currency trading systems are ideal for making profits from longer-term currency trends, and they occur in all currencies.
The longer-term trends in FOREX markets reflect the health of the economy.

As economic cycles are relatively long and take years, so do the currency trends that reflect these cycles.

A good currency trading system can enable traders to lock into, and make profits from these longer-term trends.

When choosing currencies to trade, it is important to have good long-term trends, but just as important is liquidity, which enables traders to lock in profits and exit losing trades quickly.

Currencies that offer good trends and liquidity include:

The US Dollar

Swiss Franc

Euro

Japanese Yen

British Pound.

Currency trading systems remove emotions from trading, which is the major reason the majority of traders end up losing.

Removing the Emotion from Trading with Systems

There has been plenty of material written about using currency trading systems, and the works below provides informative reading for anyone thinking of using a currency trading system.

Traders should try to read the following authors:

Edwin Lefeurve, Jake Bernstein, Larry Williams, Ken Roberts, Van Tharpe and Jack Shwager whose books Market Wizards and The New Market Wizards interview some of the most successful traders of all time, including the turtles. The Turtles are group of traders who had no prior trading experience, but went on to earn hundreds of millions of dollars, using very simple mechanical trading systems.

Currency Trading Systems that Make Money

The developments in recent years in computer software, the growth of the Internet, and online trading, has seen currency trading systems become more popular than ever.

Software Packages such as Tradestation, Supercharts, Omni trader, and many more, allow traders to back test systems, using a variety of technical indicators that include:

Stochastics

Bollinger bands

RSI

moving averages

ADX

And many more.

The currency trading system picked can then be analyised, to see how it would have performed in the markets with commissions and slippage deducted.

Traders, who dont want to develop a currency trading system, can buy systems off the shelf from vendors.

How do you Choose a Successful Currency Trading System?

If you are buying a currency trading system, there are several things to consider before parting with your hard earned cash:

1. Are you interested in being a day trader, or a trader looking for longer-term trends? You need to pick a system that youre comfortable with and this is mostly down to personal preference. Some traders like the excitement of day trading others prefer a longer-term approach.

2. Do you want to have any input into the system, or do you want it to be totally mechanical?

3. Do you want to trade just one currency, or a basket of currencies? Using a currency trading system that trades just one currency can be more profitable but keep in mind, the converse is true, i.e losses and drawdowns can be larger.

4. When choosing a currency trading system you need to have confidence to trade with it, and follow the system through losing periods. To do this you should know the logic the system is based upon. If you understand the system and its logic, you will derive confidence and be more likely to follow it – in contrast to one where the logic is not revealed.

5. What are the average profits you can expect in relation to drawdowns? All currency trading systems will have periods of drawdown and losses. Generally the larger the profits the bigger the drawdowns tend to be over time – so pick a system that reflects your investment aims and risk tolerance.

6. When you are buying a currency trading system, check out the system sellers experience, track record, customer support, – and whether they have a real-time track record, or a hypothetical one.

A real time track records means the system has performed in the market and made money, i.e its proven. Trading systems that simply rely on hypothetical track records mean they have been back tested, – and with the benefit of hindsight we can all make money!

While hypothetical track records should be treated with a degree of caution, you can find out a lot about whether the system is likely to make money, by knowing the logic the system is based on.

When considering a hypothetical track record, look for one where the logic is revealed and not a black box system where you have no idea how to system works.

In conclusion, you can make your own currency trading system, or you can buy one from a vendor – when choosing one from a vendor make sure you do your homework, and remember – if it looks too good to be true, it probably is!

Currency trading systems can, and do make money, and the effort you put into finding the system that suits your personality, risk tolerance, and profit objectives, will be time well spent.

Author: Stephen Todd
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Guest blogger

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