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estrader
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Posts posted by estrader
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Hi.I'm sort of "new" when trading with futures.
I've always traded CFD's, but got tired of the big spreads when compared with futures spreads.
The problem that I'm having at the moment is the contract being traded.
There are those that are simple to understand. ES, NQ, YM, 6E. March is the contract being traded at this moment. No problem here.
But then we have the ones that confuses me, GC, CL, NG, ZW, ZC, ZS. I never know which contract/month is being traded at this moment.
For example, GC December contract is still being traded, despite last Friday had been a futures close day.
Where or how can I know the correct contract being traded?
Regards.
Just to add to Richards post, when you say "currently traded" I think you mean "Front Month".
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An inexperienced trader (less than 5 years) should only use hard stops without question and never, ever move them in a direction that increases risk. It will take years (5+) before you are proficient enough to use mental stops.
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ES you seem to be confusing a lot of different things.I wasn't confusing anything................. I called I.B and got the answer
Moderated Message: Removed some text - prior poster was trying to help and spent a lot of time trying -
Under certain volatile conditions IB has in the past moved the Overnight Initial Margin (which is higher) to the Intraday Initial Margin (which is lower). The Margin went up. Maybe “flip” wasn’t the best word to use but not confused.Ok. Imagine you work in IB Customer service; I call you up and ask the following:
I would like to trade the ES contract but I’m a little confused by your Initial Margins. The CME specifies $5625- but you have two different initial margins, an intraday initial margin of $2813 and an overnight initial margin of $5625.
How can your initial intraday margin be lower than the one mandated by the CME?
Does this mean I can open 1 position with only $3000 in my account? If so, what hours of trading does the ‘Intraday margin’ apply to and how low will you allow the balance of my account go before closing out my position?
Now, answer these questions in a way that a new trader would understand....please
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Yep. And the IB 'Overnight Initial' is the margin set by the exchange which for ES is currerntly $5625. IB in the past will flip this value over to the "Intraday Initial' under certain volatle conditions.Explain how this works in practical terms, from the perspective of a trader who wants to open a position. CME does not specifiy two different Initial Margins.
Actually forget answering my question. After reading what you wrote again it's clear you must be confused. Why would IB flip this value over to the "Intraday Initial' under certain volatile conditions? Margins go UP under volatile conditions not down.
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my own risk management rules are more conservative than the overnight margin requirements set by the exchange. I have never attempted to open a position which would be more leveraged than the marging requirements, or even anywhere near to them.Exactly, this says it all. You know the risks but I'm expected to believe that futures brokers would completely ignore the risks and arbitrarily set their own margins that are below the ones set by the exchange..c'mon!!
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...unless you are a day trader. You definitely can open a larger position, but you have to close it within the same session.I will contact CME group myself and find out if this is fact or opinion because it is something I've never heard before. I can't find anything in the contract specs which specify two different initial margins.
Do you trade more than one contract intra-day and do you have less than $10K in your account?
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Well, OK then. The $2813 Initial Intraday Margin for the ES is the same as day trading margin, as there is the word "Intraday".OK, so basically we are none the wiser after half a dozen posts. Brokers set their own day trading margins and the exchange sets the initial margin that ALL brokers must abide by. Therefore, it is impossible to open more than one contract with only $10K in the account.
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Before anyone else posts their opinion, make sure you know the difference between a Day Trading margin an Initial Margin and Maintenance Margin.
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As I wrote before, IB are conservative. AFAIK, they do not offer lower margins than the exchange. But check e.g. Mirius:I repeat: My broker gives me a $500 DAY TRADING MARGIN. This is different to the initial margin set by the exchange.
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I am pretty sure they have controls in place to try to close you out so that they do not begin to risk their own capital. They make you responsible for your losses, but they ultimately answer to the clearing firm. Brokers do take losses.There is a big difference between taking a loss and putting up potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars or even $Millions of your own capital every single day as margin for your clients. I can understand a $500 day trading margin because that gives approx $5100 headroom from the initial margin for unexpected volatility. What I can't understand is an Intraday Initial Margin of $2813. Why have two different 'Initial Margins' anyway? This means that if you are a swing trader you can be more aggressive/risky if you open your trades during the day even if you intend holding for more than one day? Doesn't make sense to me.
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Actually, IB are quite conservative and they have higher margin requirements. For the ES, the intraday initial margin is $2813 and the initial overnight margin is $5625.Source: http://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/p.php?f=margin
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For estrader:
Margin requirements are indeed set by the exchange, but you, as a retail trader, do not interact directly with the exchange. Your broker places your orders on your behalf. Therefore, I'd say that in fact it is the broker who must meet the requirements set by the exchange. And the broker can have different, usually softer, requirements for his clients, while he must bear the risk resulting from the difference. If the client wids up with negative account ballance, the broker clears the debt with the exchange and then demands the money on the client.
Therefore, the margin requirements set by the exchange are only very loosely related to the margins required by the brokers. They serve merely as reference. Some brokers have initial intraday margin for the ES as low as $500.
You could be right, but I find it too hard to believe that any broker would take on the risk of initial margin requirements on behalf of their client. If my broker did that I would trade with another broker because they will become insolvent in no time. My broker has a $500 day trading margin but I cannot open a contract unless I have the minimum initial margin set by the exchange- $5650.
From the I.B Website:
Futures margin requirements are determined by each exchange and can change frequently. All margin requirements are expressed in the currency of the traded product.The CME which is the exchange that the ES is listed on quotes an initial margin of $5,625
The CME may have an 'Intra-day' margin of $2813 but I can't find it on their site even though I.B lists it. However, it is clear even from I.B that it is the Exchange which sets the Initial Margin.
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Yes to answer the question above with a 10K account it IS insane to trade 4 ES contracts.I always say just because your broker will let you doesn't mean you should.
Their business and it's totally fine that it is this way is to make their money on commissions. They know most will blow up so I understand that they will try to maximize what they get out of you in the process of you blowing up.
However, make it tougher on them -- and really better on you and them by being a surviving trader and avoid crazy leverage/risk. $10K account? 1 maybe 2 contracts.
MMS
I would doubt that anyone who claims that their broker 'lets' them trade more than 1 contract with only $10K is actually a real trader. The margins are set by the exchange and for very good reasons. The exchange increased the initial margin around 2007-08 when the markets became extremely volatile and this would have been a pointless exercise if brokers could arbitrarily determine the margin requirements for their clients.
Before we get to discussing whether or not it is insane we should first consider if it is even possible to trade more than 1 contract with only $10k. I say that it is impossible. If anyone says it is possible then please provide the name and contact number of your broker so that I can confirm it for myself.
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In ES and other very liquid markets where the spread is 1 tick #1, #2 & #3 happen some small fraction of 1% of trades. IMHO as useless as tick bars.UB
It is strange that you say this because now you contradict yourself. Nothing should be considered useless when it comes to time and sales data. Do you think that 1000+ contracts traded outside/inside the spread isn't worth considering even if it happens <1% of the time?
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I don't undersand. Doesn't every trade take place at either the best bid or best asked? What trade doesn't take place at either the top bid or bottom asked?UB
1) Trades that occur inside the spread
2) Trades that occur above the best Ask
3) Trades that occur below best Bid.
I think BlowFish is asking for the best Bid/Ask to note where the last trade was filled.
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I need some tick volume data ... how many price changes not how many shares or contracts tradedCan someone recommend a good source
thx
Am I the only one who understands (misunderstands?) what you are asking for?
You don't want just ordinary tick data, you want price change data? I don't know of any company that provides this sort of information. You would have to capture it or figure it out for yourself, but I could be wrong. There may be some company that does this even though I think it's utterly useless data, although you must obviously have a need for it.
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certain broker only require $500 to daytrade. LOLMy broker allows a $500 day trading limit but that does not get around the $5,625 initial margin set by the exchange to open a contract. The $500 limit comes into effect after the contract has been opened. Simply put, it is impossible to open 4 contracts with $10,000 in the account.
I would also add, I don't know why anyone would set a target of 1% profit/month. I wonder, if Bill Gates had set himself a profit target of $1 Billion whether we would all still be using DOS 6
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Am I the only one who thinks it is insane to trade 4 ES contracts with a $10,000 account?With a $5,625 initial margin to open 1 contract I would think it's impossible.
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I do not think that anyone who practices it is bullshitting, just you.Fine. This comment, like the rest of your 'argument' has been based on nothing but your ill-considered, ill-informed, ignorant opinion. No facts, just bluster. I'm not interested in what you have to say anymore. You can have the last word because it's clear to me that is the sort of "person" you are.
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I should have known you have a sixth sense. You want us to believe that you are Superman. Can you bend steel with your mind too? Bullshitting on line is fun for you isn't it?I don't know what your problem is Mighty Mouse. You are not a tape-reader, you couldn't figure it out, you failed at it and as a result you think anyone who practices it is just talking bullshit. Whatever helps you sleep at night.
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A cheetah does have everything it needs to catch prey. However, a deaf cheetah can still catch prey, but he is at a disadvantage to the cheetah who has all his senses. Since a deaf cheetah is at a disadvantage, then it would be disadvantageous for a non-deaf cheetah to deliberately plug his ears when he is hunting for prey. I hope that is clearer for you. I didn't think the original version was so easy to misinterpret. My mistake, i suppose.I didn’t misunderstand your analogy. Taking away the Cheetah’s hearing is the equivalent to taking something away from time & sales that is needed, like price. You claim giving back the Cheetah’s hearing is giving it something extra that it wasn’t born with thereby giving it some sort of extra edge.
You have lots more information available to you than just time and sales. A trader who uses only time and sales can, probably, still make money, but he is at a disadvantage to traders who do not limit themselves to time and sales when there are many more tools available.
You have absolutely no proof of this at all. How can you possibly say that I am at a disadvantage to another trader? On what basis do you make this claim? How do you know how much money tape-readers out there make? You are trying to assert your opinion as if it is fact.
If you want me to believe that you are superman and can gather all the time, price, and volume information available from t&s that other traders can using a multitude of tools, I won't.
And there is the crux of your argument, you can’t do it so you don’t believe anyone else can either. Like I said earlier, if you had to ask, no answer would suffice. With the multitude of tools out there everyone should be a great carpenter, do you agree?
I doubt a person is profitable if they feel they need lot’s of ‘bells and whistles’ to assist in the decision making process. If you really want to know, I do add something to time & sales which gives me an extra edge, but it isn’t something you will find in your trading platform. What is that extra something? Experience! Hard earned experience that gives me what you could call a 6th sense. I know that you will find it hard to believe, you want something tangible. Ok, I use a pencil and paper and make notes. So, I suppose I wasn’t completely honest, there are some things I add, experience and pencil and paper.
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We have information we can derive from price, time, and volume.If you limit your sensory input, from p, t, and v, you limit your potential. Similarly, a cheetah stalking a baby gazelle in the Serengeti, can still succeed if it were wearing ear plugs and using only sight and smell; however, there are times where sound would give it the extra edge.
Well, you didn’t really answer my question. How much time and effort have you devoted to the art of tape reading?
You have manipulated your analogy to suit your argument because I would say that the Cheetah already has everything it needs to catch its prey. You are talking about removing a sense, its hearing, and then giving it back and claiming you have added something to give it an extra edge in catching prey. That would be like taking price information away from time & sales and then giving it back and saying you have now added an extra edge.
If when you say you don't use charts, you mean that you don't trade chart patterns, then that is a different story. A chart is a nice and simple record of where price has been and It's an easy way to see where other traders may act. Why not use it?
I suppose I can infer by the fact that you ask me why I don’t use a chart that you haven’t devoted anywhere near the time and effort that I have into practicing tape-reading. It reminds me of something someone once said, if you have to ask, then no answer will suffice.
What would a chart tell me that time and sales doesn’t? How many people ‘use’ charts in their trading and still lose money?
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I'm not at all sure I agree MightyMouse.The thing about trading is that each person who ultimately succeeds finds their niche in this ever flowing, ever gyrating thing we call the market. In fact a niche in one of the many different markets.
I think it goes beyond that Kiwi. When the going gets tough many people give up and try something else so they never find out if they would have succeeded. I was very close to that point many times over the last 5 years but I believed so much in what I was doing that I persevered. I also trade with a very tight stop (5 ticks) even though I was told that this was utterly impossible. Would I, could I have achieved more with other methods...who knows and who cares!
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If you're actually making money, you'd probably make a heck of a lot more if you didn't limit yourself to only T&S.Absolutely perhaps probably
How much time and effort have you devoted to tape reading? I'm asking because I'd like to know what qualifies you to make such a statement. 'Heck of a lot more' is quite an assertion.
C# and OEC Advanced Example
in Open E Cry
Posted · Edited by estrader
grammar
I am not fully proficient with C# programming and was hoping to get some help.
Is there a way of getting TOTALVOLUME for a contract without having to subscribe to the OnPriceChanged event? I'd like to be able to get a value like TotalVolume whenever I request it, rather than waiting for the event.
I would appreciate any help with this in a "C# for dummies kind of way"