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analyst75

Market Wizard
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Everything posted by analyst75

  1. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish This pair first moved sideways in the first few days of last week, and then price broke down again on October 28, reaching the support line at 1.0900. From that support line, price has bounced upwards a bit, testing the resistance line at 1.1050. The bias on this pair remains bearish and further downwards movement is possible in the month of November, principally because the outlook on USD is bright for the month. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish USDCHF went upwards smoothly last week, reaching the resistance level at 0.9950. However, bulls have been unable to push price above that resistance level, as price eased by almost 100 pips, testing the support level at 0.9850. USDCHF should continue its upwards journey this month, possibly reaching the great psychological level at 1.0000, which means USD could probably reach parity with CHF this month, given the bullish expectation on USD for this month. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish GBP shall undergo strong and fast movements this month as bulls and bears struggle for supremacy, which would also be visible on GBP pairs. Price tested the accumulation territory at 1.5250 and then spiked upwards on Friday. In spite of the upwards spike, the bias is bearish. A movement above the distribution territory at 1.5500 could end the current bearish bias, and until that happens, long trades are not recommended. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bullish USDJPY did not make any serious directional movement last week, since there were transitory upswings and downswings in the market. Should this kind of price action continue throughout this week, the market could enter another equilibrium phase. Nonetheless, the bullish bias is supposed to continue this month (certain JPY pairs would make attempts to rally in November, except AUDJPY and NZDJPY, because the outlook on AUD and NZD is strongly bearish for the month of November). EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish This currency trading instrument cannot make any significant bullish movement as long as Euro is very weak. There is still a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market: Long trades would be illogical unless the supply zone at 134.00 is overcome. Until that happens, rallies could be taken as short-selling opportunities. In case Yen becomes weaker than Euro, a meaningful reversal would be witnessed. Euro itself would make effort to rally against some currencies in this month, save Greenback. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Fortunately, the positive expectations of full time trading prove to be true. Every day is exciting and the world of trading never bores. There is always a lot going on in the financial markets and there is plenty to discover.” - Christiaan van der Meer Copyright: Tallinex.com
  2. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish This pair traded in a tight range from Monday to Wednesday and then broke out southwards on Thursday. The southward break was strong enough to cause a new bearish outlook on EURUSD (plus most other EUR pairs), which would continue for the rest of this month. Last week, price fell 350 pips, testing the support line at 1.1000. That support line is a psychological level – a breach of it to the downside would result in further southward movement. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish In most cases, the movement on USDCHF is largely determined by whatever happens to EURUSD. As long at the latter had stamina in it, the former was under bearish pressure. As soon as EURUSD broke down, USDCHF skyrocketed, rising from the support level at 0.9500; with price almost reaching the resistance level at 0.9800. This is a movement of roughly 300 pips, and it has resulted in a Bullish Confirmation Pattern in the market. Further upward journey is expected this week: The resistance levels at 0.9850 and 0.9900 are potential targets. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish There is a bearish signal on GBPUSD, owing to its inability to trend upwards. All previous northward attempts were foiled at the distribution territory of 1.5500, which is now a major barrier to the bulls. The bias on this market can never be bullish as long as price is under the distribution territory at 1.5500. In the last few trading days, price made a bearish move, now very close to the accumulation territory at 1.5300. Unless the distribution territory at 1.5500 is breached to the upside, short positions are recommended. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bullish As it was mentioned in the last week forecast, there has been an end to the recent equilibrium phase on USDJPY, which lasted for several weeks. One of the conditions for the end of the equilibrium phase has been met: A close above the demand level at 121.00. The current bullish journey began on October 15, but it was not counted as been significant until price closed above the demand level at 121.00, almost testing the supply level at 121.50. USDJPY now looks sexy (attractive) to swing and position traders. Price should continue its bullish journey for the rest of the month (even beyond October 2015). EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish This cross initially made a faint bullish movement in the first few days of last week, as price moved above the supply zone at 136.00. However, the sudden loss of stamina in EUR caused the cross to tumble. The cross dived smoothly, reaching the demand zone at 133.50. The cross would find it difficult to rally when EUR remains very week, unless JPY itself becomes weaker than EUR. There is still some hope of JPY pairs strengthening before the end of this month. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Sit down, observe the markets and go trading!” – Marko Graenitz Copyright: Tallinex.com
  3. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish This pair initially moved upwards last week, but it could not reach the resistance line at 1.1500 before it got corrected downwards. On Friday, price closed at 1.1348, though the bias is bullish. The bullish bias will remain valid as long as the support line at 1.1250 is not broken to the downside. Any bearish attempts that are seen here should be interpreted as an opportunity to go long, unless the aforementioned support line is broken to the downside. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bearish As long as EURUSD makes visible bullish effort, USDCHF would not perform any meaningful rally. Price went south last week, testing the support level at 0.9500 many times without being able to close below it. On Friday, price closed below the resistance level at 0.9550. There is a need to breach the support level at 0.9500 to the downside so that the bearish trend could continue. There are resistance levels at 0.9600 and 0.9650, which should try to defend the current bearish bias. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bullish This currency trading instrument went sideways on Monday. It went south on Tuesday, but rallied seriously on Wednesday in conformity to the existing bullish outlook. Price headed into the distribution territory at 1.5500; being unable to break above it. That distribution territory is now a challenge to bulls – they must overcome it so that the current bullish outlook could continue to make sense. The pair is supposed to continue moving upwards. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral USDJPY experienced a bearish breakout last week, and price went down 200 pips as a result of that. This would have led to a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market, but the upwards bounce that happened after that has pushed back the price into the recent neutral territory. Price bounced upwards by 150 pips, just before the demand level at 118.00 could be tested. The condition for the end of the current neutral bias is this: Price must either close above the supply level at 121.00 or below the demand level at 118.00. That condition can still be fulfilled this month. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish This cross moved sideways from Monday till Wednesday (October 12 - 14), and then performed a large pullback on Thursday, testing the demand zone at 135.00. Unless the demand zone at 134.50 is breached to the downside, EURJPY the uptrend would be rational. It is likely that EURJPY would go up this week or next week. Most JPY pairs could also go up before the end of the month. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Your best bet is to think like a four-year-old. When prices go up, I am bullish, and when they go down, I am bearish.” – Dennis Gartman Copyright: Tallinex.com
  4. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish EURUSD went north last week, closing above the support line at 1.1350. This seems to have ended the recent choppy movement in the market. By every indication, it is much more likely that the pair would continue going upwards this week, breaking above the resistance lines at 1.1400 and 1.1450. The support lines at 1.1300 and 1.1250 should try to defend the current bullishness in the market. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bearish This market has become bearish, dropping from the resistance level at 0.9750, and testing the support level at 0.9600. This has led to a bearish signal in the market, which might enable price to continue going further south. As long as EURUSD keeps on going up, USDCHF would be under selling pressure. The support lines at 0.9600, which has already been tested, could be re-tested. It could even be broken to the downside as price targets another support line at 0.9500. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bullish Contrary to the sideways movement that was witnessed two week ago, GBPUSD performed some bullish movement last week. There is no longer a bearish outlook on GBPUSD. Price rose from the accumulation territory at 1.5150 and closed above the accumulation territory at 1.5300 (though it briefly went above the distribution territory at 1.5350). For this week, the outlook on the pair is bullish: something that is true of GBP pairs. We may thus see price attaining the distribution territories at 1.5450 and 1.5500. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral This currency trading instrument has not yet made any serious direction movement, except that price vacillates between the supply level at 121.00 and the demand level at 119.00. This has been going on for several weeks. However one thing is sure: There would be an end to the present consolidation in this month and it might happen this week. When a breakout happens, it would most likely favor bulls. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish The rally that happened on this cross has caused a nice Bullish Confirmation Pattern on it. On Friday, price closed at 136.58; on a bullish note. This means the cross is much more likely to continue going further upwards and thus, a northward movement of at least, 200 pips, could be witnessed this week. The outlook on JPY pairs is bullish for this week; partly owing to the ongoing weakness in JPY. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “The most important thing is to understand that the “holy grail” in trading is the combination of discipline and a strategy with a positive expected value. Once you have that, you just have to be successful.” – Oliver Klemm Copyright: Tallinex.com
  5. INSIGHTS INTO THE MINDSET OF SUPER TRADERS – Part 14 “Most traders will quit and stay away from trading after blowing up a few trading accounts. But those with grit will constantly reflect upon their actions and seek to better themselves, which separates the winners from the losers.” – Rayner Teo Name: Martin Schwartz Year of birth: 1945 Nationality: American Hobbies: Professional trading and professional horse racing Career In 1967, Martin attended Amherst College. He also earned an MBA from Columbia University in 1970. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves from the year 1968 to the year 1973. He also worked as a financial analyst at E. F. Hutton. He saved about one $100,000 USD and went into full-time trading, buying a seat on the American Stock Exchange. That year, he made a profit of $600, 000 USD and in the following year, he made a profit of $1.2 million USD. But we need to know that prior to that time, he was a consistent loser in the markets. In 1984, Martin became famous when he won the U.S. Investing Championship. He’s made great wealth from the markets. He authored a book titled “Pit Bull: Lessons from Wall Street's Champion Day Trader.” He loves to go for short-term market fluctuations, and being successful at doing that, he began managing money for other people. From the year 2002 till now, Martin Schwartz has been winning in professional horse racing. Insights 1. Contrary to some people’s opinion, it’s possible to become a successful trader using technical analysis. When Martin was trading based on fundamentals, he was losing. When he became a technical analyst he earned a fortune. However, there are also successful fundamental analysts. The lesson is that, you shouldn’t say something can’t work for others just because it isn’t working for you. 2. You need to approach the markets as a serious business; those who comply with this fact get paid from those who don’t comply. 3. You need to work hard before you can become a profitable trader. There’s nothing worth having which comes easily. Hard work is part of your probability of attaining success as a trader. 4. We want to make money, without being necessarily right. We need to master our ego and realize that making money is more important than being right. We make money by cutting our losses, and we lose money by letting them run. Martin Schwartz says that by preserving your capital through the use of stops, you make it possible to wait patiently for a high-probability trade with a low-risk entry-point. One of the great tools of trading is the stop, the point at which you divorce yourself from your emotions and ego and admit that you´re wrong. 5. Prepare for each trading day, for it matters much. No trades, no profits. You need to pull the trigger before you can hope to make any profits. Conclusion: There are traders who’ve spent many years in the markets without being profitable. Isn’t it so frustrating when we keep on losing money in spite of the vast knowledge we’ve in the markets? We’ll be tempted from time to time to conclude that it’s impossible to make money trading Forex, yet we won’t give up because there is a kind of inner hope that would keep on pushing us to success. We definitely need to be courageous. We shouldn’t make things difficult for ourselves when trading. Majority of traders don’t want to agree that using difficult trading methods don’t increase profitability. This article is ended with a quote from Martin: “Trading is a psychological game. Most people think they are playing against the market, but the market doesn´t care. You’re really playing against yourself.” Further reading: Advfnbooks.com Copyright: Tallinex.com
  6. GOLD (XAUUSD) Dominant Bias: Bearish Gold has been trending downwards for several weeks, with intermittent rallies along the way. The intermittent rallies were sometimes strong enough to threaten the existing bearish bias in the short term. On October 2, 2015, price spiked upwards seriously, threatening the existing bearish bias again; but the bias would not be over until the resistance levels at 1160.00 and 1170.00 are overcome. In case this happens, it would lead to a serious bullish phase which could hold out till the end of this year. Until that happens, buyers should approach the market with caution, for price could still go downwards to test the support levels 1105.00 and 1100.00. SILVER (XAGUSD) Dominant Bias: Bearish Just like Gold, Silver shot upwards on October 2, 2015, without much retracement. From the demand level at 14.3600, price went significantly upwards, testing the supply level at 15.2800, without easing that much. This is a great challenge to the extant bearish outlook on Silver (there is a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market), which could render the bearish invalid in case price goes above the supply levels at 15.5000 and 15.7000. Should this happen, bulls might keep pushing the price upwards for the rest of the year. The demand levels at 14.4000 and 14.2000 could be tested in the event that the bearish movement continues. Copyright: Tallinex.com
  7. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish EURUSD was volatile for most past of last week, and there is not yet a strong directional movement, though the bias is bearish. Even the bullish breakout that was performed on Friday could prove to be a false breakout unless the resistance lines at 1.1350 and 1.1400 are overcome. On the other hand, there are strong support lines at 1.1150 and 1.1100. This month, there could be some selling pressure on EURUSD as a result of an expected strength in USD. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish In spite of the large pullback that was seen on October 2, this pair remains a bull market. For the bull market to be rendered illogical, there is a need for the pair to breach the support levels 0.9600 and 0.9550 to the downside, staying below them. It would not be easy for bears to achieve this aim because the outlook on USD is bright for the month of October (and so is the outlook on CHF). What can be a noteworthy challenge for the bullish bias on USDCHF is the expected stamina in CHF itself, which would be visible on certain CHF pairs within the last two weeks of this month. In addition, a significant rally must happen on EURUSD before USDCHF can go south protractedly. Unless that happens, USDCHF would remain bullish, meaning that the last pullback might be another opportunity to join the uptrend. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish The rally that happened on this currency trading instrument last Friday was not strong enough to jeopardize the existing bearish trend in the market. There is still a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market and there is a possibility that price could continue going south. Since the outlook on USD is bright for the month of October, price would find it somewhat difficult to make a protracted northward journey. Large movements are expected this month. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral There is not yet any directional movement on this currency trading instrument. This is a choppy market and it would be prudent to stay away from it until there is a directional movement. For this currency pair to go into a trending mode, price must either close above the supply level at 121.50 or below the demand level at 118.00. Without this happening, the market would remain choppy and trendless. One thing is sure: There would be an end to the present consolidation in this month. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish The movement of this cross was somehow flat last week – all in the context of a downtrend. This cross, including other JPY pairs, would perform strong trending movements this month, and this week is likely to be bullish for some JPY pairs, including the EUR/JPY cross. There could be an upwards movement of 200 pips this week, which would lead to a brand-new bullish outlook, should it happen. A major factor in the direction of this cross in this week is the condition of Yen, which could be weak. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Trading can be an intellectual stimulation, as well as a way to make money…. A well-conceived and executed transaction is a thing of beauty, to be experienced, enjoyed, and remembered. It should have an essence transcending monetary reward.” - Mark Minervini (a trading legend) Copyright: Tallinex.com
  8. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish This pair fell 200 pips last week, almost touching the support line at 1.1100. Afterwards, price bounced upwards by 180 pips and then got corrected lower. The price action in the market reveals that bulls are still making noticeable effort to push the price upwards, all in the context of a downtrend. This week, serious volatility would be witnessed as bulls continue to make more bullish effort, which would not jeopardize the extant bearish bias until the resistance line at 1.1300 is overcome. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish USDCHF moved upwards in a directionally mode last week, breaking above the resistance level at 0.9800, but closing below it at the end of the week. The short-selling that occurred on September 24, 2015 simply provided an opportunity to go long at better prices. Unless EURUSD experiences a significant bullish movement, USDCHF cannot plunge significantly. So whatever would happen to USDCHF this week would be determined by the movement of EURUSD. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish Last week, this pair dropped almost 400 pips, testing the accumulation territory at 1.5150. Last week, it was mentioned that the pair would have difficulty going upwards: That statement is also valid for this week. Any rallies that happen on this pair would be good opportunities to sell short at better prices. Another southwards movement of at least, 200 pips, is expected this week. So that accumulation territories at 1.5100 and 1.5000 are potential targets. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral There is not yet any directional movement on this currency trading instrument and it would be nice for swing and position traders to stay away from it until there is a strong breakout. However, this instrument is currently great for scalpers and intraday traders. Before a breakout can be termed as being strong here, there must be a bearish or a bullish movement of at least, 300 pips. Most of the month of September 2015 has been trendless. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish EURJPY cross first moved downwards 200 pips, and then started going upwards gradually on September 23. There is still a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market, which cannot be violated as long as the cross is unable to go above the supply zone at 136.00. Once that supply zone is overcome, then things would be bullish; but until that is done, this is a bear market. Any rally that is seen could thus be deceptive. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “I do not trade for sport or hobby. I trade for a living. So it is important for me to quantify trading opportunities and determine that I do in fact have an edge before I enter a position.” – Rob Hanna Copyright: Tallinex.com
  9. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish Though this pair was trendless in the first few days of last week, it was characterized by high volatility on Thursday and Friday. Price moved upwards On Thursday and got corrected downwards on Friday. However, the outlook on the pair is bullish: we may witness further bullish journey this week (which may also happen on most other EUR pairs). Price could reach the resistance lines at 1.1450 and 1.1550 this week. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bearish USDCHF also consolidated in the first few days of last week, broke down on Thursday and bounced upwards on Friday. The overall bias remains bearish, nonetheless. As long as EURUSD is strong and CHF refuses to yield to gravity in a significant mode, it would be difficult for USDCHF to experience any meaningful rally. The resistance level at 0.9800 is a strong barrier to the bulls. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bullish From the accumulation territory at 1.5350, this currency trading instrument moved upwards by 300 pips, testing the distribution at 1.5650. From that distribution territory, the trading instrument has been corrected lower by 110 pips. Price could find it difficult going further upwards this week, but the uptrend would be valid as long as the accumulation territory at 1.5350 is not broken to the downside. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral There is no yet a clear direction on USDJPY, for price did not make any large directional movement last week. There can be a serious breakout this week; which would most probably favor the bears, owing to a measure of weakness in USD and a bearish expectation on certain JPY pairs. There are demand levels at 119.00 and 118.50. There are also supply levels at 121.50 and 122.00. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish In spite of the bearish correction that occurred on Friday, there is still a Bullish Confirmation Pattern in the market, which would not be violated until price crosses the demand zone at 134.50 to the downside. For the EURJPY to trend upward this week there must be an exceptional stamina in EUR as well as a measure of weakness in JPY – otherwise a serious bearish movement could start before the end of the week. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Yes, my profits and losses are ultimately nothing more than a “productivity report.” – Dan Gamza Copyright: Tallinex.com
  10. “I’ve not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas Edison “…If trading is only about money, you have very little chance of success.” – Dr. Van. K. Tharp In recent times, some people have questioned the morality of online trading. Obviously, the question comes from lack of real understanding of trading. Trading had long been done before the advent of the Internet: the Internet technology simply made it easier and easily accessible. In other areas of life and business, most things that were done before the advent of the Internet have now gone online. Think about hotel reservations and university applications for examples. There are different types of markets, and Forex is just one of them. For examples, one can speculate on the prices of agricultural products online, and the risky nature of doing that doesn’t make it immoral. It’s clear that trading online isn’t a sin – just as reading religious literature online and joining a service online isn’t a sin. We can now listen to sermons online, which wasn’t possible 50 year ago. Does that make it a sin? With fast advances in science and technology, the ways we do business will forever keep on changing and evolving. A few or several decades ago, trading was done mainly in the pit, but things have changed now. Thanks to the Internet. James Altucher says that when he was 13 years old, the job he’s doing now didn’t exist. His daughter might end up doing a job that didn’t exist when she also was 13 years old. Those who don’t adapt to the changing technological ways of life will pay a heavy price for their myopic views. At the beginning of his book, “Tough Times Never Last but Tough People Do,” Robert H. Schuller (RIP) mentions what happened to his dad as a farmer. All his labor, crops, property and so on, were all destroyed by a violent storm. All his hard labor was in vain. Does that make it immoral to be a farmer? Apart from the fact that there are certain factors beyond the control of the farmer (like weather conditions, poor harvest and economic forces); the farmer can sell at loss or at profit. That doesn’t make it a sin to be a farmer. In fact, farming is a noble profession. Trading is a noble profession too. Robert’s dad continued working as a farmer. Though he seemed totally hopeless and helpless, but there was inner hope in him. What later happened to him? He was already a successful trader when he died. One popular celebrity said she doesn’t believe in marriage. She was married about 32 years ago, and the marriage crashed in less than 2 years. Since then, she’s been preaching against marriage. Certain male and female celebrities also don’t believe in marriage. Does that make it wrong to get married? I know many people whose marriages are super successful. Marriage isn’t compulsory; neither is it evil. A trading legend makes money trading stock and loses money trading futures, options and Forex, and he concludes that one can’t make money from Forex. Another legend that makes money from stocks, options and Forex says they’re excellent markets. What can you conclude from that? It means that the fact that one person is losing in a market doesn’t mean that others can’t make money from the same market. The world-famous Dr. Van K. Tharp has been using what he calls “oneness formula” to transform lives of traders. He mentions something like an inner guide who leads and guides traders to become successful not only in trading, but in other areas of life. According to him, if you are not organized or tend to procrastinate or run away and hide each time you encounter some major psychological issue that impacts your life, then you don’t have a chance at becoming a successful trader. This is what one of the beneficiaries of Van Tharp’s works has to say: “There was a time I identified a negative association about God and trading, and sometimes I felt uncomfortable with the idea of trading. But then, I learned how it was just a belief. Just that. And I can always change any belief I want, and when I see things in a different way, there is no conflict between God and trading.” - J. Ernesto D. M. (Source: Vantharp.com). Anne-Marie Baiynd is a successful trader as well as religious. This is what she’s to say: “I strive for God to be in charge of my life. I live as a speck of dust, flawed, sinful and self-serving by nature. My existence is defined by emptiness without the existence of the All Mighty God. I am accepted and loved, nonetheless, and that creates within me, a great joy and contentment knowing that all my triumphs and successes come from God.” Sir John Templeton, a market wizard, also said: “We are trying to persuade people that no human has yet grasped 1% of what can be known about spiritual realities. So we are encouraging people to start using the same methods of science that have been so productive in other areas, in order to discover spiritual realities.” (Interview with Financial Intelligence Report). Bruce Bower, a hedge funds manager, is a Christian who goes to Church regularly. Joes Ross, one of the most experienced and the most eclectic traders in the word, is a good Christian. There are good Muslims who’re also traders. There are good Hindus, Buddhists, etc. who’re good traders as well. There are proficient traders all over the world who belong to major or minor religions. This is a level playing field. Failure Is a Good Thing Please see the quotes from Thomas Edison and from Dr. Van K. Tharp above. Failure is embedded in success. It’s part of success. It gives you opportunity to do your trading intelligently. Failure helps you to see how not to trade. When you do trading and fail, you learn how not to trade, and you use another method. Even if the new method fails, you try another method… Until you come across a trading approach that works for you. Those hugely successful people that you now envy took risks. They could’ve failed just like many others, but they were fortunate. If they failed, they’d try again and again. Mark Zuckerberg, who thinks of himself as an atheist, says the biggest risk is not taking any risk... In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks. The fact that you fail or the majority fail in something doesn’t make it sinful. Good trading is a serious business, not gamble. However, it’s not without risk, just like any other things in life. Trading is definitely no sin. Good trading principles aren’t against any other religions. This piece is ended with the quotes below: “I pray to Jesus Christ every day, but that is not a means to handle trading. I ask Him to guide my decisions, and that I would do my investing to glorify Him. Because I use my rules, there is little, if any, stress over trading. My processes are designed to take my emotion out of my infrequent buying and selling.” – David J. Merkel “I love the markets: They are alive, they move, they have spiritual energy. They are an expression of the universe and of course they are my mirror, just as they are your mirror. They are the medium through which I choose to express myself and grow. I am grateful for this and the technology that allows me to participate and trust that the markets will always be there, no matter what change is upon us in the coming years.” - Mercedes Oestermann van Essen (Source: Thebuddhisttrader.com) Copyright: Tallinex.com
  11. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish As it was mentioned in the last forecast, bulls made effort to push EURUSD upwards, and they were successful in doing that. Before this, the market consolidated for the first few days of the last week and then broke upwards, giving the resistance line at 1.1350 a close marking. In case the resistance line is broken to the upside, the next targets for bulls are located at the resistance lines at 1.1450 and 1.1500. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish This currency trading instrument moved largely sideways last week, not going above the resistance level at 0.9800 or going below the support level at 0.9650. Bulls made futile attempts to go above the resistance level at 0.9800, and also, bears were unable to dominate the market. Looking more closely at the current price action, it can be seen that the market has started threatening to break down. Nonetheless, the impending breakdown would not be taken serious unless the support level at 0.9600 is breached to the downside. Two factors will determine the direction on this currency trading instrument this week: What happens to EURUSD (which will most probably move further north) and/or the situation around CHF (which could make it strong this month). GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bullish GBPUSD made sincere effort to go upwards last week – with a measure of success. It is possible that the pair would continue moving upwards this week, owing to the presence of a Bullish Confirmation Pattern in the market. The distribution territory at 1.5450 has already been tested and it could be broken to the upside. GBPUSD could move further north by at least, 200 pips this week. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral Apart from a slight upward movement, there was no clear direction on USDJPY last week. Price closed at 120.57 on Friday, in a consolidating mode; and there can be a breakout in any day of this week. Price would either break above the supply level at 121.50 or break below the demand level at 119.50. That is when there will be a directional movement. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish This EURJPY cross is now one of the most predictable instruments among the majors which moved in a directional mode last week. The EURJPY cross moved north by 400 pips, now close to the supply zone at 137.00. Given the ongoing weakness in Yen and strength in EUR, there is a high possibility that the uptrend would continue, enabling the supply zone at 139.00 to be attained before the end of this week. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “I have everything that I need to live well, that is true, but I enjoy the mental stimulation and the challenge [trading offers]. I can see myself still trading when I turn 100.” – Paul Nojin Copyright: Tallinex.com
  12. INSIGHTS INTO THE MINDSET OF SUPER TRADERS – Part 13 "Losing money is the least of my troubles. A loss never bothers me after I take it. I forget it overnight." - Jesse Livermore Name: Kenneth Heebner Nationality: American Education: MBA, Harvard University Occupation: Funds manager Career: Ken runs Capital Growth Management (CGM), Boston, Massachusetts, which was started in 1990, and part of his funds were performing very well in the year 2005; until recent huge drawdowns, which should’ve be controlled more effectively. Between the year 2000 and the year 2010, the fund enjoyed a cumulative growth of 290.2%, when compared to the S&P 500's 16.4%. He’s really a good speculator who respects his own hunches and stays away from what he doesn’t understand. Insights: 1. Ken was once ranked No. 1 stock picker in USA, but recently his predictions were less accurate and his funds also suffered. Nevertheless, he doesn’t lose his love for the markets. Good traders remain passionate about trading in good and bad times. 2. There’s one thing that’s unsavory about Ken, especially when compared to Michael Platt. Ken isn’t that good at risk management because the losses he suffers when he’s wrong are always substantial. For example, CGM Focus lost 48 percent in 2008 as the global recession hurt commodity prices and a move into beaten-down financial stocks proved premature. You can agree that someone who losses less than 5% in bad trades is better than someone who loses 35% in bad trades. Why would Ken’s fund plunge from $10.3 billion to $1.9 billion? It’s because he wasn’t trading defensively. It’s better to trade not to lose money, instead of trading to make money. That’s a defensive form of trading. Ken himself acknowledged that he’d have done better if he’d been more defensive. However, he always bounces back with time, which is the most important aspect of all – the ability to survive losing streaks and recover losses. 3. Based on his quote at the end of this piece, he doesn’t go with the crowd (for they tend to be wrong always). He’s like a countertrend trader. 4. Trading, for serious traders, should be a passion of a lifetime. At a relatively old age (71), Ken’s still passionate about trading. Unlike John Arnold, who retired from active trading at the age of 38, Ken doesn’t show any intention to retire. That’s the kind of freedom trading offers: you choose when to retire. 5. When you’re really good, you’ll be a role model to some great traders. One great trader has other role models who’re great traders as well; and the other way round. Conclusion: James Altucher says something which is true of trading. He says, with art, you have to deal with perfection. Nobody is perfect. For everyone who loves singing, there is always someone who sings better. For everyone who draws, there is always someone who draws better. You can't make art if you are trying to be perfect." This is also true of trading. This piece is ended with a quote from Ken: "I am completely outside the mainstream. I see the mainstream in the distance." Copyright: Tallinex.com
  13. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish Though EURUSD consolidated in the most part of last week, the bias on the market is bearish, for bullish pressure has seriously lost steam. The pair has consolidated to the downside and it might reach the support lines at 1.1100 and 1.1050. Nonetheless, bulls will make desperate effort to push the pair higher this week, and there is a high probability that their effort may yield some result. Any movement above the resistance line at 1.1350 would indicate that bulls have achieved their aim. Should EUR gain lots of stamina this week, the effect would be noticed on other EUR pairs. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish USDCHF went up by 150 pips last week, running into a barrier at a resistance level of 0.9750. Bulls made several abortive attempts to break that barrier before the market closed on Friday. For the bullish bias to continue making sense, the barrier at 0.9750 must be overcome. That mean price would need to target the resistance levels at 0.9800 and 0.9850. On this pair, there could be two possible obstacles to bulls’ interests: (1) Any rally on EURUSD could send USDCHF south. (2) In case CHF gains enough strength (which is possible this month), USDCHF would experience some difficulties going forward. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish Since August 25, this market has dropped by 630 pips, following a test of the distribution territory at 1.5800. Price is now close to the accumulation territory at 1.5150; plus it could even reach other accumulation territories at 1.5100 and 1.5050. However, the market looks overbought, and while the aforementioned accumulation territories could be reached, a serious rally would not be a surprise (if it happens) this week. It should be noted that movements on GBPUSD (and other GBP pairs) would be significant this month, whether they go up or down. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bearish USDJPY went down by over 230 pips last week, closing at 118.97 on Friday. There is a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market – the bearish trend ought to continue. This week, price could attain the demand levels at 118.50 and 118.00, providing that JPY is able to maintain its current strength versus USD; otherwise there could be a bullish breakout. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish There was a strong bearish movement on this cross last week. From the supply zone at 136.00, price went down to reach the demand zone at 132.50. This is a movement of 350 pips. The bearish movement looks overextended, though there could be more bearish movement this week. On the other hand, there is also a possibility of a strong breakout to the upside before the end of the week. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “When you make an unshakable commitment to a way of life, you put yourself way ahead of most others in the race for success. Why? Because most people have a natural tendency to overestimate what they can achieve in the short run and underestimate what they can accomplish over the long haul. They think they have made a commitment, but when they run into difficulty, they lose steam or quit. Most people get interested in trading but few make a real commitment. The difference between interest and commitment is the will not to give up. When you truly commit to something, you have no alternative but success. Getting interested will get you started, but commitment gets you to the finish line.” - Mark Minervini, a trading legend (Source: Tradersonline-mag.com) Copyright: Tallinex.com
  14. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish Last week witnessed the greatest volatility in the markets since January 15, 2015. Between August 19 – 24, price went upwards by 680 pips, topping at the resistance line of 1.1700. Immediately the resistance line was tested, price began to retrace steadily and gradually. From the weekly high of 1.1700, price has gone downwards by 520 pips; thereby threatening the recent bullish bias. The threat to the bullish bias is so serious that a movement below the support line at 1.1100 would ultimately result in a bearish outlook. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bearish From August 19 – 24, this pair plunged by 500 pips in what can be called the biggest USDCHF move in the last few months. From August 25 till now, price has nevertheless, rallied by over 300 pips, which is another threat to the existing bearish outlook on the market. In case price goes above the resistance level at 0.9700, things would turn cleanly bullish; whereas failure to do that could strengthen the existing bearish outlook. Since the outlook on CHF is bearish for the month of September, bulls would be having some difficulties pushing USDCHF upwards. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish When the hope of a weak GBPUSD was almost dashed for the month of August 2015, the pair eventually became weak. This formerly trudging pair managed to test the distribution territory at 1.5800 before bulls lost all their power. From that distribution territory, price nosedived by 450 pips, reaching the accumulation territory at 1.5350. This means that bears are the overall winners on GBPUSD in the month of August, since their action overturned all the bullish gains for the month. In September, we will see very serious volatility on GBPUSD (and of course on all GBP pairs), coupled with fast bearish and bullish movements. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bearish The expectation of a bearish USDJPY pair for the month of August eventually materialized; and so was the bearish outlook on some other JPY pairs. From August 19 – 24, price plummeted by 800 pips, going briefly below the demand level at 116.50. Since then, price has been making a noteworthy bullish recovery - a movement of 500 pips. Should the price move further upwards by another 200 pips this week, the bearish outlook would be rendered ineffectual. However, an upward movement of 200 pips could be difficult to achieve because it is expected that most JPY pairs would be bearish for most of the time in the month of September (with a few exceptions); and USDJPY would not be different. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish Owing to the strength in Yen, which was already anticipated, EURJPY fell sharply, resulting in a Bearish Confirmation Pattern. Though there is an ongoing struggle between bull and bear, price was able to attain the demand zone at 135.50 last week, in a downward movement of 300 pips. The demand zone at 135.50 was battered several times without being permanently penetrated. That demand zone ought to be breached this week or next so that the bearish bias can continue to make sense. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “The market provides the greatest opportunity on earth for financial reward. It also teaches great lessons… It is the greatest game on earth.” – Mark Minervini (a trading legend)
  15. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish From the support line at 1.1050, this pair went upward by 330 pips, going above the support line at 1.1350. EUR is now one of the strongest among the majors (and so is CHF) and this has reflected on most EUR pairs. The next targets for EURUSD are now at the resistance lines of 1.1400 and 1.1450, which could be breached easily with an ongoing bullish pressure in the market. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bearish This is a bear market. The massive bearish breakout that was seen last week has resulted in an end to the recent sideways movement in the market. The weakness in USD and the strength in CHF, coupled with the fact that this pair has to trade in the opposite direction to the strong EURUSD, have contributed to the current tailspin. Price dived by 300 pips last week, and it is now close to the support level at 0.9450. With a continuation of the current situation, bears may be able to attain another support level at 0.9300 this week. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bullish GBP may be weak somewhere else (as seen on GBPCHF and GBPJPY), but it is not weak against USD. Last week, GBPUSD managed to go above the stubborn accumulation territory at 1.5650. Bulls tried to push the price further upwards, but bears came in against them and started their bearish efforts. Another serious fighting is taking place around an accumulation territory at 1.5700, but the bulls must eventually win for the current bullish outlook to continue being logical. The hope of a weak GBPUSD has been dashed for this month, because stubborn distribution territories, if breached, become stubborn accumulation territories (and the other way round). After all, GBPUSD is positively correlated with EURUSD. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bearish Following the recent equilibrium phase – which lasted for several weeks – USDJPY finally broke south in a predictable manner. A weak USDJPY has long been anticipated; and with the fact that bulls have failed to push price significantly northward, the current bearish plunge is no wonder. In a strong trending market like this, demand (and supply) levels would be easily cut through; just like a hot knife through butter. Further southward movement is anticipated this week, though bulls may make some faint effort to reverse the trend. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish The EURJPY cross initially went down by 100 pips last week, but the movement was later reversed and price went vividly upwards. The next point of attack is the supply zone at 139.00. Price is very close to that supply zone and it may be breached to the upside. The bullish bias will exist for as long as EUR is strong. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “If you are just starting out, you should trade with real money as soon as possible… Do not fool yourself into a false sense of reality. Get accustomed to trading for real because that is what you are going to have to do to make real money.” – Mark Minervini (a legendary trader)
  16. “However, it is pleasant to win over the long term. Contrary to popular opinion, losses are part of winning. Take sports for example.” – Markham Gross A drawdown is the peak-to-trough decline during a specific record period of an investment, fund or commodity. A drawdown is usually quoted as the percentage between the peak and the trough. A drawdown is measured from the time a retrenchment begins to when a new high is reached. This method is used because a valley can't be measured until a new high occurs. Once the new high is reached, the percentage change from the old high to the smallest trough is recorded (definition source: Investopedia.com). As you can see, drawdowns (or roll-downs) are periods when you experience losses and your account goes down. If you open an account with $10, 000 and it drops to $9,200, then you experience a drawdown of 8%. Causes of Drawdowns Let’s put the issue of trading with no stops and high risk aside. Let’s imagine someone is using a good strategy that makes him cut his loss at 50 pips and runs a profit until it reaches 200 pips. That’s a good trading idea which makes money when currency pairs trend nicely. Nevertheless, when a period of drawdowns comes, more stops would be triggered and take profit levels would hardly be reached. The few take profit levels that are reached would be too few to recover the too many stops that are triggered. You open many a trade and it moves in your favor by a few or several pips and then turns negative, hitting your stop. For days, weeks, or months, false breakouts wouldn’t be a curiosity and sustained trending movement would be scarce. Trading ideas that let profits run are the best, but they generally suffer when the markets enter equilibrium phases. As in real life, doing the right things doesn’t always make you appear smart. In fact, you may sometimes look stupid by doing the right things. A trader that uses a stop may appear stupid when they are stopped out on a trade that eventually reverses and turns positive. A trader may appear stupid when a position they are trying to ride fails to meet its target, turning from positivity to negativity. But in the end, we’ll reap the benefits of doing the rights things. Soon, a time would come when the situation will change and the person will recover the losses within days, weeks or months. Treacherous Statistics Look at the long-term results of the strategies below: Strategy A: Growth: 343.80% Drawdown: 37.45% Monthly: 19.09% Strategy B: Growth: 119.40 Drawdown: 22.08% Monthly: 10.51% Strategy C: Growth: 12.04% Drawdown: 11.16% Monthly: 0.49% You can see that the strategies above have made nice profits in the long run, but not without roll-downs. Strategy A has earned a profit of 343.80% over the years, but it also went thru periods of losses amounting to 37.45%. The users of the strategies obviously deal with the roll-downs successfully; otherwise they’d have disappeared. One marketer was recently creating hype that he’d a strategy that could turn $500 into a growing monthly income. As you know, the job of marketers is to emphasize the bright side of what they sell, while glossing over the dark side. It’s like when a religious preacher is telling people nice things that will happen to them if they join her/his religion and become responsible, without telling them the reality that religious people aren’t also immune from suffering. For instance, when an earthquake occurs, it doesn’t avoid the religious people in the region. I never tried that hyped strategy – though I’ve tested over 250 strategies in my entire career. There’s no perfect strategy and there won’t be one. All excellent trading strategies experience drawdowns. All super traders experience drawdowns, albeit victoriously. Sadly, the subject of drawdowns is the least mentioned in the trading industry, and there’s only scanty literature about the subject, in spite of the fact that it’s one of the most important topics in trading. Drawdowns must be experienced from time to time by all traders irrespective of age, intelligence, expertise, years of experience, risk control ability and strategies. This is where majority of traders fail. Your ability to deal with drawdowns triumphantly is the greatest determinant of the end game and your ability to enjoy a long-lasting career. The smaller a loss is, the easier it’s to recover. The bigger a loss is, the more difficult it’s to recover. There are periods when you’ll make money; there are periods when you’ll lose money, and there are periods when your performance would be flat (you’ll never go up or down). There’s no way around this fact. There is no way around the fact that you must sustain losses that you must eventually recover. Flat and drawdown period may even be longer than you expect. Switching strategies isn’t the way out. Can a rolling stone gather any moss? That’s why it’s unrealistic to set a weekly or monthly target in a world in which you can’t really predict the future. That’s why it’s realistic to open a trade only after you’ve imagined the worst-case scenario. With that kind of mindset, you’ll realize the folly of not using stops and the folly of trading with large lot sizes. However, most of us have serious psychological and emotional problems. One of the most frustrating things is to keep on trading when you keep on making losses. Your hope of a monthly income would be dashed and your courage will evaporate. The frustration would even become more intense, especially if you live in a country where you’ve to generate your own electricity and fuel is extremely scarce and expensive. What Good Traders Experience I remember what happened to me in the year 2011. I was making good profits for about 4 months: up to 30% (6000 pips). Then suddenly, the market conditions change and I was having losses after losses. I kept on managing my risk, being faithful to the system I used. The losing periods lasted for about 3 months and I went down from 30% pips to 15%, and suddenly… the market conditions became favorable again and I finished that year with 49% profits. In a typical year, you can make 10% in January and 6% in February. You can make 3% in March and lose 9% in April. You can lose 4.5% in May and lose additional 5% in June. You can gain 4% in July and lose 4% in August. You can gain 11% in September and gain another 6.5% in October. You can gain15% in November and finish December with another 2.5%. How much would the trader end up with in the year? This is the reality of trading, which you must accept or go do something else. Many so called Forex traders are gamblers who think they’re good. They lose hugely or earn margin calls during drawdowns. Anton Kreil says you will have about 3 months (or more or less) in a year in which you’ll experience drawdowns no matter what you do. How do you explain this to your investors? How do you explain this to your family? When you limit a loss, you accept the fact that it won’t have any major impact on your portfolio anytime, no matter how terrible the situation may be. You can check your account history or past trading results in order to get comfort, knowing full well that your system will soon start working again because it worked in the past. You’ll be encouraged to keep on taking new signals (for you don’t know the ones that would win and recover your losses), maintaining discipline and calm. To be a permanently victorious trader, you must control your loss and limit your roll-downs. It may be emotionally satisfactory to refuse to accept a mistake and ignore the use of stops, and the temptation to do silly things will balloon. In most cases, prices may go back to your entry points after harrowing periods of waiting and hope, which may be longer than normal. There’ll also be cases in which the hopes would be dashed as prices refuse to come back in your favor, going further and further against you instead. All the profits plus the capital you’ve would vanish. All market veterans acknowledge that the importance of loss control can’t be emphasized enough, because that’s the reason why over 95% of traders can’t be successful as traders. On Trade2win.com, Barjon says… Perhaps all this makes it sound as though our trader’s reasoning will be spot on or that he is a fortune teller who can foresee the future. There is not such a trader. All trading is about making assumptions based on experience of what has happened in similar circumstances in the past. Those assumptions may be right or they may be wrong and from the business perspective the aim is to gain the necessary advantage when they are right and limit the damage when they are not. This piece is ended by the quotes below: “Our worst case scenario for the basic strategy is where the trader can lose 70 per cent of the time with a reward-risk ratio of 3:1. With these statistics the trader can still be consistently profitable. The winners take care of the losers.” – Manesh Patel “The difference between top-notch winning traders and those who barely get by is the attitude they take toward losses. Trading is a tough business where setbacks and losses are commonplace. If you aren't careful, you can feel beaten, knocked down, and afraid to get back up. It may be difficult at times, but it is often necessary to forget about the past.” – Joe Ross
  17. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bullish This pair rose by 150 pips last week, rising from the support line at 1.0950 and reaching the resistance line at 1.1200. Price has really met a challenge at the resistance line at 1.1200, but it would need to go above the resistance line so that the bullish journey can continue. There are support lines at 1.1050 and 1.1000: the bullish outlook would make sense as long as the support lines are not breached to the downside. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish In recent times, both USDCHF and EURUSD are making bullish efforts. This is unusual because the pairs ought to go in separate ways (and they would soon do so). After testing the resistance level at 0.9900, USDCHF got corrected by 200 pips, testing the support level at 0.9700. However, this does not render the recent bullish bias invalid. The pair is now making some effort to go upwards and this week would see the result of that effort. The recent bullish bias could only be rendered useless in case the support level 0.9650 is breached to the downside. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Neutral Cable remains highly volatile; characterized by large upswings and downswings in the market. There is no clear directional bias on the market because bulls and bears enjoy only transitory victories. There is an accumulation territory at 1.5450 and there is a distribution territory at 1.5650, which is an adamant distribution territory indeed because it has rejected all bullish effort for the past several weeks. Since the expectation for GBP is bearish for this month, things would become really bearish when the accumulation territory at 1.5450 is broken to the downside. On the other hand, a break above the distribution territory at 1.5650 would mean the bearish expectation may not materialize this month. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral Based on the current price action, it can be said that USDJPY has hitherto defied gravity. Occasional bearish corrections are quickly followed by rally attempts – and all these are not even significant. This week, it would be intriguing to watch what would happen to this currency trading instrument. A movement below the demand level at 123.50 would result in a ‘sell’ signal while a movement above the supply level at 125.50 would result in a Bullish Confirmation Pattern. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish This cross rallied massively last week, closing at 138.11 on Friday, August 14, 2015 (just above the demand zone at 138.00). While the cross may journey further northwards this week, that would not rule out the possibility of a bearish plunge. The cross would be going upwards only as long as EUR is stronger than JPY. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “After playing in front of large football crowds and having the spotlight on me, I really enjoy having my own destiny in my hands now. I miss being as physically fit as I used to be, and the fun times with the other players, but I also like the freedom of trading. As a professional sportsman you have no freedom. But in my second career I have all the freedom I need, and that is through trading.” – Lee Stanford (Source: Tradersonline-mag.com)
  18. INSIGHTS INTO THE MINDSET OF SUPER TRADERS – Part 11 “The biggest risk in trading is hubris… This is because being wrong is actually an integral part of success. A successful futures trader makes many more losing trades than winning ones. The key is to recognize and concede the mistakes and cut losses. And ride the winners.” – Bruce Kovner Name: Bruce Kovner Date of birth: February 25, 1945 Nationality: American Website: Caxton.com Career Born in New York, Bruce is from Jewish ethnicity. His family came from Czarist Russia, fleeing persecution for their political and religious beliefs. He loved football and piano. He went to Harvard for a PhD program but he was unable to finish the program. Following that, he tried a number of jobs, like playing harpsichord, writing and driving a taxi. He discovered trading as a career shortly after his first marriage (he’s been married twice). He began trading in 1977 with a borrowed 3,000 USD and ended up making 23,000 USD with it. During the volatility the position was exposed to, the open profit even went up as high as 40,000 USD. This made Bruce fall on love with the markets. He worked under Michael Marcus - one of the trading geniuses featured in my past articles – and soon gained respect as a disciplined and reality-based trader. Eventually he founded his own firm; Caxton Associates, LP. The firm became so successful and managed around 14 billion USD at the apogee of their achievements. Outside trading, Bruce Kovner isn’t well known, for he seldom grants interviews and loves privacy so much. One source says that his Fifth Avenue mansion in New York City, the Willard D. Straight House, features a lead-lined room to protect against a chemical, biological, or dirty bomb attack. He’s no longer working as CEO of his firm: he’s retired from that position. As of March 2015, Bruce was worth 5 billion USD. He’s an active philanthropist and he’s also engaged in other interesting activities. Insights: 1. Bruce probably wouldn’t make billions of dollars as a writer, or as a harpsichord player or as a cab driver. Or can you tell me of anyone who makes billions driving a cab? He was so lucky to discover trading. You’re so lucky to be reading this article. Few jobs can be as high paying as trading. Imagine someone who started trading with $3,000 in 1977 and is currently worth $5,000,000,000. That’s Bruce Kovner. What can you learn from this? 2. Trading success will, undoubtedly, cost you hard work and unrelenting desperate effort to achieve trading mastery. Without accepting this reality, you can’t be a good trader. Anyone telling you otherwise is a liar (and your experiences will later confirm the facts). 3. There’s one thing that can’t be avoided in trading: you must make mistakes constantly and learn from them. That’s normal. You make a trading decision, and lose. You repeat that and lose. You repeat that and lose. You make another trading decision and lose. Then a good winning period comes out and you recover the loss and move ahead. In time, you proficiency increases as you make less mistakes (which is defined as not following your rules). 4. Don’t follow the masses, for they’re always wrong. When most traders move in one direction, then the trend is about to change. If the masses were always right, most traders would be rich. But this isn’t so. For example, there’ll soon be a breakout after most traders have noticed an equilibrium phase. 5. Short rallies in bear markets and the other way round for bull markets. 6. Bruce said risk management is the most important thing to be well understood. Undertrade, undertrade, undertrade is his second piece of advice. Whatever you think your position ought to be, cut it at least in half. This piece is ended with a quote from Bruce: “My experience with novice traders is that they trade three to five times too big. They are taking 5 to 10 percent risks on a trade when they should be taking 1 to 2 percent risks. The emotional burden of trading is substantial; on any given day, I could lose millions of dollars. If you personalize these losses, you can’t trade.”
  19. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish EURUSD is now a volatile pair, characterized by serious struggles between bear and bull in the context of a downtrend. The support line at 1.0850 was tested last week, but price could not break it to the downside. For the downtrend trend to continue this week, that support line should the broken to the downside as price targets another support lines at 1.0800 and 1.0750. This bearish outlook would make sense as long as the resistance line at 1.1050 is not broken to the upside. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish This is one of the few currency pairs among the majors which traded in one direction throughout last week. From the support level at 0.9650, price moved upwards by 200 pips, closing around the resistance level at 0.9850. The bias is bullish: the resistance levels at 0.9900 and 0.9950 could be tried this week. Therefore, it is expected that this currency pair would be edging it way upwards as long as USD does not experience any significant weakness. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish On GBPUSD, there was a southward breakout (out of the volatile equilibrium phase that was seen last week). Within the last two trading days of the last week, the southwards breakout made the price to test the accumulation territory at 1.5450. The price even went briefly below that accumulation territory before bouncing upwards. This week, further southward attempts may be witnessed because the outlook for GBP (and other GBP pairs) is bearish. And this is true of this month. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bullish This currency trading instrument traded upwards last week, reaching the supply level at 125.00. Nevertheless, further upwards movement was rejected at that level, making price to get corrected to the downside. It should be noted that, prior to the current price action, USDJPY moved sideways for a few weeks, and when there was a breakout to the upside, it was only a movement of 100 pips. The bearish correction that happened on Friday has made the prior bullish breakout look like a false one. This means that, while further bullish attempts are not impossible, the most probable direction for the market this week is southward. EURJPY Dominant bias: Neutral On EURJPY cross there was no clear victory between bulls and bears, Last week, desperate bullish effort was being frustrated at the supply zone at 136.50. This shows that bears are fighting hard to check bulls’ ambitions. A test of the demand zone at 135.00 would thus result in a Bearish Confirmation Pattern, thereby enabling more bearish journey. It is expected that Yen would be strong this week or this month, which should cause most JPY pairs, including EURJPY to become strongly bearish. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Real professional traders have a competitive drive and appreciate the intellectual challenge that the markets pose to them again and again.” – Dr. Brett N. Steenbarger
  20. GOLD (XAUUSD) Dominant Bias: Bearish Gold fell by over 8000 points last month, testing the support level at 1084.90 before experiencing a pause in the bearish momentum. Price dived significantly, reaching the monthly low of 108.90 on July 24, 2015. Then it started moving sideways for the rest of the month. The bias on the market remains bearish, and when a breakout does occur, it is more likely to be to the downside. The support levels at 1075.00, 1065.00 and 1050.00 could thus be tested this month. On the other hands, bullish attempts could force price to foray into the resistance levels at 1115.50 and 1125.50 – which are supposed to halt further northward attempts. Any movement above these resistance levels would mean the bearish bias could be over. SILVER (XAGUSD) Dominant Bias: Bearish Just like Gold, Silver also trended downwards in July 2015. However, price has been ranging in the last two weeks, showing that there would soon be a significant breakout in the market. When the breakout happens, it would be to the downside (just in favor of the extant bias), making price to test the accumulation territories at 14.3100 and 13.5000. Should price go above the distribution territories at 15.2000 and 16.5000, it could result in a Bullish Confirmation Pattern, thereby rendering the bearish outlook invalid.
  21. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Neutral This pair experienced a great deal of volatility last week. Price went up on Monday, and then dropped seriously from Tuesday to Thursday. On Friday, price spiked upwards and immediately following that, got corrected to the downside. The high volatility and short-term swings in the market have cancelled any directional bias on the market, not because of any equilibrium conditions, but because neither bulls nor bears are able to dominate protractedly in spite of the fact that momentum is currently high. This pair would be characterized by high momentum this month, and it would be difficult for it to rally protractedly as long as USD is strong. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish Despite the fact that bearish attempts caused the support levels at 0.9550 to be tested a few times last week, USDCHF was able to maintain its bullishness. Since the support level at 0.9550 has become a strong barrier to bearish effort, it would be safe to assume that the bullish outlook on the pair will remain valid as long as price is able to stay above that support level. The resistance level at 0.9700 is also a big challenge to bulls, for price could not break above it last week in spite of sincere effort by the bulls. A break above that resistance level would thus result in a smooth continuation of the extant bullish trend. The outlook would go bearish as soon as the support level at 0.9550 is breached to the downside. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Neutral Cable has not been able to go below the accumulation territory at 1.5450 or go above the distribution territory at 1.5650 for weeks; therefore, the accumulation territory at 1.5450 and the distribution territory at 1.5650 could serve as boundaries for short-term swing trades. In this week or next, price could move out of these boundaries, thereby giving way to a serious directional movement. In this month, GBP (and other GBP pairs) would most probably be weak in most cases, though there could be occasional bullish attempts on the way. USDJPY Dominant bias: Neutral This currency trading instrument has been moving sideways since the middle of July 2015. A break above the supply level at 124.50 could result in a Bullish Confirmation Pattern in the market, and a break below the demand level 123.00 could also result in a Bearish Confirmation Pattern in the market. This month, it is highly possible that Yen would gain lots of strength, thus causing JPY pairs to tumble. The strength in the Yen may start before the end of this week, and therefore, it is possible that USDJPY will go below the supply levels at 123.00 and 122.00 this week or next week. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish Although there is a measure of strength in the EURJPY cross, the situation looks delicate. The supply zone at 137.50 could challenge further rally in the market, and the possibility of a bearish movement starting anytime is high because the outlook on JPY pairs for this month of August is bearish. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “Now I embrace the uncertainty and design my processes so as to have the potential to thrive in the uncertainty. I want to accept winners and cut losses short in an uncertain world, and I want to do it repeatedly without desire to know the future.” – Markham Gross
  22. INSIGHTS INTO THE MINDSET OF SUPER TRADERS – Part 10 “Negativity is real, but consistent loss is optional.” – A.M. Name: John Arnold Year of birth: 1974 Nationality: American Profession: Retired funds manager, investor and currently a philanthropist Career Raised in an upper-class home, in Texas, USA, John’s dad was an attorney and his mom was an accountant. While John was still a teenager, he lost his precious dad. In 1995, he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Mathematics from Vanderbilt University. He started a great career at Enron, enjoying rapid promotion, owing to his ability to make huge profits for the company. There was a year in which he made 0.75 billion USD for his company and as a result, he was given 8 million USD as a bonus in that year. Since then, some people have called him “king of natural gas trading.’ After Enron folded up in the year 2002, John started his own firm with his bonus money. The firm, named Centaurus Advisors, LLC, became rapidly successful. Its assets grew to over 3 billion USD and it attracted some of the best traders around. The firm was based in Houston and it specialized in trading energy products. That was John’s edge. At the age of 38, John suddenly announced his retirement from active funds management. At least, he’s extremely rich, for he’s invested a lot. He’s now doing what he also enjoys – philanthropy – donating to various interesting causes. John has touched many lives through his generosity and many more lives would be touched. As of March 2013, he was worth 2.8 billion USD. He’s married to Laura Muñoz and they got 3 kids. Insights: 1. Some entered the trading world because they are in pitiful situations and they want to get out. There are also some people like John, who’re not from poor families. They entered the world of trading because the like the challenge and become richer than they ever thought could be possible. 2. John started his trading career while young, and he became a billionaire while still young. He retired in his late 30s. This emphasizes the fact that it’s better to start trading while young. John retired at the age of 38, but he gets richer and richer, because of his investments. He’s now engaged in activities that he likes. Are you working to survive, or are you really engaged in what you like doing, and as a result become financially free? You can retire any time you like, either early like John Arnold, or late like Stanley Druckenmiller. 3. You shall continue to make progress, irrespective of peoples’ criticisms. Some people now criticize John for what he currently does; yet he does what he thinks is right. 4. One of John’s secrets is that he specialized in what he could do best. If he tried other things, he mightn’t be as successful as he’s. Some people lose money as stock traders, while making money with futures. Some people lose money with options but make money with Forex. Some people lose money trading popular majors but make money trading exotic pairs. Some people make money with discretionary approaches but lose money with mechanical approaches, and vice versa. Please find out what markets/trading instruments work for you and stick to it. 5. It’s true that the market is risky, but continual losses are only a matter of choice. You can stop losing in the market if you want. 6. Look at his quote below, John liked to buy at troughs and sell at peaks: with great success. Please think about that. This article is concluded with a quote from John: "I try to buy things whenever they're trading below what [our] analysis shows to be fair value and sell things whenever our analysis shows that the forward curve is higher than our analysis of fair value."
  23. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish Although the dominant bias is bearish, this pair made some commendable bullish attempts last week. Price moved upwards by almost 200 pips, testing the resistance line at 1.1000. That resistance line is an important price area, since it must be broken to the upside for the current bullish effort to continue. Should that occur, a subsequent break of the resistance lines at 1.1050 and 1.1100 would result in a clean bullish bias. On the other hand, any failure of price to break the resistance line at 1.1000 to the upside could result in a serious bearish movement. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish Last week, USDCHF was able to maintain its bullish stance in spite of the fact that EURUSD was also making bullish effort. This is one of rare occasions in which EURUSD and USDCHF would be going in the same direction in the short-term. However, things will soon go out of balance and the pairs would go their separate ways. USDCHF might go further upwards, but this would be challenged by the resistance levels at 0.9650 and 0.9700. In fact, it is highly probable that CHF may gain serious stamina before the end of this month (this would also affect other CHF pairs), and thus cause USDCHF to fall smoothly. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bearish This mercurial currency trading instrument experienced a southwards movement last week. There is a bearish signal in the market: which would be valid as long as the distribution territories at 1.5650 and 1.5700 are not breached to the upside. In case those distribution territories are overcome, the current bearish signal would be rendered illogical. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bullish This market traded sideways last week, though the bullish trend on it is not yet over. Should the market move sideways again throughout this week, it would enter a neutral territory. Nevertheless, price could soon go out of balance, resulting in a serious trending move. Yen can become very strong before the end of this month – causing other JPY pairs to tumble – and it can also cause USDJPY to go bearish. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bullish From the demand zone at 134.50, this cross moved upwards by over 150 pips, slamming into the supply zone at 136.00. This has caused a Bullish Confirmation Pattern in the market, but it is a confirmation pattern that might be short-lived, since Yen can become very strong before the end of the month, causing bears to dominant the market. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “… No system or set of trades is either winning or losing, they are only so with respect to the position sizing (or money management) that was applied… We have every tool we can long for to control risk while adding to our winners.” - Dirk Vandycke
  24. Here’s the market outlook for the week: EURUSD Dominant bias: Bearish EURUSD dropped by 280 pips last week, going below the resistance lines at 1.0950 and 1.0900. The resistance line at 1.0900 (and of course the resistance line at 1.0900) was an adamant obstacle to bears’ interest. Now that the obstacle has been overcome, the next targets for the bears are the support lines at 1.0800 and 1.0750. The aforementioned resistance lines should server as obstacles to bullish attempts this week, for their breach would mean a threat to the current bearish outlook. USDCHF Dominant bias: Bullish This pair went north by over 200 pips last week, going above the support levels at 0.9500, 0.9550 and 0.9600. The support level at 0.9500 (which was formerly a resistance level) really proved obstinate for the bulls because it opposed bullish effort for over 2 weeks while the bulls kept on besieging it. Once the opposition was overcome, price was able to rally smoothly. Since price has closed above the support level at 0.9600, it is possible that the resistance levels at 0.9650 and 0.9700 will be aimed at. This bullish bias might go on till the end of the month, but things could change in the wake of a strong stamina in CHF, which is expected by the end of the month. GBPUSD Dominant bias: Bullish Cable rose significantly last week, battering the distribution wall at 1.5650. Bears have been fighting back at that distribution wall, making it hitherto impossible for bulls to breach it. Nevertheless, the bulls have continued to struggle for supremacy, and that is the reason behind the current consolidation in the market. Price shall go out of balance this week, and it is most probable that the bulls would overcome. USDJPY Dominant bias: Bullish Since testing the demand level at 120.50, this currency trading instrument has gone upwards by 350 pips. The persistent bullish movement has put an end to the recent neutral outlook in the market – for the outlook is now bullish. However, price needs to go towards the supply level at 124.50 and break upwards through it; otherwise there could be a massive bearish correction this week or next week. EURJPY Dominant bias: Bearish This cross would continue to go south as EURUSD keeps going south. The only hope of a meaningful rally here is an event in which the Euro becomes very strong; otherwise price would continue to drop further and further (whether speedily and gradually). This bearish force is formidable here, coupled with the expectation of a massive gain in the Yen itself around the end of this month. This forecast is concluded with the quote below: “What makes trading so fascinating and, at the same time, difficult to learn is that you really don’t need lots of skills; you just need a winning attitude.” – Mark Douglas
  25. INSIGHTS INTO THE MINDSET OF SUPER TRADERS – Part 9 “The best strategy loses its effectiveness when you trade from a place of fear.” - Mercedes Oestermann van Essen Name: Lawrence D. Hite Nationality: American Profession: Funds manager, trading systems developer, philanthropist Career: Larry Hite is an award-winning funds manager who’s one of the forefathers of trading strategies. In 1981, he co-founded Mint Investments, and several years later, the firm became the most successful of its kind (at that time). He was featured in Jack Schwager’s book titled Market Wizards. Larry also partnered with Man Group and started some ground-breaking trading concepts – which also proved successful. In the year 2000, Larry shifted gears and focused on other things that also mattered to him, including family, investing, funds management and philanthropy. For instance, he founded his own foundation, called The Hite Foundation, which he heads. One source says he also serves as chairman of the Development Committee for the Institute of International Education’s Scholar Rescue Fund, whose goal is to provide safe haven for academics and professionals who are at risk throughout the world. Insights: 1. No matter how great your trading method or analysis is, no matter how much information you’ve or how much knowledge you’ve, you can open a position and still experience negativity. Always see a new trade as a potential loser. Don’t think of how much you can make, but think of how much you can actually lose. With that mindset, you’ll risk as low as possible and trade defensively, thus ensuring your safety. What you can determine is how much you’ll lose; you can’t determine how much you’ll gain. 2. Protect your wealth. Protect your capital. You need capital to play the markets, and without playing the markets, you can’t make money. Without your capital, you can’t play the markets, and that’s why you need to protect your capital. 3. When you’ve a good system, please be faithful to it. It can’t work always, but try to never deviate from it. Make this a hard-and-fast rule. 4. Always respect the market; otherwise, you’ll suffer for your stubbornness. Go with the flow. 5. Larry says this: “I have a cousin who turned $5,000 into $100,000 in the option market. One day I asked him, "How did you do it?" He answered, "It is very easy. I buy an option and if it goes up, I stay in, but if it goes down, I don't get out until I am at least even." I told him, "Look, I trade for a living, and I can tell you that strategy is just not going to work in the long run." In his next trade he put his money in Merrill Lynch options, only this time, it goes down, and down, and down. It wiped him out.” Lesson: Simply cut your loss. Never allow it to run. 6. What you call markets are really risks, rewards, money and means to financial freedom. When risks are controlled and the flow of the markets is respected, things will work for you as traders. 7. Many speculators may have different kinds of stories to tell, but the truth is that we’re all speculators. We’re the same. We all have access to a level playing field. Conclusion: All challenges we face in trading have their hidden blessings; but we’re often blind to the blessings and allow disappointment, ire and fear to take control of our lives when a position doesn’t do what we want it to do. One expert advises that trading should be treated as another splendid opportunity to learn something and improve our skill. We shouldn’t concentrate on money alone. This article is ended with two quotes from Larry: “There are just four kinds of bets. There are good bets, bad bets, bets that you win, and bets that you lose. Winning a bad bet can be the most dangerous outcome of all, because a success of that kind can encourage you to take more bad bets in the future, when the odds will be running against you. You can also lose a good bet, no matter how sound the underlying proposition, but if you keep placing good bets, over time, the law of averages will be working for you.” “I met the guy who wrote this best seller now called, Bringing Down the House, it's about these MIT guys who beat the blackjack tables. And part of the problem, if you're going to be a blackjack counter is that the casinos don't like you. They actively don't like you. And they come and tell you in rather strong things to take your business away. Well, the beautiful thing about the markets, they don't like you, they don't dislike you, they just don't care. They are there everyday. You want to play, you can play.”
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