Welcome year end market ....-)))

Where liquidity thins out at critical times and market orders rule the day. Wild swings and many stops triggering. Where the best laid set-ups get creamed. Only those with great patience or restraint or better still heads up on where order flows are, can survive. Anyway, its November, why trade ? The performance for the year can't be changed in 1 mth. Ok rate decisions. Interesting slapping machine in the GBP. But applaud the aggressive move on rates. reckon market also felt that. Nice!!! Have more respect for the U.K now. On the other hand, ECB, my view of them have not changed. Too little and will be too late. See how the market punishes the EUR on that for being behind the curve. Yes !!! Not unexpected of them to do this. Give it time the Union will be left behind. What with forecast in negative territory on economic growth for 2009. Think I should be praying for mercy to be upon the European Union.

Spooky friday ????

Hallowen , mth end, friday... all the ingredients for a spooky day. But not so spooky in the FX markets during Londontime. -)) It was a 4 day trading week for me, as monday was tech issues, so only did 220 + pips for the week as of this writing. A generally good mth with only one losing day. It was human error ie: stubborness. Should be winding downn the book soon. Scaling back into say mid November and take a break. Do some testing on demo and write the manual for trading this method. One more for the library.

Wow ! .... its the end of the year...

As we go into another mth end , this time would be extra interesting, as volatility has probably crippled some of the not so nimble. All seems stabilised and calm with regard to the bite of the measures taken by Guvs. The market has flip flop from economic issues to rates issues to liquidity issues. Seems like this fashion would continue. Anyway its good for markets to thaw out and have some semblance of calm going into Novenber. However, after the storm is seeming calmness and the cycle goes on. At these junctions , bottom pickers or more polite, bottom fishers/bargain hunters, come and pick cheap stuff in the stock market. But as opposed to the past, its a global affair. This is the bloodest falling knife that one can catch. Earthquakes, typhoons etc are usually preceded by serenely calm weather -))) Own stocks in a reccessionary , low growth, slowing consumer spending, asset deflation world? Cash is king to weather this for the next 2 years at least.

Thoughts....

The most useless thing to do ... ........Worry The greatest Joy...............................Giving The greatest loss.................Loss of self-respect The most satisfying work................Helping others The ugliest personality trait......................Selfishness The most endangered species...................Dedicated leaders The greatest 'shot in the arm'..................Encouragement The greatest problem to overcome......... ....Fear Most effective sleeping pill..............Peace of mind The most crippling failure disease.........Excuses The most powerful force in life......................Love The most dangerous pariah.................................A gossiper The world's most incredible computer.....The brain ! The worst thing to be without...................Hope The deadliest weapon.... The tongue....... The two most power-filled words...............'I Can' The greatest asset.............. ...Faith The most worthless emotion................Self-pity The most prized possession................Integrity The most beautiful attire................ ...A SMILE! The most powerful channel of communication........Prayer The most contagious spirit............ .....Enthusiasm The most important thing in life...............GOD

Iceland then who next....

well investors are fleeing Russia. Fear of sovereign debt defaults. IMF fund talk does give some credence to widening risk aversions and risk premiums have shown that. Actually what risk premiums ? Just get me out.... LOL No premium is high enough for the potential risks. So what happens when the IMF fund is officially announced. Well usd positive. Cos it gives emerging countries a conduit to exchange for usd. While all this is going on, has the bail out packages seep into alleviating anything yet? The chicken is running around frantically screaming... " cracks everywhere, cracks everywhere" PS. How come impact on LATAM countries not followed through ? All quiet there all of a sudden. Must pray for people who have aggressively accumulated Dinars in the hope of revaluation. Now this happens , i hope they learn that Hope is not a investing strategy. Lord have mercy upon your people who have fallen for the path of greed.

Missing Trades....

some days just not as sharp. Missed my trades in eur and gbp. Fortunately, got the aud and booked 51pips. Seem rather out of sorts today so must practice patience. Breathing excercise while watching. Added a tiny wee bit more... nett total 78 pips today. The only way to overcome a bad habit is to replace it with a good one. Many people go about the opposite way. Trying to get rid of it. But understand how habits are formed. Had a nice discussion on muscle memory with a gd friend last nite thru IM. When one develops good trading habits dun be kay kiang. Milk it and stick with it. But when one starts practising bad habits in trading and through dumb luck win a few times with it. It becomes a thorn in the flesh. Its like golf. Practice , Practice, Practice. We all have inherent talent . Why waste it. Thats why Ed Seykota said...." ...u get what u want from the markets.." Many people self sabotage. Its a deep seated trait / habit to lose $. One reason I can think of is ...." the love of $ is the root of all evil.." Understanding things from the mind's perspective to form logical, commonsense, reasons, is a double edged sword. Thats why my signature says..." get out of ur own way".

Expected bounce after lows made yesterday..

Waited almost half a day for the bounce to play out b4 selling again. 132 pips for londontime. Am getting slip shod as I forgot to put a sell order in eur and manage to only have half a position going at a lower level. Aud was the other sold today, but approached it by trading the retracemnent up. Maintaining short all the time. Kinda like massaging a position into a better average. Was told by my partner that I've been less aggressive trading for abt a year now. Hmm.... Complaint was my position size has gone down and forgetting to put orders in LOL think i upload some Omega3 tonite to help with memory. -)))

Thought I'd share something from the past...

The banking failures was actually prophesied about 3-6 months before it happened. Warnings from the Lord was given and why. I won't tell u why but I would tell you that the words Bear and Bull was mentioned. The first to go was bear stearns, then MLynch. Whats ML's slogan ? -)) At that point it was a guessing game who? But that was not the issue. The key was it was going to happen. Anyway, we are in good hands... PTL

Inspiration from friends...

always a blessing. Received an email from MKE when I woke up inspired me on his seriousness and ernest study of trading FX. Then 2 charts posted by two friends on eur and aud further inspired me . The journey need not be a "lonely" one , but fellow journeymen in the same pursuits gives much blessings. Clawed half back last night and covered the balance and more today. feeling blessed today. -)))

Revisted.....

the path of the U.S similar to japan. There will be talk re surfacing i reckon of massive rate adjustments downwards for the U.S. Market may factor in fed funds expectations which stands now at 1.5% , to much below 1% over the next 10 months. With current scenarios , its not unforseeable of another 50 bps adjustments very soon. This speculation should spread to the GBP and EUR also. This is not new or a Aha !!! moment. \Many traders must be expecting it somewhat already. Man! I must be running on pentium 3 today.

Search and destroy...

Both buy/ sell orders and stops on both ends got dealt today. Dun know what made me think I would be immune to it LOL Gave to the mkt 270 pips, what a start to the week. First losing day this month. Dang! Actually had an early warning sign that the soft side had changed. But did not heed it. Responsibility and accountability must be owned up to. Will stop myself out frm FX tonite . Tommorrow is another day -)))) Seen many of these search and destroy days before ... experience is definately wasted on me. Well still up for the month. What a consolation. Indices looking biddish all day. keep the profits there and call it a day.

A prayer for All..... especially traders

Dear Lord, I thank You for this day... I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you. I ask now for Your forgiveness. Please keep me safe from all danger and harm. Help me to start t his day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude. Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You. Please broaden my mind that I can accept all things. Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over. And It's the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits. I know that when I can't pray, You listen to my heart. Continue to use me to do Your will. Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others. Keep me strong that I may help the weak... Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others. I pray for those that are lost and can't find their way. I pray for those that are misjudged and misunderstood. I pray for those that don't believe. But I thank you that I believe. I believe that God changes people and God changes things. I pray for all my sisters and brothers. For each and every family member in their households. I pray for peace, love and joy in their homes that they are out of debt and all their needs are met. I pray that every eye that reads this knows there is no problem, circumstance, or situation greater than God. Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight. I pray that these words be received into the hearts of every eye that sees it.

Latest TIC Data yesterday ....

Friday's TIC Data frm the U.S showed a blip up. Like it was mentioned a few posts before, repatriation is still going on. Foreign investments sold cos of its low risk/reward factor and $ flows back. Some hedge funds must be having a time of closing funds to return $ to investors. This is deleveraging and expected to continue. So volatility is the norm. All this a tad usd supportive in the big pic. Will continue to fade rallies next week....

TGIF .... time for a kitkat...

London came in put a sell order in GBP at 1.7370. Got filled . High was 81. Took back ay 1.7270. bank in 100 pips. Eur did the same but sell order did not trigger. Ftse very thin and erratic today but good swings. Think will just keep my ticks for the day GBP 1435 ( updated to present ) -) Must overcome this relaxed state , but then isn't good for trading. Why stress?

Whats the new world order ?

Not surprising that the EU is calling for the November meeting on global reforms . Whats their agenda ? The world is aware and the world is buying into the appeal of logic in this backdrop of crisis. This I view as prophetic in every sense of the word. The thinking would be that reforms are needed and this will threaten the USD status as reserve ccy. My sense is that no one will see that reforms would not be made. We get a step closer to the new world order that is to come. The day of the 666, is rearing itself.

Recession and tappering pricing pressures

How do equity mkts rally when recession is here. Is it not so that bonds do better in recessionary times ? With oil coming off towards the 70 level, does this not spell of pricing pressure relief. The 2 , oil and food, have all retreated. So the view is any bounce wud not be sustainable . Selling jpy crosses on rallies... thats the soft side for now. This in turn caps gbp and eur bounces. But whats intriguing coming up in the horizon is whether the " new bretton woods" wud be pursued. Interesting going into the end of the week. Another event trigger in the works.

manage to add...

28 more pips in eur so total for the day 44pips. Looks like I picked the lower RR trade cos the gbp wud have given me more pips quicker. Stiill trading frm the short side. But am staying flat to see what happens as after a big down day in the US there shld be a bounce. But how Much. Will be patient and wait for set-ups if any.

Better vols in indices than FX today....

Focus on the ftse100 today. Up gbp 1265 in 70 mins. Resting now but manage to squeeze 16 pips from eur. Guess will wait till later to focus on FX. Quiet for londontime in the FX. Consolidating in ranges for the eur/gbp and aud. Glad to have another outlet in futures ... phew!

Would not be unexpected ...

that the softness of mkts to remain . JP Morgan and Wells fargo results out rather mixed to uncertain. Going foward discounts would be expected. Noticed the last 2 sessions that Aud tries to climb during early londontime but tend to slide away into the open of U.S. Traded the shortside on aud yesterday and today. 45 mins into london open got 62 pips then got busy with the index. Erratic and thin today on the index. Could be a sign of $ sidelined as opposed to the buying on dips that we've seen. So the tide has ebbed. Big pic as I see it has not changed from my earlier post. Gbp staged a nice rally into late afternoon. as usual i left lots on the table . maybe am just tired and another mental health day might do the trick LOL. Let the FX mkt sort itself out for the week and braise for the slow down to hit in 2009. As for the euity mkts it may be too early to call abottom. Even with the bounce of the 50% retracement recently. Bottom picking only results in a smelly finger.

Interesting research to share

The Treasury Department is expected to announce a plan to directly investment in US banks, which will be similar to recent European proposals. The plan is the latest step towards shoring up troubled financial institutions and unfreezing interbank lending. According to media reports, the Treasury will invest up to $250 bln into banks in the form of preferred equity. The $250 bln will come from the funds provided for by EESA, but there will also be money left under EESA to be used for troubled asset purchases. The FDIC is expected to guarantee new bank debt issued by June 30 with maturities up to three years and will also offer unlimited deposit insurance temporarily for non-interest bearing accounts that are typically used by small businesses. Secretary Paulson has already convinced several large banks to agree to the proposal, leaving the government with the potential to invest in many more banks. The Treasury investments will be structured so as to give banks the incentive to attract private capital and buy out the government stake. Credit conditions are showing modest improvement with each new announced initiative but the implementation of the various plans is taking place gradually. 3m LIBOR fell another 12bp to 4.64% and overnight LIBOR is now 2.18% versus the 5.09% we saw last week. The 3m TED and 3m LIBOR-OIS spreads have tightened (445bp and 339bp, respectively) but they still remain elevated. Press reports suggest the Fed's plan to directly lend commercial paper will start in about two weeks. The new plan improves sentiment and we could see the dollar benefit against the Swiss franc and the yen. Ahead today is a press conference at 830 ET on the direct investment plan.

Day Off ...for me...

Well thought since its a day-off for me I wud not watch the mkt. Some thoughts..... the mood has improved after all that information overload from the weekend. But lets not forget, a year plus ago liquidity problems reared its head and funding was available but lending did not improve. Will this change because its gotten worst? i don't think so. Will the impact of the proposals take effect and convince everyone that all is getting better ? I don't think so. Is global recession now headed off ? I don't think so. How long is all this going to stretch ? I don't know. Gbp will be viewed more favorably than EUR. Too many cooks crowds a kitchen. Usd relative value status to the rest ? Well with the patchy footwork by the powers to be, its lessened. Market will sort this out in the weeks to come. Now I don't see usd going ballistic anytime soon. At best its trapped in a broad range thats already been established. But will it be relatively stronger than the EUR, I reckon so. So am looking for eur to weaken against the gbp. Eur to weaken against the usd. Usd to weaken against the jpy and chf. Well maybe I should just monitor the eur/jpy and eur/chf cross. Hmm... If what the mkt is taking today for the depression of last week, I want it. Boy! what an anti-depressant pill. Kidding....

Extreme volatility and deleveraging..

Volatilitity peaks last couple of sessions indicates a deleveraging especially in usd denominated assets. Concerns now will further exacerbate this in the coming sessions as the " money centers" via for top spot. This means the debate of the usd being the reserve ccy is now being mooted over. many calling it the New Bretton Woods. yes very much so on the surface. But if one recall the many changes that have gone through since the move away from the Gold standard, it may seem rather premature to change the " reserve ccy" of global trade. thats just my opinion. One example is the repeal of the glass steagal act, where commercial banks could compete in the relm of brokerages and many investment programs from derivative types to insurance linked types were mass marketed to the masses. It was a time of great wealth accumulation and greed fed upon greed. Please understand it's just my personal layman's view . my view and wish is that this deleveraging going on to minimise risks will not crack the system and add weight to the change of a usd reserve ccy. Just crystal balling a bit, if it does happen i would bet that even more volatility and disruptions will occur. Which in all likelyhood further stress the global system. Furthermore, going foward even after a period of perceived "stabiliy' life on this planet earth from a financial and commercial standpoint would be even more difficult and dark. Drawing upon the epilogue even sooner.

Friday syndrome for me...

Either its age or just plane laziness, when it comes to fridays my interest wanes for the mkts. Only got 39 pips ( usd$390) so far . left too much on the table by being lazy to wait and taking walks . Anyhow 250 plus pips for the week. maybe next week I will trade more seriously. At least be more focused.

Busy with FTSE...

Good volatility and thin volumes in the index today but another plus day for me. (+gbp400) Only till 7pm sg time that I started trading FX in eur long side. Got 29 pips. ( usd$290) Woke up too late to catch the first leg up so patiently waiting . Patience always pays off , waiting for set-ups , in trading any mkts. Kicking myself for pulling my bid off in gbp at 1.7268. My fav 2 yr old came by to play so thought best to square eur and pull gbp order. Gbp turned out to be the better pair. live and learn. ( Always -) ) Been feeling tired of late , so am trading closer to the vest and shipping pips and ticks in.

Interesting Article for starters....

How to Move Beyond the Possible Into the Realm of Probable Where the Fruit is Profitable The probability of your success in any particular trade or series of trades is dependent on how you use your charting program, technical indicators, money management and how you mentally manage your emotions. Understanding what your indicators are telling you is another key point. Study the formulas and compare the differences between MACD, CCI and Stochastic indicators of the same length. Look at them visually as well as mathematically. Visually look at the differences between a normal, exponential, smoothed and weighted indicator. Study until you know what each indicator is telling you. My mentor made me "hand calculate" all the indicators so I learned what each was telling me in advance of the next market move. One interesting concept is to actually calculate a few bars of these indicators from real data in order to truly understand what the indicator is doing and how it reacts to gaps, low volatility and regular price swings. Be sure to run the calculation until you lose a big bar as well. This skewing factor will let you know why many people distrust indicators. They do not understand the limitations of indicators in certain volatile market conditions. All indicators are derivatives or second tiered smoothing of price action. Inherently, all indicators are lagging in one way or another. It is important to understand how they relate to price, potential future movement of price, and how they are affected by past price spikes. We do provide you with a non-lagging indicator (from my nuclear power days) for added accuracy. We tend to trade by watching only our indicators. Watching price only, you can become hypnotized by the noise and miss the real moves. I consider the following four points whenever I am about to make a trade. The number of indicators moving or about to move in my direction. The angle and rate of change of these indicators. The position of the indicators above or below 50% or the 20/80% level for oscillators. The likelihood of continuation based on approaching Support and Resistance, length of previous move and the time of day. Here is a vital key to remember: If you see three indicators moving in your direction, just say to yourself "1, 2, 3, Go". It is as simple as that.

Concerted 50bps rate cut

As expected rate decision to cut.

Trading close to the vest...

Volatility in the gbp is big today. Eur seems more sedate. Again eurgbp play in the mkt. Thks to bailout plans I get my levels done. Traded on short side , got my 51 pips in the first hour ...3pm-4pm sg time. Think with the volatility in the stock mkt also ... time for a kitkat. LOL

CP market revived..

Looks like advise frm Bill Gross taken and the FED is buying in the CP ( commercial paper) mkt. Good news as it provides liquidity and a channel to access liquidity. Well usd bid plus the jpy crosses. Indices have all gone ballistic coupled with heavy volatility. -)))))

Broke my discipline...

Traded the aud frm the long side frm 0.7135 bot more at 0.7177 and squared at 0.7195. + 78 pips. Now I reckon I shld shut down my computers and go take a leisurely walk. Got +usd1k for the day.

Not a day I like...

Got my 61 pips and standing aside. Got them in gbp. Y I dun like days like this is cos its eur/gbp dominating. Its just me...LOL Sit on profits and take a break. Hve a kitkat

Entrys...

Entry rules. Most traders spend more time analyzing entry rules than any other rules, though the other aspects of trading are equally important. There are many different ways to trigger an entry, you have decide what works for your style of trading. Here are some suggestions;(a) Should you enter at a certain price?(b) Enter long when the chart drops to that price? Or when it rises back through that price?(c) Will you enter when a certain indicator does something?(d) Should you jump in after the chart rises above a certain price (breakout)?(e) Should the chart maintain above (or below) a certain level for a certain amount of time before you enter? The above suggestions are only a few random ideas, the number of possible entry rules is endless, and you can combine several. You will have to test many of them to find the rules that have potential for your trading style, and your operating conditions. For a trading system to be successful, you must be able to duplicate your decision repeatedly, over many trades, with a positive result overall. Define your own entry rules, and document them. Then check that each trade complies with your rules.

Risk Control Rules

Risk control rules. Before a trade can be initiated, it must conform to your risk control paramaters. Each trader has his or her own tolerance for risk. If the risk is too high for that trader, then the trader will make bad decision due to stress. Also, the amount of capital that is risked in each trade will make a difference to the overall profitability/survivability of any trading strategy. Traders must tolerate some losses, but keep those losses manageable and smaller than the overall gains. Think about the following issues to define your risk control rules;(a) How much capital loss can be tolerated over a period?(b) How many losing trades are realistic over that period?(c) Is the risk per trade small enough to allow for a reasonable number of losing trades?(d) How much risk should you tolerate on this trade?(e) What if you exit at a loss, then the market reverses back in your favor? Do you re-enter?(f) What if the market goes sideways (consolidates)? You are still at risk.(g) When a trade is in a winning position, how much of your gains should you continue to place at risk in the market? Should you bank some of the profits? To protect against risk, we can adjust our position size, and our stop-loss orders. Even stop-loss orders don't guarantee you any protection. Do not enter any positions that will endanger your overall strategy. Every trade must conform to your risk rules.

Another good day for shorts...

3 trades done for today. Sold eur at 1.3615 locked in @ 1.3560 for 55 pips Sold again at 1.3615 and 1.3630 locked in @ 1.3570 for total of 105 pips Sold gbp @ 1.7625 locked in @ 1.7548 for 77 pips good day for london time trading nett usd$ 2,370. Patience in waiting for set-ups for intra-day move. Thought I missed it all till the first eur trade. calling it a day.

EU recovery .....

Obviously an uncoordinated EU frm this weekend's meeting. They were not looking for a bail-out plan ala U.S but approaching it frm deposit guarantees. Well, looks like one has to do what one has to do. Thereby this uncoordinated action among the Union will not be looked upon favorably. Remember the cries frm countries like Spain a year ago when EU kept rates high and threathening to raise ? The fruits of this Union will unfold soon. A house divided can't stand.

NFP... expect no surprise

Dun think the NFP is going to post a +ve number. Think scenario is heavily grey and gloomy for the U.S for now. But dun see usd getting too heavily slammed to break 103.00. Jpy crosses will lead the way a bit to the downside. eur and gbp corrective up will be capped. See thin mkt conditions with lots of volatile swings as expected to end the week. But reckon usd will survive this week into next. Its the eur and gbp that am more concerned abt for next week.

Dovish EU !!!!

Well a change of stance in the EU regarding rates. Lets see.. history will tell that they will move too slow and too late. Thats my bet. 1.30 eur? very possible in my view. lets see the corrections close to 1.40 if even close.

Eur and Trichet

Finally, the Trichet man , whom I never trusted , confirms a weakening economy and further contraction. Must say all the jawboning since a year or so ago, has lost its lustre. Fundamentaly, germany is the engine of the EU, since last year spain, and others were crumbling but mkt prefered to bet on the lesser of the 2 evils. What were the keys... oil . Crude oil staying at or below 100 wud be a decisive consideration in how the big pic will turn out. looks like 1.3750 lvls for the eur first. How the EU handles the contagion wud be an issue too. But mkt is helping by selling it down. Suspect more to come from a contracting EU going into 2009. rate cut there sgould be a given in the near term.

Landscape changes...

With the senate voting today ... good for usd. Becos of this delay, the EU is calling a meeting for saturday. This changes the landscape a bit. Now perhaps a straight usd play and the cross vs jpy may be favored. This leaves the U.K. Am inclined to think that eur/gbp would become more bid. Lets see.

No Ice Cream day....

Not unexpected as the hopes for a revival in the bail-out plan is tmr. Mkt seems very hopeful and that sentiment seems to be picking up some steam. The U.S players are especially on the cup is half full view. At least some volatility coming into the mkt. Anyway, have been getting "stand aside" signals all day ... Having no position is having a position.....

Quater end , Mth end action after bail-out shock

Surprisingly quiet as volumes seemed restraint. Usd has clawed back above 105.00 vs Jpy and usd chf also looking bid all Londontime. With a slew of U.S data coming out it would be interesting. This week may be best sidelined into Thursday. Altho quiet, managed 27 pips in cable. As usual, leaving another chunk on the table. Trading is certaintly all about patience and sitting .

positioning or adjustments

talk of large option in $jpy taken in NY last nite 126 strike barrier. Hmm.. do they know something.... like some plan will be adopted soon. guess the unthinkable of no plan frm the U.S is not being held. Russians seen buying eur today but met with supply. reckon its cross related against the jpy. Cos talk is they have buy odas in the cross sitting. i dun trade the cross so i dun know where. Not unexpected as following a major sell off some recovery is expected.

Liquidity crisis and global contagion

So what happens? Surely measures have to be taken starting with theU.S followed closely with the U.K and eu. First consideration would be liquidity. Rates and bolster each domestic front by repatriating. Challenging times ahead and volatility to the FX mkts. $/Jpy 104-108 range ahead. reckon we'll spend some time in the bottom half the range in the week ahead B4 trying the upper half of the range. Standing aside when not sure ... chasing mkts maybe hazzardous. Patience will yield rewards in this time.

Uneasy markets...

Have been amiss posting last couple of days. What a rough day today ... got off on the wrong foot. Win some , Lose some. But must be able to come back and trade another day. Therefore , keep loses small. Strive for consistency not big swings in account.

" $ is made by sitting..."

Got 49 pips today , which came with sitting. However, innane as the "advise" may be, it is very true. It is simply believeing in your analysis and approach and letting it unfold. Afterall, by putting a stop , the risk is determined. Initial, broad ranges in the eur and gbp today, what with the economic numbers and rhetoric. Eur looks to be a descending expanding wedge, hitting my 3 targets early U.S time. Would have been nice to be more patient. LOL Gbp looks to have more downside with 1.77 probably threathened soon. Seeing this volatility swings to continue as the market seems still unsettled. Watch to see what longs in eur/gbp will be doing the next few days. There has been what looks like accumulation yesterday and today in early european time.

Volatile day today....

Did my 70 pips today , but left quite a few on the table. Was a bit disconcerted when my demo mt4 chart lost connection for about 15 mins. Fortunately, always have a back-up, so vt trader held up for me. So much for all the "compliants " about vt's connection issues. Rates were wider today with many asian markets on break. Not until London that the spreads came in to reduce slippage. Basically, i look at 2 primary ccys....eur and gbp. Then i have 2 secondary...aud and chf. Did not trust the swing points today as the data was not accurate, market thin from late asian morning to london, so was more careful picking my levels . After locking in the pips, was kinda reluctant to take on the risk as market felt nervous..... what with the economic numbers and financial blow-out ala Lehman. One tip to remember is when market risk expands, look for wider swing points . Also if spreads widen on risk premiums, stand aside. Good opportunities today , so must be more focused and trade the plan . More pips , more fun!

The 80/20 phenomena

What is this ? Well, is it a win/loss ratio ? Not quite. Trading is actually 80% mental / 20% know how. Surprised ??? It takes discipline to follow your method/approach with confidence and consistency. That would give you the edge as a trader. When you have the discipline to believe in your approach/method, and consistently apply it without second guessing , you have an edge . One example is waiting for the set-ups in your approach then taking the trade. Thats discipline !!!! So practice, practice , practice !!!!

Why Right Edge ??

This should be simple and obvious to "traders". Almost all "traders" use some form of price charts to trade the FX market. The prices are all on the left side, which means prices already dealt with or is currently where the market is at. Can't really go back wards to trade yesterday's prices can we? So the "bucks" come from whats going to happen next on the " right edge" What happens on the right side of the chart is what's important. But come to think about it....if one could buy the low yesterday and the sell the high yesterday..that would be an amazing "edge" ......hmm..... -)) Well, what ifs don't pay the bills, but what is may.

Intriguing pandemic....

Thumb through the newspaper and there must be 5-8 ads on trading stocks/options/Fx , implying promises of wealth accumulation . Some even claim many of their "students" stopped working and became full-time traders. Well, with all this wealth generation going on , the job market must be deficient of workers. Jobs have to be a plenty out there. The FX market has been around a long time and certaintly not new in sunny Singapore. But with the internet , it is now more "reacheable" for the guy on the street. Anyone now can open an account on the net and trade from home or anywhere there's an internat connection. Wow...the allure of "easy" street must be mesmerizing. well, at least for one thing, we now know where former bank traders are.....at home in front of the PC. -))) Which answers the age old question.....traders don't fade away they just stay home. The new " homebody" society....but racking in the bucks.