Archive for August, 2008

How To Help The Forex Auto Pilot…. To Help YOU!

Saturday, August 30th, 2008

Happy weekend everyone, it’s crazy where all the time goes… just another week gone by and more wrinkles and gray hairs for me! ;)

Many of you are using the forex autopilot, some are having more success than others with it and some have stopped using it altogether. Some of you are experimenting with some outside tricks to see if the autopilot can be optimized to run better, so far the best technique seems to be this one. One of my clients has been having some great success in experimenting with using a 10 exponential moving average on the 1 hour chart to help guide the direction of the autopilot. It’s a pretty simple method, all that is required is to watch the market in relation to the 10 EMA on the 1h chart, as with all of our indicators if the market is above the 10 EMA you restrict the autopilot to longs or buys only. If the market is below the 10, restrict it to shorts or sells only. It appears that you much be sensitive to direction changes in the market, if you wait too long to change the direction things can get messy. But as long as you’re keeping an eye on the 1h chart and 10 EMA once or twice a day and trying to stay on top of the direction, the results seem to be fantastic. Have a look at the diagrams below and how this all works;

(remember you can click on the pic to see a larger view of it)

The whole purpose of the 10 EMA is to help limit the autopilot from taking positions in the wrong direction which it seems to do from time to time. With this method you still set up everything just like you normally would with the regular autopilot set up, you’re just adding the 1h/10 ema on top of everything.

Below is how you change the autopilot from buys to sells etc;

Use good judgement when experimenting with this method and as always, try it on a demo account first. This method may not work with everyone but hopefully it can help a few of you out with your auto pilot experience. If you have questions or comments, please let them in comment form below, thanks.

Jared J.

My Weekend Edition

Saturday, August 30th, 2008

Here we are coming into the weekend right before the start of September, which has a reputation for being toughest month of the year on the financial markets. The markets usually lose a bit of ground during September however things can look slightly up on election year Septembers, however everyone is still nervous as to what could happen. There is a good amount of uncertainty as to where the Dollar will head now, most are split on their prediction as to the direction of things. The month of August has been the best month the Dollar has had since 1992, and it’s gained the most against the Euro in such a short period of time since the Euro began trading publicly in 1999.

What does this mean for the USD?

Well it means the Dollar has been gaining strength like no one anticipated, many industries in the sub sectors are up more than 10% in just the last 30 days. But Dollar strength is coming in as good news for some and bad news for others. A weak Dollar can make our goods and services more competitive abroad which is great for the bottom line for many large companies. Have a look at this article,


USD Strength article

What all this means for the Dollar is yet to be seen, we haven’t seen a movement like this is a long time and now no one knows what to do about it which is why we see the markets just settling into a range bound situation. So everyone be patient with the currencies and other financial markets, there’s a lot of factors at play and until the big money decides what it wants to do we’re at the mercy of the “range!” I strongly encourage everyone to start doing research and learn about the the correlations across the various markets, commodities, currencies, stock market, etc. There’s much to be taken from how each move in relation to the other. We must be highly educated in the ways of the markets if we are to be the best currency traders possible. READ, READ, READ!!

That’s all for now, everyone have a GREAT weekend and a happy Labor Day and don’t work too hard.

Jared J.

Here’s A Bigger Version Of the ATM Video!

Wednesday, August 27th, 2008

Ok after many emails here’s a larger video version of the preview of the ATM software, it’s a little blurry but I think it’ll do the trick! Anyway, have a look and let me know what you all think. Comments are GOOOODDD!!

Also, there’s some GREAT market set ups happening… that post of that will be up in minutes!

Here’s What I’m Looking At In This Crazy Market!!

Wednesday, August 27th, 2008

Ok everyone, we have seen some GNARLY choppy market movements in the market over the last 2 weeks and for some of us it’s been pretty profitable but for others of us it’s been a bit painful. Here’s what we need to remember, USE THE DARMA!!! If the market is choppy, use the Darma to take those 20 and 30 pips trades… the quick get in and get out trades. If the market is trending, USE THE DARMA!! As the market is trending in a direction (up or down) and we have confirmation of this on both 1 and 4 hour charts, then look for entries on the Darma (ie with alligator confirmation of direction, enter on candles that open in the direction of the trend as confirmed on the 1/4h charts).

Ok enough about that, what do you say we have a look at what i’m looking at as of right NOW? Good, lets talk about it.

The EUR/USD and USD/CHF have been catching my eye. I don’t like watching these two currencies together too much because we all know that they move exactly opposite of each other so it kind of goes without saying. But they both are catching my eye, here’s why,

The EUR/USD has been dropping for the last… I don’t know, EVER!! SO it’s been bottoming out for the last little while, with the new found uncertainty with the USD and the EUR. Thanks to the BIIGGGG problems with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Dollar has taken a break from it’s nice short lived strength. Here’s what i’m looking at on the charts, the EUR/USD looks like with a break of the weekly pivot and crossovers on the 1/4h charts, i think it has some good potential for upside movement. There’s completely split opinions on the direction of the EUR/USD across the boards with analysts.

The USD/CHF is doing about the same thing but in the opposite direction, it’s basically the same story but in the other direction. Have a look at this shot and notice the mirror image of this one. This USD/CHF is looking like a nice downside potential is in the works. That’s what i’m looking at for right now’ish.

Happy trading EVERYONE!! Lets make some money Ya’ll!!!

Jared J.

A Sneak Peek At the ATM Software!!

Tuesday, August 26th, 2008

video

Ok everyone, he’s a little sneak peek at the ATM software, I know the video is small I’ll figure out a way to upload a larger version but for the mean time give this one a “look see” and let me know what you think. It should be exciting, the program has been in use for over a year now and it’s going strong with plenty of back testing done. Have a look and let me know if anyone has any questions.

The way the system works is you have to set up the software 5 minutes or so before the announcement comes out, then the software will click you into the trade automatically but you will have to manually close the trade. There are around 7-10 trades a week that we watch, each time you set up for a trade and go through the process it takes anywhere from 10-15 minutes. It’s not a very long process I will be posting a calendar every week so you can know what to expect for a schedule of the week.

There you have it, have a look and let me know what you think.

thanks,
JJ

HAPPY MONDAY!!

Monday, August 25th, 2008

GOOOOD morning everyone and welcome to another amazing trading week in what I like to call the BEAST (aka Forex)! It’s Monday morning at about 7:30am PST so I’m just going to give a quick review on what I am seeing this early on in the trading game for the week.

First off we just (and i mean just, about 30 mins ago) had the US Existing Home Sales announcement come out for the USD, it came out a pretty good amount better than expected but as of the immediate is showing little signs of adding strength to the Dollar. Although Home Sales are UP in the US for the month, inventory is also rising thus extending our little “housing situation” that has become fairly common place for the last few years.

So, here is what I’m seeing on the charts;

The USD is gaining LITTLE against many of the currencies, in fact there are quite a few signs of trend reversals on dollar pairs. We have seen the USD gain much strength over many currencies over the last 6 weeks bringing the EUR/USD, GBP/USD and many other USD pairs to levels not seen in months and even years. But as with every big movement there must be some reconciliation, so I am becoming aware and even sensitive to USD reversals beginning to happen this week in the market. Last week we saw a MAJOR consolidation in most of the USD pairs (aka the market went flat and didn’t break out of the small range it was in for most of 7 days). This week I expect to see some movement out of these pairs, the question is going to be which way they will move. So keep your eyes on the charts and watch for the signs of which way things are going, remember to keep an eye on the stock market and oil because these can be signs of how our Dollar is doing.

As for the other pairs, I see the JPY pairs doing very little at the opening of this week but keep your eyes on those too because the JPY can make big major moves when least expected. So watch and wait because we have an entire week or endless possibilities ahead of us with many currencies at decision points so we should see some good movement happening. Stay tuned and I will be back with an update later on tonight.

Adios,

JJ

A Mostly Quiet Week Is About Over….

Thursday, August 21st, 2008

Well Folks there’s not much to talk about, it’s been a slow week and the market has been stuck is a nice channel on most of the major pairs. The JPY pairs were the first to break out and now most of the USD pairs are trying to follow, so goes it. This “follow the leader” is a common thing after large movements as seen across several currencies over the last month. So prepare for choppy market conditions after major trending movements, it happens like clock work.

We are seeing some break outs finally so keep an eye on the EUR/USD and GBP/USD pairs, especially the latter, there are some nice 4h chart set ups happening so lets get on the right side of the trend and ride the wave. There is a UK econ announcement at 4:30am EST friday and a US announcement later friday morning during the US session so watch these news events and be prepared for some possible movement in the market.

That is about it for tonight, the market has been quiet and will probably finish out the week with less than stellar movements which is ok because it means the market OWES us this coming week!

More to come….

Ciao for now,

Market, To Move Or Not To Move!

Wednesday, August 20th, 2008

For all of those that have been watching the charts this week- I’m sorry!! It’s been a slow week but this is VERY common after such a large movement like we’ve seen over the last 4 weeks across most of the currencies. So everyone be patient, we’ll make it through this week and back into some good moving market conditions.

There has been very little things to look at over the last few days but it looks like we might be seeing some movement starting to happen across the JPY pairs. There has been some movement over the last few hours (current time 10:30 pst) so keep an eye out. Also there is a major UK announcement coming out at 4:30am EST, Retail sales. This is a big econ indicator for any currency, it shows the amount of money people are spending on retails items, it’s a big deal. So expect some movement out of the GBP pairs in the next few hours.

Currencies I’m watching right now for some possible set ups;

EUR/AUD
This pair is showing some signs of upside movement, watch this one closely as it can be a MOVER!

ALL JPY pairs
All the Yen crosses are showing some very nice break out movements so watch the trend and enter from the darma, there should be plenty of opportunity in these pairs.

USD/CHF
This one is showing some signs of some downside movement, keep an eye on it as it should produce some nice price action over the next 12-24 hours.

REMEMBER;
Because of the super range bound sideways markets we have seen all week we have some very important things to watch,
1. range bound markets create major support and resistant levels that should be watched for break outs.

2. Healthy movements usually follow range bound market conditions (or at least they seem like nice ones after 3 or 4 boring days).

3. We have to stay on our toes, the market waits for NO ONE!!! If we’re not looking for trades and ready when they present themselves then that’s NO BUENO! So just be prepared for those set ups and don’t be surprised when they happen.

That’s all for now, i will post details about making the auto pilot work best for you… tomorrow. Until then, sweet dreams and happy trading!

Jared J.

MARKET REVIEW– Wow, There Are Some Good Trades Setting Up For The Week!!

Monday, August 18th, 2008

Happy Monday everyone, welcome to the first trading day of the week… YIPPEEE!! In examining the charts and looking at key levels I have discovered that we have SEVERAL great trading possibilities setting up!! Lets get to it,

EUR/JPY

As of this writing the EUR/JPY is sitting at 161.48′ish with a nice downtrend supporting a continued downward movement. Now you have to be careful with any currencies that involve the JPY because they can be a little unpredictable. But this EUR/JPY is looking like a break of about 161.20 will allow for PLENTY of room for a movement down to about the 159.00 level give or take. So keep an eye on that one, it looks like a possible break could be in sight for the next few hours if its going to happen.

EUR/GBP
As of this writing the EUR/GBP is at approx 0.7875, this pair has two very possible options of where it could go- UP or DOWN!! OK but really, there is a major support level at about 0.7967 (just about 10 pips below its current position) and if broken it leaves a lot of room for a downside movement. However in looking at the day chart it looks like we might be starring at a inverted head and shoulders patters (basically a pattern that indicates a major change in trend). So the market is right at a decision point, a drop of 15 pips could signal another major downward movement. On the other hand that quasi inverted head and shoulders pattern could be telling us that the market is heading straight up. Thus the decision point, watch this one carefully because with a break of this lower lever we could see a great move down.

EUR/USD
By now you should notice that the Euro is involved in all the pairs mentioned, the Euro and Dollar are on top of most analysts list of currencies to watch although many are slip on what could be happening in the near future. So here’s what I’m looking at on the EUR/USD, I’m still short on the E/U but i’m watching price action closely and I’m ready for anything. The market is currently hovering around 1.4680 with a strong level of support just below it by about 20 pips, about 1.4660. As to what this pair might do, we must wait and see but with these levels to watch we should have a GOOD idea of what its going to do. Watch for the level to be broken on the downside, or for a crossover and darma support for the topside.

That’s all for now,
I’ll be back with more soon!

What to Expect This Week..??..!!..??

Saturday, August 16th, 2008

Well everyone, we have seen a few great weeks of trading where the market has really demonstrated that it’s out of the summer channel and it’s onto bigger and better things! THANK GOODNESS!!! So just a few reminders, after such a great run in the market everyone should be very cautious about the trades you take going into next week, the market has a way of giving and taking away so consider yourselves warned! ha! Ok it shouldn’t be that bad, just be careful and watch extra close at what the indicators are telling you. This is just a little reminder to keep on your toes this week when entering trades, but remember there are ALWAYS good trades just varying conditions.

So watch out for the great trades we going to see just remember what tools to use during which market conditions, we’ve got them covered! This is just a little sunday night note, there will be more to come on trading techniques and market conditions on monday so keep up with this blog daily.

Happy trading and we’ll see you soon.