I generally risk between 0.75% and 1.5% per trade, but 80% of my trades are 1% risk. Most of the time, I take half my profit at 1:1 plus spread. I generally risk about 15 - 25 pips per trade, so I take half a percent profit at 15 - 25 pips target. I will let the rest run at my discretion... sometimes only 1 more target, sometimes 2 more. Occassionally even 3 if I believe there is a big possibility for a long run (80+ pips), and I can't be around to watch it. Was up 29% in august, currently up approx. 6% in september.
Hi spinfoiltrading, I'm a discretionary FX trader and my signals are based upon price action. Would you mind giving us a bit of background ? What time frame do you trade ? Are you scalping ? How long have you been trading ? Cheers
Peter...we trade the same way then. If you took the same trades as me... maybe I have you to thank you for pushing things a little my way Background: been involved in the markets off an on for about 11 years now. Was a registered broker at one point 11 years ago, VERY short stint. Quit, built an online retail jewelry company, made great money for a few years, business went under about 4 years ago. Started trading the markets 5 years ago. Blew 4K out of my first account. Took 6 months to lose it. Realized I knew nothing about stocks... Ignored markets for 1 year, then blew 3K in 2 weeks...realized I knew even less about stock futures. Started another business, a direct sales company. Made more money... hated direct sales. Sold out my 50% stake to my partner. Took 5K and opened another futures account. 1 week later, remembered how little I knew about futures, and pulled the last $1700 out. That was about 2.5 years ago. Played around paper trading off and on for about 1.5 years, with no real failure, but no real success. Finally, about 1 year ago, everything clicked. Started making decent, consistant profits on paper. Since then, it's been up, up and away. Funded a real account soon after "everything clicked" With one exception of a vicious drawdown due to 1 week where I "obviously" knew the market was wrong... I have been profitable every month, and only had a handful of losing weeks. Who knows if it will continue... I for one believe it will, as Trend following and price action is as old as the hills...but so far. so good. And at least now I have a damn good chance of recouping 5 years of losses!
And as far as what time frame I trade... I don't like to think of "time frames" I watch 3hr (oanda doesn't have 4hr) and 1hr primarily, I take entries off 15 min, or sometimes 5 min...even known to go down to a 10 second chart... But sometimes 30 min. but I always watch daily frames, and will sometimes NOT take a trade if I don't like where it sits on a daily TF, or will take a larger than 1% risk if it looks to be in a particularly good place on a daily chart. I take in as much of the picture as I can...and if it feels right, I pull the trigger. I have found trading is like an other experience based business. I have a friend who was a college basketball scout. He can walk into any high school or Jr. High in the nation, and tell within 10 minutes of watching a game who really can make it to the next level, and who can't. He does it all the time. I can't do it at all. I just assume the best player has the best chance...but am often wrong. How does he do it? he has watched thousands of games for decades! We both see the same kids, but he can pick em, and I can't. Trading to me is the same. Watch price trend, watch price approach key turning points, watch price change... watch it for thousands of hours...and you'll get it.
Final: EUR/CAD - stopped out at BE +7 pips for last quarter of position, pretty much a scratch EUR/JPY - hit final target, pulled in another 0.87%. Total profit on last target/stop for EUR/CAD = approx 0.90% Total profit for the session = approx 3.2%
Sorry guys, that should have read above: EUR/CAD + EUR/JPY final position profit = approx. 0.90%, total profit for the evening was 3.2%
Thanks for the congratz! As far as hours, I trade the worst hours in the world! 11 pm (1 hour before London opens) until 2 am, but will often watch a position until US open at 5 am. Real graveyard shift, but sometimes I'm done trading by 2 or 3 am, which is about 3 hours after London opens.
UGHHHHHH That is terrible !!! You should consider trading stocks with your methods I'm sure they will work the same if not easier.
I trade the same but try and put more emphesis on the Tokyo session and then the first hour or two of London, depending on setups. Unfortunately, I work at 6AM so...I can only take one or two nights a week of being up that late, waiting for trades that may or may not present themselves during London. Sounds like you're on Pacific Standard Time too? Nice journal.