Hello all... Have recently just joined this site. I am thinking about setting up my first Direct Access Broker account and have done a fair amount of reading on the subject. Have been trading for about 3-4 years now, mostly in shares and some trading on indices via Spreadbetting (I am based in the UK). I intend to trade mostly eminis (Dow and S&P and Nasdaq), but also LIFFE futures and possibly DAX futures. However I won't be trading heavily, as I am not trading for a living (not yet anyhow )..perhaps about 20 contracts per week. I had my choice narrowed down to IB, then came across this site. I am looking for software platform which is easy to use, but also some good support in case things go wrong. Obviously commision amounts also come into it. From what I've read, IB comes top in commisson stakes, but not good when you need to ring them ??? In terms of the software, much debate about whether TWS is better/worse than say J-trader ??? Advanced Futures seems to have got some very good reviews. But in general, to those experienced traders, if you had to go back to when you first started using Direct Access Brokers, would you still choose IB, or are there some which are now better for the first-timers ?? Thanks in advance for any replies...
Question, Where do you get these commissions, and what is the monthly volume requirement for them, and what is the platform fee? Is that on Xoom Trade? Cheers 50
Hey Chris you should post for us some educational articles here on ET like Brandon from TFMS does. Or perhaps give us a chat seminar (Brandon did quite a few!). PS I liked your article about "Cutting the Market with an Edge" that you published on that expo promotion email on Sep 9. Very true article imho. Also like that capitulatory volume spikes you guys at RT use all the time. They work really well on the eminis too. Have fun in Vegas 50
I prefer Trade Station. You can get a real live person on the phone. And the price is nearly the same for us small potatoes. And if you trade more, you can get free charting and better deals from them.
I agree. Commish is only part of the picture with me. I am unaware of any other broker offering access to so many instruments in so many markets. This is a huge advantage for the international set. I hope IB rushes to add as many as possible. IMO that's the future. Geo.
50 cent I am not talking about xoom trade. Have never tried them but their comission is pretty low. Just do a search on google or yahoo and you will find them if you look hard enough.
Most of the educational articles are on our site and you can get them there, instead of a repost. Not sure about a chat session, we'll see since I'm not a "paying" customer. The cap play cycles are still working. AFFX and IDXC were two of the latest good ones. Late October they died off a bit, but end of October and this week, the payouts are back and working well. Best thing about cap scenario is like you said, they work in any market. Capitulation or Euphoria..two main classic setups of tape reading as they relate to the principles of tape reading in Accumulation and Distribution. Thanks for the words on "Edge". Pretty common subject, but tried to put a more in depth slant on it. Almost as boring as "keep your stop losses". Blue in the face type of reading..zzz. But it's good to see you got something out of the article. The next one coming out Friday some might like too..on overcoming the 25K rule. Complete with real broker statements so people know it was authentic trading as I know that the industry loves to say that "advisory owners can't trade". 1/2 hour till the open. Good Trading Today. Chris
Chris, check out the attachment for an NQ trade I took. I had my reasons for entry but check out the profit taking points - which I chose due to both NQ numbers (round numbers etc.) and the volume spikes.