Yes, it's possible. But you have to expand the way you trade. Don't be a tickhound(trading for 1 tick). Very tiring and difficult. Look at CL. Just using 6:30AM PST/9:30AM EST open there was like a 2 point move! On one lot that's $2K. On 2 lots that's $4K. I'm not saying you would be able to capture that entire range. But even if you capture a 1/3 or a 1/4 of that range you will do fine. Look at NG. Look at GC. All of them moves a lot and could have easily generate more than $250 a day on just 1 lot. Even NQ has nice moves. I don't trade ES. So I don't know. If you are going to trade for just several ticks then you need SIZE. I have been sim trading for several weeks now and I can easily generate well over $1K/day(range from the low of $800 to a high of $8K-$10K a day) using 10-20lots+ just flipping in and out. For my real account, I only trade 1 lot and easily nicely positive in between doing work for clients. hehe. I have other non-trading business I need to take care during the day. I don't feel comfortable(yet) throwing around size on my real account while working. In due time...
The best way is to jump on existing fast momo, on a small pull back, ignore directionless markets and times unlikely to have strong direction. Don't wait then try to pick a top, jump in on a small pull back and ride it, not 1 tick, less fear. Pick your times
the short answer... yes you can. BUT in my opinion not 2 cts and not day trading. I was a ver very active day trader until very recently. I traded 1-4 cts. Best month I had was earlier this year.. $9500 on 3-4 cts. Now I am a swing trader and that takes more $$ per ct to hold for days/weeks.
I got no problem shorting... just need the trade to line up for that.... buyt HELL NO, will I be day trading again. My trading life is so much better now that I am holding for days, not minutes. And far less decisions to make. Day trading was wearing me out mentally.
SunTrader, I don't have any personal experience. I'm an unprofitable paper trader. Mathematically , it can be done easily.
Can it been done, yes in a few days trading 18 hours a day. Scalp one and keep other as runner, overall the "runner" will do well in trending price action, and when Bollinger bands going sideways the scalp trade does well till BB start to slope. After one session of 18 hours, you are numb to the world, get few hours of sleep and do it again. It is easier to go against the world, the world always against you and the world is 95% of the losers. Middle of the night it is the Dax till Chicago gets spicey, get little sleep when Chi-town closes then Asia, lose your sense of value of money and think in terms of percentages. What most people get wrong about the 95%, is this number represents those with their first accounts, I read in the 1990s, and it might be higher than 95%. http://www.tradeciety.com/24-statistics-why-most-traders-lose-money/ I love the ES, traded it the most in my life, you learn it, you can trade any market. Anyone who hates it never learned how to trade ES, nothing wrong with finding something else. Going for one tick in retail is pointless(have tested long term) , one losing trade- is loss, slippage plus fees which will most of the time can be three times what you make on winners. Unless you have gotten the game down well, lease a seat and very seldom lose, retail should never scalp. Scalping wears you out mentally and worst physically, you don't notice the decades slip by as you keep plugging away towards seldom losing, it gets like amazing how close you can get, but then you can't show anyone, everyone else are competitors. LOL, past ten days not posted but once, I have figured out what I been missing to get closer, too much wasted time spent here in the now, better spent reading pre-2008. Hey John, "Batman rules" .