What possible advantage can a retail FOREX trader have? ... after his informational disadvantage to the big boys and paying the wider retail spread?
Better trade futures instead of Forex. Forex spreads can be easily manipulated because they are not centralized. Futures have very low day trading margin so no need to trade Forex.
I should have spelled it out: You will not be able to make a system that gives you a positive expectation trading retail FOREX 1. You are at an informationall disadvantage to the big players 2. Your retail FOREX spead is too high 3. Your execution capabilities will be subpar In some games, the only winning move is not to play _____ Beware of people who tell you different because they are selling something or like to pretend. The world is full of posers.
Street Trader, You joined Elite yesterday and made a nice post telling of your years of struggles, losing and hopes of trading for a living. Here was my response: _______ Stop trading forever ... unless you can get a job working for a successful trader, perhaps doing work he does not want to do. It is unlikely you will be able to do this but this is your only chance. Buying books and courses will not get you there. Paying for trading advice will not get you there. Paying coaches you meet here will not get you there. Your newest system plus a simulator will not get you there. You are up against billion dollar organizations, staffed by quants, mathematicians, computer experts and rooms full of Phd's. It is obvious from your posts that you are very far from your goal and that you probably have a trading/gambling proplem. You may get some insight from posting here but please realize most of the posters here are losing traders. I sense your sincerity. Your posts clearly show your current knowledge and overall condition. (Kind words about your situation will not help you)
This business of blaming the spreads and everything but yourself is getting really boring. I have accounts with IB and OANDA, and a forex data feed from FXCM courtesy of my Sierra Charts package 5. IB has the narrowest spreads, but you pay a comm. OANDA is slightly wider, no comm. The difference is marginal. Most of my forex trades are with OANDA. I have never been requoted on any trade. Slippage is 0.2 to 0.4 pips when the market moves fast. I sometimes get positive slippage. All brokers widen spreads during data releases and rate announcements. It is your job as a trader to know when those will happen, and there are many free calendars to tell you all that, including the roster of Central Bank speakers, G7 meeting statements and so on. Yes, it takes effort to stay abreast of all this. If you can't be bothered go and play slot machines. If you have an open trade and price is close to your stop loss and there is a big data release in 20 minutes, close the trade, because the widening spread will stop you out. You save a bit by closing, unless you have big brass ones and take off your stop instead. You think this is rigged because it is off exchange? Go and try trading options spreads, like flies, verticals and so on. The damned spreads don't need a data release to widen, as soon as the underlying moves fast, spreads widen. That is on regulated exchanges. There is nobody sitting out there in any market waiting to give you easy money. Yes, day trading forex is harder than day trading stocks or some futures, because you don't often see the big moves in forex. If you don't know how, don't, you can always swing trade. OANDA has data on historical spreads so you can factor it in when you trade. I take the widest spread quoted in a month and use that plus my buffer when I set a stop. https://www.oanda.com/forex-trading/markets/recent