There's been a lot of discussion over the years as to which moving averages of what type (e.g., simple, exponential, etc.) are the most important to pay attention to in gauging trends and reversals. Similarly, there's always a question as to which other technical indicators are the most effective and at what specific settings. It seems to me that the answer to this question is this: those that the big players (e.g., hedge funds, institutional traders, etc.) are paying the most attention to. Because they are moving the most money, they have far and away the greatest impact on the markets when they act. If anyone here has insight into specifically which moving averages and other technical indicators these folks rely upon, I'm sure it would be beneficial to all of us to know. Many thanks in advance for any help that anyone may be able to offer along these lines...
Indicators react to what the big players do, because big players drive the markets. There are no big players who are like "OMG MACD JUST CROSSED THE 0 LINE LET'S BUY!!!" or anything like that.
I find the 200ema to be useful, but I dont "trade" it. I like to see where price is in ralationship to its 200ema. If price is above, I in simple terms, dont like to be short when price is above, or long when its below. There are exceptions tho.
Then they're certainly using them, just not the way most folks would expect. Which indicators are they fading?
MACD (6,17,12), Fast Stochs (30,10), and a 20 period Hull Moving Average over the price. I'm kidding. First of all, big players don't use indicators, and second of all, if they did, they sure as heck wouldn't tell anyone their secrets.
Actually, the big players doing algorithmic trading on a short-term basis do use them. The question is "Which do they use?"
Big players or BIG PLAYERS? BIG PLAYERS; 1) Order Flow/Volume Distributions 2) Open Interest 3) Inside Information