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Which broker and/or data feed to trade FOREX with TICK charts?
I would appreciate some help on the following issue.
I am considering trading FOREX with tick charts.
Due to the structure of FOREX market, it is advised to use the data feed of the broker rather than the data feed of eSignal/DTN/etc. (References: message 1, message 2, message 3)
But tick charts from my broker (IB) are not accurate (filtered/sent by packets). And, even if the tick feed from my data provider (eSignal) is better, I cannot trade it.
So my question: Do you know a broker or a combination data+broker which allows trading FOREX with precise tick data?
I know some professionals Forex traders and a group o people that trade Forex with TradeStation and use tick charts, but I personally do not have experience with them, can not say much... As you may know TradeStation is the broker and the data feed provider; And if you trade Forex with them there is no commissions and also you do not need to pay for the software, which is great! The minimum amount to open a account is $2000 and minimum lot size is 10.000, anyway.
MB Trading and Interactive Brokers has good spread and commissions but it is unreliable for tick charts, the solution is to use DTN IQ for the historical backfill and the broker to give you the live quotes, so the backfill comes from DTN IQ but the actual live quote comes from your broker. You can do this with NT and also MC I believe.
And BTW, you should treat brokers, platforms and data feeds as they were prostitutes, never ever have any kind of emotional attachment to them and do not trust them; And you will be fine.
I assume you mean spot forex, and not currency futures (CME FX).
Most traders trading spot forex are not trading using tick charts. They are trading using probably at least 1 hour charts, and I think that probably even majority of retail is using 4 hour charts. Pros are using daily and weekly charts.
In futures, people associate small charts with small risk. In spot forex, you can just change your risk easily down to 0.01 cent per trade with many banks with mini-lots, so why do this artificially with tick charts?
If you meant currency futures then all the volume is centralized on the futures side, so any broker + data combination would work fine (IQFeed + any futures broker for example).
It also allows me clarifying the question and its context (Mike's "why").
First, I confirm I mean spot FOREX (typically: EUR.USD) and not currency futures (typically: 6E).
I am not considering tick charts or smaller timeframe because of the illusion of smaller stop-loss and so smaller risk.
I am considering FOREX because:
- as Mike said, it allows small position, so it allows leaving SIM mode quickly to face real trading (with its psychological aspects) without risking too much capital;
- in case of consistent profitability, it allows increasing position size progressively (for instance: 0.1% of capital per trade then 0.2% then... until 1%), without psychologically suffering too much from the "steps" linked to the number of contracts with futures.
In addition, I also like tick charts, because I feel the price action is easier to read, at least for my eyes and my methods. Moreover, I am currently working on some "compression then breakout" patterns. And such compression could be easier to read on a tick char. (A narrow candle on a tick chart shows that lots of contracts have changed hands without impact on the price whereas a narrow candle on minute chart could just mean that everybody was having lunch.)
It is why I was asking about practical possibilities to have FOREX + tick chart + live trading.
I believe FXCM's tick data (at least for the Active Trader account) are much better than those of IB. The DTN's basic Forex data feed is based on FXCM feed.
No that I am recommending FXCM as broker...
I am in a similar boat as you in that I am considering switching from trading currency futures to spot fx but have been put off until now due to the lack of regulation and dodgy bucket shop type setups that seem to exist with the majority of fx brokers.
I have traded SIM for almost 2 yrs with occasional attempts at trading live futures but my emotional capital has some old scars that have never really healed and I always struggle with the losses in futures with my sub 25k account.
A new broker that I am considering is LMAX as they appear remove some of the issues that I have with FX brokers until now. They are UK based though - they don't except US based accounts (I'm in Australia) - I think they except French residents.
I have considered the micro euro futures contract M6E however while it can be ok for training there is still a large hop from there to the full sized contracts whereas with spot FX you can increase in 10k lots in direct correlation with a fixed ratio risk model which I like.
You can also trade through LMAX with Multicharts....