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You could start a Weis on Wyckoff, good or bad type thread.
I am not a fan of waves or software.
The paradox of futures trading is it attracts a type A personality, but requires type B patience in becoming a good profitable trader before trading any real money and patience waiting for quality type trades to develop during the day session.
Before you research specific methodologies you should research broad market structure and market specifics. I recommend "Trading & Exchanges: Market Microstructure for Practitioners" By Larry Harris for starters and then from there research individual products to trade. IMO the decision making on what/how to trade should be on an opportunity that you've found rather than trying to make it work around your schedule. What I've found that works for me as someone with a full time career outside of trading:
-Swing trading with a holding period from a few hours to a few days.
-I take dumb trades but try to structure them in a way where I can reduce drawdown and take heat. Generic example: hmm I think the 5yr yield is cheap here, I'm going to get long the Z3-M4 SOFR3 calendar. (Finding a correlated but less noisy market, as well as markets where I have enough capital to trade many multiple lots to scale in/scale out)
Glad to see that you are referring to swing trading as including a few hours intraday day trade.
I do not completely agree with web sites such as investopedia.com who refer to swing trading as a one or more days, trade. Day trading versus swing trading. This is not the way I read and learned it to be.
Trading: Primarily Energy but also a little Equities, Fixed Income, Metals and Crypto.
Frequency: Many times daily
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Posts: 5,049 since Dec 2013
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Beginners won't understand that!
Off topic but I always thought of it as 'Day Trading' does not involve posting overnight margin and that Swing trading (normally) does. 'Day Trading' doesn't have to mean scalping. You can buy the open, hold all day, and sell the close. It's still a day trade.
I read and learned that swing trading was a style of trading, taking advantage of market swings. The problem I see with calling swing trading as holding onto your position overnight, is that there are some excellent swing trade patterns for day trading. A day trader may see some info regarding swing trading and not be interested into looking that information, feeling it does not apply to them. I always felt you were a either a day trader or a position trader.
Folks, I'm afraid we are getting very far away from the original topic, which was a request from a new trader for some help.
There are some good issues in discussing swing, day and position trading, and they deserve attention. Discussion of them could definitely help the original poster, and he in fact asked specific questions about them, and also explained what he meant by them. To discuss the issues may require a person to also explain what he means, which is useful in itself.
But going back and forth about the correct way to use the terms is not helping him that much (I am at fault in this as well, as I got into such a debate in another thread with @Trend Trader, where I suggested that my use of the terms was the "right" one, rather than just explaining what I usually mean when I use them.)
Traders use these terms in different ways, and they actually do mean different things to different people. (There is practically no term that means exactly the same to every trader, unfortunately, as I know from years of moderating this forum and reading literally tens of thousands of posts.)
Let's bring the thread back to its original topic, please, and offer more assistance to the person asking the questions.
Thanks.
Bob.
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PS, I think that @Trend Trader is exactly right in saying that the techniques of swing trading can apply to intra-day trading as well. So there's more than one way to slice and dice this.
When one door closes, another opens.
-- Cervantes, Don Quixote
I do not trade US markets, and I do not trade futures market, I trade options and often deep in the money ones which are closer to delta +1 (for calls) and delta -1 (for puts). It means they behave as futures but reduces my risk considerably as maximum I will lose is value of options contract.
Even if world went nuclear.
In the beginning, larger the better, start with "investing" - it is also trading and it does give considerable returns, ppl often look down on it compared to intra day trading thinking "intraday trading" would give you good daily earnings.
Fun observation of mine, by the time you get to that level its usually a losing game.
its good that you are on right path and developing method before starting out, most don't bother to do that.
This is related to individual comforts, I don't like carrying my option positions overnight, so I don't. I do however park money in stocks for weeks/months and even years.
Number of trades you can get depends on your edge and type of trader you are, in openings volatility is high, there are traders who like that and there are who do not, so its subjective.
Yes, yes, and you should ideally always keep an eye on market.
Risk managements and position sizing will also depends on you, its different for different ppl.
Probably park that money in stocks rather than starting trading account with them, start with macro contracts, which doesn't need that much money. Going all in is usually terrible idea, almost every single one of us have blown more than few accounts. So...
Not a big fan of sim trading but while you are developing your strategy and edge, experiments need to happen there but ones you are ahead of that stage trading needs to happen in small real money account, real small account. Then set targets to grow it to certain % over certain periods of time.
At least that's what I would do if I were to start again.
Full disclaimer, I'm no guru, nor am I consistently profitable trader, I also have many other earning sources to pay my bills, so its different for me than someone who treats trading as primary earning source.
Also, key is to enjoy the process.
Trading is highly subjective and private affair.
What it means is that advice from other ppl may or may not apply to you.
Five minute candlesticks with a 20 length XMA works well for day trading patterns, price/action.
Day trading the first two hours can be better profit wise compared to a long term held position, but you need to be a good proficient trader. The mornings can be choppy, the first two or more hours can nothing but volatile, hard to trade chop.
If you are thinking about equity index trading, 10K should be enough. ES is a more smooth market, more easy for a beginner (but still tough).
If you are considering software, you need to figure out how to do your own 2+ solid years of back testing before purchasing the software. Plan on a year of simulated trading before trading any real money, there are usually drawdowns. If there are claimed results, are they real or fiction?
Shorter term more risk, longer term, less.
You had better have six consecutive weeks of positive practice trading where are positive for each M-F week before trading any real money, or will probably trade your account away. (Day trading tip)
I feel it is best to have a mentor to learn to day trade futures.
