Just had 10 out of 12 losing trades!!

[caudurow3]

And 2 x 5 trade losing streaks!

SB using money management to 2%, but damn it hurts! One minute your up, the next down...

Good thing I limited my risk though.. all this in the last 2 days SB UK stocks in the FTSE100. Got caught out in some real crazy reversals - ouch!

boohooo.. sob sob...

anyway just needed to say that!

 

[caudurow3]

and all of them were shorts

 

[trader_dante]

and all of them were shorts

...and therein might be your problem.

Never try and sell in a bear market.

 

[caudurow3]

what do you mean? Should I be going long in a bear market?

 

[timsk]

And 2 x 5 trade losing streaks!

SB using money management to 2%, but damn it hurts! One minute your up, the next down...

Good thing I limited my risk though.. all this in the last 2 days SB UK stocks in the FTSE100. Got caught out in some real crazy reversals - ouch!

boohooo.. sob sob...

anyway just needed to say that!

Hi caudurow,
Yeah, it's good to get one's frustrations of one's chest from time to time, and lord knows, there are plenty of 'em in this business!
You don't say so specifically, but the implication from your post is that you're day trading? Day trading U.K. stocks is a tough old row to hoe. To do it via a SB company is the toughest of the lot. Take BHP as an example. The market's closed now obviously but, nonetheless, according to ETX Capital, the spread on BHP is 8p and the daily change was 108p. So, if you traded BHP today, price would have to move 7.5% of the day's move just to enable you to get in and out without incurring a loss. Forget about making a profit, that's what you would have to do just to stand still. That makes your job very, very hard indeed. Anyone who can consistently make money day trading U.K. stocks via SBing is little short of a trading genius in my book.
Hope things improve for you.
Tim.

 

[timsk]

what do you mean? Should I be going long in a bear market?

:cheesy:
What (I think) Tom is referring to is that the reactions, pull backs, retracements - call them what you will - are very sharp, violent even. Look at the DOW right now as a case in point. Similarly, in a bull market, there will be times when price will waterfall so hard and so fast, it makes the Tsunami look like a Mediterranean wave. I got caught out doing exactly this yesterday. As you say, boohooo.. sob sob...
Tim.

 

[rols]

And 2 x 5 trade losing streaks!

SB using money management to 2%, but damn it hurts! One minute your up, the next down...

Good thing I limited my risk though.. all this in the last 2 days SB UK stocks in the FTSE100. Got caught out in some real crazy reversals - ouch!

boohooo.. sob sob...

anyway just needed to say that!

Take a break until the next President's in office perhaps?

 

[caudurow3]

thanks for the heads up timsk!

I am indeed day trading FTSE 100 stocks with Spread Betting! Not having much look - maybe I need a bigger row? ;-)

My problem is I am new to trading (3 months) and I want to learn before committing a lot of cash, so I started with £1000 SB account which seemed to offer a better opportunity to test some ideas than using a broker (the commissions would eat me up before I learnt anything). I also like the leverage with SB.

I have tried a demo account and quickly made 100% return on it. But I think mainly because it was fake money (easy when it's not for real!). I'm trying to somehow emulate "real" trading with a smaller amount of cash.

I have tried a few setups, and found that daytrading (not in first and last 30min) offer lowesr risk options for me with size of the account and keeping the risk down to 2%.

I am indeed learning a lot! Which is good, but I also want to find some sort of edge, which I am without. Currently my trading is pretty simple (and not working very well):

weekly
1) look at 3 month trend in main UK and USA indices (bearish right now)
2) shortlist strongly downtrending stocks in the FTSE100 with the ADX indicator above 30 and red line above green(this week about 10 stocks)

daily - with shortlisted stocks
3) short breakdown of support (about 10-15 points below previous low)
4) trail stop loss about 10-15 points (depending on spread) or if goes wrong, stop loss around 16-20p above entry
5) ??

 

[caudurow3]

Hey rols... maybe! I am considering sitting it out at least a few days to rethink my strategy... do you think it's possible to scalp with SB? I hear the companies tend to go against you if you scalp (increasing spreads)?

Anyway, was looking at the http://www.trade2win.com/boards/general-trading-chat/44624-55000-one-month.html thread by BSD about this kid who was successfull with scapling. Seems similar to what I am doing, only using a lot of ephedryne, caffeine and adrenaline (and using a better setup)!

But scalping seems difficult with the big spreads on SB... you would need to scalp for 4-5 p per entry to be successfull...

 

[RedGreenBen]

I have tried a few setups, and found that daytrading (not in first and last 30min) offer lowesr risk options for me with size of the account and keeping the risk down to 2%.

I am indeed learning a lot! Which is good, but I also want to find some sort of edge, which I am without. Currently my trading is pretty simple (and not working very well):

Don't get too disheartened yet... you are thinking about what is going wrong, you have a well defined strategy (although it may not be a good one), you have a sensible approach to risk and money management... That puts you well ahead of the newbie pack.

Timsk's advice is well worth considering. You may need to find a market or a timeframe that is a cheaper and 'less difficult' way of learning lessons.

Ben

 

[new_trader]

Hey rols... maybe! I am considering sitting it out at least a few days to rethink my strategy... do you think it's possible to scalp with SB? I hear the companies tend to go against you if you scalp (increasing spreads)?

Anyway, was looking at the http://www.trade2win.com/boards/general-trading-chat/44624-55000-one-month.html thread by BSD about this kid who was successfull with scapling. Seems similar to what I am doing, only using a lot of ephedryne, caffeine and adrenaline (and using a better setup)!

But scalping seems difficult with the big spreads on SB... you would need to scalp for 4-5 p per entry to be successfull...

Yet some trading critics would make people think that making 1 point is as easy as finding money in the street. Maybe you should ask them for trading advice. They are always around to criticise but never around to advise...typical information beggars...

 

[caudurow3]

@RedGreenBen good advice! I just need to fight the urge to trade for a bit! Incredible how adictive it can get. But in my rational side of the brain your advice seems like the right choice!

@new_trader not sure what you mean, but It's true that we see and hear of lots of fabulous get rich quick schemes that never materialise in the real world... I'm just trying to find a niche area that fits my risk and account size

one thing that has been a bit annoying is not having real time volume information, which both SB companies that I tried don't (capital spreads and CMC) and ADVFN let's me see this for about 3 seconds before kicking me off!

 

[caudurow3]

yes, I'm a cheapskate! It seems like the chicken-egg situation. Will only buy realtime data if I get some profit, but that may also be what is stopping me from getting the profit!!!

 

[new_trader]

yes, I'm a cheapskate! It seems like the chicken-egg situation. Will only buy realtime data if I get some profit, but that may also be what is stopping me from getting the profit!!!

Well it seems to me you are motivated by greed. This is a profession which is expensive to learn and master. Start right or don't start at all.

...IMHO of course.

 

[Hoggums]

The fact that you lost so many trades but didn't blow your account means that you are on the right track. Just a little more work on your entries and you could be profitable.

I don't think there's too much that's bad about losing so many trades provided you learn from it.

 

[fibonelli]

caudurow3,

Can you post up a chart of one of your unsuccessful trades.

This way, the successful traders may be able to spot an error or two and advise you.

Over to you.

<places long bet - a hatrick of no's>

 

[fifty2aces]

I don't think there's too much that's bad about losing so many trades provided you learn from it.

Indeed - certainly beats the other extreme of starting with a lucky winning streak, thinking you're a genius, and then blowing up due to taking too much risk.

 

[caudurow3]

OK - here are is a trade: ICAP Rolling Daily (UK FTSE 100 share)

first, looking back a few days 10 minute chart


intraday 10 minute chart


My logic was to buy short the breakdown of the support at 280 so I automated the entry at 272.0 with the stop loss at 279.0. I was expecting it to fall to 240 within a couple of days should the stock continue the downtrend.

My conclusion, at the moment, is:
I'm not sure what I have done wrong here, with my current knowledge, I would probably short again in the same circumstances and would put it down to a trade not working out, but still valid... Then again, I am not using any other indicators or looking at volume...

I will post some other trades in a bit.

 

[new_trader]

You are just guessing aren't you?

 

[caudurow3]

Here is another - Hammerson FTSE 100 stock

zoom out:


zoom in


same as before - buying the breakdown at 514 with stop loss at 522, but again the reversal...

what indicator could I add to give me an edge on the same setup? I have looked at stochastics, MACD, etc but they all seem to give confirmation of what has already happened...

*both trades from yesterday BTW