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[chaos75]

Hi all from Melbourne, Australia!!


I'm sure glad I 'stumbled' across this site - I've been pouring over the beginners forum for the last few days trying to get myself acquainted with the basics of this wonderful world of fx. However, I must say I’m quite overwhelmed with the quantity of information available – I just don’t know where to start! And, this is where I hope you guys can help – can you suggest a chart/strategy, etc. that I could start off with and build my knowledge. The candlestick chart appears to be a fairly straightforward one to start off, but I could be wrong.

Second, can you suggest a good broker/platform to use. I’m still contemplating whether I should open a demo or a mini account – the thing with demos is the lack of emotional attachment. I might open both! I’ve read some horror stories of unprofessional brokers on this forum – my worry is being from Australia it would be seem to be more of a risk using an overseas broker, but at the same time, I haven’t found any locals with a decent spread (some spreads are as high as 8 pips here!!). Maybe some aussies could assist…


Thirdly, I’ve read that EUR/USD is a good pair for newbies to get stuck into.


The reason for getting into forex is mainly personal interest and looking to supplement my income now that my wife is a stay-at-home mum!


I look forward to your expert responses!!!

Thanks

[overgrowth]

Hi Chaos,

The "Bunny Cross" is a popular strategy which features here in the strategies board - I've attached a doc. which outlines the basics.

As a total newbie a lot of the stuff mentioned in the FAQ will seem alien, though if you persevere, check out free info. on the web and the bunnygirl threads on this site, and read a couple of books on technical analysis, then all will become much clearer.

Note that bunnygirl is an experienced trader and allows a good degree of discretion in operating her system which falls into 3 main areas:

1) WMA (Weighted moving average) cross - used in trending markets
2) Gimme Bars - used in ranging markets
3) "Mr Sheen" - Bunny's own method of trading the news "after the dust has settled".

By discretion I mean that it's only familiarity with the way markets move and using a variety of techinques for extra confirmation (e.g. Fibonacci retracements, 1-2-3 formations etc.) which can give you a real "edge" in deciding whether to take a trading signal or not. Nevertheless this system is a great way to get a fast track glimpse of what real trading is like.

Candlesticks are a good visual aid to seeing price movements and I use them in all my charts. As I daytrade mainly (though not as a "scalper" looking constantly for 2 or 3 pips - more as a short term swing trader looking for 10-20 pip moves), then the 30 min chart is my main chart used to identify a possible entry point, though I switch to hourly and daily charts to see the likely overall trend and down to 5 mins and even 1 min (or tick chart) to determine an exact entry point.
I trade via a spread betting co. (IG Index) because in the UK spread betting is classed as "gambling" by the tax man and hence non-taxable. I pay for this with slightly larger spreads than good forex brokers, though spreads are 5 - 6 pips for the majors which is ok for my purposes.

IMHO to be a good trader you need 3 things:

1) Discipline (to act like a robot and trade what you see, not what you want to see)
2) Money Management (e.g. don't get excited when you have a big win then stake the ranch on your next trade - it's sure to go the wrong way - also ensure that you have stop losses applied at all times).
3) Have a plan - know what technical indicators will trigger your entry, know what your stop loss will be and have a good idea of when you're going to get out of the trade.

Tons of books have been written about this stuff, but you never believe any of it until you make all the mistakes (like everyone else) and gradually come around to looking at how you trade. There are loads of systems and strategies out there and virtually all of them work well, though it is purely down to the person trading them whether they prove to be consistently profitable or not. Note that it's easy to make mistakes on a demo system - though you will never experience the emotional/psychological side of trading which encompasses greed, fear and discipline until you start putting hard cash on the table - when you do make sure it's $1 a pip at the start (i.e. mini) rather than $10 per pip lots.

[fairwind]

Hi Chaos,

Welcome to MoneyTec forums,

Tha attached word files are from my collection of notes over the years of study. I put these together for friend of mine in Sth Australia, they may be of some help to you. One of them is a bit disjointed being a collection of links etc.

Hope it helps a bit...

[chaos75]

Overgrown and Fairwind, thanks for your replies. I'll read the documents you've attached.

Can anybody recommend a reliable broker that offers mini and demo accounts?
Overgrown, IG markets have an aussie arm which I've looked at - they've offered me an account with an eight pip spread!! I think that's a bit much!

[overgrowth]

Chaos - have a look at http://fxtrade.o anda.com/ for starters, I assume they accept accounts from Oz.

Take out the space (I've only put this in to avoid the moneytech auto commercial link sensoring software).

[ravivadina]

{ banned for spamming }

[marketiva]

you can start with simulation demo like MARKETIVA this my best place to start trade as little as $1......