By Onyebuchim C Obike
10 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MT4 AND METATRADER 5
1. Installation
MT4: Installation is simple, and straightforward.
METATRADER 5: Installation is not as simple when compared to MT4. The manufacturer's demo trading server (METAQUOTE) is a default in the opening account phase of the installation. An option to add new trading server from METATRADER 5 for a demo account is also included.
2. Charts/Timeframe
MT4: There are nine (9) timeframes. There are limitations to the number of charts that can be opened at the same time.
METATRADER 5: There are 21 timeframes ranging from 1 minute to 1 month, and unlimited number of charts. One hundred charts can be opened at the same time without limitations.
3. Fundamental Analysis (news trading)
MT4: Forex Economic Calendar is not included in the news tab.
METATRADER 5: The platform has an inbuilt Forex economic calendar tab with features like news event, schedule, impact, forecast, earlier events, e.t.c.
4. Commerce/Market
MT4: The market utility tab is not integrated into the platform. You have to visit MQL4.com in order to buy any of its product in their market place.
METATRADER 5: The market utility tab is built inside the platform. You can directly buy Forex products through the market tab.
5. Indicators & Analytical Objects
MT4: There are 30 inbuilt indicators pre-installed on MT4 platform.
METATRADER 5: There are 38 inbuilt indicators pre-installed on METATRADER 5 platform. There are 22 analytical objects, and 46 graphical objects added to the platform.
6. Orders
MT4: It has only two (2) market orders, and four (4) pending orders.
METATRADER 5: More order types are included in the platform. There are two (2) market orders, six (6) pending orders, and two (2) stop orders.
7. Expert Advisor
MT4: The MQL code editor and strategy tester are the main utilities used for expert advisor design. Expert advisors are programmed with MQL programming language, and they are faster to compile. It is not possible to transfer expert advisor codes from MT4 to METATRADER 5. Therefore expert advisors designed in MT4 would not work on METATRADER 5.
METATRADER 5: It comes with more utilities for expert advisor design. The strategy tester utility has been upgraded, and a strategy tester agent manager for remote optimization of expert advisors was also added. Expert advisors are designed with C++, and they are slower to compile due to the dynamics of C++ programming language.
8. Interface
MT4: The interface is easier to navigate when compared to METATRADER 5. The one click trading feature, and the drag and drop functionality is included in build 500 version only.
METATRADER 5: There are slight differences on the platform's interface. A search box has been included on the platform as well as a details tab on the market watch window.
9. Trading (Hedging, FIFO, e.t.c.)
MT4: There are no restrictions on any trading method. However broker regulations is implemented on their proprietary MT4 platforms.
METATRADER 5: It does not support hedging of trades, and it also implements the FIFO policy by default.
10. Brokers
MT4: Most brokers deliver their services on MT4.
METATRADER 5: Fewer brokers deliver their services through METATRADER 5 when compared to brokers who deliver their services on MT4.
It is quite obvious that METATRADER 5 has more features when compared to MT4. But why do most Forex traders use MT4 in trading the Forex despite the improved features in METATRADER 5? Here are the reasons.
1. Expert advisors designed with MQL programming language cannot work on METATRADER 5. They cannot also be transferred to METATRADER 5. The only way out is to rewrite the codes in C++.
2. Hedging, and closing of orders irrespective of their positions is not allowed in METATRADER 5 platform. The platform automatically implements NFA rules
These two reasons are the main discouraging facts of METATRADER 5. This is the reason most Forex traders still prefer to trade the Forex with MT4 rather than trading with METATRADER 5.
Forex Trading has great potentials for success and at the same time high possibilities of loosing funds. Success in Forex requires the best resources and skills, which F provides. Keep in touch with our product updates page where we keep you informed of FREE Offers & New Products.
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Monday, September 23, 2013
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Online forex trading: Of drawdown and recovery
by ’Kunle Adeyer
There is always downtime in all
ramifications of life. It is always a crucial period when survival instincts and strategies come alive to those who want to overcome. My
previous articles have been serially written involving education, live
trading and discipline. But there comes a time when one goes overboard
or something goes wrong. This is the acid test of a forex trader.
Every trader must be in this ‘mess’ once
or many times. Drawdown is simply when your equity or trading fund
falls short of the initial value. It is psychologically disturbing. It
literarily is as if one’s business is sinking. It could still be
tolerated if it is just the trader’s account but when it comes to funds
or client’s account being managed; it is not a funny story or smiling
time for traders.
I can guarantee you as a prospective
trader that you will find yourself or your account in this situation, at
least once, as compared to the late Tai Solarin’s ‘May your road be
rough’. It will definitely be in forex to climb to the top. But for
every problem there is a solution. I once wrote in this column about
recovery plans and management. Recovery of drawdown to equity level or
breakeven point and later profitability is the focus of such trader.
The very first thing is the belief that
you can do it. If the courage or confidence is not there, then there is
no way you can deploy the techniques even in the face of a sure trend.
That is the reason why I proposed that one should start live trading
early after training provided good training has been obtained. This
refines you as a trader. I always tell my trainees that the difference
between me and them is that I have somehow overcome fear and that they
will go places if they surmount the market without fear.
In this quagmire, a trader should deploy
the following. First, is profit management. I have used this weapon a
lot of times to get positive results during drawdown.
A trader who lacks this technique may
not have a backup to rely on. Profit management account gives me the
psychological boost that something is in the kitty and I can always
access, if need be.
The second thing is to adhere strictly
to discipline. With discipline you can ride to the top again. Never be
too much in a hurry to recover. Rely on the adage that a damaged/wounded
skin takes time to heal.
Reduce your lot size in comparison to
earlier ones. In addition, if your stop loss is not in place, never find
it difficult to close your orders at losses to have fund to trade. It
is better than you having a margin call or burn out.
Thirdly, let your
technical skills come alive and be bold to go for your ‘sure’ trade
orders. You may also trade economic news to boost your account. Scalping – that is profiting on short
trades – can help but never scalp too much not to incur the wrath of
your broker if your broker discourages much scalping.
Hedging is another method as proposed in my article dated February 15 in this column.
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Best Forex Trading Indicators - 4 Simple Effective Ones For Bigger Profits
By
Samuel Leslie Berkovits
Here we will look at some of the best Forex Trading indicators
and how you can combine them into a simple robust Forex trading strategy
for long term gains.
No single Forex trading indicator works all the time by itself and the way you combine them is essential. Many traders make the mistake of the thinking the more indicators they combine the better - Wrong!
If you do this the system has too many elements to break; you only need a few and your Forex trading system will be simple and robust in the face of ever changing prices.
Right lets build our Forex trading system and look at some of the best Forex trading indicators to help you build a trend following Forex trading system. First Identify the Trend.
This is obvious by looking at a bar chart but you also want to use moving averages as well. Simple moving averages are great in terms of smoothing out the fluctuations and two great periods to use are first, the 40 day MA to identify the long term trend. Secondly, use the 20 day MA to buy and sell back to in a strong trend and you will find this moving average is excellent for getting in on a trend in motion, with optimium risk / reward. Spotting the Set Ups
We don't have time to cover this in detail here but there are a couple of points that are the key to maximizing profits. Firstly, be patient and only trade high odds set ups and secondly, make sure you trade breaks to new highs and lows all the big trends start and continue from them so you need to trade them.
Bollinger Bands - Check Volatility and Standard Deviation
Ask most traders what standard deviation of price is and you will probably get a blank look but an understanding of standard deviation of price and volatility is something that all forex traders need to know about and if you don't, make part of your forex education and learn about Bollinger Bands.
Bollinger Bands are not used to for market timing - but give you an all round view of volatility price and when you understand this concept, Bollinger Bands can help you in 3 ways:
They can alert you to potential big moves, help set targets and spot market value and entry levels.
Best Forex Trading Indicators for Confirming
When you spot a potential opportunity, you need to confirm the move and make sure price momentum is going the way you wish to trade. There are plenty of momentum indicators but for the last 25 Years I have found the following two the best. There easy to learn and apply, lets take a quick look at them.
The Relative Strength Index (RSI)
A great leading indicator to time your trading signals with. If the RSI supports your view of the market you can use it in strong trends - or when it diverges from the prevailing trend ( from over bought or over sold) to enter trades against the prevailing trend.
The Stochastic Indicator
The best Forex trading indicator of all for better market timing and when combined with the RSI you have a dynamite combination. The stochastic is a simple indicator but is the ultimate timing tool for timing trading signals in my view. If you use stochastic crossovers to confirm your move, you will get the odds on your side.
It's also very effective for timing contrary positions. A stochastic cross, from over bought or oversold levels, against the trend is a highly effective way of getting in on the big contrary trades.
Simple and Effective
There are other great indicators around such as the ADX indicator, MACD and many others but as a blend the above 4 indicators with a bar chart are my best forex trading indicators for profit and they have served me well over the last 25 years.
The indicators are easy to learn, apply and if blended correctly, can add a new dimension to your forex trading strategy.
No single Forex trading indicator works all the time by itself and the way you combine them is essential. Many traders make the mistake of the thinking the more indicators they combine the better - Wrong!
If you do this the system has too many elements to break; you only need a few and your Forex trading system will be simple and robust in the face of ever changing prices.
Right lets build our Forex trading system and look at some of the best Forex trading indicators to help you build a trend following Forex trading system. First Identify the Trend.
This is obvious by looking at a bar chart but you also want to use moving averages as well. Simple moving averages are great in terms of smoothing out the fluctuations and two great periods to use are first, the 40 day MA to identify the long term trend. Secondly, use the 20 day MA to buy and sell back to in a strong trend and you will find this moving average is excellent for getting in on a trend in motion, with optimium risk / reward. Spotting the Set Ups
We don't have time to cover this in detail here but there are a couple of points that are the key to maximizing profits. Firstly, be patient and only trade high odds set ups and secondly, make sure you trade breaks to new highs and lows all the big trends start and continue from them so you need to trade them.
Bollinger Bands - Check Volatility and Standard Deviation
Ask most traders what standard deviation of price is and you will probably get a blank look but an understanding of standard deviation of price and volatility is something that all forex traders need to know about and if you don't, make part of your forex education and learn about Bollinger Bands.
Bollinger Bands are not used to for market timing - but give you an all round view of volatility price and when you understand this concept, Bollinger Bands can help you in 3 ways:
They can alert you to potential big moves, help set targets and spot market value and entry levels.
Best Forex Trading Indicators for Confirming
When you spot a potential opportunity, you need to confirm the move and make sure price momentum is going the way you wish to trade. There are plenty of momentum indicators but for the last 25 Years I have found the following two the best. There easy to learn and apply, lets take a quick look at them.
The Relative Strength Index (RSI)
A great leading indicator to time your trading signals with. If the RSI supports your view of the market you can use it in strong trends - or when it diverges from the prevailing trend ( from over bought or over sold) to enter trades against the prevailing trend.
The Stochastic Indicator
The best Forex trading indicator of all for better market timing and when combined with the RSI you have a dynamite combination. The stochastic is a simple indicator but is the ultimate timing tool for timing trading signals in my view. If you use stochastic crossovers to confirm your move, you will get the odds on your side.
It's also very effective for timing contrary positions. A stochastic cross, from over bought or oversold levels, against the trend is a highly effective way of getting in on the big contrary trades.
Simple and Effective
There are other great indicators around such as the ADX indicator, MACD and many others but as a blend the above 4 indicators with a bar chart are my best forex trading indicators for profit and they have served me well over the last 25 years.
The indicators are easy to learn, apply and if blended correctly, can add a new dimension to your forex trading strategy.
Proper Forex Risk Management
By
Amanda L Stucky
For those involve in foreign exchange, it is important that you
know proper Forex risk management so you can sustain the pressure and
for you to succeed in the long run. When you know what the risk
involved, you will also be able to find ways on how to lower these
risks.
Everyday there are numerous companies and sole traders who exchange currencies on the Forex or foreign exchange. If you are involve in the buying and selling of foreign currencies then you are already participating in spot market. Buying and selling simply means exchanging your currency for another.
To manage the Forex risk, you should know how to use responsibly factors such as leverage, stop loss, lot size and risk reward ratio.
Leverage enables you to use small amount o money to control larger ones. Although this can bring increase your wins, it can also accumulate your losses. So if you're new with Forex exchange, it is best if you work with lower leverage first.
As with stop loss, it serves as your insurance when you are trading. A stop loss can prevent too much loss when exchanging rates.
The risk reward ratio would help you determine whether it is good to trade or if it's better to wait until the next trade. When you know how to work with reward risk ratio, you will still get profits even if there are only 50% chances that you win with the trade.
If you are new to Forex trade there are still things that you should get to know first. You should understand what the difference is with spot market vs. future Forex trading. Although there are risk involve with Forex management, there are several strategies you can use in order to lessen the danger involve. The more you know about these strategies, the more advantageous it is for you.
Everyday there are numerous companies and sole traders who exchange currencies on the Forex or foreign exchange. If you are involve in the buying and selling of foreign currencies then you are already participating in spot market. Buying and selling simply means exchanging your currency for another.
To manage the Forex risk, you should know how to use responsibly factors such as leverage, stop loss, lot size and risk reward ratio.
Leverage enables you to use small amount o money to control larger ones. Although this can bring increase your wins, it can also accumulate your losses. So if you're new with Forex exchange, it is best if you work with lower leverage first.
As with stop loss, it serves as your insurance when you are trading. A stop loss can prevent too much loss when exchanging rates.
The risk reward ratio would help you determine whether it is good to trade or if it's better to wait until the next trade. When you know how to work with reward risk ratio, you will still get profits even if there are only 50% chances that you win with the trade.
If you are new to Forex trade there are still things that you should get to know first. You should understand what the difference is with spot market vs. future Forex trading. Although there are risk involve with Forex management, there are several strategies you can use in order to lessen the danger involve. The more you know about these strategies, the more advantageous it is for you.
Forex pathfinder Thursday, September 19 Tradable News.
UK Retail Sales - 9:30am Paris time (Thursday, September 19)
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
Traded pair | Expected figure | Deviation trigger | ||
GBPUSD | 0.4 (%) | ±0.4 (%) |
Buy | GBPUSD | if actual figure is or is above | 0.8 (%) | ||
Sell | GBPUSD | if actual figure is or is below | 0.0 (%) |
Expected move during first 20 minutes after the release is 20 pips or more.
Review historical charts where the same deviation of at least 0.4 (%) occurred:
UK Retail Sales history of charts.
Once there, set filter to Difference Actual-Forecast >= 0.4 and click "Filter" to see list of charts.
UK Retail Sales - 9:30am Paris time (Thursday, September 19)
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
Review historical charts where the same deviation of at least 0.4 (%) occurred:
UK Retail Sales history of charts.
Once there, set filter to Difference Actual-Forecast >= 0.4 and click "Filter" to see list of charts.
UK Retail Sales - 9:30am Paris time (Thursday, September 19)
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
Traded currency pair | : | GBPUSD | ||
Initial spike duration limit | : | 15 seconds | ||
Initial spike price action threshold | : | 12 pips | ||
Triggering retracement percentage | : | 35 % | ||
Retracement duration limit | : | 40 seconds | ||
Maximum trade hold time after release | : | 10 minutes | ||
Stop loss | : | 10 pips | ||
Take profit | : | 10 pips | ||
Maximum spread | : | 2 pips |
USA Existing Home Sales - 3:00pm Paris time (Thursday, September 19)
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
Traded pair | Expected figure | Deviation trigger | ||
USDJPY | 5.25 (M) | ±0.40 (M) |
Buy | USDJPY | if actual figure is or is above | 5.65 (M) | ||
Sell | USDJPY | if actual figure is or is below | 4.85 (M) |
Expected move during first 30 minutes after the release is 30 pips or more.
Review historical charts where the same deviation of at least 0.40 (M) occurred:
USA Existing Home Sales history of charts.
Once there, set filter to Difference Actual-Forecast >= 0.40 and click "Filter" to see list of charts.
USA Existing Home Sales - 3:00pm Paris time (Thursday, September 19)
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
Review historical charts where the same deviation of at least 0.40 (M) occurred:
USA Existing Home Sales history of charts.
Once there, set filter to Difference Actual-Forecast >= 0.40 and click "Filter" to see list of charts.
USA Existing Home Sales - 3:00pm Paris time (Thursday, September 19)
--–––––————————————————————–––––--
Traded currency pair | : | USDJPY | ||
Initial spike duration limit | : | 30 seconds | ||
Initial spike price action threshold | : | 12 pips | ||
Triggering retracement percentage | : | 40 % | ||
Retracement duration limit | : | 80 seconds | ||
Maximum trade hold time after release | : | 15 minutes | ||
Stop loss | : | 10 pips | ||
Take profit | : | 10 pips | ||
Maximum spread | : | 2 pips |
Friday, September 13, 2013
Forex Risk Management Precautions
By
Tony Scalf
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6325793
The foreign currency exchange industry is one of the most
unpredictable, liquid and volatile business industries ever operating
worldwide. It accommodates to approximately 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars
worth of transactions and it becomes a chance for banks, large
corporations, business companies of all size and even individual
investors to gain profit through forex.
The forex risk of losing or gaining profit in the market is as inevitable as the rising and setting of the sun daily. There is no way that a trader can fully and perfectly go about his trading business without undertaking risks of any sort. Because of this very sensitive and crucial topic in the forex trading industry, all traders must at least exercise some form of forex risk management in order to avoid unnecessary and devastating losses that can kick you out of the game completely.
There are a few things an investor must remember before he or she makes any trading decisions. One among which is cash flows, liabilities and assets are directly affected by any change in the exchange rates that may occur and of course since the exchange rates can change in a snap of a finger, international transactions especially dealing with finances will consequently greatly affect businessmen, traders and investors.
It is important that a trader must perform forex risk management measures especially on economic exposure, translation exposure, accounting and real operating exposure.
Because of the unpredictable changes in exchange rates, the transactional exposures are one among those that contribute highest risks to forex because cash flows, import and export services, lending and borrowing of foreign currency can greatly affect the exchange rates of involved currency pairs. A wise investor must therefore remember to incorporate this in his forex risk management strategy.
There are two general types of risk when dealing with forex risk management and these are: systematic and unsystematic risk. Systematic risk is the risk affecting business aspects such as inflation risk, interest rate risk and market risk. On the other hand unsystematic risks are more specific to the individual events happening to a particular transaction such as business risk and financial risk.
For all the traders out there it is always a good habit to have a trading strategy and you must see to it that both your online broker and your trading platform have forex risk management procedures incorporated into the system. There are many advanced software that contain reliable risk analysis features.
The forex risk of losing or gaining profit in the market is as inevitable as the rising and setting of the sun daily. There is no way that a trader can fully and perfectly go about his trading business without undertaking risks of any sort. Because of this very sensitive and crucial topic in the forex trading industry, all traders must at least exercise some form of forex risk management in order to avoid unnecessary and devastating losses that can kick you out of the game completely.
There are a few things an investor must remember before he or she makes any trading decisions. One among which is cash flows, liabilities and assets are directly affected by any change in the exchange rates that may occur and of course since the exchange rates can change in a snap of a finger, international transactions especially dealing with finances will consequently greatly affect businessmen, traders and investors.
It is important that a trader must perform forex risk management measures especially on economic exposure, translation exposure, accounting and real operating exposure.
Because of the unpredictable changes in exchange rates, the transactional exposures are one among those that contribute highest risks to forex because cash flows, import and export services, lending and borrowing of foreign currency can greatly affect the exchange rates of involved currency pairs. A wise investor must therefore remember to incorporate this in his forex risk management strategy.
There are two general types of risk when dealing with forex risk management and these are: systematic and unsystematic risk. Systematic risk is the risk affecting business aspects such as inflation risk, interest rate risk and market risk. On the other hand unsystematic risks are more specific to the individual events happening to a particular transaction such as business risk and financial risk.
For all the traders out there it is always a good habit to have a trading strategy and you must see to it that both your online broker and your trading platform have forex risk management procedures incorporated into the system. There are many advanced software that contain reliable risk analysis features.
Please check my website Forex Risk Management [http://forexriskmanagement.net/] if you looking for forex risk management tips.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6325793
Planning and Discipline in Forex Trading
by ’Kunle Adeyeri
The last two articles on education and
live trading are a build-up to this one. Education as the bed rock, live
account trading as the launch pad and closing on these two to cap it
all is planning and discipline in forex trading.
Planning (also called forethought) is
the process of-thinking about and organizing the activities required to
achieve a desired goal. Planning involves the creation and maintenance of a plan. As such, planning is a fundamental property of intelligent behavior.
This thought process is essential to the
creation and refinement of a plan, or integration of it with other
plans; that is, it combines forecasting of developments with the
preparation of scenarios of how to react to them.
An important, albeit often ignored aspect of planning, is the relationship it holds with forecasting.
Forecasting can be described as
predicting what the future will look like, whereas planning predicts
what the future should look like. The counterpart to planning is
spontaneous order. – Wikipedia
Wikipedia also explains that the phrase
“to discipline” carries a negative connotation. This is because
enforcement of order – that is, ensuring instructions are carried out–is
often regulated through punishment. Discipline is a course of actions
leading to a greater goal than the satisfaction of the immediate. A
disciplined person is one that has established a goal and is willing to
achieve that goal at the expense of his or her immediate comfort.
Discipline is the assertion of willpower
over more base desires, and is usually understood to be synonymous with
self-control. Self-discipline is to some extent a substitute for
motivation, when one uses reason to determine the best course of action
that opposes one’s desires. Virtuous behaviour is when one’s motivations
are aligned with one’s reasoned aims: to do what one knows is best and
to do it gladly’.
The bane of colossal loss in forex
trading has to do with lack of proper planning and much more discipline.
A forex trader is expected to have a trade plan before execution.
This has to do with determining entry
point, size or volume of his trade, entry and exit points, stop loss,
trailing profit etc. All these come under planning to achieve a set
goal.
Discipline now will focus on executing
the plans to the letter. Discipline involves sticking to your trade plan
which is backed up by what you have put in the risk management. No matter how your plan is, executing it to the letter is another thing. Supposing you have a trade plan and
strategy to roll in an order, discipline will come in if you have the
willpower to do so. It will also test if you can stick to your targets in
case when price moves in counter direction.
A to-be successful trader must be
disciplined. It is a virtue and can be cultivated as well. A disciplined
trader will not be too happy because he has winning traders nor be
emotionally down if he loses if all were to fall within his keeping to
his plans. A disciplined trader will not add more to winning or losing
trades. Plan well and be disciplined. Happy trading.
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