Robert

Are there days when a trader should stay flat and not trade at all? I find Fridays a hard day to trade. Is anyone having a similar problem?

Does anyone here trade economical numbers? I tend to receive two different opinions. Some traders choose to stand aside before the release of economical numbers while others will trade it. What are your thoughts on this? Is it possible to obtain any information on how to trade these numbers? Thanks

So are you implying that the ES can not be manipulated? I hardly see anything over 100 lot on the YM. Why is this?

I would like to hear your thoughts on this particular topic I came across. The ES is the Mike Tyson of emini's. Approx $4trillian dollars exchange hands in the ES everyday. In order to manipulate such a market this requires tremendous deep pockets. The large volume on the ES and the big traders that attract this contract requires alot more risk to manipulate in comparison to contracts like the Dow or Russell. Couldnt a 1000 lot trader/fund easily manipulate a contract like the YM? Maybe not for the ES but how big of an impact do large funds have on the manipulation of price?

Can one rely on strictly chart patterns to trade the markets? For example: triangle, wedges, flags, pennants, etc... Do you think one can make money in the markets in the long run relying only on chart patterns? Thanks

Can anyone share their experience on trading the opening gap? Alot of traders mention this and seems like a high probability trade. Very interested in hearing your experiences and strategies. Thank you

Still struggling to make it as a trader....

Does one need to be well educated to trade the markets? I find that top traders are very intellectual. Without the proper education, can one succeed as a trader? Any thoughts are welcome.

Excellent poll Trade Up! Fear drives more more than greed. I am still working on getting my stop losses in the right location. I have a tendency to place them too tight.

I find that most traders start of day trading stocks. What is the main attraction people turn towards stocks? Futures and forex offers more leverage and bang for the buck. Also commission is alot lower when trading futures. Any thoughts on this?

Thank you guys. I find this thread very useful. I have to admit, I have lost plenty of money trying to short a trending market. In my early weeks as a trader I thought the RSI and price divergence was the Holy Grail. Alot of times price did not move and I ended up taking comission losses. Is there a way to anticipate a trend market or a bracketed market? I understand different trading strategies must be employed in both cases. But it would be extremely helpful if a trader knew which strategy to use before the trading day. Thank you

Thank you for the explanation ant. It was extremely helpful. You mentioned not to fade during a trending market; instead buy the pullbacks and short the rallies. I have heard of traders who are counter trend traders. How do they employ their strategy in a trending market? They would basically be fighting the trend? Is counter trending even profitable? New traders are told not to catch a falling knife, yet professional traders seem to find ways to profit from this.

Does fading the upper and lower bands only work during a consolidated market. If the markets were in an uptrend, can I expect a pullback to the upper band? I read that once prices expand out of the bollinger bands they have a tendency to return inside the bands. Would this offer a fading opportunity? Also, how would I use the the middle band? Thank you

Thank you ant. I will start studying Market Profile. I checked with the CBOT website and found some good online recordings on Market Profile. At first glance it seems fairly complicated. It may take some time to fully understand the concept used in market profile.

Thank you very much ant. I have heard alot of great things about Wycoff and I totally agree with you on sticking with the source. The stock operators of the early the 1920's were the original thinkers of trading philosophy. I will take a look at William Dunnigan's book, a little pricey but will give it a shot. Can you also recommend any market profile books? I did a quick search on amazon but only found two different versions; one by Steidlmayer and one by Dalton. Should I pick up both? Thank you