Many traders new to futures trading make the mistake of thinking in terms of stocks. Futures trading is concerned not with individual stock performance but with the macro logic of the market. Futures traders watch the indexes, not the stocks. Remember, the market is always seeking equilibrium, constantly oscillating between previous highs and lows. Futures traders use support and resistance to gauge the range of the day and locate potential market turning points. Learn to successfully and consistently locate these turning points and the spread becomes your playground — and cash cow! (more…)

Technique, psychology and money management are the three essential elements that must be mastered to become a successful trader. You’ve developed a money management system, you’ve got your head in the profit zone (see our posts dated July 19 & 20), now comes the hard part: developing a system and honing your technique. (more…)

Curious about futures trading? Want to see how we pros do it? I have prepared a short video that takes you through the start of a typical market day. Click here to watch the action. (more…)

To be a successful futures trader you have to master three essential elements: technique, psychology and money management. Mastery and balance of all three elements is vital to success. In our last post we talked about the importance of money management. Today we’re going to discuss psychology. (more…)

Success as a futures trader is dependent on your ability to master technique, psychology and money management. Life as a trader can be phenomenally successful, but it can be equally risky, particularly while you’re learning to dot the i’s and cross the t’s. It would be a mistake to quit your day job until you’ve mastered the three elements of successful trading. Master only one and your lack of knowledge and expertise in either one of the other two areas may bring you to the brink of disaster and topple you over. Remember, mastery and balance of all three elements is vital to success. (more…)

E-mini futures trading is a specialized type of derivative futures index trading. E-minis are small futures contracts on the S&P 500 index, the NASDAQ 100 index, Russell 2000, or the Dow 30 index. It’s a way for small individual investors to participate in the broad movements of the market. The lure of index futures trading is the excitement of pitting yourself against the broad market, not individual stock issues. Trading e-minis allows even relatively small investors to try their hand. (more…)

In a Windy City a long time ago . . .

Though some suspect the ancient Phoenicians and Greeks may have dabbled in futures trading, the modern futures market was born in Chicago with the establishment of the Chicago Board of Trade in 1848. Know as the hog butcher to the world, Chicago was also the commercial hub connecting Midwestern plains farmers with East Coast food merchants. Telegraph lines, railroads and shipping all passed through Chicago. It was to Chicago that Midwestern farmers came in the 1840s to sell the wheat that fed the world. (more…)

“US District Court has ordered a telephone clerk of a NYMEX Floor Brokerage operation to pay more than $3.6 million for defrauding his employer.”You can read the full article here from the Commodities Futures Trading Commission website. (more…)

Safe Sling Shot Trades

When is it a safe bet to enter a continuation trade?  Always look back to the most recent support or resistance (more…)

With the right tools futures trading can be as easy as 1-2-3. Successful trading is 90% mental, 90% money management and 10% signals. So do you need to be a superman to become a successful trader? No, it only seems that way!

You do have to hone your skills, learn your trading system inside and out, develop a money management plan that works for you, and learn to read market signals. And you have to practice, practice, practice to develop confidence in your system and your abilities. Futures trading is not for the faint of heart. It’s a risky business that attracts the world’s best and brightest. A game of skill, futures trading is equally a battle of sharp wits and killer instincts. Develop yours and the world is your oyster! (more…)