ORDER BLOCK trading strategyThe order block trading strategy is based on the concept of smart money, focusing on identifying specific zones where institutional traders previously executed their orders. Once we have successfully identified these zones, we patiently wait for the price to revisit these levels.
By using a suitable strategy, we then enter our trades in the anticipated direction.
-What is an Order Block in Forex:
Order blocks are special zones within the market where significant buy or sell orders from major market participants, like institutional traders, have been previously executed.
These order clusters, situated in specific price regions, hold considerable influence over price action, market sentiment, and liquidity.
Order blocks serve as a specialized methodology to determine crucial support and resistance levels, derived from the trading behavior of institutional traders. These levels are subsequently employed as strategic points for initiating or concluding trades.
-Understanding Order Block in Trading:
In Forex or any other market, ict order block represent crucial price levels where we observe significant and aggressive price movements. These levels are characterized by large firms strategically placing their orders, which often results in the market moving forcefully from those points.
To influence the market in a specific direction, smart money or hedge funds execute orders worth billions of dollars at particular price levels. However, not all of their orders are immediately filled. As a result, smart money revisits these levels to execute the pending orders, leading to further movement in the desired direction.
-ICT Order Blocks Definition:
Order blocks can indeed be identified on any time frame, ranging from small time frame like 15m,30 m and m5 to larger time frames like daily or weekly charts.
Order blocks can be classified into two main types: Bullish Order Blocks and Bearish Order Blocks.
1. Bullish Order Block:
A Bullish Order Block is recognized as the last downward candle before the price experiences a significant and aggressive upward movement. It represents a key level where institutional traders placed substantial buy orders, causing the market to rally strongly from that point.
2. Bearish Order Block:
On the other hand, a Bearish Order Block is characterized by the last upward closing candle before the price undergoes a sharp and forceful downward movement. It signifies a critical level where large market participants, such as institutional traders, positioned significant sell orders, resulting in a significant decline in the market.
By identifying and analyzing these Bullish and Bearish Blocks, traders can gain insights into a potential reversal or continuation patterns and utilize them as entry or exit points for their trades.
Trading order blocks go beyond solely identifying the last up or down closing candle. To effectively trade order blocks, it is essential to consider several contextual factors, including:
1. Liquidity Hunt: Market participants, especially institutional traders, may strategically place their orders to trigger stop losses or create a liquidity imbalance. Understanding liquidity patterns and how they can influence price action is crucial.
2. Daily Bias: Evaluating the overall market sentiment and bias for the day is important. This involves considering factors such as news events, economic releases, and geopolitical developments that may impact the market and influence order-block behavior.
3. Interest Rates and Fundamentals: Fundamental factors, including interest rates, economic indicators, and central bank policies, can significantly influence market conditions. Understanding how these factors interact with order blocks can provide valuable insights for trading decisions.
By taking these contextual factors into account, traders can enhance their understanding of order blocks and make more informed trading decisions.
To identify order blocks, price action traders typically examine historical price movements on the chart to locate areas where the market has shown strong reactions.
-How to identifying order blocks:
1. Look for strong price reactions: Analyze the chart to identify areas where the price has displayed significant and notable reactions, such as sharp reversals, extended consolidations, or breakouts.
2. Mark potential order block levels: Once you identify these areas of strong price reactions, mark them as potential order block levels on your chart. These levels represent key price zones where institutional traders may have executed large orders.
3. Assess support and resistance characteristics: Consider how the price behaves with the marked order block levels. If the price bounces off a specific level multiple times, it indicates a robust level of support or resistance, depending on whether the price approached the level from above or below.
4. Watch for role reversal: When an order block level is breached, its role as support or resistance can reverse. For instance, a broken resistance level may transform into a support level, and vice versa. In such cases, traders often wait for a retest of the broken level before entering trades in the direction of the breakout.
By following these steps and considering the principles of support and resistance, traders can effectively identify and utilize order blocks in their trading strategies. However, it’s important to note that order block analysis is just one tool among many in a comprehensive trading approach.
-How To Trade Order Blocks:
The steps you’ve mentioned provide a general guideline for trading order blocks in forex. Here’s a breakdown of each step:
1. Point of Interest (POI): Start by identifying potential order blocks on higher time frames, such as daily and 4-hour charts. These could be areas of consolidation or strong price reactions. Once you’ve marked these POIs, move to the next step.
2. Optimization: Switch to lower time frames like 1-hour, 15-minute, or 5-minute charts to refine and optimize your POIs. By zooming in on these lower time frames, you can better analyze the price action within the identified areas.
3. Price Observation: Keep an eye on the price action in the higher time frame. Monitor how the price behaves as it approaches your POI. This observation helps you determine the strength of the order block and potential trading opportunities.
4. Rejection Analysis: When the price reaches your POI, switch to the lower time frame to examine how the order block reacts to the price. Look for signs of rejection, like fair value gap
5. Entry on Lower Time Frame: Once you’ve observed a rejection or a significant reaction at the order block on the lower time frame, you can plan your entry. Look for suitable entry signals, such as a breakout, pullback, FVG price Imbalance, and more
6. Stop Loss Placement: To manage risk, it’s important to place a stop loss order. Consider setting your stop loss 1 to 5 pips below the order block ict to allow for potential market noise and fluctuations. This helps protect your trading capital in case the trade doesn’t go as planned.
Remember, these steps provide a general framework for trading ict order blocks, but it’s crucial to develop a trading strategy that suits your risk tolerance, trading style, and market conditions.
It’s recommended to thoroughly back test and practice your strategy before applying it with real money. Additionally, staying updated with market news and having proper risk management practices are essential for successful trading.
Supply and Demand
Why Supply and Demand Zones Matters?Supply and demand zones are crucial concepts in technical analysis. They represent where the market tends to pull back before moving in its natural impulsive move. You can gain valuable insights into your trades' potential entry and exit points by identifying these zones.
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Demand represents the quantity of buyers vs. sellers in the market. Supply represents the currency being bought. We will keep it that simple.
How to Identify Supply and Demand Zones
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There are several methods you can use to identify zones:
Swing Highs and Lows: Look for areas where the price has previously reversed direction. These swing lower highs and higher lows can serve as potential entry zones.
Zones: Draw your zones on the wicks of the candlesticks depending on the direction the price is moving to highlight your entry.
Price Action: Use price action candlesticks to permit you to enter your trade.
Utilizing Supply and Demand Zones in Trading
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Once you have identified your zones, you can incorporate them into your trading strategy. Here are a few ways to utilize these zones:
Entry and Exit Points : Use supply and demand zones to determine optimal entry and exit points for your trades. Buying and selling when the price touches the zone can increase your chances of profitable trades.
Stop Loss Placement : Place your stop loss orders below your last low when buying and above the last high when selling. This helps protect your capital if the price has a little bit further to go before going your way.
Profit Targets : Set profit targets back at the high in an uptrend and low in a downtrend.
Now, you want to turn your knowledge into a trading plan. Creating a trading plan is all about writing down what you do on the price chart.
You don't want to rush this step because you are detailing how you will make money trading here.
Before doing that, you must ensure you have backtested your strategy and its profitability. I
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Developing a Trading Plan and Setting Realistic Goals to Achieve Consistent Profitability
Now, we will dive into the importance of developing a trading plan and setting realistic goals to achieve consistent profitability in the forex market. 📈💰
Why a Trading Plan Matters
Having a well-defined trading plan is like having a roadmap to success. It provides structure, discipline, and clarity to your trading activities. Without a plan, you may make impulsive decisions based on emotions or market noise, leading to inconsistent results and unnecessary losses. So, let's get started on creating your trading plan! 🗺️✍️
Define Your Trading Strategy
The first step in developing a trading plan is defining your strategy. This involves determining the type of trader you want to be, whether a day trader, swing trader, or position trader. Each style requires a different approach and time commitment, so choose the one that aligns with your goals and lifestyle.
Inside the Trade On Purpose Community &Trading Strategy, we focus on swing trading because many beginner traders work, and day trading may not fit their work schedule.
Also, swing trading allows you to breathe through your trades. You can make money trading and enjoy your profits while waiting for the next setup.
Next, identify the trading indicators and tools you will use to analyze the market. This could include moving averages, trend lines, or candlestick patterns. Remember, focusing on a few reliable indicators is important rather than overwhelming yourself with too many.
Inside the community, we don't focus on indicators. We focus on the 4 most repeated candlesticks on the price chart.
Doing this allows us to use these candlesticks as our structure and entry so we don't become overwhelmed with looking at too much.
Set Realistic Goals
Now that you have your trading strategy, it's time to set realistic goals. Setting achievable goals is crucial for maintaining motivation and measuring your progress. Start by determining your desired monthly or yearly profit target. Be realistic and consider factors such as market volatility and your available trading capital.
Break down your profit target into smaller, manageable goals. This will help you stay focused and prevent feeling overwhelmed. Remember, consistency is key in trading, so aim for steady growth rather than trying to hit home runs with every trade.
For example, the monthly goal for 2024 is between 5-10%. This means I only need to focus on my A+ setups and can risk between 0.50%-1% per trade on any given idea. If it's a good month, I'll only need 3-4 winning and swing trade setups.
Risk Management and Trade Execution
No trading plan is complete without addressing risk management and trade execution. Determine your risk tolerance and set appropriate stop-loss levels for each trade. This will help protect your capital and minimize losses when the market doesn't go as expected.
Additionally, establish rules for trade entry and exit. Define the criteria that must be met before entering a trade and the conditions that will trigger your exit. This will help you avoid impulsive decisions and stick to your plan.
We use a mix of pending and market orders inside the community.
Pending orders are good to set if you're not in front of your computer often. You can set your order and let the market do its thing.
Market orders are good if you can be in front of your chart and desire to enter the trade yourself.
Stay Disciplined and Adapt
Lastly, remember that a trading plan is not set in stone. The market constantly evolves, and you must adapt your plan accordingly. However, avoid making changes based on short-term market fluctuations or emotions. Stick to your plan, analyze your trades regularly, and adjust based on data and evidence.
By developing a trading plan and setting realistic goals, you are taking a significant step towards achieving consistent profitability in forex trading. Stay disciplined, be patient, and always keep learning. Tomorrow, Implementing risk management strategies to protect your capital and minimize losses. Stay tuned! 💪😊
Wyckoff simplified + entries & exitsI'm going to explain Wyckoff to you in a simplified manner and show you how you can use it for entries & exits.
What is Wyckoff?
Large market orders by huge entities come in gradually. If the market only consisted of buying and selling, it would be too easy to make money as it would be too predictable. So instead, orders are injected into the market via an accumulation process (i.e. Wyckoff schematic)
Basically, the big players of the market try to take out the retail traders’ stoplosses by injecting orders into the market (to move price toward the stoplosses and hit them). They inject these orders gradually (to avoid being predictable and to trick the retail traders).
Basic Wyckoff schematic
This is a bearish Wyckoff schematic:
Let’s break this down.
BC - This stands for Buying Climax. The Buying Climax marks the end of buying and is confirmed by an Automatic Rally.
AR - This stands for Automatic Rally. This is when price goes in the opposite direction of the climax. In this case, the AR was to the downside. This confirms that it is the end of buying because it shoots straight down (indicating strong selling pressure). This confirms the Buying Climax by going into the Discount level (bottom 25%) and by being bigger than all the other downward pullbacks which happened before.
Test - Price goes close to the Climax point and re-tests it. Then, traders take sells because they think that because of the AR, price would go down. The traders think that price went up for the last time and will finally go down. Because of their sell orders, price falls a little.
Purge - The big players try to take out the traders’ sell orders by moving price up to the Climax point. They push price a little higher than the Climax point to take out all the stoplosses.
RTO - This stands for Return to Origin. Because of the purge, traders think that price broke structure to the upside. So, they buy which makes price form the RTO. They’re trying to make price revisit the Climax point. Then, price moves lower and they get stopped out again.
SOW - This stands for Sign of Weakness. When structure breaks to the downside after the RTO, this shows that selling pressure is coming in.
LPS - Last Point of Support. This is the consolidation which must happen before price breaks out of the consolidation to convince you that price is bearish and no longer bullish.
Here is how a bullish Wyckoff structure looks like:
Let me explain this once more so that you understand it.
The main trend was a down trend on the left side of the chart. Then, price had a strong bull move up (the AR) which means that there were buy trades (i.e. Automatic Rally). That confirms that there was a Selling Climax (i.e. SC) and that it’s the end of selling (because if it wasn't the end of selling, the AR wouldn't go so high)
After that, price came down to re-test the Selling Climax zone (which is called the Test). Then, traders took a buy because they thought that because of the AR, price would be going up.
Then the big players pushed price down a little lower than the Selling Climax to hit the buy orders' stoplosses which forms the Purge.
After that, because the Purge happened, it made traders think that price broke structure to the downside which led them to sell. Then, price went down because of those sell orders (forming the RTO) and rejected from the Selling Climax (price went up).
Price rejected from that level because there were buy orders from the big players which made price go up. Since price went up, those sell trades got taken out. Because price went up, it formed an SOS (i.e. Sign of Strength). It means that the selling pressure had weakened, and the buying pressure had strengthened.
Finally, price formed a consolidation (i.e. LPS) which tricked traders again into thinking that price will go down. The traders sold and the big players pushed prices up to hit their stoplosses one last time.
This is a basic Wyckoff pattern in a nutshell.
You’ll be more likely to predict the Wyckoff pattern in its later stages when some parts of it have formed. The earlier it is, the riskier it’ll be.
Advanced Wyckoff schematic
Let’s talk about the 2nd variation of the Wyckoff pattern. This is the same as the basic Wyckoff schematic except that the Test will go beyond the BC/SC. It will look like a purge, but it won’t be. It will be a fake purge. Then, after the Test, the actual Purge will happen.
This is to trick most of the Smart Money Concept traders into thinking that the purge has already happened and that price will form an RTO and go lower (in case of a bearish schematic). The traders will then sell. The big players will then push price up to break the Test and form the actual Purge. All the traders will get wiped out because price has hit their stoplosses.
In case of a bullish schematic, the traders will think that the purge has already happened and that price will form an RTO and go higher. They’ll buy. The big players will then push price down to form the actual Purge and take out the buy orders.
Here is how it looks like:
Structures
Before I explain how you can use this to trade, let’s first understand market structures. There are 2 types of market structures which I’ll be talking about: Support & Resistance and Supply & Demand.
There’s also 1 more thing to understand: ranges. A range is the area between the latest swing high and swing low.
👉 Supply & Demand Structure
This is when price forms a new range by forming a new high or a new low. Then, it comes back into the old range.
When price comes back into the range, it finds more buy orders to push it up again.
When price comes back into the range, it finds more sell orders to push it down again.
👉 Support & Resistance Structure
This is the same thing as the Supply and Demand structure except that price will not come back into the range but instead bounce off of the highs/lows.
Let’s see how we can use structures with Wyckoff to take entries and exits. We’re first going to use the Supply & Demand structure. Then, we’ll see how we can use the Support & Resistance structure.
Supply & Demand Entry
We’re going to take entries using the Supply & Demand structure. This strategy uses 2 timeframes to take entries (Macro & Micro). We’re going to look at a buy example. For a sell, simply use the opposite logic.
The main idea is to trade with the trend. So, first go to a higher timeframe and find a Supply & Demand structure. Then, look for when price forms a new low/high. We can see that, in this case, price formed the first lower low.
Now, we know that because this is a Supply & Demand structure, price will go back up into the range. So, to take advantage of this up move, we can take a buy.
We first have to know where to buy. So, go down to a lower timeframe. Then, look for a bullish Wyckoff schematic. Look for the Selling Climax (i.e. SC). This means that it is the end of the downtrend. Then, wait for price to form the AR, Test, Purge and RTO. You can buy when the RTO or LPS happens.
You can exit when you see a bearish schematic. This bearish schematic has to reach the Premium level. First, find the Premium level by going back to the higher timeframe and taking the upper 25% of the down leg. Then wait for price to form a bearish schematic and reach that premium level.
The Premium level will be reached when price forms a Purge (during a bearish schematic). We can see (in the picture below) that during the bearish schematic, price did Purge and break into the Premium level. Exit your buy here.
There’s also another way you can take a trade (look at the picture below). You can sell during the bearish schematic. Sell when you see the RTO or LPS (during the bearish schematic). You can exit at the Purge of the next bullish schematic.
It is more preferable to sell than to buy, in this case, because the larger trend on the higher timeframe is a bearish Supply & Demand structure. So, price is going down on the larger trend. When you trade with the trend, the probability of your trade giving profits is higher.
This was in case of a sell. If the larger trend was bullish, a buy would’ve been taken at the RTO or LPS of a bullish schematic. Then it can be exited at the Purge of the next bearish schematic.
Support & Resistance Entry
To trade a Support & Resistance structure, we do the exact same things we did for the Supply and Demand structure. The only difference is that instead of looking for a Purge near the upper 25%/bottom 25%, look for it where price will react (near the red line).
After you’ve found it, you can enter your trade when the RTO, SOW or LPS comes.
This is in case of a buy. For a sell, use the opposite logic.
Like I’ve said before, you can also take a sell to trade with the trend on the higher timeframe. You can sell during the bearish schematic. Sell when you see the RTO or LPS (during the bearish schematic). You can exit at the Purge of the next bullish schematic.
If the larger trend was bullish, a buy would’ve been taken at the RTO or LPS of a bullish schematic. Then it can be exited at the Purge of the next bearish schematic.
I hope you found this useful!
Imagine support and resistance zones as floors on which...Imagine support and resistance zones as floors on which lemmings walk.
When a lemming enters a different floor, it usually walks around that floor for a while before deciding to go up or down to another floor. What would happen in your trading if you started to perceive the price as such lemmings walking between the floors of a building?
Market Manipulations. Bullish Trap (smart money concepts)
In the today's article, we will discuss how smart money manipulate the market with a bullish trap.
In simple words, a bullish trap is a FALSE bullish signal created by big players.
With a bullish trap, the smart money aims to:
1️⃣ Increase demand on an asset, encouraging the market participant to buy it.
2️⃣ Make sellers close their positions in a loss.
When a short position is closed, it is automatically BOUGHT by the market.
Take a look at a key horizontal resistance on AUDCHF.
Many times in the past, the market dropped from that.
For sellers, it is a perfect area to short from.
Bullish violation of the underlined zone make sellers close their position in a loss and attracts buyers.
Then the market suddenly starts falling heavily, revealing the presence of smart money.
Both the sellers and the buyers lose their money because of the manipulation.
There are 2 main reasons why the smart money manipulates the markets in a such a way:
1️⃣ - A big player is seeking to close a huge long position
When a long position is closed, it is automatically SOLD to the market.
In order to sell a huge position, smart money needs a counterpart who will buy their position.
Triggering stop losses of sellers and creating a false demand, smart money sell their position partially to the crowd.
2️⃣ - A big player wants to open a huge short position
But why the smart money can't just close their long position or open short without a manipulation?
A big sell order placed by the institutional trader, closing their long position, can have an impact on the price of the asset. If the sell order is large enough, it can push the price downward as sellers outnumber buyers. Smart money are trying to balance the supply and demand on the market, hiding their presence.
It is quite complicated for the newbies and even for experienced traders to recognize a bullish trap.
One of the efficient ways is to apply multiple time frame analysis and price action.
Remember, that most of the time bullish traps occur on key horizontal or vertical resistances.
After you see a breakout, analyze lower time frames.
Quite often, after a breakout, the market starts ranging.
After a breakout of a key daily resistance, gold started to consolidate within a narrow range on an hourly time frame.
Bearish breakout of the support of the range will indicate a strength of the sellers and a highly probable bullish trap.
Remember, that you can not spot all the traps, and occasionally you will be fooled by smart money. However, with experience, you will learn to recognize common bullish traps.
❤️Please, support my work with like, thank you!❤️
The Concept of Supply / Demand TradingThe principle of supply and demand trading involves identifying a counter-trend candle that precedes a sequence of three consecutive candles exhibiting strong bullish or bearish momentum. This specific candle is designated as the supply or demand level. The underlying theory posits that when the price retraces to the region where demand previously triggered a robust price movement, it is likely to encounter renewed demand, consequently attracting a larger number of buyers, thereby sustaining the prevailing trend.
Rule 1: The aggressive price movement must consist of 2-3 (3 preferred) candles that demonstrate remarkable strength in their respective directions.
Rule 2: The candle retracing to the demand zone should close outside of the zone, accompanied by a wick that reflects considerable strength.
My simple way of tradingThis is just a quick and simple way of how I look at the markets, this was analysed with the 15m then I zoomed into the 5m. I like to do it as simple as possible because I found out that the easier the better. Of course I have my own flaws but the main idea is to have that little edge. My main reason to post this is not to give you a strategy per se but to give you an idea of how you could view the markets, remember, what works for me might not work for you. So I used to try to predict the market a lot, you know trying to guess where the market might reverse next then I would place an order there, most of the times the market would go to that zone like I "predicted" but then would continue shooting straight through taking me out. I then came up with an idea that, why not try find entries in the move to my point of interest (going with the flow) instead of trying to guess where the market will reverse. Ever since I did that my trading began to improve. So my way of trading is simple, I focus more on waiting for big moves to my desired direction then finding entry points after the market confirmed its direction, that way I avoid trying to predict prices where the market might resist/reverse at. If the market does resist from a certain price then I again wait for a confirmation usually in the form of strong rejection candles then I find entry points after, sort of like the impulse correction impulse idea. Of course there is a lot more to this than 1 paragraph with a picture of a market structure that happened already but you get the idea :). Danko!
Trading Initial BalancesWhat Are Initial Balances?
Initial balances refer to a specific time frame at the beginning of a trading session, typically the first few minutes or hours when a market opens. During this period, traders closely observe price movements and volume to gauge market sentiment and establish trading strategies for the rest of the session.
How Initial Balance Trading Works
The concept of initial balance trading is rooted in the idea that the price and volume behavior during the initial balance period can provide valuable insights into the day's trading potential. Here's how it works:
1. Observation: Traders closely watch the price action and volume during the initial balance period, which often includes the first 30 minutes to one hour of a trading session. This is a critical phase for assessing market dynamics.
2. Key Levels: Traders identify key price levels during the initial balance period, such as the high and low points. These levels can serve as significant reference points for the day's trading activities.
3. Breakouts: Breakouts above or below the initial balance range can signal potential trading opportunities. A breakout above the initial balance high may suggest bullish momentum, while a breakout below it may indicate bearish sentiment.
This is My Favourite ICT Day Trading ModelHello traders,
This is the complete breakdown of my favourite ICT Day Trading Model.
This is so easy to replicate on any two time frames. One must be higher, while the second one which is for entry should be lower.
The higher time frame is for market direction, orderflow, trend.
Identify your discount and premium levels on higher time frame.
above 50% of your fib is premium, while below 50% is your discount.
If price is bearish, you are to look for sell opportunities when price retrace back to your premium levels.
Then go to your lower time frame to look for selling opportunities.
Your entry should be taken mostly within London kill zone.
For you to have a quality A+ trade setup, time and price must align together with your trade idea.
Your trade idea have a high probability of working out if you take your entry within London Kill Zone.
Look at my chart diagram to understand the model.
Order Blocks - The only explanation you will ever needHere's the only guide on order blocks you're ever going to need 😎✏️
Order blocks may seem scary and difficult to find -
Once you know what you're looking for, it's like taking candy from a baby 🍭
The key elements you need to have in place before getting the hang of this basic SMC application is as follows -
🟢 Trend spotting
🟢 Market structure
Those are the 2 greatest tools a trader could ever have at their disposal. Make sure you know how to identify trend and market structure well - The rest will fall in place.
Happy hunting! 🦁🐯🦈
Apex out ✌️
OANDA:GBPUSD OANDA:EURUSD
Understanding liquidity in simple termsOnce you understand liquidity, you understand how the market moves and where it might go next.
Let me break it down simply (for beginners):
Your objective, as a retail trader, is to know where the market is going to go.
Once you know where it’s going, you can make money by taking a buy or a sell.
So, how do you know where it’s going to go?
One fundamental way to know this is by understanding liquidity.
So, what is liquidity?
Liquidity means an area where trader’s money is.
What does that mean?
When retail traders place trades, they set their stoplosses as well. When their stoplosses get hit, that means they lose money from their account.
That money then goes to other traders who took opposite trades. So, wherever stoplosses are, traders’ money is there as well.
One more thing you need to understand is how the big players of the market make their money.
The big players are hedge funds, investors, Institutional traders etc.
They make their money by moving price into areas of liquidity.
What does that mean?
It means that they purchase price in huge volumes to move the price in any direction they want.
So, if they buy in huge volumes, price will go up. If they sell in huge volumes, price will go down.
That’s why they’re called market movers. They literally move the market.
So, they buy or sell to move price into areas where traders’ stoplosses are to make money. Because those are areas of liquidity.
How exactly do they make money?
Once they move price into areas of liquidity (areas where traders' stoplosses are), traders' stoplosses get hit and they lose money.
That money then goes into the accounts of the big players.
So, basically, people make money by making other people lose money. 😅
Now, how can you use this information to trade?
You can use this information to know where the market is going to go and then take a trade.
The big players will overpower the other small traders because of their huge volumes.
Because of that, the market will move in whatever direction they push it in.
You always have to trade in the direction which the big players are pushing the market in.
To know where they are moving the market, first know where traders’ stoplosses are (because that’s where the big players will move market towards).
Trader’s stoplosses rest at near swing highs and lows. That’s where the big players will move the market towards.
If the stoplosses are at a swing high, that means that traders have taken a sell.
What you have to do is place a buy because the big players have also taken buys.
You’re basically trading in the direction that they’re moving the market in.
It’s the same thing for taking a sell. If the stoplosses are at a swing low, that means that traders have taken a buy. You have to take a sell.
Your strategies and indicators should be based off of fundamental concepts like this.
I hope you got value out of this!
What is ICT Power of 3?Power of 3 at work on Gold producing a 8.6RR move on 30/06/2023
FOREXCOM:XAUUSD
Ict power of 3 is a strategy that reveal the market maker algorithm model for price delivery.
Power of 3 simply means there are 3 things market makers algorithm do with price in ever trading days.
Those 3 things are; Accumulation, Manipulation and Distribution.
AMD:
A: Accumulation
M: Manipulation
D: Distribution
1. Accumulation: They accumulate liquidity through the delivery of a ranging market.
The purpose for delivering a ranging market is to induce both buyers and sellers to enter the market thinking that price will go in their direction.
2. Manipulation: After accumulating both buying and sell orders, they then manipulate the market to further induce another set of traders which are breakout traders.
But, that particular manipulation move is not their intended direction for the day. They only use it to gather liquidity, Which will then lead them to the next action which is to move and distribute price in their real direction for the day.
3. Distribution: After manipulating price to a particular direction different from their plan, they then distribute price to their original intended direction.
e.g to buy, they will first sell the market and then buy at the discount price level.
Example of Power of 3 on Gold
AMD:
A: Accumulation
M: Manipulation
D: Distribution
Accumulation : Price range during Asian session, accumulating liquidity on both sides of long and shorts.
Manipulation : Price broke the low of the accumulation during London session to take out sell side liquidity and then fill the previous day imbalance.
Distribution : Price move away from the FVG leading to a shift in market structure on 5m time frame, plus a short pull back, follow by a massive move to the upside during the New York session to take out buy side liquidity above.
Example of Winning Price Action from a Live Trading SessionPrepping a market and having a defined directional bias coming into a trading session, is the key for a winning day.
In the video I talk through a Live Trading session we had with our group and the reasons why we were bias short.
I talk through the areas our traders hit sell entries and Where and Why I was happy to enter the market short once my ideal Price Action setup gave me all the confirmation that I needed.
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Trading sessions liquidity huntLiquidity serves as the driving force behind all markets. The fundamental driver of any price shift involves the creation and aggregation of liquidity, with the objective of accumulating or distributing positions among market participants.
Accumulating positions necessitates counter liquidity to fulfill orders and initiate positions in the desired volume. Liquidity is therefore established within specific price ranges, with the intention of later manipulating it toward the accumulation of counter liquidity, ultimately achieving the goals of order fulfillment.
The bulk of liquidity, including stop orders and liquidations, tends to congregate around technical and psychological support/resistance levels, which can be observed retrospectively through the analysis of clusters and volume profiles.
Engaging in trading based on a one-time reaction, characterized by a substantial cluster forming during the breach of a particular price level, can lead to premature entry and potential losses, driven by inaccurate expectations of either a price breakthrough or deviation from calculated reference points
- An approach that leans towards caution, involving the selection of a trading setup once liquidity has been obtained from the previous trading session's highs/lows within the prevailing trend. This process is carried out while ensuring alignment between higher and lower timeframes.
- The primary objective is capital preservation, which is accomplished by minimizing risk to the range of 0.5-1% per trade and adjusting open positions to the break-even point after confirming the trend's structure.
- The strategy opts for an entry technique that boasts a high mathematical expectation of success.
- Fresh positions are initiated exclusively during periods of elevated market volatility, particularly during the optimal trade time (OTT) sessions in London and New York.
The focus is directed towards trading setups featuring risk:reward ratios ranging from 1:3 to 1:10.
Given the dynamics of market participants accumulating and distributing their positions during trading sessions, it's reasonable to assert that liquidity forms outside the fluctuations of these sessions. This liquidity is typified by stop orders and position liquidation within the scope of a micro-trend.
Consequently, it can be inferred that the commencement of the subsequent session will involve manipulation. The aim of this manipulation is to interact with such liquidity to amass positions in the opposite direction. Coupled with heightened volatility during the session's commencement, this provides opportunities to initiate positions before the impending price movement.
The primary criterion for entering a position will be the disruption of the existing structure following the capture of liquidity. Additional factors might encompass corrective momentum, liquidity in the opposing direction acting as an attraction for distributing accumulated positions during manipulation, and the formation of trading ranges with deviations, among others.
Entry into a position occurs on a lower time frame, emanating from an untested supply/demand zone. An additional aspect to consider is the presence of local liquidity before reaching the entry point.
I was Right On Gold/XAUUSD,Watch This Video To See How I did itIn this video, I gave the full breakdown of how I could see and accurately predict Gold's bullish move before it happened.
If you enjoy my content, drop a comment, boost this video, and make sure you follow me so you won't miss my future updates.
Analysis of the psychology and Price Action of a momentum moveIn this video I take a look at the psychology of a phase of Price Action that we traded in out Live Trading Room.
I review the key price action that I am looking for to get involved in the action for a new momentum push up/down. Our aim in trading is always to enter a trade in the 'unknown' as traders start to realise they are on the wrong side of the action...this gives us the biggest payouts.
Intraday Trading is a process of doing the analysis, reviews and having confidence in your read when LIVE trading.
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How to find Key Price Action zones for Daytrading successPrepping a market for daytrading is an important part of my process and understanding and identifying the KEY LEVELS is the major part of that process.
We have to build a Price Action picture of what may happen and what levels may be targeted so we will be ready for a trade. Understanding who (buyers or sellers) is getting caught off side and levels the market is targeting, will set us up for the higher probability trades.
I discuss a few key concepts for Intraday trading and how I identify the important zones. I show some trade examples and high probability trade zones.
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Decoding DeFi MetricsIn Decentralized Finance (DeFi), deciphering the wealth of new projects can be akin to navigating uncharted waters. However, amidst the chaos, fundamental analysis stands as a beacon, guiding investors and traders towards discerning the true value of DeFi assets.
1. Total Value Locked (TVL):
TVL, the sum of funds nestled within a DeFi protocol, provides a vital glimpse into market interest. Whether measured in ETH or USD, it illuminates a protocol's market saturation and investor confidence.
2. Price-to-Sales Ratio (P/S Ratio):
In DeFi, just like traditional businesses, evaluating a protocol's value against its revenue stream offers a unique perspective. A lower P/S ratio suggests undervaluation, indicating a potential investment opportunity.
3. Token Supply on Exchanges:
Monitoring tokens on centralized exchanges unveils market dynamics. While a surplus may hint at sell-offs, complexities arise due to collateralized holdings, necessitating nuanced analysis.
4. Token Balance Changes on Exchanges:
Sudden shifts in token balances on exchanges signal imminent volatility. Large withdrawals hint at strategic accumulation, underscoring the importance of tracking market movements.
5. Unique Address Count:
More addresses usually imply widespread adoption. But beware! This metric can be deceptive. Cross-reference with other data for a clearer picture.
6. Non-Speculative Usage:
A token's utility is paramount. Assess its purpose beyond speculation. Transactions occurring outside exchanges signify genuine use, a testament to its value.
7. Inflation Rate:
While scarcity is a virtue, a token's inflation rate demands attention. Striking a balance between supply growth and value preservation is crucial, emphasizing the need for a holistic evaluation approach.
In the intricate DeFi landscape, these metrics serve as the foundations of strategic decision-making. Each data point unravels a layer of complexity, empowering investors to make astute choices. As you delve into the world of decentralized finance, armed with these insights thrive in the boundless universe of DeFi possibilities! 🚀💡
EDUCATIONAL: F 200%+ move in 82-84I want to start periodically sharing my retrospective analysis of market leaders, that made triple digits gains during bull markets in different time-periods.
The purpose of this analysis is to find commonalities in price patterns and behaviour among the best-performing stocks, that repeat themselves in each and every up-cycle throughout market history. That will help new stock market participants to better exploit new emerging opportunities.
As my stock market history teacher - John Boik - use to say it: "Study the past, so you can profit in the future".
Retrospective analysis of Ford ( NYSE:F ) during 1982-194:
0. Great Relative strength. When SPX (see the upper chart) makes lower lows, FORD is making higher highs on noticeable pick-up in average daily volume. Also notice who price creates a flat-base and latter breaks out (BO) from it with volume surging above average;
1. First BUY could be made here with very tight 3% stop, a bit or right after W. O'Neil's «shake-out + 10%» rule (buy if price shakes you out and quickly reverse and runs higher by 10%) after the double bottom pattern in the bottom of the base.
2. Because of the bear market nature of the general index, quick 12-15% gain could be used to trim 1/2 or 2/3 of the position to guaranty profits, and selling the rest for break-even during the following re-test of break-out area;
3. Could be bought again during the BO of perfect VCP with tight 2.5% stop, and...
4. ...sold for the quick 5-7x return-to-risk gain.
5. When the index makes its final lower-low, F's price rebases, making a higher-low, and quickly runs higher and breaks out in Aug82 along with the SnP500.
F could be bought and shaked out during initial BO attempt, and then re-bought after price follows through in two days with volume support.
Notice how price pattern rhythms with prior Dec81-Mar82 base.
6. This big red reversal bar with substantial volume pick-up could be used to book another 15-17% gain with only initial 3-4% stop.
7. It is already clear that F is the new market leader of this new up-trend and it makes sense to track how the price acts if it corrects to 50MA (Red line) that coincides with re-tests of prior BO point.
If to zoom in into the volume dynamics of this basing actions around 50D MA, accumulation (surge in volume with closes in in upper part of the bar dominate volume on corrective bars) becomes very evident.
8. New BUY coming from this low cheat BO with massive volume support. Because the average cost was so low, one may want to move stop to break-even or tracing 50D MA.
9. Price closed in the upper third of the day - good supportive actions on the 50D MA. If stopped-out, shares could be re-bought by the end of the day or on next day BO with tight stop and low of the day.
10. Shares could be sold into this kind of climactic run above the 7 month channel line + the general market barely moves to old highs indicating relative divergence and lack of overall momentum in the market.
11. Good tight area. Could have been bought at BO and sold at BE after the BO proved to be fake one.
12. New BUY under shake-out + 10% rule with stop bellow
50D MA after it crosses the buy price. Massive volume advance on BO day acts as confirmation of large institutional interest in the stock (notice how these green volume sky-scrapers bars tend to dominate the red selling bars latter-on until the up-trend changes).
Notice again how the price shows the same character shake-out pattern it made during Dec81-Mar82 and May-Aug82. As Nicolas Darvas observed that "stocks have characters just like people".
13. Perfect selling area: price moves above the channel line in negative divergence to the market (index is not making higher-highs).
14. Same type of character behaviour with shake-out and Mark Minervine's «slingshot» move on volume support, where «shake-out +10%» buy rule could be used to establish the position with tight stop bellow the short-term 8/21emas.
15. Sell 3/4 of position or all in this first evident distribution bar + the market seems tired and is loosing momentum.
Very noticeable distribution bars starting to appear - some heavy selling and not much buying.
Important sign of character change.
16. This low volume pattern during this up-move shows that late retail buyers are stepping in with no institutional support.
That is the hint that price advance is prone to failure.
17. Definite selling signal. Price dives bellow 50MA with substantial distribution started dominating the volume pattern.
Trading in the Asian-Russian ReneissacneAs you can see last months correlations between Yuan-Ruble pair with gold spot prices present good levels to take long and short positions to hold them for a month. To do this look at the bottom of the chart where are prices of commodities and pairs which play role in current geopolitics related to the said arbitrage opportunities. Look for big upside swings to take positions and wait for a sell-offs afterwards. This is pretty like balancing on the ocean waves.
Draw the MASTER PATTERN CONCEPTS by handHOW TO MANUALLY DRAW THE MASTER PATTERN CONCEPTS
# STEP 1 - Identify the Contraction Phase
The contraction phase consists of a tightening of price where there is a simultaneous lower high and higher low, this is where the supply and demand equalize in the market. This is a leading indication that volatility is coming next.
You want to look for places where you find contraction/constriction of price, where it clearly looks like its moving into a defined consolidation zone.
STEP 2 - Identify the Expansion Phase
The expansion phase is the 2nd phase in the market, its known as the manipulation phase. It reveals incoming volatility entering into the market, this is where most retailers lose their money.
This phase can be defined as price breaking out of the contraction box, and whip sawing around the value line. This is the accumulation phase where the market makers accumulate their inventory from weaker hand holders.
Price usually whipsaws around the value line 4-7 times before the 3rd phase in the market starts, which is the trend phase.
STEP 3 - Identify Liquidity Lines
Liquidity lines are where the retailers place their stop losses, it is an excellent places to enter and exit the market.
These can be defined as HH or LL points on the chart where there are swing high and swing low points. By anticipating where these stop loss levels are located you can be aware where there are pools of resting liquidity. These are excellent places to enter or exit the market.
Understanding Contraction / Expansion and Liquidity are key price action concepts that help you understand trading from an institutional level and give you a deeper insight into the intentions of the market.
What is Support & Resistance (S&R)? What Types of S&R?Support & Resistance (S&R) is one of the basic topics that we need to know in trading, whether trading forex, shares or cryptocurrency.
Support & Resistance can show the upper and lower limits of price movement in a certain time.
*) Resistance is the upper limit to limit prices from rising further.
*) Support is the lower limit to limit prices from falling further.
The market moves because of differences in demand and supply.
When demand is greater the price will rise, if the supply is greater the price will move down.
Types of Support & Resistance:
1. Classic S&R
The way to determine S&R in Classic S&R is using previous swing high and swing low as referece (picture no.1)
The advantage of using this method is we can know previous S&R and we can use that as our reference to determine target profit, or stop loss area.
The weakness of using classic S&R is when the price break S&R we don’t know the next S/R
2. Dynamic S&R
The way to determine Dynamic S&R is using moving average. We determine high point & low point when price touch moving average diagonal line. (picture no.2)
4. Harmonic S&R
Harmonic S&R Is useful to determine S&R when price in all time high.
The weakness of Classic S&R is when the price break S&R we don’t know the next S&R, because of that we use Harmonic S&R to analyze the next target profit or loss area.
We use Fibonacci methode (picture no.3) to determine S&R
How we know this is a strong S/R or not?
That is a strong S/R when the price touch the S/R area and the price have a strong movement.
Function of Support & Resistance
Support & Resistance makes us know if this area can be a price target area, so we understand if the price doesn’t always go up or down, so we must to take profit and we have to put a stop loss.
In stock market activity, support & resistance prices indicate certain psychological levels, like:
*) Support is the level where people buy shares at the lowest price and make a profit when the price rises.
*) Resistance is the level where people have bought shares at the highest price and experienced losses because the price fell.
That activity becomes a repeating pattern.
People tend to buy at the support price because they know the price will rise and when the price is almost or already in the resistance area they will sell.
In the Forex market, we can have 2 positions in the same time,
So when the price is at the support we can make a purchase, and when the price is at resistance we can sell the previous position and in the resistance area we can also look for a selling position with a profit target in the previous support area and a stop loss area above the resistance area, because if price breaks through the resistance, price will continue to rise and create a new resistance.
Notes:
1. The source of this writing comes from several ideas that I have read, heard, or experienced personally. So if those of you reading this post & feel this is your idea, Please allow me to share again, because maybe I also learn from you.
2. The topic of Fibonacci and Moving Average will be discussed at another time
Thank You.
28 Sep 2023