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First off I wanna say I know its a cliche subject. And yes I have searched allover for information on this.
Btw great search feature in the thread title Mike.
Anyway this question is so fundamental and basic that most ppl feel they are going backwards by answering it and so they overlook it.
To me however picking the right instrument can make the difference between a winning or losing trader.
Imagine the consensus was we should all trade gold and Silver and indices were just too slow and choppy to trade.
I would say 60% of ppl would follow consensus and trade tough markets.
THis badly illustrated point just shows that you may not neccesarily be in the best market for you to make money in.
For me I have spent a good bit of time on this question.
I need a market that is:
1. Volatile (Provides opportunity) To me this includes Gold oil Dax NQ TF Stocks.
2. Cheap (Commisions) Most commodities are expensive (corn soy) but I will leave oil and stocks due to preference
3. Liquid (obviously) Gold and silver etc are not Imo. Many stocks arent truly liquid at certain times also
4. Fun Fast Mover I am impatient and can be anxious and for me this makes something Like ES very TRICKY I realise This makes me sound unprofessional but I personally do not enjoy or thrive in them market conditions.
5. Low Tick size A treasury $31 tick is too much for me. I know it moves less but I also dont like slow movers. TF is $10 a tick. As a beginning trader I dont see the need to take double risk when I could trade a similar NQ.
1 massive factor I havent added is that I am UK based and cant trade at the moment until 11amEST (work commitments). I miss the open action and that is why I took stocks away. Maybe there is a good bit of volatility which opens around this time that I have missed but I havent found it yet.
These are my preferences for an instrument.
I am so far hovering on CL NQ and YM. In that order.
Cl I know is dangerous as it can flush hard and is not forgiving if you are not on your a game.
NQ seems thin and choppy at times but does move nicer than the ES and for good tick sizes and commissions.
YM is a bit slower than NQ but will give me options when opportunity is low.
I would like a discussion on what instrument you choose and why.
If you have changed or want to change feel free to give/ ask advice here also.
And please if you have advice for my situation give it!
Chris
Can you help answer these questions from other members on NexusFi?
I am interested in playing Oil and Gold but when i look at the charts i see huge moves which look like the type of moves that could give extreme slippage if it turned against me and hit my stop. Or jump my stop.
What are your experiences with CL?
Do you find that your stop losses get filled without much slippage?
I have read that that a rookie like myself should beware of CL.
I would Agree that CL could destroy a new trader who doesnt have good discipline or experience in volatile markets.
I would say get experience somewhere else first.
Mike I think that webinar is ELITEs only... A bit elitist if you ask me
I guess I also kind of want to know the nuances of different markets. I cant find a thread ANYWHERE on the internet that sums up different markets and compares them like :
ES is choppy but often has a nice 8 pt range to........................... NQ likewise is choppy but more volatile and blah blah..... However GC is even more volatile but illiquid......
A general summary of different instruments with comparisons of difference and tips for them.
Maybe thats another thread though.
So far in my analysis Im liking NQ action and starting to also look at Gold when CL gets quiet.
Stop losses get filled usually to the tick and I may experience slippage of 1-2 ticks 1 out of 5 times. I use limit orders for entry so don't need to worry about slippage there. If you were entering and exiting at market that would be a different story!
I got into futures trading after trading CFDs (spread betting) and CL has been the only futures instrument I have traded.
I have looked at others its just that CL's volatility make for incredible opportunities if risk is well managed.
Most people here will tell you to focus on something else first, which is probably a good idea if you have limited experience but probably the best piece of advice in trading is to pave your own way and not to let others dictate your decisions.
In saying that if you are going to trade live, make sure you have a well defined edge and you have back tested it and paper traded it for at least 6 months first.
Depends on which Time Zone you going to be active.
You're profile says you're in London. If London market hours then I'd say the Euro could be a good starter contract.
If you're going to trade US hours, then I'd go with the Dow (YM) contract to start.
