It’s a new year and the first expo of the season is only just around the corner starting with the Asian Trader & Investor Conference events in KL and Singapore. Links and details below:

KLCC Convention Center, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – 20-21 March 2010

Suntec Singapore, Singapore, 24-25 April 2010

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The week that was:
So Thursday and Friday certainly gave us something to think about with Obama upping the ante on the war against the bank in the U.S. Then again they have to expect some sort of reaction after brining the world to its knees and putting their hand out for assistance.

From a trading point of view these “news” events are always annoying as they disrupt nice trends and wash out stops, but they do provide our next base to move forward from. Whether the selling is limited to just these few days we will know soon enough.

FX:
With the FX markets still countering the major trend I’ve sat on the sidelines for another week although the were some better moves starting to shape up, so it’s time to get my head back in the game again FX wise. Hopefully this shake up of the markets will allow people to do some decision making and pick a direction to trend for a month or two.

Equities:
The churn of the sell off caught me in a few new mid term positions I entered early in the week, one on U.S. market and one on the ASX, both of which stopped out, including a little slippage due to gapping on the ASX open. A second trade on the US market stopped out on Thursday for a break even trade before selling off much further on Friday, stops are brilliant, use them. Having kicked off this system after this recent move was already underway washing out of trades is no big deal. Having feedback from how the trades went to move forward on the next rally is better than crunching numbers in your backtesting software any day.

Equity Sectors:
Some possible setups from the selling into this move that I’ll be keeping an eye out for, what you lose on the selling you make up for on the rebounds.

Commodities:
Still cruising in my one now long term trade, no new actions.

Results:
FX : R
Equities : -2.0R Mid Term
Equity Sectors : R
Commodities : R

Housekeeping:
Just keeping out of the way for the moment & waiting to see what the market brings.

The week ahead:
FOMC week but no huge changes expected, plenty of housing and GDP news to fill the week though.

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The week that was:
The highlight of the week was certainly the swinging price action on most markets as news pushed price first up, then down. All in all not a lot of opportunities in those conditions for me. It’s times like this when the value of a longer term system shows though. Having entered several positions early in the week the long term trades didn’t even look at the stops, while one of the mid terms was quickly run over with spike before recovering. Both systems have their unique advantages, we simply move on to the next trade knowing the larger returns take time to deliver.

FX:
No trades for the week as price swung back and forth with a few failed breaks on longer time frames. New trends are always around the corner, so I sit and wait for their arrival.

Equities:
Two new long term positions added as my heat had lifted sufficiently, one being the first pyramid for this new market cycle we are in. Pyramiding correctly for the time frame and instrument you are trading is one of the biggest keys to successful trading, it’s the difference between good results, and great results, all from the same price move.

One mid term position was entered as well, while the spike took out the position entered last week after it failed to hold it’s support level on the broad market price drop. A -1.0R loss, but an excellent signal all the same.

Equity Sectors:
Still waiting for price setups to suit my trading style.

Commodities:
No new moves and no actions, still holding the one position.

Results:
FX : R
Equities : -1.0R mid term system
Equity Sectors : R
Commodities : R

Housekeeping:
No stops to move this week, no new long term positions on my scope, just sitting back and letting the trend do its job.

The week ahead:
Plenty of news from China hitting the street mid week and a holiday for the US market on Monday.

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The week that was:
A new year is upon us and the trading gods have kicked us off to a favorable start. In a news heavy week the market held it’s trend and has left most market commentators praising the prospects for the year ahead. All I need to know is my positions are mostly going up, and more importantly that my stops are moving towards break even as several of my longer term trades hit new highs.

The trend is strong, let your system do the work and be sure not to fiddle!

FX:
One trade for the week, a quick short on the GBP on Tuesday for a 2R win. Always good to start the year with a win in any system. With NFP due Friday and plenty of other news I took a slow start to the FX markets. Still plenty of congestion around and currencies that normally correlate headed in different directions. Good for some cross rate trades, but I’d still rather a strong trend.

Equities:
One new mid term position added on the US market during the week. I’m still finding the best opportunities there at the moment as it moves to steady new highs and money seems to be flowing into the US once more. Several long term positions are up making new highs so a few stops will move in towards break even, allowing me to look for a few longer term trades again.

Equity Sectors:
No setups meeting my criteria this past week.

Commodities:
Still on board the one position, no actions required.

Results:
FX : +2.0R
Equities : R
Equity Sectors : R
Commodities : R

Housekeeping:
Stops to move up Monday and start scanning for long term trade entries now that heat is lifting.

The week ahead:
Not too much news in the way so it should be a nice steady week leading up to the US long weekend, which may see some quiet trading on the Friday US session.