Oanda 10 pip spread on nov 2, 2:30-3pm EST for EUR/USD?

yeah they do it ..DAY / MONTH / YEAR
it always screws me up too

Ah, good point, I didn't even think about that.

rudenstein, I apologize in advance for changing the topic of your thread, but since the Oanda graph was posted here, I'd like to expound on the discussion of some of the info found there.

That graph got me wondering why so many postions are LONG on USD/CHF, when the overall trend is SHORT.

Many might say that, it's cuz most traders don't know what the heck they are are doing, lol, but let's think about this for a minute ...

According to this wiki --> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_exchange_market

... the "Retail traders (individuals)" are a small fraction of the forex market, so reasoning would have it that majority of those positions showing on the graph would most likely be held by the larger banks/institutions/corporations/etc., no?

And if so, then that data may prove very interesting, because couldn't this mean then that those larger traders/investors/institutions are anticipating (or going to cause for that matter, since they are the ones that have the greatest influence on the movement of the market, so to speak) a retracement or even maybe a reversal on USD/CHF then?

I'm not going to make any decisions on my trades based on what that graph says, and I'll enter when I get a clear signal that the trend is either continuing or reversing (and not any earlier), however, this graph info had just got me thinking how strange it was that Swissy was majority LONG when the overall long and short term trend was SHORT and especially because it's probably not the small individual traders that are the majority of those positions in the graph.

What are your guys' opinion on this?

Banks don't trade through Oanda. If you want to see the positions of large traders you should refer to reports like the COT.

Ah, I see. That graph is only data for positions on Oanda.

Sorry, I didn't realize that. I figured it was an overall forex market graph, but that they are just providing the info.

I guess that means then, that that many traders on Oanda don't follow the trend? Not that there's anything wrong with that if you know what you're doing, but I just found it very interesting, as I thought trend following was the more popular.

I may be wrong but I think some of that positioning on Oanda is corporate hedging, see this page (http://fxtrade.oanda.com/whyfxtrade/why_corporations_use_oanda_fxtrade.shtml)
and yes the info depicted in those graphes is Oanda positions only....

Spreads on Oanda widen before news releases, before the weekend and during the weekend. A typical EUR/USD spread of 10 pips is present over the weekend and doesn't fall to 'acceptable' levels until like the middle of Japan's open. You have to keep a constant eye on these spreads before trading.

So there are some big players at Oanda then . Thanks John, that would seem to make sense then

Thanks for your quick response, phil. I've bookmarked it for future reference.

Terry

lol

I hear you. That's why I ignore anything said in 90% of forum posts, too.

Terry

Hey guys.. why did the market start moving since 1pm EST?? Very weird. my other brokers open at 5pm EST.. I'm seeing movement on oanda as I write this message. This is since 1PM EST, about 1 hour 45 minutes ago... anybody know why?

Hey garyhope,

I was interested n what you said on your message because of how I started trading fx. I came to fx from stock markets and was drawn in by the incredible liquidity. I still love the liquidity but not for the same reasons.

Playing with a demo account, I was able to scalp endlessly but failed to recognize that when I started with real money, I would have psychological barriers that I didn't fully understand. It took me a while to realize it but after I started with cash, I came to understand that my whimsical methods used for scalping were causing me to panic over and over again. Before I knew it, I lost 20% of my account in a single day and decided to call it quits until I read a lot more and understood some more fundamental ideas behind trading fx. I definitely became (as you said) more afraid of losing money in fx than I became confident about my ability to make it.

I no longer scalp. I follow trends and spend a lot of time looking at charts and analyzing indicators along side fundamental news events. I end up waiting for up to a week sometimes for trading opportunities and have seen positions profit by up to 1200 pips before exiting. A position in the GPB/JPY recently yielded 1100 pips for me because I was patient and paid more attention to the bigger picture. It's been a good long while since I have ever even seen a 5 minute chart and I only peek at 15 minute charts when I'm bored.

I opened an account with Oanda because of the low spreads, particularly on the EUR/USD. I wanted to scalp and of course the lower the spread, the better the chance of making money right? Well like I said, I don't scalp any more. There are those who can do it and do it well (Phillip Nell here on FF does very well) but I don't think that's the road for me and I think a lot of new fx traders make the mistake of jumping in to the scalping game without realizing how dangerous it really can be.

Cheers