Non-Farm Payrolls(NFP) also known as Employment Change is all about the change in the number of employed people during the previous month. These stats exclude the farming industry hence it is called Non-Farm Payrolls. The stats are usually released every first Friday of the month, after the month ends .
Why Do We (traders) Care About NFP?
NFP is an important data from the United States which is the leading indicator of consumer spending which is highly linked to the improved economic activity. Planning improves one’s performance. I always plan ahead because I hate being random. The first NFP of 2023 is on the 6th of January. Below is the Non-Farm Payrolls 2023 dates. Should you wish to learn how to trade NFP, WhatsApp me on +27 78 144 6851 for a quote.
Hello subscribers and readers. It’s a new year and I hope you are all in good spirits and have landed safely in 2023. This is the first blog post of many. Please subscribe for future publications and if you wish to read on the go, download my APP. This post is all about preparing for your trading year. I will share only 3 things that you can do to prepare for your 2023 trading year. Without further ado, let’s get straight to it.
Set Your 2023 Trading Goals.
The possibilities of making money in the markets are endless. There’s a lot that you can achieve with trading. There are NO guarantees that you’ll make a certain percentage every month because the markets conditions are not the same. Sometimes there’s more trading opportunities, sometimes there’s less trading opportunities and sometimes there’s none. The word “guarantee” does not exist in a trader’s vocabulary.
Some months you can reach your monthly target, you can make less than your monthly target and some months you can even exceed your monthly target, that’s the nature of the markets. Understanding this is crucial. You may love to read the post on HOW TO SET TARGETS.
Before you can start trading again in 2023, ensure that you have determined your short term and long term goals. Setting goals gives you a strong “WHY”. If you have no idea why you are trading, maybe you shouldn’t even trade. I have published an episode on my podcast on goal setting. You can LISTEN HERE and use those tips to set your own short and long term trading goals.
Create Your Trading Plan.
Failing to plan is planning to fail. Always plan your work and work your plan. There is so much power in planning. If you don’t plan for your trading sessions, you’ll end up spending long hours in the markets unnecessarily so. When you don’t have a trading plan, you are not different from someone who is driving around with a map but no destination of where they are going.
A trading plan should outline your trading rules and it has to be adjustable to accommodate market conditions. It must also outline how much time are you planning to allocate to your trading. Creating a trading plan is easy, but the biggest challenge is following and sticking to it. That requires a lot of discipline. It may not be the easiest thing to do, but with the right mindset, it is doable. You just have to change your mindset.
Keep A Trading Journal.
There is power in journaling. Whether you are journaling your fitness journey or eating habits, journaling helps you keep track of your progress and identify anything causing issues in your journey. I kept a food journal and it assisted me in tracking what I was eating, the foods that contributed to my weight gain and also the foods that made me sluggish and caused “illnesses”. I also keep a self love journal which helps me take better care of myself.
Keeping a trading journal serves the same purpose. It helps you keep track of your trades, and your progress and It helps you identify the currencies/financial instruments that work the best for you. A trading journal helps you keep records of your overall trading activities, you become organized and when you are more organized, you perform better.
When you have a trading journal, you can easily stick to your trading plan, and revisit it to find areas of your trading that need improvements or attention. It makes it easier to work on fixing problems and solving your challenges. If you published a digital trading journal to help you keep track of your progress and create a roadmap for your trading success. You can get a copy HERE. and start recording your trades right away and get organized.
Thank you so much for stopping by and reading this post, I hope this helps. If you find any value in this post, kindly share it with your peers and help me reach as many traders as possible. Feel free to leave a comment in the comments section. Happy trading.
Gross Domestic Products (GDP) is one leading economic indicator that gauges the country’s overall economic performance. It measures the country’s economic health. The stats are released quarterly and some are released monthly. What it measures is the market value of all financial goods and services produced within the country.
What Is The Importance Of GDP?
It tracks the economic health of the country.
It measures the value of all goods produced within country’s borders.
Economists uses GDP to determine whether the economy is growing or experiencing recession.
Investors uses GDP to make investments decisions. Good economy leads to higher earnings and higher stock prices, while bad economy leads to lower earnings and stock prices.
Which GDP Stats Do I Trade?
United States GDP
United Kingdom GDP
Canada GDP
Australia GDP
New Zealand GDP
Why Do We (traders) Care?
Since GDP measures the economic health of the country, it has a direct impact on currencies and stocks. As traders, we can benefit from the short term moves of stocks and currencies whether GDP is higher or lower. I published an episode on my podcast about why you shouldn’t ignore fundamentals in your trading. You can listen to this episode HERE. Understanding what moves the markets allows you to plan for your trades and also spend less time in the markets. It also makes sense to understand the markets where you have invested your money.
Thank you for stopping by. Please kindly share this post with your peers who may benefit from this content. To have my blogs at your fingertips and read on the go, download my App on Google PlayStore. To learn how to incorporate fundamentals into your trading, WhatsApp+27 78 144 6851 for a quotation.
The year is almost over and most countries have released their GDP stats. Below are the remaining dates for GDP stats for the year 2022.
Central bank is a national bank that provides financial and banking services for its country’s government and commercial banking system. Central banks play a major role in the markets. Interest rates are the most important event of the Forexmarkets and any discussions that take place in the central banks can cause huge volatility in the markets within seconds.
What is the role and function of a Central Bank?
To set official bank rates used to manage inflation and exchange rates
To issue a country’s currency
To set targets and monitor economic data while they implement special tools.
One of the special tools that is used by the central bank is Interest/bank rates adjustments. When the Central Bank sees a need to hike or cut their rates, they simply do so.
Why Do Central Banks Cut Interest Rates?
To encourage borrowing : When the Interest Rates of a country are cut, it also means that the people who are borrowing from the banks will be paying less Interest on their loans. That will then encourage consumers and even big companies to borrow for spending and bigger investments.
To make saving less attractive: When the return on savings are lower, most people would opt for spending money than holding on to it.
To weaken the currency: When the currency is weak, the country’s exports become more competitive and their imports more expensive which also encourages consumers to buy local because of the exchange rates.
To lower Mortgage loans: When mortgage loan holders pay less interest on their existing loans, they may be left with more money and that should increase consumer spending in the country.
Why Do Central Banks Hike Their Interest Rates?
When the economy is growing at a rate that may lead to hyperinflation (monetary inflation occurring at a very high rate) that is when the Central Bank hikes the county’s interest rate.
To make saving and investing more attractive: When the returns on savings and investments are higher, it encourages more people to save or invest.
To increase the value of the country’s currency: When the country’s currency value is higher, it attracts foreign investors to invest in the country.
When the pandemic (Covid 19) hit global economies, all Central Banks embarked on a rate cutting spree. Now that all economies are recovering, Central Banks are on a rate hiking spree. Every country is trying to secure investors. The sad thing about all these rate hikes is that whose who qualified and took loans during rate cuts are now paying more interest due to current higher Interest Rates.
Why Do We (Traders) Care?
The biggest factor that shifts the price in the Forex markets is the Interest Rate changes set by the Central Banks. The changes made by the Central Banks in their rates are the indirect response to other indicators/economic data released right throughout the month. As a trader, it is very important to understand what moves the markets and how to take advantage of that.
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Check out the latest episode on my Podcast titled “Why you should not ignore fundamentals in trading“. To read this content on the GO, download the App on Google PlayStore. Below is the table of 8 major central bank’s current Interest Rates. There’s still more rate hikes expected and these figures will change soon. These are the ones that I personally trade. I have excluded emerging markets.
Should you wish to learn how to trade interest rates, read a monetary policy statement and understand what it means to the economy and how it affects currencies and stocks, send me a WhatsApp on +27 78 144 6851 to request a quote on this course. Thank you for stopping by, I hope you found value in this post. If you did, please kindly share with as many people as possible.
Hello readers and subscribers, welcome to today’s post. Choosing a lot size should be based on the size of the account which is the trading capital. When you have decided on the lot size/volume, your next step is to ensure that you stick to it as long as your trading capital is still the same. It is much easier to implement these principles when you view your trading account as a business and not just a cash cow. I have published an episode on my podcast on this topic, you can listen to it HERE. Below are the 3 reasons why you should not increase your lot size.
1. You Are Too Confident.
I used to do this one a lot. I would increase my lot size when I felt more confident about a particular trade. A lot of traders do this as well. One would increase the lot size when they feel that they are sure that the market would go a certain way. That is a very dangerous way of thinking because when it comes to the markets, we are never sure and we cannot control what happens in the markets. The good thing though is that we can always control ourselves. By all means, never increase your lot size based on how you feel.
2. Your Account Has A Draw-Down.
A Draw-Down means you have lost some money in your account. Say you started your account with $1 000 and you have lost $100 and you are now left with $900, you account has a 10% draw-down. You have no business increasing your lot size when you have lost some money. Revenge trading is very dangerous. Never trade with the aim of regaining your lost money.
If your increase your lot size after a draw-down, you are not different from someone who just lost an income but instead of moving to a smaller house while they find ways to make an income, they instead plan to move to a bigger house where they will be required to pay more, it really doesn’t make sense. You do not upgrade until your finances are upgraded. By all means, never increase your lot size after a draw-down.
3. You Have Reached Your Daily Target.
Reaching daily targets is very nice but should not be a reason to increase your lot size. As much as minding your daily target is good, try not to focus more on what you can achieve daily but rather pay more attention on closing your books on a monthly basis because days are not the same and sometimes there are days when there won’t be any trading opportunities, you don’t want to be discouraged because of that. It also doesn’t mean that you will never reach your monthly target if you don’t reach your daily targets. The best way to measure your progress is at the end of the month. By all means, never increase your lot size just because you have reached your daily target.
When Exactly Should You Increase Your Lot Size?
You can only increase your lot size when your trading account has grown. Only then, does it make sense to adjust your lot size. Even when you do, try not to increase by a lot but just a little bit. I have published a more detailed audio version of this post on my podcast and you can listen to it HERE.
Thank you so much for stopping by and reading this post. For notifications on new publications, you can subscribe. Please kindly share it with your peers and help me reach as many people as possible who may benefit from this information. If you want to read my blog posts on the go, you can download my App on Google Play Store and have these articles at your fingertips.
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