E-mini Charts – 2 Consecutive Winning Days

Take a look at these two back-to-back days of E-mini charts using the Atlas Line and ATO 2. Using 5-min charts, these two trading indicators can display signals that confirm one another. In many cases, the signals will appear before a big move occurs. This allows you to get into a potentially winning position ahead of time and ride the market up or down into success territory. If the trades goes against you, there’s a chance you could get out at a smaller profit, breakeven, or even a smaller loss than the safety net catastrophic stop. The included live training helps you identify the trades as well as understand what to do when a signal occurs. John Paul focuses on ways to potentially minimize risk. Let’s take a look at both charts to see what occurred…

Two Days, Two E-mini Charts

December 12, 2017 E-mini Charts: Indicator 2

If you followed the rules, it’s possible that you could have walked away with +17 ticks. TheAtlas Line produced its first signal around 9:55 a.m. US/Eastern (New York time). It was a long trade, which is a prediction that the market will go up. The real-time market conditions allowed for a profit target of around +5 ticks. After that trade, about three Atlas Line Strength signals plotted (the small “S” marks). Later, the ATO 2 and more Strength signals appeared. Both systems were in agreement the market would rise. They were correct!

December 11, 2017
E-mini Charts: Indicator 1

John Paul believes that similar signals from two or more trading systems may be a better predictor of anticipated price movement. Dec. 11 was another day when two systems agreed. In fact, the systems fire off signals around the same time. The ATO 2 trade came first, resulting in a possible +7 ticks. Around 10 a.m., a potential +6 tick winner appeared. The systems were also in agreement there were no trades later when the market began to chop around.

Trading Tips and Tricks – Trading Challenge Tests Multiple Strategies

DayTradeToWin.com received many emails asking when this video would be posted. Many traders attended and asked a number of great questions. On occasion, John Paul holds webinars such as these, where he publicly demonstrates his trading methods in real-time conditions. He also shares a number of trading tips and tricks. In these videos, see how the Atlas Line, Roadmap, ATO 2, and Trade Scalper faired in the E-mini S&P 500 (ES). Recently, the Atlas Line has a produced a number of great trades. In fact, John Paul showed what taking a live trade would be like based on a live Atlas Line signal. Another winning trade was placed later using the Trade Scalper.

Part 1:

00:00-13:30: Understanding the free ABC trading method
13:31-14:50: Atlas Line review of recent trades
14:51-16:56: Roadmap, Atlas Line, ATO 2 and Trade Scalper trading review
16:57-17:56: Using the ATO 2 and Roadmap together
17:57-20:14: Real-time Atlas Line winning trade

Part 2:

• 00:00-02:34: A second real-time Atlas Line signal
• 02:35-06:39: How to possibly minimize risk using trade management
• 06:40-07:28: Configuring the Trade Scalper for the best performance
• 07:29-11:28: Questions from traders about the bar timer and Atlas Line
• 11:29-13:26: Using the Atlas Line and Trade Scalper together on a 1-min chart
• 13:27-19:08: News events + ATO 2 trades
• 19:09-22:39: Real-time Trade Scalper winning trade
• 22:40-27:09: Spotting good volatility in the markets

Trading Tips and Tricks

With many of the trading courses sold by DayTradeToWin, you receive a bonus. For example, the ATO 2 includes the bonus “How to Trail a Stop” video and the ABC indicator (which automates the method seen in the first part of the video above). The Trade Scalper comes with the X-5 strategy, which focuses on finding moves that are based on manipulation. The included live training teaches you how to combine the strategies to find the potential winning opportunities in the markets. The goal is to be a consistently successful trader.

Trading Challenge Webinar With Atlas Line

Many traders attended this live webinar to see the Atlas Line, Roadmap, ATO 2, and Trade Scalper put to the test in a trading challenge. Luckily, the webinar was recorded and can be watched below. The presentation comes in two installments. We will post the second one when it becomes available. In this video, you will see:

How to find ABC trades on your chart by breaking the day into three sections
Recent Atlas Line chart reviews – multiple days at a glance
Live signals start, featuring the Atlas Line, Roadmap, ATO 2, and Trade Scalper
A 5-min chart that uses the ATO 2 and Roadmap levels
John Paul places a real-time sim trade based on Atlas Line signals

The ABC method works by dividing the trading day (as shown on an E-mini S&P chart) into an A, B, and C period. The A period is for the first 2.5 hours, extended from 9:30 a.m. EST to 12:00 p.m. EST. The B period is for the next 2.5 hours, from 12:00 p.m. EST to 2:30 p.m. EST (1430) The C period is for 2:30 p.m. (1430) until market close. Using NinjaTrader’s drawing tools, you can draw shaded regions that extend to the highest and lowest price points within each period. When price breaks out of the shaded region (such as two candles closing higher or lower than A’s region), you may be able to find a winning entry opportunity. The ABC software we provide as either part of the ATO 2 (as a bonus) or the 8-Week Mentorship Program automates the drawing of the shaded regions and the signals.

Atlas Line and ABC Working Together

Take a look at how the Atlas Line worked with the ABC strategy on Dec. 4. The Atlas Line produced a short signal earlier in the day at 2662. The angled, blue dashed Atlas Line advised for short trades throughout the day, as price regularly stated below the blue line. The ABC short signals confirmed this direction and allowing for a couple of winning opportunities.

There were a number of great questions asked by attendees, so be sure to watch the entire video and the forthcoming second portion.

Consumer Spending Impacts Futures Markets

Are these long trends in the market the result of optimistic holiday consumer spending expectations? Watch the trading video to see what happened on November 21, 2017 in the E-mini S&P. The January Effect rules confirmed a long (buy) trade was occurring. Remember, a retracement to the 50% level or exceeding past highs can trigger the long trade. The January Effect is not software based – you have to manually look at a daily chart and find the trades with your own eyes. When you switch to a 5-minute chart and use a signal software indicator like the Atlas Line, you can look for complimentary long signals. If these signals match the trend up, then John Paul believes you have a solid indication to buy the market (go long).

Not every trade will be a winner. There’s risk in trading and it’s important to know what to expect. John Paul recommends only trading with money you’ve set aside for high-risk investments (i.e. don’t day trade your rent). One of the great things about DayTradeToWin.com is that they help provide you with a full practice environment that encourages simulated trading. In live sim trading mode with NinjaTrader, you can get a feel for how the methods work without taking on any financial risk. If the results look good to you over a period of time, you may then want to consider trading with a live, funded account. For some traders, this may take a couple weeks. For others, a couple of months. It’s all up to you, how much time you have to practice, and how quickly you want to take it.

Consumer Spending Reports

As a reminder, the market can be rather slow around major holidays (such as Thanksgiving). Expect today (the Friday after Thanksgiving, aka “Black Friday”) to be slow. Perhaps next week, with the result of customer purchasing reports, we will see higher than usual volatility. Black Friday and “Cyber Monday” may be used to initially estimate consumer spending patterns for the rest of the holiday season. Within the last few months, Forbes reported that consumer spending over Black Friday weekend is forecast to grow by 47% year over year. RetailMeNot, possibly the largest coupon website, reported that over 50% of its users intended to make a purchase on Cyber Monday.

Profit Target for Trending Markets

The recent video that was published shows how the Atlas Line and January Effect can be used together to find winning long trades. We did not show how easy it can be to place these types of trades with a profit target and stop loss. That’s where this video comes in. It’s the same trade as yesterday, only John Paul explains how you could have taken the trade using the DOM. He used a regular market order soon after the signal appeared. He had an ATM Strategy preconfigured, which automatically placed the profit target and stop loss at preset values. Furthermore, Chart Trader allowed for the green profit target and red stop loss line to appear on the chart. These visuals help guide your trading.

As demonstrated in the video, trading is all about catching the big moves before they occur. Many indicators focus on complex interpretations of price behavior. They are difficult to trade because you are supposed to make a quick decision of what route to take. With the Atlas Line, you are taught how to look at the ATR (Average True Range) to calculate both your profit target and stop loss. From there, it’s trade management until your profit target or stop loss is hit. Four different stop losses are taught. If your profit target is not hit, you take whatever stop loss comes first.

Profit Target – What Happens Next?

John Paul expects more bullish trending activity to occur as we near the end of 2017. Some traders cannot afford to hold positions overnight or for multiple days. This is where the Atlas Line is useful, as it can potentially identify trends intraday, where most day traders typically do their trading. If you have the Atlas Line, January Effect, and ATO 2 all signaling “go long,” wouldn’t you feel better taking the trade? The best way to get all the courses and software is through the eight-week coaching program, Mentorship. A new Mentorship class begins February 22, 2018. All courses and software are included with lifetime licenses. To sign up and get the materials early, click here for the Mentorship page.

Trading Predictions – January Effect & Atlas Line

Right now, it looks like the E-mini S&P is on its way up. John Paul says this with confidence because of his belief in the January Effect and its trading predictions. The January Effect is a predictive method for the direction of price throughout the year. Although there are no performance guarantees, John Paul believes in the method’s consistency. Because 2017 is considered an “up year” by the technique, traders can look for long (buy) trades when price begins to retrace to previous highs. This may seem difficult to understand, so take a moment to watch the video.

A new high was recently reached and price dropped soon after. Now that it seems price is moving back up again, we can use NinjaTrader’s Fibonacci tool to assist trading predictions and find the halfway point from the recent low to the recent high. This 50% level is the threshold for the entry. Once price surpasses that level, it’s time to look for entries. Some traders prefer to wait until price rises above the recent high, believing this serves for additional confirmation.

The January Effect says that 2017 will close higher. This means that price may continue to rise throughout November and December. It’s likely that price will also drop at times, which only sets up opportunities for additional January Effect trades.

Atlas Line Trading Predictions

If you are looking for intraday moves based on the January Effect, consider using the Atlas Line. The Atlas Line produces signals and estimates where the market will head on a given day. If the January Effect is telling you to go long and the Atlas Line is comparable, then perhaps it is wise to follow the compounding signals. At about two minutes into the video, you can see how the Atlas Line called out a nice big move before it occurred. Will we see more trending patters to the long side? We will have to listen closely to what the market tells us.

Interested in learning more? We have another eight-week trading school session starting January 21, 2017. All of our techniques are taught. You will get all the courses and software. Click here for details.

Day Trading Indicators – Atlas Line’s 5 Winners

Not all day trading indicators are the same. You can somewhat classify the Atlas Line from DayTradeToWin.com as an indicator, but it has qualities that make it a comprehensive trading system. For example, you’re taught how to manage each trade: profit targets, stop losses, and how to ride each trade out. You’re taught how to validate market conditions in order to know whether trading is too risky and if you should stay out. The indicator is also more forward-looking than others, meaning that its signals are meant to be used for the near future instead of constant optimization from past inputs. Truly, the Atlas Line is in its own league.

Let’s look at this chart and trading video recently published by DayTradeToWin.com. What’s the first thing that catches you? For me, I notice how price chopped back and forth in a channel. If I was hoping for a trend or trying to pick tops and bottoms, I would have probably found a significant loss. The Atlas Line appears to have been successful in finding opportune moments for its entry signals. Just look at all of them. Only one of them appears to be a losing trade. That’s not bad – five out of six were winners. Note that your live trading results may vary. If market conditions were exactly as shown and you followed the strategy perfectly, you should have won around +24 ticks, which is about $300 USD, before any broker or other trading fees. Not bad compared to the other day trading indicators that are out there.

Day Trading Indicators & Trade Management

What can be said about each of these trades? Well, the profit targets are all at one point or more per trade. When you look at the ATR (Average True Range), you can see what that is. The ATR reached two points earlier in the day then dropped later on. This is common behavior in the E-mini. You see, the Atlas Line uses a dynamic value for the profit target and stop loss. If market conditions are good, you will pretty much use the current ATR value as the profit target. And for the stop loss, you will double the ATR value. That is the largest stop (the catastrophic stop). The goal, of course, is to get out at profit. If a loss occurs, you hope to get out at a smaller profit, breakeven, or a smaller loss (using whatever stop strategy comes into play first).

Trading Holidays Coming Soon in 2017

Day Trading 2018 With 2017 coming to a close and holidays up ahead, it’s important to be aware of upcoming trading holidays. The CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange) website has all of the information for upcoming closures. Did you know that the market will close early on two consecutive days for the Thanksgiving holiday? Will you be able to trade on Veteran’s Day? Let’s take a look at what the CME says. The hours posted here apply to CME equity, interest rate, FX, energy, metals, and DME markets. This includes the E-mini S&P.

Firstly, the times below are provided in US/Eastern (ET) format. On Nov. 5, clocks in the U.S. will “fall back” an hour, making you feel like you had an extra hour of sleep and more daylight at the end of the day. In effect, US/Eastern time switches from GMT-4 to GMT-5 (or UTC-4 to UTC-5, if you prefer that labeling).

Also, note that on some holidays, the markets reopen in the evening the same day. Generally, market activity is much slower around big holidays. It’s probably best that you stay out and wait for normal conditions to return. Use an ATR with a period value of four.

Additional Trading Holidays

The next major holiday is Veteran’s Day, Nov. 10. The markets will be open normal hours. No closures or odd market hours.

After that, Thanksgiving Day falls on Thursday, Nov. 23. On Thanksgiving Day, the markets close early at 1:00 p.m. ET. On the following day (Nov. 23, a Friday), the markets will also close early, but at 1:15 p.m. ET.

Next, we have December. As you probably expect, the markets are closed Christmas Day (Dec. 25). The markets reopen Christmas Day at 6:00 p.m.

New Year’s Eve is a Sunday. New Year’s Day, Jan. 1, 2018, falls on a Monday and the markets will be closed. Markets reopen at 6:00 p.m. that day.

This trading calendar for 2017 should fill in the blanks for any additional days.

24-Hour Time Basics for Day Trading Charts

If you’re going to be trading, you’ll probably encounter the 24-hour time format. Many folks in the U.S. are not familiar with reading 24-hour time. Instead, we frequently use regular time, which may seem even crazier. Regular time splits the day into two 12-hour sections. In each section, we count from 12:00 to 1:00, then from 1:00 to 12:00. To someone from outer space, regular time may seem more difficult than the 24-hour format. After all, in the 24-hour format, all you are doing is counting from 00:00 (midnight) to 24:00 (midnight again) for each hour of the day.

NinjaTrader uses 24-hour time for its charts. Currently, there is no way to get around that. Until you reach a point where 24-hour time is second-nature, you’ll have to learn how to do some mental math or memorization.

24-Hour Time Tips

There is no need to do any conversion, as 24-hour and regular times will be the same for times between 1 a.m. and noon, e.g. 1:00 on a 24-hour clock is 1:00 a.m. on a regular clock.
After 1 p.m. regular time, to get the regular time from a 24-hour time, subtract 12. For example, 19:30 – 12 = 7:30 p.m. regular time.
Confused if 00:00 and 24:00 are the same? You should be. Many 24-hour clocks consider this the same time (midnight).
Time zone conversion will still work the same way. Add or subtract the time difference as you normally would.

Want to learn how to read a 24-hour clock faster? Get a wristwatch that has both formats or change your smartphone’s time display. If you have more questions, check out this helpful website and the pictures below.

24-Hour Time Chart

Day Trading Strategies for Beginners & New Traders

Webinars are one of the best ways to get a feel for how well a person’s day trading strategies work in live conditions. Occasionally, DayTradeToWin holds live webinars to provide just that, as well as educate attendees on a variety of topics. Just recently, John Paul conducted a live webinar and showed his ATO 2, Trade Scalper, and Atlas Line trades to a room full of traders.

For gauging a market’s tradability, knowledge of the ATR (Average True Range) is essential. Set your trading platform’s ATR setting to 4. When the ATR is between two and four points on the chart, trading conditions are ideal. However, an ATR above 5 points or below 1 point means the market is too fast or too slow, respectively. Slow conditions are also apparent when many dojis or short candlesticks appear on minute-based charts. Keep in mind, the ATR is always looking back at the last 4 bars (using our recommended setting), so it is not an indication of future levels. Once you place a trade, you can continue to monitor the ATR and adapt your profit target and stop loss based on your ATR-based strategy.

Ever look at NinjaTrader’s SuperDOM and wonder what all those buying and selling numbers mean? In the webinar video, you can gain an understanding of this so-called Level II price data. For a historical interpretation, check out NinjaTrader’s Times & Sales window. Note that with most DayTradeToWin strategies, we avoid interpretation of buying and selling numbers. In the old days of trading, these numbers were more useful. High-frequency trading and other changes have made our price action approach different.

One of the great new features of NinjaTrader 8 is the ability to place MIT (Market If Touched) orders. Consider the literal interpretation of “Market If Touched.” One could say that if your order is touched by the current, fluctuating market price, then you enter the trade at market value. MIT orders are useful in preventing slippage, which is when a tick or more of potential profit is lost due to unfortunate market conditions. The webinar video also explains limit orders, stop orders, and other helpful order tips.

More Day Trading Strategies

John Paul also touches on the topic of front-running. If you Google that term, you’ll probably come up with an explanation of dirty tactic employed by unscrupulous brokers. That is not what John Paul refers to. Instead, his meaning refers to getting filled a tick ahead of the desired price. It’s a tick less of profit, but it can be the difference between having your stop loss hit. You probably would not want to front-run scalping trades, because you’re only going for a couple of ticks. It’s probably better to front-run in trades when you’re going for a point or more of profit.

Aside from the other day trading strategies, it’s also important that you stick around for the part where he discusses closing out trades. Of course, not every profit target will get hit. You should know how to manually close out a trade in order to reduce excessive loss. The DOM has two buttons designed for that purpose. Be sure to watch John Paul’s specific approach based on years of looking at the markets.