09:50am (CET)  ~  After a very late night yesterday I’ve had a bit of lie in this morning, and after breakfast it’s off to Calpe for some shopping to fill the fridge and wine cellar. Then a cycle ride up to Guadalest to clear my head before lunch.

The markets yesterday were dominated I suppose by the Debt Ceiling problem in the U.S. which partly caused the large drop on the open of the New York stock exchange, but as the reality of it sunk in, the main U.S. indexes came back to end only slightly down on the day.  This stalemate in Congress also hurt the U.S. dollar which lost 30 pips against the Euro and we also experienced a down day in the value of Gold as the price hit a resistance point on the 20 & 50 period moving average. More downward movement today ?

14:10pm  ~  Well I was going next door to join my neighbour for lunch but I turned on my MT4 charts on here in the study 15 minutes ago and as a result I am now in a ‘short’ position on Gold.  There’s nothing much else on the charts so I will just watch this trade carefully and make my apologies to Dieter next door.

15:15pm  ~  I am out of my Gold trade with very quick +293 pip profit. The market shot down very quickly and I was in fairly near the beginning of the move.  I am going to carry on with some emailing – plus I have two Skype calls booked between now and 4pm.  I am playing tennis with my neighbour later on.  For a small wager.

18:05pm  ~  My tennis match is at 7 o’clock so I’ll watch my S&P500 chart until then just to see if there are any “Trade With A Day Job” trades – as I’ve said previously I’m not that worried about trading every day but if I do have a trade I can send the details over to new students of the system so they can see the strategy in action – for educational purposes.

18:35pm  ~  Well that was blooming quick – I had a long trade opportunity come up and within a few minutes I hit my 20 pip target as the S&P500 shot up a couple of minutes ago.  Off for the match now, then dinner at the Yacht Club afterwards.

Daily Target Reached ?  YES (+313 pips)         I traded for just over an hour this afternoon.

10:45am  (EST)  ~  No market update today as I’m still away on a long-weekend break, but we’re going down to the house at Altea later this afternoon, so I will report back if I manage to do any trading this evening.

18:00pm (EST)  ~  We’ve just got in and for some relaxation I am going to turn on my MT4 charts on and see what opportunities I can find on this last trading day of the month.

18:40pm (EST) ~  I am in the market with a ‘long’ position on the S&P500 with my ‘evening’ trading system. Currently at minus 2 pips but we’ll let it develop a bit longer.

19:25pm (EST)  ~  I am out of my trade as I’ve been advised that we’re out now for some supper, so I ended up with a profit of +50 pips.

Daily Target Reached ?   YES (+50 pips)    I traded for 1.5 hours this evening.

07:45am  ~  I am up early this morning as I’ve admin work to do and three Skype calls before lunch and then we’re off for a weekend away in Barcelona later this afternoon. I have already been for a quick 10 mile cycle ride so I’m now at my desk with a few favourite charts open.

On the markets yesterday the U.S. Dow Jones 30 Index gained in value for the first day in six after the government reported that unemployment claims fell close to their lowest level in six years. We also saw encouraging news from some big retailers after the Consumer Comfort Index rose for the third straight week boosting the stock market. The Dow rose 55 points to close at 15328.30 – he S&P500 also finished up.

Long overdue, the WTI Crude Oil prices broke a string of five bearish sessions bouncing back 56 cents to $102.84 a barrel. It has done that despite a weaker US dollar which usually puts pressure on energy prices. Most probably, it was likely to have been bargain hunter traders who find the idea that crude oil could drop below $100 per barrel a bit hard to stomach.  The Gold price had a second day stuck in a narrow channel, we need either good news or bad to get it going again into a definite direction, although my charts seem to suggest a drop down to the $1300 support level may be on the cards in the short term.

08:25am  ~ Well my Friday trading session is under way already, the S&P500 gave me a signal with one of the trendFX strategies a short while ago, and I’m in the market with a ‘short’ position.

10:55am  ~  A few minutes ago I came out of my S&P500 trade, the price seems to have slowed down slightly so 46 pips in profit will do me nicely !  Bit of shopping (& lunch) now and then off to Stansted Airport at 4pm.

Daily Target Reached ?  YES (+46 pips)      I traded for three hours this morning

I receive emails every week from budding traders asking this question.

So what can you expect once you’ve downloaded my “Trade With A Day Job” beginner’s trading system ?

Are you actually going to learn to trade ?  Is it really that easy ?

Well, within minutes you’ll have downloaded your 73-page trading system manual and it will take you around 30 minutes to read through it the first time. I then recommend you read it a second time just so everything thing is familiar.  Once you’ve completed that stage it’s time to open a demo trading account, and I give you a choice and also recommend the one I believe to be best for beginners, and this can be done 24hrs a day so it doesn’t matter if you’re starting in the middle of the night. Opening a demo account will take 5 minutes at the most and then you’re all set.

I suggest that you spend an hour or so playing around with all the features of the demo account together with their charts and trading platform so that you are quite familiar with it, and then it’s time to configure your own charts.  This stage will take a couple of minutes as the chart you’re going to use it very clear simple. After the chart is organised you just save it so you can use each evening for your trading. Once the chart is set-up you are then ready to begin trading, and this strategy works in the evening so you’ll need to wait until the system start time of 17:00hrs.

A customer (Neville) wrote this email below describing his first few days with the system (click on image to enlarge)

When your first trading session arrives, usually a day or two after you first purchase the system manual, all you have to do is fire up your demo trading platform, bring up a chart of the S&P500 with my settings already saved on it, and watch for two separate occurrences.  When you spot them happening at the same time, you then have a potential trade set-up. You just need to watch for the price to hit a trigger level and if it does, you’re in a trade – simple as that.  The system has a target of just 20 pips, so as soon as the price hits that level, you’re out of the market and your trading session is over for the day.

So that’s what’s involved in getting started with my beginner’s evening trading system, and if you have any questions just drop me an email here

09:15am  ~  More meetings with builders and planning officials this morning, but I’ll hopefully get some time in front of the charts as well later today.

Yesterday the markets here and in the U.S. were still on the gentle decline that started last week, and problems with the debt ceiling in America will keep and bulls at bay for the time being. News of a build up in U.S. oil stockpiles yesterday drove the price of crude down and the decline in the Brent Oil price gave me a lovely ‘short’ trade in the evening. Gold ended the day up as investors look to park funds away from the main markets due to the turmoil caused by arguments regarding the U.S. debt ceiling. Whenever there’s any sign of trouble for investors (whether private or institutions) Gold is seen as a “safe-haven”.

12:45pm  ~  Right – back home now so into the study for some emailing and chart watching. Later on this afternoon I will need a cycle ride as well !

14:00pm  ~  I’m in a ‘long’ trade on the S&P500 as I write this and the position is running at a 15 pip loss at the moment.

15:40pm  ~  There seems to be a stalling in the S&P500 price rise, so I have come out of my long position in the index – and switched off my charts for the afternoon. The trade has given me a profit of +47 pips.  Off for a cycle ride in 20 minutes with some friends and then over to Walberswick at 7pm for a poker evening.

If you’re going to do any type of trading, even if it’s just for a few hours a day you MUST have a fitness regime. There’s too much sitting down with this job so you need some sort of exercise and with cycling you’re keeping fit & seeing the countryside as well.

Daily Target Reached ?   YES (+47 pips)      I traded for 3 hours this afternoon.

07:40am  ~  I’m up relatively early this morning as I have a meeting with architects and builders later, so I want to get some ‘office’ admin work done before I go down the road to meet with them. I’ll watch a few charts as well while I’m here in the study – and also have two Skype calls in a minute with student traders in Australia.

On the markets yesterday US stocks continued to head south led by financial sector (Banks etc.) as the optimism which has supported this September rally so far looks to be fading. The economic data was also weaker than expected with U.S. manufacturing PMI coming in at 52.8 versus forecast of 54.2. A few statements from Regional Federal Reserve Presidents failed to impress the market and the Dow Jones ended the day 103 points down at 15,394.  My favourite index (S&P500) also ended lower for the same reasons.

For the third straight session, the U.S. Crude Oil price slumped, losing $1.50 to $103.34 a barrel. It is part of the process of discounting the danger premium represented by the Syrian potential conflict as I have mentioned previously. As the US and Russia appear set to solve the issue via negotiations rather than an all out military attack, the downside pressure on the energy prices will be hard to ignore.

Gold stopped a two-day slide in value yesterday on speculation that demand may strengthen before China’s Golden week holiday as lower prices should lure buyers into the market. The yellow metal rose to $1328.63, up 48 points since the start of the play.  However gold’s main direction will continue to come from cues on what the Fed may do with stimulus.

08:30am  ~  Latest news is I’ve done my two Skype calls and I’m in a ‘long’ trade on the EUR/USD chart.  I was asked a couple of times yesterday about typical stop-loss amounts on my trades, and although it’s hard to generalise I can tell you that the risk on this trade was around 12 pips including the spread, not a lot for working off a 30 minute chart.

11:20am  ~  I am now out of my earlier EUR/USD trade with a 36 pip profit, it was a UTB strategy trade from the “Any-Time” collection.   The meeting was delayed so I am off out now for an hour or so, and then some lunch at The Boardwalk on the Pier and 3 Skype calls early afternoon.

Here’s a chart screenshot I took of my EUR/USD trade using my UTB “pattern” a few seconds after I came out of the position.

Incidently, here’s an email I received from a customer last week regarding the UTB strategy

Click on above image to enlarge

21:15pm  ~  I did manage to trade my evening “Trade With A Day Job” strategy while here in the kitchen cooking supper for four friends – my first trade kicked off just on 6:30pm and was stopped out shortly afterwards at -21 pips and my second one did slightly better and I came out a few minutes ago with +33 pips. I also had a trendFX strategy 3 “short” trade on my Brent Oil chart and came out earlier with +78 pips

Daily Target Reached ? YES (+147 pips)

07:25am  ~  I’ve got a day here at the cottage catching up on emails and Skype calls with new traders. I shall be watching my charts as well for any potential trades. But first I’m off for a cycle ride along the beach promenade and north towards Kessingland for the next few hours.

The markets yesterday had mixed fortunes, the London FTSE100 had a down day with futures trading after hours giving it a brief boost due to U.S. markets. Across the water, the main two American indexes also suffered from the bears being in charge, although there was some bargain hunting after lunch which resulted in a small late rise in prices but not enough for them to finish ahead overall.

This continued fall in the U.S. equity markets was led by the financial sector as the optimism which supported this month’s rally so far looks to be ending. The economic data was also weaker than expected with manufacturing PMI coming in lower than forecast. A few statements from Fed Regional Presidents failed to impress the market and the Dow Jones ended the day 103 points down at 15,394. The S&P500 suffered a similar fall.

European markets are set to open lower this morning as the Fed’s stimulus tapering uncertainty continues to keep traders risk appetite in check. Yesterday’s dovish speakers gave a conflicting assessment of the future of Fed tapering than what Bullard did on Friday, leaving markets even more confused, and this is never good for the markets. The only thing that got traders nodding in agreement was when Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher said that doing nothing would hurt the Feds credibility. With little in the way of major economic data on the horizon and another 2 opportunities for Fed members to confuse the markets even further, markets are likely to continue drifting lower for the next few days.

On a brighter note, Gold rose on speculation that demand may strengthen before China’s ‘Golden Week’ holiday as lower prices would lure more buyers than is usual at this time of the year.  However Gold’s main direction will continue to come from cues on what the Fed may do with their stimulus package.

10:30am   ~  I got back here 30 minutes ago and now getting on with emails plus some chart watching. I got into a Gold ‘short’ position 20 minutes ago and at the moment it around break even, so I will report back later with its progress.

14:20pm  ~  I’m going to have a late lunch break now, my architect has arrived for a meeting so we’ll head down to The Crown for an hour.  I have just closed off my Gold trade with a profit of +76 pips and I will fill you in in with news on the evening trading session later.

21:40pm  ~  It’s now time to retire to the Lord Nelson for a late supper. I sat down here just after 6pm to watch for trades with my evening system but despite a couple of close shaves, there’s been no worthwhile opportunities tonight.

Daily Target Reached ?  YES  (+76 pips)   I traded the late morning session plus just over three hours this evening

09:10am  ~  Quick shopping trip to Bluewater in Kent this morning, then back home via a trader friend’s house (Steve) in Sevenoaks.

The markets on Friday were dominated by news in the U.S. that the gradual curtailing of the stimulus programme by the Federal reserve will start soon after all. It was suggested a week or so ago that there was no plans in the near future for the Fed to stop their tapering but the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard let slip on Thursday that an October taper was still on the cards. This has thrown the markets into a bit of confusion and on Friday we saw a second day of losses on the Dow Jones and S&P500 indexes.

It was a different story with Gold and oil prices though, as (fairly) good news helps their respective values to fall, and that’s what we witnessed with both commodities. Oil traders felt that increasing Libyan oil production coupled with the easing of tensions in Syria meant that the price was still too high and we had a drop of WTI down to the $104.75 level.  Gold also staged a decline to $1325 by the end of Friday’s session as investors at the moment do not need a safe-haven.

20:30pm  ~  Just arrived home so too late for any trading, I spent the afternoon clay-pigeon shooting in Steve’s paddock.

11:05am  ~  This week it would seem that a lot of my students have nominated their Gold trade from yesterday, a position I took as well, so here is my chart screenshot. With the high value of Gold over the past month, the profit-takers have moved in, and my trendFX “beginner’s trading strategy provided a chance to join in and take advantage of the large drop in value yesterday. My trade managed +214 pips and students got between 100 pips and 250 pips.

Here’s my chart screenshot of my trade.

My trading this week has given me +395 pips

11:15am  ~  After getting in at 4am this morning after a family medical emergency, I decided that I was going to have a bit of a lie-in today. I’ve just got down here to the kitchen and switched on this laptop, and I’m going to watch a few charts before the U.S. open and get on with some emails as well.

On the markets yesterday the UK ‘s FTSE100 index hit an important resistance level at 6650 and moved back slightly. Meanwhile over the water in the U.S. the Dow Jones hit an all time high in early trading only to retreat back quite heavily, with the S&P500 following suit. This sharp reversal also gave me a few trading opportunities yesterday. Gold traded in a narrow band looking for some direction after the spectacular rise in value on Wednesday, and this morning it seems like some profits are being realised on this last day of the trading week. Brent Oil also had a day of price drops and on my chart their seems to have been a sharp spike in the WTI crude price early yesterday during the Asian session – I shall check some of my other charting platforms to see if this was just a technical error.

12:45pm  ~  Well, I’m in the market with my trendFX “Beginners” strategy, on my Gold chart. It’s getting very close to the start of the U.S. Friday trading session so although there are some other potential trade set-ups about to trigger, I’ll stay out of the market.

13:10pm  ~  I’m going to stay in this Gold position for the time being but I have moved my stop to break even now in case there’s an adverse reaction as the U.S. starts early trading in 15 minutes.

16:15pm  ~  Just got out of the ‘short’ Gold trade with a nice +214 pip profit.  I’ve got some friends coming over at 7pm for a barbeque so time for a shower/shave/shampoo.

18:55pm  ~  While I was plodding around in the kitchen doing some prep for tomnight I took a quick trade with my “Trade With A Day Job” system and came out a short while ago with the normal 20 pip profit.

Daily Target Reached ?  YES (+234 pips)     I traded on and off from late morning today.