In this post I’ll cover two of my trades from May just gone, one winning trade and one cost of business. Let’s begin with the winning trade. Here’s the trade journal entry with all the details;
The trade was a long position on the DAX on May 15th at 15:10pm. Entry was 12995.3 and exit was 13151.4. I held the trade for 4 days and closed the trade for a +156.1 point profit [+2.3R] on May 20th on the Sunday evening open at 23:05pm. My stop on the trade was 70 pips and I risked 2.5% of my total account equity. Let’s look at the chart;
On the above chart the upward and downward arrows show the H1 bars that I entered and exited on. The horizontal bars show the exact entry and exit points.
Entry:
My system gave me an entry signal as momentum was building, so I got long. Although the overnight low was taken the next morning, price swiftly rebounded (As is often the case) so I held the position.
Exit:
I exited using discretion 4 days later, to re-buy following a gap close.
Next, the cost of business;
The trade was a short position on the DAX on May 25th at 11:55am. Entry was 12987.5 and exit was 13004.4. I held the trade for 3 days and closed the trade for a -2.7 point cost of business [-0.3R] on May 28th on at 08:00am. My stop on the trade was 80 pips and I risked 3% of my total account equity. Let’s look at the chart;
If there was ever an example of cutting a losing trade quickly, this is it. Price initially went largely in my favour, but then gapped higher over the weekend and although I’d usually play for a gap close, my exit signal presented itself and with the increase in volatility, I executed before the loss could potentially get out of hand.
Protecting account balance is crucial. If we run out of money in our account, we’re finished, so as soon as an exit signal presents itself I’m out. No guessing, no predictions.
Overall I’m happy with how I handled these trades. I made money, I executed well, followed my plan and when I deviated, the decision was backed up by data, not fear or greed.
Next trade…
