Listen to analysts or make my own analysis?

There a million analysts out there and for the most part they all say the same thing but just word it differently. I want to know if I should listen to these guys or if I should sit back, shut them out, and try to make my own analysis. Thanks.

Analysts are good to pay attention to because that is what a majority of traders are following. This doesn�t mean that you have to trade with them but by reading their analysis you can get a general idea of what the market is �feeling� at the time.

is there a good place where you can read stuff by analysts to get a feel for the market? like where they talk about what they think the market will feel about a future news report?

i think babypips forexpedia a list of a few people to watch out for. a while ago there was a resource section on this site with some good forex news an analyst sites. right now i like to check out forextv and fxstreet.

its always a good idea to listen to the experts because they are the ones most traders follow but its also a good idea to learn how to analyze to market yourself. dont have blind trust in what the “experts” say. you should be able to look at the same data and say “yeah, i agree with you” or “no, you are crazy”.

i hope some more people can give some more good resources to look through. i would like know for myself also. anyone?

I�m too new on this, still very cautious with my money, and I read a lot. But I have to admit, sometimes I�ve done something just out of instinct and then made some money, but I�ve also lost some… I try to follow advice and see what happens. And I also have a very good friend who works as an investor banker, with deals of minimum 10 million dollars! Of course she laughs (and me too) when I tell her I want to trade 5 thousand! (But I�m still very careful with my money!)

I think it depends mostly on trading comfortably. If you are open to the fact that you make make money with the help of anaylsts do it. As with anything in forex, if you lack belief in it or yourself a negative outcome is sure to arise. For me I trust them like I trust the weatherman, even though they predict clear skies I always bring an umbrella.

As well you should be - most likely your IB buddy is managing OPM (Other People’s Money), while you’re managing your money. Besides - it’s a lot harder getting 5k to grow into something than getting 1m to go places.

Good hunting!

/A

Following exclusively the advice of analysts is not a good idea in my opinion. By all means use them as a means of confirming your own ideas and trades, but do not trade based on them alone.

The reason is that if you truly don’t understand the basis of their decision making and just start following them blindly, you will not be confident enough to persist during a drawdown.

As an experiment, you could go back and read up on all the past recommendations of your favorite analysts. See how they did and it might help you gain confidence in them.

I also thought it wouldbe interesting for you all to know that some of the best “gurus” are right on not much more than 50% of their ideas. For instance, there was a study done on Jim Cramer to see how accurate his views were. The study concluded that he was around the 50-50 mark. Bottom line is that even if you follow these analysts you always have to understand that it is not the prediction in and of itself that will help you but rather your position size, money management and exits that ultimately counts. I’m not sure analysts help that much with exits

it all takes time and practice. After a while, economic reports will become a second language.