Better to go steady with one pair .. or play the field?

[4xStar]

As a new trader to forex (just over 3 months) I'd like to hear some opinions from those more experienced .. is it better to focus on one or two pairs and get to know them well, how they move, wait for their setups?

Or is it more advisable to be watching many pairs, learning their interrelationships .. i.e. when the euro goes up, the swissy generally moves completely opposite, so if you feel longing the euro is a good trade, then you may as well short the swissy as well and get a 2-for-1.

And when the jpy pairs are moving in the same direction, you can go long or short all 3 together for even more pips. What about the AUD and NZD pairs and all the cross pairs? Do you miss out by not paying attention to them?

I started by just watching the 4 majors, then added the eur-jpy and gbp-jpy, then when I saw others making great pips trading the aud/jpy, nzd/jpy, gbp/chf etc I tried watching them as well.

Then I just got dizzy.

Now I am thinking it may be better to just focus on one or two pairs and get to know their movements really well because especially if you catch the big moves, like the euro from 1.42 to 1.60 or the gbp-jpy that can move 500 pips in a week .. you can make all the pips you need without caring a fig about what is happening with 10 other pairs...

What do others think?

[Piphacker]

Originally Posted by 4xStar

As a new trader to forex (just over 3 months) I'd like to hear some opinions from those more experienced .. is it better to focus on one or two pairs and get to know them well, how they move, wait for their setups?

Or is it more advisable to be watching many pairs, learning their interrelationships .. i.e. when the euro goes up, the swissy generally moves completely opposite, so if you feel longing the euro is a good trade, then you may as well short the swissy as well and get a 2-for-1.

And when the jpy pairs are moving in the same direction, you can go long or short all 3 together for even more pips. What about the AUD and NZD pairs and all the cross pairs? Do you miss out by not paying attention to them?

I started by just watching the 4 majors, then added the eur-jpy and gbp-jpy, then when I saw others making great pips trading the aud/jpy, nzd/jpy, gbp/chf etc I tried watching them as well.

Then I just got dizzy.

Now I am thinking it may be better to just focus on one or two pairs and get to know their movements really well because especially if you catch the big moves, like the euro from 1.42 to 1.60 or the gbp-jpy that can move 500 pips in a week .. you can make all the pips you need without caring a fig about what is happening with 10 other pairs...

What do others think?

It's just depend's on your system. Your system must be acceptable by all pair's...Well i am trading with candlestick pattren , TL's , Channel's , & S/R Level's so i dont hesitate to enter in any pair...I am always seeking for my entry apportunity & waiting for singnal from my system & do my best to keep an eye on all pair's...
PipHacker!!!

[Yarcofin]

Personally...

I don't relate any currency to any other currency, I don't listen to news, etc.

So for me, from a purely technical standpoint, every pair's chart is unique... I don't really look at the pair, just the data.

So for me it doesn't matter if I focus on a single pair or 20 pairs. Typically I will focus on the major 6 only, but there have been a few weeks that I decided to do all 19 pairs I am able to access, and I ended up with about 4x the return than if I just traded the major 6.

If you can consistently pick out the signs of a good trend and act on it, it doesn't matter if you are trading 1 pair or 100. You're basically just speeding up the process.

The one major thing to worry about when trading more pairs is drawdown though.

[swordofrue]

I love Euro V.S. U.S. Dollar, and consequently it is where most of my success has occurred. So naturally it is the only pair I am trading currently. I am thinking long and hard before I add another pair. If anything it may be U.S. Dollar V.S. Japanese Yen and I think Ill keep it to those.

[JonnyFX]

Personally, I ignore all the news and all the economic events.
And I trade 13 pairs all with technical analysis only.

What you wish to do should develop after practice demo trading.
So, practice practice practice. Rest will eventually come naturally.

And over the years, I have simplified my trading. Dummified it greatly and it works. I only use trending, candlestick; looking only at Heiken Ashi Smoothed indicator.

[mastergunner99]

I've semi-automated my trading system, so I am able to trade 15 lower spread pairs with relative ease. I'm tempted to add more, but want to demo more of the exotics before I make that decision.

[mytwopips]

To me, the majors are all about the U.S. dollar. The dollar will move a pair more than the counter currency. So if you take two identical trades on different pairs you are basically just increasing your risk exposure. So if you are right, you are double right. If you are wrong, you are double wrong. How I like to play multiple currencies is on the trend dips. Buy a dip on one. Wait for a similar dip on another.

[TheRumpledOne]

"BEWARE THE MAN WHO HAS ONE GUN.... HE PRACTICES WITH IT?"

Which pair to trade? The one that gives you the best return for you money.

I like to trade USDJPY and GBPJPY because of the return I get.

Look at the average hourly or daily range. Do a cost analysis and you'll see what I am talking about.