Why Trade Long Term?

  1. Big money comes from big moves and these take a lot of time to develop.
  2. Long term trading often results in less trades with fewer mistakes and lower commission and slippage costs.
  3. Analysis of Long Term Data is simplified by reduced noise.
  4. Long term trading requires dramatically reduced time for analysis and trading.
  5. Long term trading can provide additional diversification for shorter term traders.

(taken from Futures Truth Magazine Interview )

All are very good reasons, but you can’t forget carry-trading.

Thanks for that, Michael!

I really need your ideas here to complete my list :slight_smile:

Long term trading is not liquid, unlike short term trading that you can easily get the money, win or lose right away, and you know where you stand most of the time, if you are losing, then stop and if you have profited, then move on but it is also better to stop before the profits are taken back.

Hi,

Just to add, long term trading normally means having a bigger account size aswell.

some people do it and well,its ok if you have 100k in your account.

both methods with correct money management will make money.

You can trade longer term with smaller accounts. The best way to do it is smaller lot sizes(i love micro lots) and scaling in and out of positions.

This is a completely false statement.

Forex accounts, like futures accounts, are marked-to-market. That means every pip of profit you make is immediately added to your account and each pip of loss withdrawn. You don’t have to close out a trade to take profits out of your account if you so desire - as long as you keep enough margin in there to maintain the position.

I’ve been told when starting out to trade mini or micro lots to minimize risk while learning this stuff but I have never done this. I have perhaps a misconception that trading mini/micro lots will just take along time for your account to grow (1 pip = $1 gain)…or disappear.

I think this is a great topic for discussion specially for people just getting started. (Trading Micro/Mini or Standard)?
(I just opened a new thread on this subject in newbie island. It would be interesting to know other people insite on this)

What is your experience trading mini/micro lots? Does it really take long to grow your account? Please elaborate what you mean by scaling in/out of position.

btw geline, I like all those reasons.

short term trading is a sure way to destruction for 98 % traders and it is the only long term trading that eventually makes you successfull due to its nature of being so. Those who want to succeed i think they should shed away this nidea of day/short term trading. My ideas and someone may differ please

I’ve experienced that I only win by trading daily charts and up-to monthly charts.

Intraday trading is often choppy, causing a loss for most of us. Trends are more clear in longer term, so I agree with hello1234 on this point.

Regardless of being an amateur or a professional trader, long term trading gives us a fewer trades, more pips. only thing that we have to use very small lots, or start with a big capital.

I aggree 100 % with you.

And one more thing daytrading bring a lot more stress.

Regards

Vladimir.

I have yet to understand why day trading is so popular. It has to be the rush people get. I am learning trading now and clearly long term trading is the way to go for previously stated reasons… I play poker and play limit to manage risk and I bet sports and bet one-two games a week that I have a edge again risk management…read about W Buffett or Peter Lynch, (Wealthy Americans) and they are long term traders. You can “guess” wrong long term 10 times and be right on the 11th and make profits. (I am not suggesting guessing). If you have a reliable system you can look at the computer 1 time per day and manage long term trades. If you focus on risk management in long term trading your profits will soar when you hit a trend… sorry, a bit of a ramble but being new I tried day trading and it was not fun.

The good news…
don’t have to sit at the computer all day
don’t have to be overly concerned about daily news
don’t have to be overly concerned about entering and exiting strategy
don’t have to be overly concerned about stress
don’t have to be overly concerned about not following system rules
Long term systems are fairly simple to manage (mostly indicators driven)

I wanted to comment about this sentence in a particular way.
If you use a moderately good long-term system, you will be able to catch those “thousands pips” movements and trends. You can still enter early, at the same time you limit your risk with false signals.

When I look at the GBPUSD trends in a weekly chart for example, it’s amazing how you can catch the start of a big uptrend/downtrend, similarly all other pairs.

I am definitely in agreement with lots of what’s been said. I generally consider myself a part-time trader. By that I mean I look at the charts periodically to see if there’s anything interesting. If there is, I’ll put on a trade or at least place an order if a set-up is forming. Sometimes that’s a position trade. Sometimes it’s a swing, or even a day trade. It depends on my schedule. That’s the great thing about using technical analysis. I can apply the same techniques regardless of the timeframe I’m operating in at any given point.

The point is that I can’t or don’t want to spend hours on end in front of the screen. Position trading means using wider stops, but I just reduce my position size to get the risk I’m willing to take on a given trade. I certainly don’t mind risking 100-200 pips for the opportunity to make 3-5 times that!

Thats also my strategy. Set up a system to check out once a day and leave it alone until next day. I think the weekly and daily charts are better for the trading but I could not figure out a good system to do it. I am trying…

Someone has a suggestion?

Success!

The Vegas 4 hour would probably do you well. There also is a Vega weekly right?

Topchess, those 1,000 pip moves on Cable look nice. I actually think I will implement longer term trading with cable but still stick with short term trading with EUR

it is evident that success comes from long term trading with higher time frames and than sitting tight till trade is over but if all of us agree than lets present some system that can help traders in this direction. lets create some system based on daily charts with position holding period from a week to two months. if some one have please do present here for discussion.
long term trading is the only gate way to success. when we talk of this thing that 95 % traders loose money in there quest to earn or build wealth. we are actually talking of day traders. it is the most difficult thing one can ever imagine that day trading is really something not for every one.

There are good systems for 4h (including Vegas 4h) but for daily graphs I know just one that it is really discussed, the fozzy (one that I didnt like).

Check 4h graphs once a day can not be a good idea. Weekly systems I think it is too long term :wink:

That is a opportunity to discuss a daily system.

You are right. The weekly chart is giving a larger drawdawn. But, it’s very useful for trend confirmation from Daily signals.

I’m not going to agree with that statement at all. There are plenty of people who do very well trading short-term. It’s all a question of matching your trading timeframe to your personal situation and style.

Now, having said that, my biggest trading successes have always been in longer-term trades. I’m not even talking daily chart stuff here. I’m talking weekly and even monthly at times. My personal methodology incorporates using volatility to spot trends getting ready to develop.