few days ago i started learning forex here in school…and now i am into fabonicci lessons .i also opend a demo account .the initial balance was $50000…and i made few trades and now its $51590 .am i going good??
Um…no. Not really. Open another demo account but instead of choosing one of the defined values, change it to what you will actually start out with when you trade live.
Its easy to make money when you have 50k to play with. Much harder when you only have 500-1k.
Also, keep in mind that most good traders don’t become consistent for 1-3 years. Even if you do good demoing, most people need to readjust themselves once they trade live because once your emotions are part of the play, the entire game changes.
Most newbies start great because when you first start you only make the safe choices, the very calculated ones. It�s great that you build up your confidence, but don�t let fool you into thinking you have magical powers, just have to recognize a safe trade of a more risky, but more profitable trade.
I agree with virtecs, try to demo with your real amount, unless 50.000 is your real amount 
PS: those 500brokers are scams, there is no way you�ll make enough profit with that amount!!! A mini amount should be 2000, not less!!!
The last thing you said is straight up nonsense. You can make decent profit on a micro account with a $100 start as long the broker allows micro lots (or even better fractional lots) and you manage money correctly. If you can do that it is no problem compounding your account and steadily trading larger, if you have a good method. (just make sure you go with one of the reputable brokers who offer micro accounts, I use IBFX and they are a good broker)
If you can’t trade with proper money managment and make profit on a micro account 2K or more isn’t going to make it any easier or harder, you’ll just lose a bigger account.
Hi offevil,
I agree with the others, it’s best to demo with the same amount that you’re looking to start with. Looks like you’re off to a nice start, a ~3% increase in a few days is not bad, not bad at all. But the name of the game is consistency, and a few trades is not nearly enough to start measuring your skills as a trader.
I’ve been demoing since the start of the year and have experienced a LOT of swings in my balance. From 1000 to 10000 in a few weeks to 500 in a few days (stupid emotional revenge trading heh) to just wanting to quit this forex thing altogether. But it always draws me back.
If I may offer you a (rather obvious) tip, remember to always stick to your system and don’t trade simply for the sake of making a trade. And if you can’t explain the reasons for your trade to another party, don’t even bother making that trade.
I would have saved myself a lot of grief just by sticking to that. Live and learn huh? haha.
How are you gonna make decent profit? 30 is decent profit for you?.. I think that you�ll be better buying a new sweater!!! You trade 100 in a mini, bad decision and you�re out!, you trade that in a 2000 and your can try again.
Can you honestly say that 30 o 50 is a decent profit?
Again nonsense and you don’t know what you are talking about. I’ve made, “decent money,” off of a live micro account I started with just $100 dollars. The trick is just to compound the small wins so they gradually become bigger winner, this allows you to still risk a small percentage of your account, and gradually increas your trade size. If you lose you compound down.
You compound and grow your account.
Also, a good mini account allows nano/mini lots and fractional lots. You wouldn’t trade 100 on a very small mini account that hasn’t compounded larger, unless you are a moron.
On my micro account I can trade anwhere from 1 cent to 50 dollars per pip, and all odd fractional lots inbetween that. So, even If I started an account with $10, I could still trade at a cent a pip and my account would be able to wether about 1000 pips before being killed. So, I could lose many trades and still be able to, “try again.”
Like I said if you can’t be successfull on a mini account, starting with a larger account isn’t going to make you any more successful.
You can do EXACTLY the same money managment on a micro account as you can a larger account, as long as they offer mini lots. The reason most people mess up mini accounts is they get all greedy and overleverage. Sometimes they get lucky and get a small win, which pumps up the account very quickly, and they think they can just keep doing this over and over.
What are your money management rules? To me it’s a decent amount of money but I don’t know if you risked too much and to be honest is very soon to make a judgement on your perfomance. Try a little bit more my friend, let’s say six months or a year!
Do what virtecs suggested. Demo trade the amount of money you’d be able to trade live.
Wish you succes in this career!
REgards!
Yes, $30-$50 is a decent profit!!
You should measure your profits in percentages, not in dollar amounts.
If you make $50 on a $100 account then you made a 50% return! That’s not only decent, it’s excellent!! Even if it takes you a year to do it it’s still excellent.
Sure you “only” made $50 the first year, but after compounding that for years and years (23 years, actually) you’ll have over a million dollars. 
If 23 years sound like a long time, don’t worry! 50% per year is on the low end of what a good forex trader should be making in a year. Once you get good at it your returns should be higher.
Dear ThePhoenix,
I understand what you mean, but you can�t call �trading with cents� a profitable way of trading… You spend more money on internet connection that you�ll earn.
You both, phil838 and ThePhoenix talk about percentage as a way of counting profit and I agree, but when you calculate profit you have a money amount as based, and even if you say 50%, it�s nothing since your base is 100. last year my laptop broke and I had to buy a new one: it cost 899!!! That is 900% profit!!! I think that if you can�t cover your loses in a reasonable amount of time then it�s not consider a decent profit, it�s an expense� you see my point?
PS: that 10 dollar account example is nonsense 
A few month ago starting from a $100 micro account I got it up to 3K, then cashed out to pay housing tax and other bills. Was that a decent profit?
When you win compounding works, period. If you can’t do it on a micro account a larger account isn’t going make you more successful. You’ll just lose a larger account. If you can be consistent and compound, even with a micro account, you can potentially grow the account substantially.
P.P.S. no the $10 dollar account is not nonsense, again you don’t know what you are talking about. I think you have been spoonfed the same old, “you have to have x k to trade forex in order to be succesful,” rubbish and are just parroting it because you have read it over and over. I almost margin called my very first live account. Had it down to $11, within 2-3 weeks I think I got it up past $300.
I can say you don’t know what you are talking about because I’ve compounded relatively small accounts while testing and trading different methods.
As long as you are on a micro account that allows mini/nano/fractional lots, you can easily manage your risk down to 1-x % and compound with each win. A larger or smaller account HAS ABSOLUTELY NO BEARING ON THIS. All account size will do is make or lose your more money from the start.
Just because you start with a small account it in no way impeded your ability to compound and grow the account.
The Phoenix and Phil are both very respected individuals on these forums and have very valid points.
I’ll add to this that monetary value and percentage return are important measures of your success but you also need to look at the trades you took in order to turn a profit.
What was your risk? Did you have a stop-loss (I hope you did!)? How much did you risk to take that profit? How many trades? What was your average number of pips per trade?
How does the spread on your demo compare to a real account and would that affect the outcome of your trades? Do you have a plan for your trades and can you define the precise reasons for each entry and exit you took?
You don’t need to answer these questions here but they are well worth answering to yourself so that you are better placed to judge for yourself your own performance.
And just as a warning from a ‘been there done that’ - on my first day I made 20% (!) - but over the next 2 days lost 99%. Beginners luck can make it seem easy when it really isn’t!
Matt
Quoted for truth.
I agree,
Both of you seem very well informed and know a lot about forex and that�s why I respect both of them very much.
Congrats Phoenix!!! That is the example of a perfect trader, but you should know that your case is one in a bunch, not every trader gets that successful so fast with so little money� I know that being in forex requires determination and restriction and a well-planned strategy but not every trader can do it all as perfect as you obviously can�
I mean it, your trading method proves to be great but again, not everybody has that ability.
I don�t take my opinions from rubbish that I�ve heard over and over and parrot it. I take my own conclusions from real gral facts, not from the experience of only one trader that is obviously one in a hundred. As a trader who is active in a forum and MANY people come to you for advice you should know that not all of us do as well as you, I did very well my self (opened a mini with 2000 and turned it into 5600) but it took me a lot of bumps to get there and if I�ve had a mini account of 10 I would I�ve never cover the loses�
It�s better to make a good investment from the beginning that covers you in bad trades and when you make a good one it shows than to invest 100 and lose in a couple of trades and invest 100 times�. You�ll be investing the same amount but making decent profit, you understand my point?
I understand it, but you don’t have point. Starting with a larger account does not cover your losses better. With a micro account that allows micro/fractional lots, you can risk x percent per trade, the same as you can with a standard account. Like I said I think you are just parroting bs information that is repeated over and over by would be gurus who’s idea of being a trader is reading books they bought and reading forums.
P.S. You keep saying something to the effect, “lose 100 in a couple of trade.”
Here is what I mean when account size doesn’t matter.
$100 account.
$100K account.
On either one, with the right broker, you can decide to only risk 1% of your account per trade if that is your risk managment. Regardless of the account size you are only going to lose 1% on a losing trade. Mathmatically you can do the EXACT SAME TRADE, with both accounts. The only difference is the monetary amounts you would lose or win in the end.
I agree with Phoenix. It sounds like you’ve just never traded with a broker that allows nano or fractional lots before.
If you can turn a $2000 account into $5600 then you can turn a $2 account into $5.60. Losses/drawdowns have nothing to do with it, because they will be proportional to your account balance.
I can open an account with Oanda with $1 and trade 1/100th of a cent per pip if I want too. You could survive drawdowns/losses of thousands of pips with that small $1 account!
I agree that it would be pointless to do that, but it does show that account size has nothing to do with your ability to be successful.
Hi Guy’s
Just starting out with forex!!! Looked at many sites and services as well as traders. Self trading really puts the wind up me apart from the fact the absolute dedication you guys show. I have a substantial amount of money which was suggested that I invest in the forex. So many different routes, so many different opinions. For example:
“[I]utilises 5 indicators for short-term trades, typically less than 24 hour duration. Each trade has a pre-set Stop and Limit with a 0.5%-2% risk level. Each currency pair (currently trading 12) is represented on the 5 and 15 minute charts and the 1 and 4 hour charts.”[/I] :eek:
This was just one of many… is it a good strategy or a common one???
Should I trust others to trade for me???
AAHHHH!
I’m not a big fan of indicator based systems, but they can work. My advice to you, especially if you have large amount of money to invest, is to go slow!
Depending on how much free time you have to learn it can take up to a year or more to learn how to trade well. Open a demo account and start trying out a few of the systems you’ll find on this site, and when you find something you like open a [B]small [/B]live account (with a couple hundred bucks or less) and practice with it. If you can do well on that small account then, and only then, are you ready to move up to a large account.
I’d never trust someone else to trade my money, but that’s just me. Also, you’ll never get the large returns some of us get if you let other people trade for you. A managed account will bring in 5-15% per year, but a lot of us regularly make that (or more) on a monthly basis.
Without knowing the depth of the strategy I couldn’t comment. There are two distinct camps in Forex, those who use indicators and those who don’t. Both make money. So in answer to ‘which strategy’ I suggest looking around. Don’t be afraid to try several and hop from one to another until you find one that suits you - but DO NOT trade with real money until you have found a strategy that works for you.
Many of us here started out chopping and changing which systems / strategies we used and there is nothing wrong with that when starting out provided it is with a demo account not real money. It’s a good way to learn various aspects of analysis and ultimately what suits your trading style.
In a few months time once you have settled on a strategy that you are comfortable with, continue to demo trade until you have had three successful months in a row. Only then start trading with real money.
Some have suggested only putting a portion of your money into your starting account and wait until you can be profitable for 3 months in a row before putting in the rest and this is an approach worth considering.
As for trusting others to trade for you: I believe there are some reputable companies that will execute trades on your behalf in the forex market although I have not researched them myself. Make sure they are well known, have good reviews and are regulated by an appropriate financial services authority. However as has been said you will see less return on investment than trading yourself. Like all things, greater risk = greater reward.
Here is my opinion based on what I have learned through various systems on trading with indicators VS trading with only price action: A good system has a bit of both.
The ones that have worked best for me personally have relied on candle stick patterns, price action, support and resistance and trend following.
Indicators are best used to help find an exact entry and for confirmation after all the the above have already given you a larger picture of what might happen.
Most new traders concentrate on indicators first. Don’t do that you will be frustrated rather quickly, as sometimes they seem to work a great many times in a row to catch a good trade and then they just flat out fail.
Learn to look at support & resistance, candlestick patterns & price action first. Price action and candlestick patterns are what is happening NOW. IMO, there is no indicator or group of indicators that is better than simply looking at candles.
Indicators are all lagging and average what has happened in the past.