Michael Bridgman

The markets are giving some mixed signals today, but the USD is stronger and the Euro is weaker. As the EURUSD began to trend lower, a short was taken early in the U.K. session risking 10 pips for a potential 31 pips to our daily target at 1.1100. With pending news not far away, we took the risk out of the trade quickly by placing our stop loss lower once we were in profit… just above yesterday’s low.

Price then continued lower before stalling and moving sideways into the U.S. open. The pair subsequently moved lower closing our trade at our daily target 1.1100 figure.

Both gold and the DXY moved up today which warrants caution. Equity markets too were all up. When this is the case, it’s a good idea to be cautious and lock in profits incrementally. It’s generally better to be conservative on a Friday as many participants will be closing positions in advance of the weekend.

Good luck with your trading and enjoy your weekend!

After some positive economic news for the U.S. today, particularly the Core Retail Sales (MoM) Dec. number, the USD caught a bid tone.

A short in the AUDUSD was taken risking 9 pips for a potential 28 pips to our daily target at .6896. Price moved down to test yesterday’s high before moving lower to test its Asian session low and the trade was closed at our daily target. The Aussie dollar has been under pressure this year and a close beneath .6885 will be considered even more bearish.

There is some important economic news on Friday that can potentially affect the GBP, EUR and USD. It’s usually better to wait until 15 minutes or more after the news release before entering a trade. If you’re already in a trade, lock in profit, so as not to get closed out by news reaction volatility.

Good luck with your trading!

The optimism surrounding the signing tomorrow of the U.S. – China Trade Agreement Phase One hasn’t helped the DXY to close above 98.50 and gold continues to find buyers near $1540.

The Core CPI (YoY) met market expectation today and the shortfall in the more volatile Core CPI (MoM) didn’t cause much of a knee jerk reaction.

A similar setup to yesterday enabled us to find an entry again in the EURJPY, risking 10 pips for a potential 62 pips to our daily target at 1.2888. Price moved higher and tested its Asian session low, then moved up to test yesterday’s high where we closed the trade at the end of the U.K. session.

The U.K. releases CPI and PPI data tomorrow. BoE MPC Saunders will be speaking too. The market is looking for soft data and further dovish comments for the likelihood of a rate cut coming sooner than later. The current consensus is about 50% likelihood of a rate cut at month end.

Reaction to the signing of the U.S. – China Trade Agreement Phase One will be interesting as more details emerge tomorrow.

Good luck with your trading!

As the U.S. session got underway today, we saw a minor pullback in the the EURUSD, USDJPY and EURJPY. Price soon reversed higher and with a stronger Euro today versus the USD and the USDJPY moving higher, we chose to go long the EURJPY. Risking 8 pips for a potential 30 pips to our daily target at 1.2248 we entered.

Price moved higher toward the 1.2250 level where it stalled near our target but did not close our trade at first attempt due to the spread. We subsequently closed the trade as it tried once again to go to 1.2248 but failed.

A sustained break above 1.2250 could bring 1.2400 back into play.

The GBPUSD has broken below 1.3000 again and a dovish B.O.E. may begin lowering interest rates very soon… which will provide traders the opportunity to now look to fade rallies.

Good luck with your trading!

The NFP release, typically the first Friday of each month, historically has been a very volatile time to trade. In 2019, this was not the case and so I decided to watch the markets today and see if a trade would set up.

After a disappointing number today of 145,000 new jobs versus the expected 164,000 and a previous 243,000 jobs, the USD moved lower and the market moved into “risk off” mode.

A short was taken in the USDCHF risking 12 pips for a potential 41 pips to our daily target at .9708. Price moved lower as the market positioned itself toward safety.

Price continued lower to test its daily low and moved slightly higher going into the U.K. close where we exited the trade.

Enjoy your weekend and good luck with your trading!

Experience over the years has taught me to enter a new year cautiously and to be patient. There will be some fantastic trades this year and some setups will be very high probability and obvious, while others will be less so… but high probability just the same. Leave the other potential trade setups alone and focus on being selective and disciplined.

On Tuesday after the EURUSD failed to retest 1.1200 and made three lower highs, a short was taken after the U.S. economic news, risking 9 pips for a potential 22 pips to our daily target at 1.1145.

With the market recovering from holiday sluggishness, our targets may be a little conservative this week until the more normal ranges reappear.

Price moved lower with a stronger USD and our trade was closed at our daily target for a modest return.

On Wednesday, the EURUSD continued to make lower highs and another short was taken risking 7 pips for a potential 25 pips to our daily target at 1.1113. As price failed to close above its Asian low and was also rejected at a very significant level from the daily chart, an entry short was taken.

Price moved lower and our trade was closed at our daily target as the U.S. session got underway.

The EURUSD is currently testing 1.1200 to the topside and 1.1100 to the downside. With continued USD strength, we may see the 1.1100 figure give way for a test of 1.1000 and the October 2019 low around 1.0900.

Although it’s fashionable to make predictions as we enter a new year and new decade, it’s prudent to pay attention to the charts for direction… not pundits.

I recommend starting the new year with a trading plan for the next 90 days and keep very detailed record of your trades by documenting them with screen shots. If you don’t already do so…take a screen shot of both your entry and your exit, along with your reasons for entering and exiting each trade. A library of your trades – both successful and other will go a long way for you understanding your strengths and weaknesses as a trader. Always learn from both outcomes.

Good luck with your trading and I wish you the best year ever.