Keeping a Futures Trading Journal, Economic Reports & Levels 8.28.2014
Posted By:- Ilan Levy-Mayer Vice President, Cannon Trading Futures Blog
Hello Traders,
For 2014 I would like to wish all of you discipline and patience in your trading!
The EXTREMELY low volume today ( as well as last few days…) made me go look in my trading journal where sure enough I wrote down that the week before Labor Day is usually lower volume and a good time to take some days off….( too bad I did not schedule some vacation time LOL)
The point of the story is that keeping a trading journal has MANY ADVANTAGES….and I highly recommend it.
I keep notes on the following:
- different methods I test
- Market behavior during different economic reports
- Things I did well, mental state of mind
- Mistakes I have made, the reasons I did and how I can try to avoid these mistakes
- Different indicators, chart settings, ideas I read about
- Different codes I created for my charts
- Much more…
Many times the journal will help me put closure on a bad day but more so it helps keep track of work I have done so I don’t have to do it again.
Try it. It is not easy, especially after bad days….it takes time, energy and consistency – just like trading. I keep mine on a word doc so I can easily access it ( plus my hand writing is terrible). Hope this tip helps and wishing you good trading!
PS: About low volatility and volume, its a cycle and times of much higher volume and volatility are proably very near….
GOOD TRADING !
Trading Futures, Options on Futures, and retail off-exchange foreign currency transactions involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. You should carefully consider whether trading is suitable for you in light of your circumstances, knowledge, and financial resources. You may lose all or more of your initial investment. Opinions, market data, and recommendations are subject to change at any time. Past performance is not indicative to future results.
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Futures Trading Levels
| Contract Sept. 2014 | SP500 | Nasdaq100 | Dow Jones | Mini Russell | Dollar Index |
| Resistance 3 | 2007.83 | 4091.00 | 17169 | 1184.97 | 83.01 |
| Resistance 2 | 2004.17 | 4084.00 | 17144 | 1181.23 | 82.88 |
| Resistance 1 | 2000.83 | 4077.50 | 17122 | 1176.27 | 82.68 |
| Pivot | 1997.17 | 4070.50 | 17097 | 1172.53 | 82.55 |
| Support 1 | 1993.83 | 4064.00 | 17075 | 1167.57 | 82.35 |
| Support 2 | 1990.17 | 4057.00 | 17050 | 1163.83 | 82.22 |
| Support 3 | 1986.83 | 4050.50 | 17028 | 1158.87 | 82.02 |
| Contract | December Gold | Dec. Silver | Oct. Crude Oil | September Bonds | Sept. Euro |
| Resistance 3 | 1294.7 | 19.7 | 95.15 | 142 6/32 | 1.3279 |
| Resistance 2 | 1291.5 | 19.6 | 94.69 | 141 23/32 | 1.3246 |
| Resistance 1 | 1287.4 | 19.6 | 94.27 | 141 14/32 | 1.3220 |
| Pivot | 1284.2 | 19.5 | 93.81 | 140 31/32 | 1.3187 |
| Support 1 | 1280.1 | 19.4 | 93.39 | 140 22/32 | 1.3161 |
| Support 2 | 1276.9 | 19.3 | 92.93 | 140 7/32 | 1.3128 |
| Support 3 | 1272.8 | 19.2 | 92.51 | 139 30/32 | 1.3102 |
| Contract | Dec Corn | Dec. Wheat | Nov. Beans | Dec. SoyMeal | Dec. bean Oil |
| Resistance 3 | 368.7 | 569.0 | 1040.08 | 351.80 | 33.62 |
| Resistance 2 | 366.8 | 565.8 | 1036.42 | 349.40 | 33.46 |
| Resistance 1 | 365.9 | 564.0 | 1030.08 | 346.80 | 33.13 |
| Pivot | 364.1 | 560.8 | 1026.42 | 344.40 | 32.97 |
| Support 1 | 363.2 | 559.0 | 1020.1 | 341.8 | 32.6 |
| Support 2 | 361.3 | 555.8 | 1016.42 | 339.40 | 32.48 |
| Support 3 | 360.4 | 554.0 | 1010.08 | 336.80 | 32.15 |
source: http://www.forexfactory.com/calendar.php
All times are Eastern time Zone (EST)
| Date | 3:59pm | Currency | Impact | Detail | Actual | Forecast | Previous | Graph | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ThuAug 28 | All Day | EUR | German Prelim CPI m/m | 0.0% | 0.3% | ||||
| 3:00am | EUR | Spanish Flash CPI y/y | -0.2% | -0.3% | |||||
| 3:55am | EUR | German Unemployment Change | -6K | -12K | |||||
| 4:00am | EUR | M3 Money Supply y/y | 1.5% | 1.5% | |||||
| EUR | Private Loans y/y | -1.5% | -1.7% | ||||||
| EUR | Italian Retail Sales m/m | -0.2% | -0.7% | ||||||
| Tentative | EUR | Italian 10-y Bond Auction | 2.60|1.5 | ||||||
| 6:00am | GBP | CBI Realized Sales | 27 | 21 | |||||
| 8:30am | USD | Prelim GDP q/q | 3.9% | 4.0% | |||||
| USD | Unemployment Claims | 299K | 298K | ||||||
| USD | Prelim GDP Price Index q/q | 2.0% | 2.0% | ||||||
| 10:00am | USD | Pending Home Sales m/m | 0.6% | -1.1% | |||||
| 10:30am | USD | Natural Gas Storage | 79B | 88B | |||||
| 7:05pm | GBP | GfK Consumer Confidence | -1 | -2 |
This is not a solicitation of any order to buy or sell, but a current market view provided by Cannon Trading Inc. Any statement of facts here in contained are derived from sources believed to be reliable, but are not guaranteed as to accuracy, nor they purport to be complete. No responsibility is assumed with respect to any such statement or with respect to any expression of opinion herein contained. Readers are urged to exercise their own judgment in trading
