Markets of choice for serious day traders

[Visaria]

USDJPY might be worth looking into...huge liquidity and tight spread.

 

[Overnight]

Hi, I'm coming back to day trading after several years of systematic trading and market making on FX. Fifteen years ago, my market of choice was EURUSD, but now, this market has insufficient intraday volatility relative to the noise level to be traded actively every day...

On a properly-sized chart, RB has great price action, without the noise. But that is from a TA standpoint.

 

[algofy]

Crude Oil. Might be a little tight on liquidity though. More than 10 contracts at a time (equivalent to $1 million EUR/USD) will incur slippage.

Have you tried the more volatile FX pairs, like EURJPY or GBPJPY. EURAUD has been pretty perky lately too.

10 crude contracts is not anywhere close to 1mil. Also not much more slippage with 10 than with 1.

Crude notional = 1000 * current trading price

 

[Overnight]

10 crude contracts is not anywhere close to 1mil. Also not much more slippage with 10 than with 1.

Crude notional = 1000 * current trading price

Well, it's halfway there, so that's kinda' close? 10 contracts would be about $480,000 or so at current spot price. That's a lot of lube!

 

[drm7]

Well, it's halfway there, so that's kinda' close? 10 contracts would be about $480,000 or so at current spot price. That's a lot of lube!

Actually that dawned on me as soon as a finished the post, lol. I was thinking more conceptually - $1 million USD notional is roughly 10 FX futures contracts (yes, I know, it's higher or lower depending on the other currency). Ergo, 10 Crude contracts. Plus, the volatility of crude relative to EURUSD probably evens everything out. In fact, 10 Crude futures (WTI or Brent) will probably cause more P/L swing than 10 EURUSD futures contracts on an average day.

 

[algofy]

In fact, 10 Crude futures (WTI or Brent) will probably cause more P/L swing than 10 EURUSD futures contracts on an average day.

Yep, most of the time you are right. That is why, at least for me, notional is not important.

 

[Overnight]

Actually that dawned on me as soon as a finished the post, lol. I was thinking more conceptually - $1 million USD notional is roughly 10 FX futures contracts (yes, I know, it's higher or lower depending on the other currency). Ergo, 10 Crude contracts. Plus, the volatility of crude relative to EURUSD probably evens everything out. In fact, 10 Crude futures (WTI or Brent) will probably cause more P/L swing than 10 EURUSD futures contracts on an average day.

Dunno' how it works over there in the FX world, but 10 contracts in WTI means absolutely nothing in P/L swing. To be honest, I do not understand where this whole notional value really comes into play, and why it matters. I only mentioned the underlying as a point-of-fact. What the CL future represents doesn't really mean anything to a trader that does not hold through expiry. It's just a big fancy number. Just like how the 6E underlying shouldn't. *shrugs*

 

[drm7]

The only reason I mentioned notional is that the OP is a forex trader. Forex is traded in notional, not contracts. He wanted to be able to move "$5 million" without a lot of slippage.

 

[Overnight]

The only reason I mentioned notional is that the OP is a forex trader. Forex is traded in notional, not contracts. He wanted to be able to move "$5 million" without a lot of slippage.

Mmmm. One of these days I'd like to head over to the FX subforum and look deeper into how it all works. But it certainly seems to me that FX and futures are kind of far apart in some aspects of risk.

 

[algofy]

The only reason I mentioned notional is that the OP is a forex trader. Forex is traded in notional, not contracts. He wanted to be able to move "$5 million" without a lot of slippage.

Yeah I agree, notional was referenced because of the OPs mention of 5 million.

50 bond treasuries could easy trade without slippage. It would take 100 crude futures +\-to get to 5m notional, would def get slippage.