"The pros" are typically dealing with severe volume/market impact problems. Beginning retailer trader does not have that, even if a lot of other options are closed to them (HFT to take an obvious example). Different problem sets to a large extent.
Feel free to link info pertinent to your first three paragraphs as although I can make educated guesses or otherwise google these terms, I am not certain it's lining up with what you are actually referring to.
Well, the string of quotes is getting long now. wrbtrader's comment:
Most daytraders I've met are using bar charts. Next group using candlestick charts and the next group not using any charts because they're order flow / market depth / DOM traders for their trade decisions.
was discussing typical approaches to trading indexes intraday (trend lines, DOM, etc.).
When I said pros I mean't anybody who is truly serious about this stuff. This could be CTA, prop trader, systems guys, large independent traders, whatever...
This doesn't necessarily mean that they work at a bank or prop firm.
My point was that there is a
very professional way to trade rates and indexes, but it involves a level of sophistication that retail is not prepared for. Stuff like
Basis spreads (listed stock and index futures differentials against dark pool liquidity/CBOE real-time cash index) [this is the actual HFT market maker spread]
Rate spreads (yield curve dynamics and ICS exchange book market action)
Index spreads (highly levered risk adjusted trading in index differentials)
In addition to these, knowledge of market structure, prop trading, and investment bank trading/market making.
This is too much for retail, but these things are obviously relevant for trading ES intraday.