Following Gold in Currency Trading
Gold is the ultimate global currency. At one time US Dollar used to be pegged to gold. But with the collapse of the Bretton Woods System, US Dollar was unpegged from gold.
Now US Dollar is only backed by the full faith and credit of the US Government. In times of financial crisis like the present when the global economy is in recession, many investors try to take refuge in gold as the ultimate safe haven.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is known for its strong correlation with gold prices among the different currencies in the world. This correlation is due to fact that Australia has gold deposits and exports gold. On the other hand, USD has an inverse relationship with gold prices. Gold prices rise, USD falls in value. This causes the currency pair AUD/USD to appreciate in value when gold prices rise.
The opposite is also true. When US Dollar gains value, gold usually loses value and the pair AUD/USD depreciates. So when gold prices are rising, we can execute long trades on AUD/USD. Likewise, when gold falls in value, we can sell short AUD/USD currency pair. This relationship provides us with a method to take advantage of the fundamental factors that affect the currency markets. This relationship may be due to the fact that gold is considered to be the ultimate safe haven of their wealth by investors in times of financial crisis.
How do you follow gold in currency trading? We now know that AUD/USD pair reacts strongly to gold prices. So we will trade AUD/USD based on following gold. Entering a trade to follow gold is a three step process. Use RSI (Relative Strength Index) as the technical indicator to trigger the trade. If you have read the previous article on following oil in currency trading, we had used the CCI (Commodity Channel Index) to trade USD/CAD pair.
When both gold and oil are commodities, why is that we are now using RSI instead of CCI? It all depends on how quickly the two indicators react to volatility. CCI gives a quicker signal. This is good for relatively less volatile pairs. Whereas RSI gives slower signals, this is ideal for more volatile pairs like AUD/USD.
Use a moving average to confirm if gold is in an uptrend or a downtrend. Use the seven periods RSI on AUD/USD chart! Watch when it enters one of its reversal zones, then move back out of the reversal zone in the same direction as the gold is trending.
You should enter a long trade on AUD/USD if the gold prices are rising and the RSI is crossing back above the 30 line. On the other hand, you should enter a short trade on AUD/USD pair if the gold prices are declining and the RSI is crossing below the 70 line.
You should set a limit order of 200 pips. You should also put a stop loss order of 50 pips for the trade. This risk to reward ratio is good and is (=50/200). The chances are you are going to make $2000 profit (200 pips is equal to $2000 on a standard lot) if the trade goes as you had anticipated. And if the trade does not go in your favor you should be prepared for a $500 loss (500 pips equal $500 on a standard lot). It is not uncommon to have a trade go against you. Only to find yourself right back in trade that goes your way after sometime.
Now US Dollar is only backed by the full faith and credit of the US Government. In times of financial crisis like the present when the global economy is in recession, many investors try to take refuge in gold as the ultimate safe haven.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is known for its strong correlation with gold prices among the different currencies in the world. This correlation is due to fact that Australia has gold deposits and exports gold. On the other hand, USD has an inverse relationship with gold prices. Gold prices rise, USD falls in value. This causes the currency pair AUD/USD to appreciate in value when gold prices rise.
The opposite is also true. When US Dollar gains value, gold usually loses value and the pair AUD/USD depreciates. So when gold prices are rising, we can execute long trades on AUD/USD. Likewise, when gold falls in value, we can sell short AUD/USD currency pair. This relationship provides us with a method to take advantage of the fundamental factors that affect the currency markets. This relationship may be due to the fact that gold is considered to be the ultimate safe haven of their wealth by investors in times of financial crisis.
How do you follow gold in currency trading? We now know that AUD/USD pair reacts strongly to gold prices. So we will trade AUD/USD based on following gold. Entering a trade to follow gold is a three step process. Use RSI (Relative Strength Index) as the technical indicator to trigger the trade. If you have read the previous article on following oil in currency trading, we had used the CCI (Commodity Channel Index) to trade USD/CAD pair.
When both gold and oil are commodities, why is that we are now using RSI instead of CCI? It all depends on how quickly the two indicators react to volatility. CCI gives a quicker signal. This is good for relatively less volatile pairs. Whereas RSI gives slower signals, this is ideal for more volatile pairs like AUD/USD.
Use a moving average to confirm if gold is in an uptrend or a downtrend. Use the seven periods RSI on AUD/USD chart! Watch when it enters one of its reversal zones, then move back out of the reversal zone in the same direction as the gold is trending.
You should enter a long trade on AUD/USD if the gold prices are rising and the RSI is crossing back above the 30 line. On the other hand, you should enter a short trade on AUD/USD pair if the gold prices are declining and the RSI is crossing below the 70 line.
You should set a limit order of 200 pips. You should also put a stop loss order of 50 pips for the trade. This risk to reward ratio is good and is (=50/200). The chances are you are going to make $2000 profit (200 pips is equal to $2000 on a standard lot) if the trade goes as you had anticipated. And if the trade does not go in your favor you should be prepared for a $500 loss (500 pips equal $500 on a standard lot). It is not uncommon to have a trade go against you. Only to find yourself right back in trade that goes your way after sometime.
About the Author:
Mr. Ahmad Hassam is a Harvard University Graduate. He is interested in day trading and swing trading stocks and currencies. Discover A Revolutionary New Forex Robot. Develop your own Forex Trading System.