Artículos sobre trading en Forex

<p>Además de la forma obvia de operar en forex a través de transacciones físicas de cambio de divisas, gran parte de las operaciones en forex son ejecutadas por traders minoristas que negocian pares de divisas en línea con fines personales. Dado que no hay un intercambio físico de monedas en el comercio en línea, los pares de divisas en forex se negocian mediante derivados.</p> <p>Una de las formas más populares de operar pares de divisas en línea es a través de los CFD, o contratos por diferencia. Si no estás familiarizado con el concepto de derivados o el comercio de CFD, consulta nuestra <a href="/latam/trading-academy/cfds/what-are-cfds/">guía para principiantes sobre el comercio de CFD</a>, donde lo explicamos en detalle.</p> <h2>Cómo operar en forex con CFD</h2> <p>Cuando operas en forex con CFD, predices la dirección de un movimiento futuro en el precio de un par de divisas. Si el precio se mueve según tu predicción, obtienes una ganancia, y si el mercado se mueve en contra de tu predicción, incurres en una pérdida. Veamos cómo funciona con ejemplos simples de operaciones de forex del artículo anterior &quot;&iquest;Qué es el comercio de forex?&quot;.</p> <p>Imagina que el precio de compra actual del par EUR/USD es 1.02839. Tu investigación indica que el euro pronto se fortalecerá frente al dólar estadounidense, y el precio del par subirá.</p> <p>Abres una posición larga (compra) de CFD en el par. Si tu predicción es correcta y el precio sube a 1.03039, la diferencia de precio, 0.0020 o 20 pips, es tu ganancia. Si el precio se mueve en la dirección opuesta y baja a 1.02639, la diferencia de precio se convierte en tu pérdida.</p> <p>En el escenario opuesto, donde piensas que el precio del par disminuirá, abres una posición corta (venta). Si tu predicción es correcta y el precio baja a 1.02639, obtienes una ganancia de 0.0020 o 20 pips. Si el mercado va en contra de tu predicción y llega a 1.03039 en su lugar, pierdes.</p> <p>Los USD 0.0020 pueden parecer una cantidad pequeña para ganar o perder. Sin embargo, este número se aplica solo a 1 unidad de una moneda, 1 euro en este ejemplo, mientras que en el comercio de CFD, las monedas se negocian en lotes.</p> <h2>&iquest;Qué es un lote en el comercio de forex?</h2> <p>Un lote en el comercio de CFD (ya sea en forex u otro mercado financiero) es una medida del tamaño de un contrato. Por lo general, varía según el mercado y el instrumento. En forex, un lote estándar de todos los pares de divisas es de 100,000 unidades de una moneda. Entonces, un lote de EUR/USD significaría EUR 100,000. La mayoría de los brokers permiten a los traders abrir posiciones mucho más pequeñas, también llamadas mini y micro lotes. Con ThinkMarkets, por ejemplo, puedes operar con tan solo 1,000 unidades de EUR/USD o EUR 1,000, que es 0.01 lote.</p> <p>Si estuvieras operando un lote en nuestro ejemplo, la cantidad de ganancia o pérdida, 0.0020, se multiplicaría por 100,000, dando como resultado una cifra mucho mayor:</p> <p>Con esta fórmula, siempre puedes calcular tu posible ganancia o pérdida:</p> <p>Ahora, si operas un lote de EUR/USD, lo que significa operar con EUR 100,000, puede sonar como una cantidad muy grande para abrir una operación. Sin embargo, cuando operas con CFDs, no necesitas pagar la cantidad completa para abrir una operación de ese tamaño porque operas con apalancamiento.</p> <h2>&iquest;Qué es el apalancamiento en forex?</h2> <p>El apalancamiento es un término utilizado para describir el proceso de pedir prestado fondos a un broker para abrir operaciones más grandes que tu capital. Este término no es específico de forex y se aplica a cualquier instrumento y mercado negociado con CFDs u otros tipos de contratos de trading que tienen esta característica. También explicamos cómo funciona en nuestra <a href="/latam/trading-academy/cfds/what-are-cfds/">guía para principiantes sobre el comercio de CFD</a>.</p> <p>Para dar un breve ejemplo basado en nuestro par de divisas EUR/USD, supongamos que estás operando con 1 lote con un apalancamiento de 200:1. Significa que solo necesitas pagar 1/200 parte, o USD 500, para abrir esta operación. Cuanto mayor sea el apalancamiento, menor será la cantidad que necesitas depositar para abrir una operación.</p> <img alt="" src="/getmedia/15264210-73a6-4725-a562-a37415119a09/article-how-to-trade-forex-leverage-200-to-one.webp" style="width: 552px; height: 308px;" /> <p>Por favor, ten en cuenta que utilizar herramientas de gestión de riesgos al operar con apalancamiento es crucial para cada trader de forex porque, aunque el apalancamiento aumenta el poder adquisitivo, también puede aumentar las pérdidas si una operación resulta perdedora.</p> <p>El nivel máximo de apalancamiento depende de múltiples factores, como la oferta del broker, el tipo de cuenta, el mercado, el instrumento o el país de residencia del trader. Por ejemplo, el apalancamiento máximo permitido en el Reino Unido, Australia y la UE es de 30:1 debido a los organismos reguladores en esas regiones, mientras que en otras partes del mundo puede ser tan alto como 500:1.</p> <p>Sin embargo, hay una diferencia entre el apalancamiento máximo y el apalancamiento óptimo, y muy pocas personas operan efectivamente al nivel máximo, de la misma manera que no conducirías un automóvil deportivo a toda velocidad en una zona urbanizada.</p> <p>En cambio, las personas tienden a operar con no más de diez veces el apalancamiento. Entonces, si un trader ha depositado US$ 10,000 para operar, rara vez abriría posiciones mayores a US$ 100,000.</p> <h2>Cómo empezar a operar en el mercado de divisas</h2> <p>Aquí hay una lista de los primeros tres pasos importantes que necesitas seguir para comenzar a operar en forex en línea:</p> <h3>Elige un broker de forex</h3> <p>La mayoría de los brokers de trading en línea ofrecen una variedad de mercados financieros, no solo el comercio de divisas, por lo que no es necesario centrarse en encontrar un broker específico de forex. Sin embargo, es crucial buscar un socio comercial bien regulado y con licencia de reguladores de buena reputación. ThinkMarkets, por ejemplo, cuenta con múltiples licencias y está regulado por la Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) del Reino Unido, la Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) y la Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), entre otros.</p> <h3>Elige una plataforma de trading</h3> <p>La mayoría de los brokers de forex suelen ofrecer varias plataformas de trading. Explora tus opciones y compara los tipos de cuentas de trading asociadas con ellas para encontrar la que te resulte más cómoda. Presta atención a la facilidad de uso, los spreads ofrecidos y el apalancamiento.</p> <p>La plataforma de trading de ThinkMarkets, ThinkTrader, puede ser una buena opción si eres un trader manual. Ofrece un diseño intuitivo y fácil de usar, una amplia variedad de pares de divisas, spreads competitivos y ejecución rápida. Disponible como aplicación móvil y de escritorio, así como en un navegador web, ThinkTrader también está equipado con un conjunto potente de herramientas avanzadas para ayudarte a crecer como trader. Además, puedes crear una cuenta demo gratuita primero y practicar el trading con fondos virtuales sin riesgo.</p> <p>ThinkMarkets también ofrece MetaTrader 4 y 5 para traders que prefieren estas plataformas, y para su capacidad con asesores expertos o indicadores personalizados.</p> <h3>Elige un par de divisas para operar</h3> <p>La mayoría de los traders principiantes tienden a comenzar su viaje en el trading de forex con los pares de divisas principales más negociados porque hay más información disponible sobre ellos y presentan diversas oportunidades de trading. Aquí tienes algunos de los pares de divisas más populares entre los principiantes y los traders de forex experimentados:</p> <p>Ten en cuenta que hay varios factores que pueden causar cambios en los precios, por lo que es necesario investigar antes de seleccionar un par y realizar una operación de forex. En nuestro próximo artículo, descubriremos qué mueve los precios en el mercado de forex para ayudarte a identificar oportunidades de trading potenciales. Una vez que tengas ese conocimiento, puedes pasar a conocer estrategias de trading y construir tu propia estrategia de trading de forex.</p>

<p>En el mundo de los mercados financieros, el forex tiene un lugar especial. Es el mercado financiero más grande y popular del mundo, y hasta abril de 2022, tiene un volumen diario promedio de operaciones de USD 7.5 billones. Pero, &iquest;qué significa forex y cómo se puede operar? En este artículo, te guiaremos a través de los conceptos básicos del mercado forex y los términos que necesitas conocer para comenzar a operar en forex.</p> <h2>&iquest;Qué es forex y trading de forex?</h2> <p>Forex, comúnmente conocido como FX, significa mercado de divisas. Es un mercado global donde decenas de monedas se convierten entre sí con diversos propósitos, como comercio internacional, turismo o ganancia personal. Debido a su naturaleza, el trading de forex involucra a una amplia gama de participantes en este proceso de intercambio, incluyendo gobiernos, bancos, corporaciones multinacionales, inversores institucionales, traders minoristas e incluso personas comunes. De hecho, cualquier persona que haya viajado al extranjero y cambiado la moneda de su país de origen por la moneda local de su destino ha realizado una transacción en el mercado de divisas.</p> <h2>&iquest;Por qué el mercado forex es tan popular?</h2> <p>Existen varias razones por las cuales el mercado de divisas es tan popular entre los traders en línea. Aquí algunos de sus principales beneficios:</p> <h3>Fácil de seguir</h3> <p>Hay solo algunas monedas que la mayoría de los traders siguen, como el dólar estadounidense, el euro y la libra esterlina. Otras monedas menos frecuentemente negociadas pero populares incluyen el dólar canadiense, el dólar australiano, el dólar neozelandés y el yen japonés. Dado que solo hay un puñado de monedas populares en las que enfocarse, puede ser más fácil para los traders desarrollar una comprensión más profunda de su comportamiento y los factores que influyen en sus movimientos.</p> <h3>Liquidez</h3> <p>El gran número de participantes y transacciones proporciona una alta liquidez al trading de forex, lo que resulta en costos de operación muy bajos. La oferta y demanda constante también facilita el trading con apalancamiento. Esto permite que incluso los buenos traders con una pequeña cantidad de capital extraigan valor de los mercados de forex, algo que es difícil de lograr al operar acciones.</p> <h3>Volatilidad</h3> <p>Los precios de forex pueden ser influenciados por varios factores, lo que a menudo provoca una alta volatilidad y, como resultado, numerosas oportunidades de trading. A diferencia de una acción de valor, que puede apenas moverse algunos días, el trading de forex no tiene restricciones de tiempo y se pueden encontrar oportunidades en cualquier momento del día, ya sea después, antes o durante las horas laborales.</p> <h3>&nbsp;Acceso las 24 horas, cinco días a la semana</h3> <p>Debido a su descentralización, las transacciones de forex pueden realizarse en cualquier momento, excepto durante el fin de semana. No hay un intercambio centralizado; en su lugar, los bancos centrales, grandes bancos, fondos de cobertura y brokers minoristas han construido redes electrónicas y realizan transacciones directamente entre ellos para facilitar el trading fuera de las horas tradicionales de negociación.</p> <h3>&iquest;Cómo funciona el forex?</h3> <p>Cuando un trader de forex intercambia una moneda, la vende y compra otra. Dado que siempre hay dos monedas involucradas en este proceso, los instrumentos de forex se cotizan en pares, por ejemplo, EUR/USD o GBP/USD. La primera moneda se llama la moneda base, y la segunda se llama la moneda cotizada.</p> <br /> <br /> <img alt="base currency EUR - USD Quote currency" src="/getmedia/6ce661c1-e988-483e-ad7a-39908fb6f085/what-is-forex-trading-image01.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="base currency EUR - USD Quote currency" /> <h2>Tipos de pares en el mercado forex</h2> <p>Los pares de forex se dividen en tres grandes grupos según las monedas que los componen.</p> <h3>Pares de monedas principales</h3> <p>Incluyen las monedas de los países más desarrollados negociadas contra el USD. El dólar estadounidense siempre está presente en estos pares, ya sea como moneda base o cotizada, ya que es una moneda de reserva oficial en todo el mundo y se utiliza ampliamente en el comercio internacional y se mantiene como reserva por los bancos centrales de todo el mundo. Esto convierte al USD en la moneda dominante en forex y otros mercados como los productos básicos que también se negocian contra él. Algunos de los pares principales más populares son EUR/USD, GBP/USD y USD/JPY.</p> <h3>Pares de monedas menores</h3> <p>Los pares menores también incluyen monedas de economías grandes, pero no están vinculados al USD, como EUR/GBP, EUR/CHF o GBP/CAD, por ejemplo.</p> <h3>Pares de monedas exóticas</h3> <p>Los pares exóticos generalmente consisten en una moneda de una economía importante negociada contra la moneda de un país en desarrollo. Algunos ejemplos son AUD/MXN, USD/HKD y GBP/ZAR.</p> <h2>&iquest;Cómo funciona el trading de monedas?</h2> <p>El valor de un par de forex indica el valor de una moneda base con respecto a la moneda cotizada. En otras palabras, muestra cuántas unidades de la moneda cotizada puedes obtener por 1 unidad de la moneda base. Esto también se conoce como tipo de cambio. Por ejemplo, el tipo de cambio del par de divisas EUR/USD en el momento de escribir este artículo era 1.02839, lo que significa que por 1 euro, obtendrías 1.02839 dólares estadounidenses.</p> <br /> <img alt="base currency EUR - USD Quote currency" src="/getmedia/b7de8307-5d14-4929-8cd6-d1aa06f5dc55/what-is-forex-trading-image02.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="base currency EUR - USD Quote currency" /> <p paraeid="{b45da9f9-ab40-462f-8ec2-c07bc0d46b8a}{75}" paraid="900764359">Es importante tener en cuenta que, dado que el mercado de forex es descentralizado, el tipo de cambio puede variar de un broker o banco a otro.</p> <p paraeid="{b45da9f9-ab40-462f-8ec2-c07bc0d46b8a}{91}" paraid="1272472748">En cuanto al trading en línea, los brokers obtienen sus tipos de cambio de un grupo de entidades llamadas proveedores de liquidez, generalmente bancos y otras grandes instituciones financieras, y los muestran como precios de oferta y demanda.</p> <h2>&iquest;Qué son los precios de oferta y demanda en forex?</h2> <p>En el trading de forex, probablemente te hayas encontrado con los precios de &quot;oferta&quot; y &quot;demanda&quot;. Piensa en la &quot;oferta&quot; como el precio que recibirás cuando quieras vender una moneda. La &quot;demanda&quot; es el precio que pagarás cuando quieras comprar. Por ejemplo, si estás viendo EUR/USD, la &quot;oferta&quot; te dice cuántos dólares estadounidenses recibirás por vender 1 euro, mientras que la &quot;demanda&quot; representa cuántos dólares estadounidenses necesitarás gastar para comprar 1 euro. Como se muestra en la imagen a continuación, recibirías 1.02839 USD por vender un euro, mientras que si fueras a comprar un euro, tendrías que pagar 1.02847. Este precio de compra es ligeramente más alto que el precio de venta debido al spread, que es la diferencia entre los precios de &quot;oferta&quot; y &quot;demanda&quot;.</p> <br /> <img alt="table with instrument sell buy columns" src="/getmedia/0dc1949c-bd93-47ef-a868-7acf8d50ef8f/what-is-forex-trading-image03.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="table with instrument sell buy columns" /> <h2>&iquest;Qué es el spread en el trading de forex?</h2> <p paraeid="{b6259188-8ad3-442e-91ef-fc8790f06976}{19}" paraid="909016290">Un spread en el trading de forex significa la diferencia entre los precios de compra y venta que representa el costo de transacción de cada par de divisas. Ya sea que compres o vendas una moneda, siempre se te cobrará esta cantidad al abrir una operación. El spread es lo que tu broker gana al permitirte operar. Es un margen, de la misma manera en que los minoristas agregan un margen en cualquier otro producto. Sin embargo, la alta competencia en los mercados de forex asegura que sea el mercado financiero más barato para operar.</p> <p paraeid="{b6259188-8ad3-442e-91ef-fc8790f06976}{75}" paraid="1881540912">En la imagen a continuación, vemos que el costo de operar es de 0.8, y para una transacción de 100,000 euros, el costo sería de 8 dólares, lo que lo convierte en un costo inigualablemente bajo.</p> <p paraeid="{b6259188-8ad3-442e-91ef-fc8790f06976}{95}" paraid="643707991">Cuando abres una operación, el spread se descuenta desde el principio. En una operación ganadora, el costo del spread se descuenta de las ganancias, y en una perdedora, se suma a la pérdida.</p> <br /> <img alt="table with instrument sell buy columns" src="/getmedia/0d6ce7ac-c7be-40f0-82b6-4a292c3855ac/what-is-forex-trading-image04.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="table with instrument sell buy columns" /> <p>Es importante tener en cuenta que el spread depende directamente de la liquidez de un par de divisas. Por ejemplo, los pares más líquidos (mayores) suelen tener spreads muy ajustados, lo que significa que los traders pueden abrir posiciones a un costo más bajo y obtener ganancias más rápido si el mercado se mueve a su favor. Los pares menores se negocian con menos frecuencia y tienen spreads más amplios, aumentando ligeramente el costo de operación, y los pares de divisas exóticas tienen los spreads más amplios.</p> &nbsp; <p>La cantidad de spread también varía de un broker a otro e incluso puede ser diferente según el tipo de cuenta dentro del mismo broker. Por ejemplo, si operas en forex con ThinkMarkets, una cuenta Estándar te dará acceso a spreads ajustados, de solo unos pocos pips, pero si eliges una cuenta ThinkZero, la mayoría de los pares tendrán spreads de 0.</p> <h2>&iquest;Qué son los pips en forex?</h2> <p>En el trading de forex, pip significa &quot;punto porcentual&quot; o &quot;punto de interés de precio&quot;. Es el movimiento más pequeño de un dígito en el precio de una moneda medido por el cuarto decimal y se utiliza para calcular un spread.</p> &nbsp; <p>Aquí hay un pequeño gráfico para ayudarte a entender cómo funciona el precio de una moneda:</p> <br /> <img alt="EUR/USD" src="/getmedia/5a1f9093-0c16-4fcd-b1c7-7e8274bec12c/what-is-forex-trading-image05.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="EUR/USD" /> <p>Los pares de forex que tienen al yen japonés como moneda cotizada se muestran solo hasta el tercer decimal, por lo que el pip se mide por el segundo.</p> <img alt="USD/JPY" src="/getmedia/5ee3c9cb-3972-4b49-b098-7c761624aefb/what-is-forex-trading-image06.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="USD/JPY" /> <p>Para calcular un spread, necesitas restar el precio de venta del precio de compra. En nuestro ejemplo anterior, el spread es:</p> <br /> <img alt="1.02847 - 1.02839 = 0.8 pips" src="/getmedia/72f5e4d8-fc4b-4dbe-aa5f-b081b3ec9fbd/what-is-forex-trading-image07.png" style="display: flex; margin: 20px auto;" title="1.02847 - 1.02839 = 0.8 pips" /> <p>En la plataforma de ThinkMarkets, ThinkTrader, los spreads se muestran dentro de cada cotización de precios para tu conveniencia, por lo que no necesitas calcularlos.</p> <p>Ahora, tu próxima pregunta podría ser cómo calcular tu ganancia o pérdida en pips cuando operas en forex y cómo operar en forex en primer lugar. Dirígete a nuestro próximo artículo, donde lo discutiremos en detalle. También puedes crear una cuenta de trading de demostración en ThinkTrader para aplicar tus conocimientos recién adquiridos en la práctica.</p>

<p>Los movimientos de los mercados financieros son difíciles de predecir. Sin embargo, tus probabilidades de éxito son mucho mayores cuando entiendes cómo funcionan los mercados y qué afecta exactamente los precios de los instrumentos financieros. Comprender estos detalles puede ayudarte a planificar tus operaciones de manera estratégica en lugar de adivinar tu próximo paso y esperar tener suerte.<br /> <br /> Cuando se trata de predecir los tipos de cambio de divisas, es importante entender que el forex, como todos los mercados financieros, está fuertemente influenciado por la oferta y la demanda. Una oferta decreciente combinada con una demanda creciente generalmente lleva a un aumento de precios. De manera similar, una mayor oferta con una demanda disminuida hace que los precios bajen.<br /> <br /> Los factores que afectan la oferta y la demanda y, por lo tanto, los movimientos de los tipos de cambio de cada par de divisas, pueden variar dependiendo de los pilares principales de la economía de cada país. Por ejemplo, las economías de Australia y Canadá dependen de la exportación de recursos naturales, lo que afecta el tipo de cambio del dólar australiano y canadiense (AUD y CAD) frente a otras monedas. Por otro lado, el Reino Unido y la libra esterlina (GBP) son más sensibles a los desarrollos políticos y a los movimientos de las tasas de interés.<br /> <br /> A pesar de estas diferencias, los expertos en trading han identificado los factores comunes que afectan la oferta y la demanda en el forex.<br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/getmedia/f3d6d0f9-9b0d-468f-8431-0d3ee0757d1d/article-forex-what-affects-forex-rates.webp" /></p> <h2>Principales factores que afectan los tipos de cambio</h2> <h3>Comercio internacional</h3> <p>Las actividades comerciales entre diferentes países afectan directamente el valor de sus monedas. Cuando un país exporta productos, en muchos casos, el comprador paga los productos en la moneda local del exportador. Si las exportaciones de un país son mayores que sus importaciones, se crea una alta demanda por su moneda y, como resultado, aumenta su valor.<br /> <br /> La cantidad de exportaciones e importaciones de cada país, a su vez, depende de las necesidades del país y de su estructura de producción. Por ejemplo, Estados Unidos y Brasil son socios comerciales a largo plazo. Supongamos que Estados Unidos ha estado importando café de Brasil por 2 USD por kg, pero de repente Colombia ofrece un precio de 1 USD por kg. Si Estados Unidos, uno de los mayores importadores de café, decide optar por el café colombiano en lugar del brasileño debido a precios de importación más atractivos, las exportaciones brasileñas disminuirían significativamente. Como resultado, la demanda por el real brasileño (BRL) y su tipo de cambio frente al USD, en este caso, también disminuirían. Al mismo tiempo, los precios de exportación favorables aumentarían la demanda por el peso colombiano (COP), fortaleciendo su valor frente al USD.<br /> <br /> Algunos países específicos, como Australia y Nueva Zelanda, dependen fuertemente de las exportaciones, y hay una alta correlación entre el precio de lo que exportan y su moneda. Sin embargo, para la mayoría de las otras grandes economías, el estado de su balanza comercial tiene un impacto mínimo en el tipo de cambio de su moneda. Esto no era el caso hace 30 o 40 años cuando las restricciones de capital limitaban el flujo de capital.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <h3>Inflación</h3> <p>La inflación significa un aumento en los precios de los bienes a lo largo del tiempo, lo que lleva a una disminución del poder adquisitivo de la moneda de un país. Por ejemplo, si la inflación en el Reino Unido aumenta un 10% en un año, eso significa que la libra esterlina ha disminuido un 10% en valor en comparación con el año anterior. En términos de tipos de cambio, si la inflación es del 2% en Estados Unidos, entonces el tipo de cambio GBP/USD debería depreciarse en un 8% a favor del dólar estadounidense para compensar la diferencia de inflación entre los dos países.&nbsp;</p> <p>Para rastrear los cambios en la tasa de inflación, los traders generalmente prestan atención a los informes del Índice de Precios al Consumidor (IPC). La mayoría de los países publican estos informes mensualmente, excepto Australia y Nueva Zelanda, que los publican trimestralmente. El IPC es una medida ampliamente considerada de la inflación porque rastrea el cambio porcentual en el precio de una canasta de bienes comúnmente comprados por los consumidores.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <h3>Tasas de interés</h3> <p>Las altas tasas de interés atraen capital extranjero a un país, prometiendo a los inversores extranjeros mayores rendimientos sobre su capital. Con más inversores ingresando al mercado local del país, la demanda por su moneda aumenta, elevando su valor. Por otro lado, las bajas tasas de interés hacen que un país sea menos atractivo para la inversión extranjera.<br /> <br /> Las tasas de interés y la inflación están directamente correlacionadas: el aumento de la inflación suele ir seguido del aumento de las tasas de interés, ya que los gobiernos intentan combatir la depreciación de la moneda. Esto, a su vez, fortalece la moneda y afecta los tipos de cambio.<br /> <br /> En 2022, el mundo del trading fue testigo de un claro ejemplo de este proceso cuando la Reserva Federal de Estados Unidos anunció el mayor aumento de tasas de interés desde la década de 1980, lo que resultó en un fortalecimiento casi inmediato del dólar estadounidense, mientras que otras monedas negociadas contra él se depreciaron.<br /> <br /> Los traders experimentados suelen estar atentos a las decisiones de tasas de interés de los bancos centrales para encontrar oportunidades de trading.</p> <h3>Indicadores económicos y estabilidad política</h3> <p>Además de la inflación y las tasas de interés, vale la pena observar el Producto Interno Bruto (PIB), que proporciona una instantánea de las condiciones económicas de un país, la balanza de pagos, la deuda gubernamental, la tasa de desempleo y otros factores. Todos ellos influyen en el valor de la moneda de un país de una u otra forma. Los traders pueden ver un calendario de estos informes en el calendario económico, que es una herramienta muy popular para identificar posibles oportunidades de trading.<br /> <br /> El número de diferentes informes a revisar puede ser un poco abrumador para un trader principiante, pero la buena noticia es que no tienes que revisarlos todos a la vez. Los principiantes tienden a centrarse en los más importantes y fáciles de entender. Por ejemplo, el PIB es el indicador definitivo de la salud económica de cualquier país. Un rápido crecimiento del PIB generalmente implica una economía fuerte y una alta demanda por su moneda, lo que a su vez eleva su precio.<br /> <br /> El entorno político de un país también tiene una influencia significativa en el tipo de cambio de su moneda. Similar a las bajas tasas de interés, la inestabilidad política hace que un país sea menos atractivo para el capital extranjero, lo que resulta en una disminución del tipo de cambio de su moneda.<br /> <br /> Tanto las cifras económicas como las actualizaciones políticas suelen estar ampliamente cubiertas en los noticieros, lo que hace que el trading de noticias sea la estrategia más atractiva para los principiantes.<br /> <br /> Una vez que te sientas más cómodo con las cifras básicas que discutimos anteriormente, puedes pasar a un análisis más profundo de múltiples números que sugieran cambios en los tipos de cambio. Ten en cuenta que cualquiera de los factores mencionados rara vez puede influir en los movimientos de precios por sí solo. Un enfoque integral requiere comparar varios números y sacar una conclusión general basada en tus hallazgos.</p> <h3>Sentimiento del mercado</h3> <p>En anticipación de una subida o bajada de una moneda, muchos traders empiezan a comprar o vender una moneda antes de que cambie su valor. Esto, a su vez, aumenta su demanda u oferta, resultando en oscilaciones de precios desencadenadas únicamente por la actividad de los traders. Este factor suele ser difícil de predecir, ya que depende únicamente del factor humano y de la percepción de los traders sobre los eventos futuros.<br /> <br /> Aquí es donde el análisis técnico con patrones de gráficos e indicadores entra en juego, lo cual discutiremos en detalle en nuestro blog de <a href="/latam/trading-academy/technical-analysis/what-is-technical-analysis-in-trading/">Análisis técnico en el trading</a>.<br /> <br /> Antes de profundizar en el análisis del forex, puede ser una buena idea practicar tus nuevos conocimientos en una <a href="/latam/demo-account/">cuenta demo sin riesgo</a>. Nuestra plataforma de trading patentada y galardonada ThinkTrader, por ejemplo, ofrece docenas de pares de divisas y 10,000 USD de dinero virtual.</p>

<p>A Japanese candlestick is a technical tool used by traders to pack price information into a single candle. They are considered an extremely useful tool, since the traders are able to easily see and analyse a large amount of data.</p> <h2>Origins of the Japanese candlesticks</h2> <br /> Japanese candlesticks go back to as far as the 18th century. A Japanese trader Munehisa Homma traded rice in the local markets. He also served as an adviser to the Japanese government.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Homma started recording prices of rice on a daily basis, including opening price, high, low, and close. After some time, he started noticing patterns that were repetitive.<br /> <br /> In 1755, he wrote a book titled:&nbsp;<br /> <br /> <br /> <strong>The Fountain of Gold &mdash; The Three Monkey Record of Mone,</strong>&nbsp;<br /> discussing the psychological aspects of the trading process.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> He is believed to be the first person to realise that the behaviour of other participants in the market is a crucial element in trading. The emotions of traders play a huge part in their decisions. Homma realised this and took advantage while trading the rice.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Homma is also known for introducing the <strong>Sakata Rules</strong><br /> <br /> A set of five rules that outline patterns developed by local traders. It is exactly this set of rules that created the basis for the birth of Japanese candlesticks.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> It was not until the end of the previous century that Steve Nison introduced the concept of Japanese candlesticks to the wider public in a classic investing book titled:<br /> <br /> &nbsp;<strong>Japanese Candlestick Charting Techniques.</strong><br /> <br /> The essence of this concept is the psychology of a trader, which we will&nbsp;discuss&nbsp;in detail&nbsp;below.<br /> &nbsp; <h2>The key elements of Japanese candlesticks</h2> &nbsp; <p>A Japanese candlestick consists of four main elements:&nbsp;<br /> &nbsp;</p> <ul> <li>Opening price&nbsp;</li> <li>Highest point reached by the asset&rsquo;s price</li> <li>Lowest point reached by the asset&rsquo;s price</li> <li>Closing price of the candle</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="structure of a Japanese candlestick" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/structure-of-a-Japanese-candlestick-pic-2.jpg" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>As seen in the photo above, the four elements create two parts of the candle: the&nbsp;<em>wick</em>&nbsp;(extending up and down) and the&nbsp;<em>body</em> that consists of the opening and closing prices. The wick&nbsp;can be long or short, depending on the price movements.<br /> <br /> As such, candlesticks differ from the simple bar charts by displaying more information, but in such a way that they are still easy to read.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="narrow- and wide-spread candlestick" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/narrow-and-wide-spread-candlestick-pic-3.jpg" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Traders usually use either green (<em><strong>bullish</strong></em>) or red (<em><strong>bearish</strong></em>) colour to paint the candlestick, although some also use white (bullish) and black (bearish) as well.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="green (bullish) and red (bearish) colors" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/green-(bullish)-and-red-(bearish)-colors-pic-4.jpg" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>As seen in the photo above, the <strong><em>bullish candle</em></strong> is formed when the close&nbsp;is higher than the open, and the opposite is the case for the <em><strong>bearish candle.</strong></em> There is a wide range of different shapes, from those with long wicks to either side to those with almost no body.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> The top of the upper wick shows the session&rsquo;s high and vice versa. The longer the distance between the high and the low, the wider the price range of the given session is.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> You can test how different Japanese candlestick patterns work by trading without risking your capital first, by <a href="https://portal.thinkmarkets.com/account/individual/demo" target="_blank"><u>opening a demo trading account</u></a>.&nbsp;</p> <h2>What the Japanese candlesticks tell you</h2> <p>As noted earlier, the Japanese candlesticks are important as they display data to traders that reflect the state of the market. Based on the key elements, traders can better understand the prevailing trend in the market and which side has the upper hand.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Looking at the image above, we see the EUR/USD daily chart. At the right end of the chart we see a series of long and green candles. This type of candle is very strong as the body is long and the close is usually near the top of the candle. It means that the bulls are in control of the price action as they could facilitate a series of wins that brought them huge gains.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> A clean uptrend, which is characterised by a series of higher highs and higher lows, sends a message that there is a continuous interest from the side of buyers to push the price higher. On the other hand, the long and red candles are a sign of strong selling pressure.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> It is exactly the relationship between individual candlesticks that creates patterns that help traders predict future price changes.&nbsp;</p> <h2>The most popular candlestick patterns&nbsp;</h2> <p>There are two major groups of candlestick patterns: <em>bullish vs bearish</em>, and then there are <em>reversal, transitional </em>and <em>continuation</em> patterns. Patterns also differ based on the number of candles, starting from a single-candle formation to those consisting of two and three candles.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Bullish patterns are those that predict that the price of an asset is likely to rise while the latter indicate the price is likely to fall. A reversal pattern signals a potential change in direction, while the continuation, as the name itself says, signals an extension of the current trend.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> In the section below, we will discuss the five most powerful candlestick patterns used by traders to predict price movements and make profits. All of these patterns generate a sign or message only, and you should consult other technical indicators before you engage in a trade.<br /> <br /> For this purpose, we have prepared <strong>detailed guides</strong> to explain the best candlestick patterns with examples and how to use them in your trading strategy. See a <strong>short summary</strong> for <em>the most popular ones&nbsp;below</em> or just <em>follow the links</em>&nbsp;here to the detailed guides gain deeper understanding:<br /> &nbsp;</p> <ul> <li><a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/shooting-star-candlestick-pattern/"><u>Shooting Star</u></a></li> <li><a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/bullish-bearish-engulfing-patterns/"><u>Bullish and bearish engulfing patterns</u></a></li> </ul>

<h2>Forex market hours and liquidity</h2> <p>With indices, shares&nbsp;and most other financial products that are traded on various global exchanges, you can only make trades during the exchange&rsquo;s business hours. Fortunately for forex traders, currencies are free of this restriction and can be traded day or night, with the forex market hours being open 24 hours a day, 5 days a week.</p> <h2>Capturing trading opportunities around the clock</h2> <p>Because the Forex market does not have a physical location or a central exchange, it is considered an Over-the-Counter (OTC), or &quot;Interbank&quot;, market due to the fact that the entire market is run electronically, within a network of banks. This means that you can place trades through your broker 24 hours a day and trade at a time that&rsquo;s convenient for you.</p> <p>Below you can see a 24 hour period which shows the active trading sessions of the Interbank and Retail FX markets, using London as the time zone as this is the central hub to Forex trading.</p> <h2>Nylon session</h2> <p>The highest volume of trading activity happens during the London session (as it also has Europe as well) but liquidity is at its highest when New York opens and overlaps with the London session. This is referred to as the &lsquo;Nylon&rsquo; session (New York and London) when liquidity and trading volume is at its highest. Therefore we can expect larger moves and is an ideal time to trade breakout strategies. This is a popular time for intraday traders to participate as due to the higher volume and liquidity, spreads are at their tightest so transaction costs for the traders is lower.<br /> <br /> <img alt="timezones" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/timezones_1.png" /><br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p> <h2>Asia Session</h2> <p>Whilst New York and London are considered important trading centres the same can also be said for Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore. As London and New York banks close their official trading sessions, the Asian banks open and trade which is why Forex is seen as a 24 hour market. However the volume is not as high as the Nylon session which means we tend to see smaller price movements and wider spreads.<br /> &nbsp;</p> <h2>24-liquidity cycle</h2> <p>The visually show you the changes in liquidity around a 24 hour period the chart below has a 14 period ATR indicator (Average True Range). This is a proxy for volume and each horizontal line represents 24hrs. We can see that during the Asian session volume and liquidity is at its lowest and increases when Europe and London opens, with the peak during the Nylon session. Whilst it is not precise to the hour or minute I hope this demonstrates the daily cycle of increasing and decreasing volume.<br /> <br /> <br /> <img alt="timezones" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/timezones_2.png" /><br /> &nbsp;</p>

<p>The most important part of any trading strategy is knowing when to enter and exit the market. In our previous trading guides and articles, we covered various factors influencing price movements in financial markets, such as economic indicators and political climate.<br /> <br /> Analysing such factors is called fundamental analysis, and it is a very popular method to evaluate future price movements among traders.<br /> <br /> However, some traders consider insights found with the help of fundamental analysis insufficient to provide exact buy and sell levels. That&rsquo;s where technical analysis can be useful.</p> <p>In this article, we&rsquo;ll explain what technical analysis is, how it works, and its main types.</p> <h2>What is technical analysis?</h2> <p>Technical analysis is the process of evaluating past price movements of an instrument to determine its future moves. The reason it&rsquo;s called technical is because it&rsquo;s based purely on statistics and is not affected by news, economic or political factors.<br /> <br /> While this method is widely used by traders all over the globe, it&rsquo;s important to understand that past prices don&rsquo;t predict or dictate future prices, and all the insights gathered with the help of technical analysis are solely indicative.<br /> <br /> Technical analysis includes multiple tools. An experienced technical analyst usually uses various combinations of them to compare results and make an informed trading decision. These tools can be divided into three categories: trend lines, chart patterns and technical indicators.<br /> <br /> All three analyse price charts. So whichever type you choose, the single most important thing is to learn how to read price charts.</p> <h2>What is a price chart?</h2> <p>A price chart in trading is a graphic sequence of historical prices of an instrument. Charts are at the heart of trading as they help traders to monitor the value of their current positions, analyse past price movements and get cues as to where the price may move next. Understanding how to read a price chart is a key step in learning technical analysis.<br /> <br /> Each trading platform offers a different set of various chart types, and the choice depends purely on a trader&rsquo;s personal preference. ThinkMarkets&rsquo; proprietary platform ThinkTrader, for example, has over 15 different charts to accommodate traders&rsquo; needs.<br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/getmedia/6aae82dc-4ad4-43ba-9b7b-fdbf2373e549/article-what-is-technical-analysis-price-chart-1.webp" style="width: 552px; height: 464px;" /><br /> <br /> Some popular ones are candlestick, bar and line charts:<br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/getmedia/ffc042b3-bc5a-4a9e-81e8-da5cb1ba5b5c/article-what-is-technical-analysis-chart-types.webp" style="width: 552px; height: 258px;" /><br /> <br /> As a candlestick chart is the most commonly used by traders, let&rsquo;s see how it works in detail.</p> <h2>Candlestick chart</h2> <p>A candlestick chart is called so because each unit of it looks like a candle. The time frame of candles can be adjusted from one minute to one month, depending on the strategy:<br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/getmedia/0f95f823-f6c9-42e1-a8f7-dcfb6ace79e7/article-what-is-technical-analysis-candlestick-chart.webp" style="width: 552px; height: 431px;" /><br /> <br /> Regardless of the chosen time frame, each candle consists of two main elements: the wick and the body that represent four prices of an instrument:</p> <ul> <li>Opening price</li> <li>Highest price reached during the chosen period</li> <li>Lowest price reached during the chosen period</li> <li>Closing price</li> </ul> <p><br /> The candles are coloured depending on whether the market rose or fell during the selected timeframe. Green candles (white on some platforms) indicate rising or bullish prices, and red (black) represent falling prices, also called bearish.<br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/getmedia/38272a03-b39f-4a17-85b3-e0377aacfc0a/article-what-is-technical-analysis-candlestick-wicks.webp" style="width: 552px; height: 327px;" /><br /> <br /> In technical analysis, it is exactly the relationship between individual candlesticks that helps traders predict a future price movement.</p> <h2>Types of technical analysis</h2> <p>As we mentioned above, technical analysis tools can be segregated into three categories: trend lines, chart patterns and technical indicators.</p> <h5>Trend lines</h5> <p>Prices never move in straight lines. Influenced by many factors, they move up and down, forming highs and lows. A trend means the overall direction of the price movements. Trend lines are just straight lines that traders use to connect highs and lows on a price chart to identify a trend. Some trend lines, such as support and resistance, are used to identify an entry and exit level before opening a position.<br /> <br /> In one of our following articles, we&rsquo;ll explain how trend analysis works and how to identify a trend in detail.</p> <h5>Chart patterns</h5> <p>A chart pattern is a graphic sequence of lines that can be identified on a price chart. Chart patterns are very popular among traders as they can often signal the beginning, end, strengthening or weakening of a trend.<br /> <br /> We&rsquo;ll go through the most popular patterns in one of our next articles as well and explain how they work.</p> <h5>Technical indicators</h5> <p>Technical analysis indicators are mathematical calculations based on historical data and used to identify price action. As complex as it sounds, traders don&rsquo;t need to do the actual math. Every trading platform offers technical indicators that can be simply applied to a price chart. The main goal for a trader is to learn how to read them.<br /> <br /> Depending on their types, technical indicators can analyse trend direction and strength and identify potential entry and exit points. We will cover this topic in detail in our following articles too.<br /> <br /> For now, to start getting familiar with technical analysis, we suggest creating a <a href="/latam/demo-account">risk-free demo account</a> on ThinkTrader and studying various price charts. You will be able to use the same platform to continue your journey with technical analysis, as it offers an extensive suite of analytical tools.<br /> &nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong style="color:#007c8c;">Customising charts</strong></h2> <p>You can fully customise your charts with indicators, grids and period separators&nbsp;and can add and remove these as you see fit. Here are some useful keyboard shortcuts for easy removals:<span style="font-size: 1.425rem; line-height: 1.6; font-family: EncodeSans, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;</span></p> <h5><span style="font-size: 1.425rem; line-height: 1.6; font-family: EncodeSans, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: normal; margin-top: 0px;"><img alt="" src="/getmedia/ad730baa-a9bd-415e-8ac7-4ae53466cfcf/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-Custom-Charts_1.PNG" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-top: 0px; " /></span></h5> <p><br /> <strong><img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-hide-the-Bid.PNG?width=300&amp;height=204" style="width: 300px; height: 204px; float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:24px; margin-bottom:8px;" />Hiding the bid line</strong><br /> If you use a lot of technical analysis, the bid line can become rather obtrusive. To remove the bid line you can set the colour of the line to &lsquo;None&rsquo;, completely removing it from the chart.</p> <h5>&nbsp;</h5> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-Setting-Default-Chart.PNG?width=300&amp;height=489" style="width: 300px; height: 489px; float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right:24px;" /><strong>Setting the default chart</strong></strong><br /> Once you have a chart you&rsquo;re happy with, you can save it as a template. The quickest and easiest way to do this is by right-clicking on the chart and selecting &ldquo;Template&rdquo;, followed by &ldquo;Save Template&rdquo;. You can have as many templates as you like to match all of your trading strategies.<br /> If you have a preferred template that you wish to save as your default, you can do this by right-clicking on the chart, selecting &ldquo;Template&rdquo;, &ldquo;Save As&rdquo; and then &ldquo;Default&rdquo;.</p> <h2><strong style="color:#007c8c;">Customising toolbars</strong></h2> <p>Many of the toolbar functionalities can be distracting and you may find you don&rsquo;t use all of them. With MT4 you can add in or hide as many features as you want.<br /> <img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-Moving-Tool-Bar.PNG?width=300&amp;height=168" style="width: 300px; height: 168px; float: right;" /> There are four separate toolbars available:</p> <ul> <li>Standard</li> <li>Chart studies</li> <li>Line studies</li> <li>Time frames</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><br /> You can move toolbars around by simply dragging them to wherever you&rsquo;d like them to be.<br /> <br /> To customise what you view, you can simply right-click on the toolbar and click on the customise sub-menu. Here you can remove functions that aren&rsquo;t required by un-ticking them.<br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-hidden-Tool.PNG?width=300&amp;height=141" style="width: 300px; height: 141px; float: right;" />By using the customise feature on each toolbar, you can access hidden tools, while removing any you don&rsquo;t require.&nbsp; Through this technique, you can end up with a much cleaner and more compact user interface.</p> &nbsp;<br /> &nbsp; <p><strong>Using shortcuts</strong><br /> Keyboard shortcuts are a quick and easy way to perform tasks. By using shortcuts, you can have faster access to tools &ndash; saving plenty of time in the long run. You can remove redundant information and functionalities, and most importantly increase your charting space.<br /> The following keyboard shortcuts can help to navigate your way around the platform easier:<br /> &nbsp;</p> <table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width:113px;"> <p><strong>Terminal</strong></p> </td> <td style="width:85px;"> <p>Control+T</p> </td> <td style="width:403px;"> <p>This is the main window you use while trading &ndash; manage open orders, view account history and set alerts</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:113px;"> <p><strong>Navigator</strong></p> </td> <td style="width:85px;"> <p>Control+N</p> </td> <td style="width:403px;"> <p>Add Indicators, Expert Advisors and log in</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:113px;"> <p><strong>Market Watch</strong></p> </td> <td style="width:85px;"> <p>Control+M</p> </td> <td style="width:403px;"> <p>View available instruments</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:113px;"> <p><strong>Data Window</strong></p> </td> <td style="width:85px;"> <p>Control+D</p> </td> <td style="width:403px;"> <p>View all data for the product currently in the chart window</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p><br /> You can use the following shortcuts when analysing and trading, which can greatly improve the process speed of your trading:<br /> &nbsp;</p> <table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p><strong>+</strong></p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>Zoom in</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:18px;"> <p><strong>-</strong></p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:18px;"> <p>Zoom out</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p>Control+F</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>Crosshair</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:18px;"> <p>Control+Drag</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:18px;"> <p>Copy objects</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p>Alt+Drag</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>Extend objects</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:18px;"> <p>Alt+T</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:18px;"> <p>One-click trading</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p>Hotkeys</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>User-defined shortcuts</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>&nbsp;<br /> These are the shortcuts for the more visual aspects of your charts:</p> <table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p>F8</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>Edit chart graphics</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:18px;"> <p>F9</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:18px;"> <p>Order panel</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p>F11</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>Full screen chart</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:18px;"> <p>Alt+1</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:18px;"> <p>Bar charts</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:17px;"> <p>Alt+2</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:17px;"> <p>Candlestick charts</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td style="width:75px;height:18px;"> <p>Alt+3</p> </td> <td style="width:192px;height:18px;"> <p>Line charts</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>&nbsp;<br /> <strong>Using hotkeys</strong><br /> <img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-Hot-Key.PNG?width=300&amp;height=334" style="width: 300px; height: 334px; float: left;" /><br /> <br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p> <p><br /> In MT4, when you switch your chart templates, you&rsquo;ll lose any current analysis on your charts. To prevent this, you can leave your price charts open and just change the indicators that you use &ndash; this is where hotkeys come into play. You can assign a hotkey to place a certain indicator on your charts, instead of needing to change the template.</p> <p>To assign a hotkey to an indicator, simply right-click on the indicator on the navigator window and select &ldquo;Hotkey&rdquo;.<br /> <br /> <br /> <img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-Favorite-Chart.PNG?width=300&amp;height=182" style="width: 300px; height: 182px; float: right;" /><br /> <br /> <strong>Favourites indicators list</strong><br /> To streamline the number of indicators that are available to you, you can create a favourites list. Here&rsquo;s how you can add indicators to your favourites list:</p> &nbsp; <ol> <li> <p>Open Navigator (Control+N)</p> </li> <li> <p>Open relevant tab (Indicators, Scripts etc)</p> </li> <li> <p>Hover mouse over desired favourite</p> </li> <li> <p>Right-click on your mouse</p> </li> <li> <p>Select &lsquo;Add to favourites&rsquo;</p> </li> </ol> <br /> <img alt="" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/MT4-Tips-and-Tricks-Alert.PNG?width=300&amp;height=365" style="width: 300px; height: 365px; float: right;" /> <strong>Alerts</strong> <p>Alerts allow you to keep track of important price levels being breached, and can further enhance your analysis and chart organisation. If you track multiple markets, it can become easy to lose track of the markets, especially after an important event and all the markets move their separate ways.<br /> To set up alerts, move your mouse to the area on the chart you&rsquo;d like to set the alert at, right-click on the position, select &lsquo;Trading&rsquo; and then &lsquo;Alert&rsquo;.</p>

<h2>What is the NFP report?</h2> <p>Non-farm payroll (NFP) is a monthly report on nonfarm employment numbers in manufacturing, construction and goods, which totals to around 80% of US jobs. It contains information related to the unemployment rate, job growth, and other key employment statistics.</p> <p>The report does not include US jobs in private households, the federal government, nonprofit organisations, and as the name suggests, farm workers. Data within the Non-farm payroll report is measured by the <a href="https://www.bls.gov" target="_blank">Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics</a> through the Employment Situation report and is typically released on the first Friday of every calendar month.</p> <h2>Why is the Non-farm payroll important?</h2> <p>The report is an important economic indicator of how the US economy is performing, as it reports on the number of people employed or unemployed in the US. It is considered one of the most consistent news announcements that can cause large rate movements that result in volatile markets, particularly affecting major currency pairs in forex. As a stand-alone report, it is important in its own right, as an indication of whether the economy will strengthen or decline; for example, if the unemployment rate is high, it could indicate a declining economy.</p> <p>However, it is also an important piece of a jigsaw when looking at other key factors that influence the US economy, such as economic policy-making. Interest rates, for example, are set by the <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/fomc.htm" target="_blank">Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)</a> in the monthly Federal Reserve meeting, and the board will look at the Bureau of Labor statistics NFP figures when deciding if they are going to lower or raise interest rates in their monetary policy. Changing interest rates will have a big impact on markets such as forex, commodities and stocks, and can cause big volatility.</p> <h2>Non-farm payroll report calendar</h2> <p>The NFP is released typically every first Friday of the calendar month at 13.30pm (GMT), below you can see the dates for 2024.</p> <p><img alt="NFP-calendar" src="/getmedia/7ade571b-7f2e-4ac4-acb2-32f69f83074d/NFP-calendar.png" style="width: 552px; height: 760px;" title="NFP-calendar" /></p> &nbsp; <h2>How does the NFP affect the markets?</h2> <p>The NFP report is important to traders as it can be a cue to analyse how other factors will adapt, such as the Federal Reserve and other government agencies, to attempt to move the economy in a certain direction. It is just one factor of many that can act as a catalyst for volatility and market price changes.</p> <p>The government will adapt policies to combat issues within the economy such as inflation or recession. If the NFP report indicates employment is dropping, it could indicate that the economy is declining. This, in turn, will prompt the Federal reserve to adjust interest rates to restore balance. If rates adjust, this will trickle down into the markets.</p> <h5>Trading on Non-farm payrolls</h5> <p>Firstly, monitor the report. The primary focus of the NFP report are the employment figures, mainly on jobs added or reduced. However, there are smaller components you can also watch out for when trading.</p> <p><strong>Take note of sector specific data</strong></p> <p>If the NFP report shows a decline in employment, traders will monitor which industries or sectors this decline is coming from. It could indicate the sector itself is struggling, which can have a knock-on effect to stocks and shares.</p> <p><strong>Don&#39;t just focus on figures, also focus on earnings</strong></p> <p>If average hourly earnings have dropped, but the employment figures are stagnant, this could also indicate a decline. It could also point to trouble where we could see the workforce output fall as employees could leave the workplace due to declining earnings. On the other hand, higher earnings could indicate wage inflation.</p> <p><strong>Monitor previous reports</strong></p> <p>As the scale of the NFP report is so large, it is often subject to large revisions of the previous headline figures. If this happens, it could cause a sudden jolt in the markets.</p> <p>When trading on the Non-farm payroll report, economists will try to predict what the headline figures (or NFP number) will be on a monthly basis, while also monitoring other reports, rates and financial events. Trades will then be placed on whether they think this result will make markets go up or down. The markets most affected by the NFP report are forex, indices and commodities.</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">A declining report may not be bad news for traders since it&#39;s possible to potentially benefit from this outcome with <a href="/latam/trading-academy/cfds/what-are-cfds/">contracts for difference (CFDs)</a>. CFDs&nbsp;allow you to trade volatile markets whether they go up or down; you just need to correctly predict which way the market will go by going long or short. You can use <a href="/latam/trading-academy/cfds/risk-management-tools-in-cfd-trading/">risk management tool</a> such as stop loss and take profit to minimise your risk, but as always with trading, act with caution. Plan your strategy, monitor reports such as the NFP and take advantage of our built-in economic calendar to monitor other major financial events on our award-winning app ThinkTrader.</p>

<p>Multi-candle chart patterns work roughly the same way as one-, two- and three-candle formations covered in previous articles. However, these formations don&rsquo;t have a defined number of candles and serve as an indication of either continuation of the preceding trend or its reversal.</p> <p>Bullish and bearish flags are continuation candlestick patterns that suggest that the current trend will resume after a short consolidation period.</p> <h2>Bullish flag chart pattern structure</h2> <p>As the name suggests, a bullish flag looks like a flag on a pole.<br /> <br /> <img alt="A graphical representation of a bullish flag pattern with a clear upward pole, followed by a consolidation zone and an upward breakout." src="/getmedia/28d51a80-4048-4363-b2ef-3caeb2d92d3d/bullish-and-bearish-Flag-patterns.png" /><br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p> <p>This pattern consists of a distinct pole comprising several candlesticks, a body in the opposite direction of the main trend and a breakout. To be considered a bullish flag, this formation needs to have the following characteristics:</p> <ul> <li>The &ldquo;flagpole&rdquo; is strongly bullish, with higher highs and higher lows</li> <li>The &ldquo;flag&rdquo; is made up of candles with lower highs and lower lows that take place between two strictly parallel trend lines</li> <li>A breakout pierces the top line, resistance.</li> </ul> <h2>Bearish flag chart pattern structure</h2> <p>A bearish flag has exactly the same structure but upside down &ndash; a descending pole, an upward-facing flag and a breakout at the bottom.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Bear flag pattern" src="/getmedia/4dc5c5f8-956f-48a4-b982-bbf7008cc76f/Bear-flag-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p> <p>Similar to a bullish flag, a bearish version needs to follow certain characteristics to be considered a valid chart pattern:</p> <ul> <li>A strongly bearish pole with lower highs and lower lows</li> <li>A bullish series of candlesticks with higher highs and higher lows between two parallel trend lines</li> <li>A breakout through support &ndash; the lower line, in the flag.</li> </ul> <h2>How do flag chart patterns work?</h2> <p>Both bullish and bearish flags indicate that the prevailing power is strong to form a trend. At some point, the opposing power gains enough control to try and push the price in the opposite direction from the main trend. However, it is not strong enough to reverse the trend, so the price starts trading mostly sideways. This allows the dominant power to consolidate their efforts and push the price into a breakout, continuing the main trend.</p> <h2>How to trade with Flag chart patterns</h2> <p>Like with any other candlestick pattern, a rule of thumb is to wait for it to be completed and only then enter the market.</p> <h3>Trading with a bullish flag pattern</h3> <p>As a bullish flag is a bullish continuation pattern appearing in an uptrend, it suggests opening a long trade once the breakout occurs.</p> <p>The most common way of placing a position when trading with this pattern is to use the closing price of the breakout candle as an entry level. Stop loss can be placed at any point in the body, as any movement within it would invalidate the pattern and indicate that it&rsquo;s better to exit the market. To determine a suitable take-profit level, traders commonly calculate the price change from the flagpole&#39;s base to its peak and then add this measurement to the breakout point.</p> <p>Keep in mind that this scenario may be a better fit for risk-prone traders who choose to not wait for additional candles to close after the breakout, confirming the trend. If you decide to wait a little longer, the entry, stop-loss and take-profit levels may be different and need to be identified individually.</p> <p>On the image below, you can see that there was a small pushback from bears, and the second candle after the breakout is bullish. However, the price shot higher right after it, validating the pattern&rsquo;s suggestion.<br /> <br /> <img alt="An example of trading financial markets with a bullish Flag pattern" src="/getmedia/f0a28f21-908e-49eb-b62d-49547334b7e5/An-example-of-trading-financial-markets-with-a-bullish-Flag-pattern.png" /><br /> &nbsp;</p> <h3>Trading with a bearish flag pattern</h3> <p>The appearance of a bearish flag in a downtrend suggests going short once the pattern is confirmed. Following the same logic, the closing price of a breakout candle can serve as an entry level.</p> <p>However, as you can see on the image below, a continuation of a trend indicated by a bearish flag can be short-lived. Shortly after the breakout, the price started moving sideways, eventually reversing into an uptrend.<br /> <br /> <img alt="An example of trading financial markets with a bearish Flag pattern" src="/getmedia/cfe88a51-3394-4aa8-ba27-60e03aa3d933/An-example-of-trading-financial-markets-with-a-bearish-Flag-pattern.png" /><br /> &nbsp;</p> <p>To decrease the risk of false signals when trading with chart patterns, it is essential to gather additional insights from the price chart.</p> <p>In the example above, you can see that only three bearish candles formed once the breakout happened. The fourth candle was strongly bullish, forming a <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/bullish-bearish-engulfing-patterns/">bullish Engulfing pattern</a> and indicating a potential upcoming price reversal.</p> <p>Additionally, many traders use technical indicators to compare and confirm their findings, as chart patterns alone only indicate a potential outcome but do not guarantee them.</p> <p>Another safety measure traders should always take is trading with a risk-free <a href="https://portal.thinkmarkets.com/account/individual/demo" target="_blank">demo account</a> first to hone their skills before trading with real money. Create one now and practis trading with bullish and bearish Flag chart patterns. To learn more about chart patterns, check out our next article, where we explain how <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/bear-pennant-pattern/">Pennant patterns</a> work.</p>

<p>Pennants are another type of multi-candle chart pattern. Like <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/bear-bull-flag-pattern/">Flag formations</a>, bullish and bearish Pennants are continuation patterns indicating that the prevailing trend will likely continue after a brief pause.</p> &nbsp; <h2>Bullish Pennant chart Pattern structure</h2> A bullish Pennant pattern has a very similar structure to a bullish Flag &ndash; a pole, a body (pennant) and a breakout. The main difference is that while the Flag&rsquo;s body is made of candles trading strictly within two parallel trendlines, the Pennant&rsquo;s body looks more like a triangle.<br /> <br /> <img alt="A bullish Pennant chart pattern" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/A-bullish-Pennant-chart-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> In general, to be considered valid, bullish Pennant patterns need to have the following characteristics: <ul> <li>A bullish flagpole with higher highs and higher lows</li> <li>A consolidation phase that takes place between the two converging trendlines</li> <li>A breakout through the upper line.</li> </ul> <h2><br /> Bearish Pennant chart Pattern structure</h2> A bearish Pennant is a continuation pattern that resembles a bearish Flag as well, following the same logic &ndash; its body has the shape of a pennant instead of a flag.<br /> <br /> <img alt="A bearish Pennant chart pattern" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/A-bearish-Pennant-chart-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> The main characteristics of this pattern are: <ul> <li>A strongly bearish flagpole with lower highs and lower lows</li> <li>A relatively short body between the two converging lines</li> <li>A breakout through the bottom line.</li> </ul> <h2>How do Pennant chart patterns work?</h2> Both bullish and bearish Pennants can show us that the dominant power on the market had enough strength to push the price in their favour and create a trend. At some point, it weakens, allowing the opposing power to test its resistance, which sends the price sideways, bouncing back and forth between the two trendlines.<br /> <br /> Eventually, the previously dominant power consolidates its efforts to resist the attempts of price reversal and pushes for the trend&rsquo;s continuation.<br /> <br /> If the breakout in any of the two Pennants happens in the opposite direction invalidating the pattern, it means that the dominant power lost its ground, and the trend may reverse. <h2>How to trade with Pennant chart patterns</h2> The first step in a trading strategy with Pennants is to wait for the pattern to be completed. This means that you need to be able to identify a clear breakout &ndash; the last element of the pattern. Once you have all the elements in place &ndash; you can open a position. <h3>Trading with a bullish Pennant pattern</h3> As a bullish Pennant suggests a continuation of an upward price movement, traders usually go long once they spot this formation.<br /> <br /> On the image below, you can see a clear example of a bullish Pennant chart pattern.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /> <br /> <img alt="Trading example with a bullish Pennant pattern" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/Trading-example-with-a-bullish-Pennant-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> In this case, a rule of thumb for opening a position is to set the closing price of the breakout candle as an entry level and its opening price as a stop loss. However, if the opening price is just at the boundary of the breakout point, a stop should be placed slightly below this point. The general idea is that the price should not trade deeply into the pattern - if this happens, the pattern will fail, and the trader will generate a loss.<br /> <br /> For a target take-profit level, you can visually copy-paste the Pennant&rsquo;s flagpole and place it at the breakout point. The end of it is where the uptrend will likely pause, stop or reverse.<br /> <br /> Risk-averse traders usually wait for one more bullish candle to close after the breakout to confirm the trend. This can mean a missed trading opportunity on the one hand, but on the other hand, it can prevent risk should the price move downward instead. The drawback with this approach is that the risk-to-reward ratio will be inferior. <h2>Trading with a bearish Pennant pattern</h2> A bearish Pennant works exactly the same way but in reverse. As a continuation chart pattern, it suggests a resumption of a downward price movement. Once the pattern is confirmed, traders tend to go short.<br /> <br /> The image below illustrates a bearish Pennant formed in a chart with a clear breakout through the bottom trendline.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Trading example with a bearish Pennant pattern" src="/TMXWebsite/media/TMXWebsite/Trading-example-with-a-bearish-Pennant-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> Following a trading example with a bullish Pennant, risk-prone traders can use the closing price of the breakout candle as an entry and its opening price as a stop loss. The target price, or take profit level, can be set by copy-pasting the Pennant&rsquo;s flagpole to the breakout point.<br /> <br /> If you study price charts, you will notice that quite often, the price breaks in the opposite direction &ndash; through the bottom trendline in a bullish Pennant or breakout through the upper trend line in a bullish version of it. When it happens, the patterns are considered invalid, as there is no clear indication of the price direction.<br /> <br /> That&rsquo;s why it&rsquo;s important to keep in mind that Pennant patterns, like any other chart pattern, don&rsquo;t provide a guaranteed trading signal but only a suggestion. Experienced traders use additional tools, such as one- and two-candle patterns or technical indicators, to gain additional insights into the market conditions. It is also important to note that patterns in smaller timeframes, like the 5 or even 30 minute timeframes tend to have a lower success rate compared to a pattern formed on the 4-hour or daily chart.<br /> <br /> It can also be helpful to try trading with Pennants in a risk-free demo environment first and move to trading with real money when you gain confidence in your skills. Create a demo account now and start practising. If you want to know more about chart patterns, check out our next article, where we&rsquo;ll talk about a unique pattern called a Cup and handle.

<p>The hanging man and shooting star candles are often considered a part of the hammers group, along with the hammer and inverted hammer. All four patterns are indeed very alike in their structure and are single-candle reversal chart patterns.<br /> <br /> As we mentioned in our previous article about <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/hammer-candlestick-pattern/">hammer candle stick patterns</a>, the main difference is that the hanging man and shooting star appear in uptrends, while both hammers occur in a downtrend. Hence, the hanging man and shooting star patterns are considered bearish &ndash; the opposite of bullish hammers.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Hanging Man vs Shooting Star vs Hammer vs Inverted Hammer" src="/getmedia/7bdfd60c-d229-4aa6-ade5-26a2e31a7679/Hanging-Man-vs-Shooting-Star-vs-Hammer-vs-Inverted-Hammer.png" /></p> <h2>Hanging man candlestick pattern</h2> <br /> A Hanging man formation is the uptrend version of a hammer candlestick. Their structures are virtually the same &ndash; little to no upper shadow (wick), a small body with the high, closing and opening price close to each other and a long wick extending to the bottom. The lower wick is usually at least twice as long as the body.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> <img alt="Bearish and bullish Hanging Man pattern" src="/getmedia/8c89ad4d-4b7e-43a4-bc9e-c257d070c474/Bearish-and-bullish-Hanging-Man-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> A Hanging man candle can also be bullish (green) and bearish (red). Since this is a bearish reversal pattern, the red version of it is usually considered a stronger indication of the potential trend reversal. <h2>Shooting star candlestick pattern</h2> A shooting star candle is the uptrend version of the inverted hammer candlestick. Its short body is created by the closing, opening and high prices located near each other and a twice as long wick protruding upward. A lower shadow is usually either very short or doesn&rsquo;t occur at all.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Bearish and bullish Shooting Star candlestick pattern" src="/getmedia/a10c2061-e0ae-4a23-a28f-01798e0bd049/Bearish-and-bullish-Shooting-Star-candlestick-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> Similar to the hanging man candle, a bearish shooting star formation is considered stronger due to the overall bearish nature of the pattern. <h2>How do hanging man and shooting star candles work?</h2> <br /> Occurring in an uptrend, both hanging man and shooting star indicate that the trend is losing its momentum, and bears are trying to overpower the bulls.<br /> <br /> The hanging man candle tells us that, although bulls still have some power that helped them to achieve a high close, bears were powerful enough to push the price much lower to create a long wick at the bottom.<br /> <br /> The shooting star pattern is considered stronger than the hanging man candle because bears managed to push the closing price to the bottom despite the long wick at the top created by bulls. <h2>How to trade with a hanging man and shooting star</h2> When a hanging man and shooting star patterns occur, traders have two options. The first option is to go short right away, using the candle&rsquo;s closing price as an entry point and its high price as a stop loss. The second option is to wait for two to three candles to close and confirm a trend.<br /> <br /> There is no right or wrong decision, as it depends purely on the trader&rsquo;s perception and risk appetite. However, it is important to keep in mind that neither hanging man nor shooting star candles serve as a direct trading signal. Just like any other chart pattern or technical indicator, they only suggest that a bullish trend is weakening, and price reversal may occur. It doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean that the price will reverse right after the hanging man or shooting star candle &ndash; it may take some back and forth between bulls and bears.<br /> <br /> As you can see on the image below, a shooting star was formed at the end of the uptrend. However, the price didn&rsquo;t reverse immediately. It took a hanging man and some side traction for bears to assume power and turn the trend downward.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Identifying Shooting Star and Hanging Man candlestick patterns in a price chart" src="/getmedia/c3064b11-26bb-441e-979f-6e7c8351b039/Identifying-Shooting-Star-and-Hanging-Man-candlestick-patterns-in-a-price-chart.png" /><br /> &nbsp; <p>It may also be helpful to confirm the trading signal you identified with other technical analysis tools, such as <a href="/latam/trading-academy/technical-analysis/support-resistance/">trendlines</a> and <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/technical-indicators-beginners-guide/">technical indicators</a>.</p> <br /> <br /> Another important set of tools to use are risk management tools &ndash; stop loss and take profit. We suggest using them at all times to prevent larger than expected losses.<br /> &nbsp; <p>Create a free demo account to practise identifying Hanging Man and Shooting Star candlesticks and opening positions in a risk-free environment. To discover more helpful chart patterns, head to our next article, where we will explain how a <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/spinning-top-pattern/">spinning top candle</a> works.</p>

Bullish and bearish Engulfing candlestick patterns, also called Outside bars, are powerful dual-candle formations. Found at the end of a downtrend or uptrend, these patterns often indicate a potential reversal. Engulfing patterns are also easy to spot, which adds to their popularity and makes trading with them very straightforward.<br /> <br /> The difference between this pattern&#39;s bullish and bearing versions depends on the candle order within it. <h2>Bullish Engulfing candlestick pattern</h2> A bullish Engulfing pattern occurs at the end of a downtrend and consists of two candles. The first candle is bearish (red) and has a relatively small body and short shadows, also known as wicks. The second candle, on the other hand, is bullish (green) and has longer wicks and a longer body that engulfs the body of the previous bearish candle.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Bullish Engulfing candlestick pattern (Outside Bar)" src="/getmedia/4908dd05-65dd-4e63-8e2c-91688f3ef6cd/Bullish-Engulfing-candlestick-pattern-(Outside-Bar).png" /><br /> <br /> The body of the first candle doesn&#39;t necessarily need to be exactly in the middle as long as it&#39;s completely overwhelmed by the body of the second candle. For a candlestick pattern to qualify as bullish Engulfing, the high price of the second candle should be higher than the high price of the first candle. The same scenario applies to the low prices &ndash; the second candle must have a lower low price than the first one.<br /> <br /> If the closing price (top of the body) of the second candle is higher than the high price (top of the wick) of the first candle, the Engulfing pattern is considered a much stronger bullish reversal signal. The reason is that the second candle indicates that bulls gained control over the price. <h2>Bearish Engulfing candlestick pattern</h2> A bearish Engulfing pattern works exactly the same way. The only difference is that it is a bearish reversal pattern that occurs at the top of an uptrend, with a bullish (green) candle on the left and a bearish (red) one on the right.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Bearish Engulfing candlestick pattern" src="/getmedia/b35bbf54-f9e5-4090-a3ae-155c631dcdb8/Bearish-Engulfing-candlestick-pattern.png" /> <h2>How do Engulfing patterns work?</h2> As we mentioned above, both patterns take place at the end of a strong trend. The first candle in both formations (either bullish or bearish) signals the continuation of a trend. On the other hand, the second candle (bearish or bullish, respectively) is powerful enough to completely shut down the first one and initiate a new trend.<br /> <br /> Engulfing candles in trading are very significant when conducting analysis, as traders usually aim to capitalise on new trends when markets change direction. Reversal patterns, such as bullish and bearish Engulfing patterns, signal an impending change in the price direction, as the so far dominant force has started losing momentum, which allows the other force to step in.<br /> However, as with other candlestick patterns, Engulfing formations have their own limitations. While they are quite powerful at the end of a strong trend, they are almost non-tradeable when they appear in a sideways market. <h2>Engulfing vs Harami candlestick patterns</h2> An Engulfing pattern has an opposite version &ndash; a Harami candlestick formation, also called an Inside Bar. Its structure is identical, but the candles within it swap places. The first candle is long, entirely overwhelming the second smaller candle. A Harami candle can also exist in two variations &ndash; bullish and bearish.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Bullish and bearish Harami candlestick pattern (Inside bars)" src="/getmedia/418d3953-c8d9-46f8-b205-af678bcf1aeb/Bullish-and-bearish-Harami-candlestick-pattern-(Inside-bars).png" /><br /> <br /> However, in general, this pattern doesn&#39;t provide a strong signal. Once it occurs, it may indicate an upcoming reversal, but the price often starts trading sideways instead or continues following the trend. That&#39;s why this pattern is not particularly popular among traders. <h2>How to trade with Engulfing patterns</h2> A trading strategy with Engulfing patterns is pretty straightforward as they provide a powerful signal on their own. <h2>Trading with a bearish Engulfing pattern</h2> On the image below, you can see a series of highs and lows that created an uptrend. Following a new short-term high price (the first candle in the bearish Engulfing pattern), the price suddenly drops lower to create a strong, powerful bearish candle.<br /> <img alt="Trading with a bearish Engulfing pattern" src="/getmedia/e13e4fd6-918a-47a1-8d3f-669a1d94f57e/Trading-with-a-bearish-Engulfing-pattern.png" /><br /> All elements are in place, and the bearish Engulfing pattern occurs. After that, the price still has both lows and highs but ultimately trades at lower levels.<br /> <br /> In this particular example, you can see the power of a bearish Engulfing pattern. The trend reversed after the second candle generated a signal that the bears had taken control of the price, and the downtrend may be finished.<br /> In such cases, traders tend to go short, using the second candle as an entry point and its high price as a stop loss. The take-profit level is derived using other technical indicators.<br /> <br /> For a more complete trading strategy, you may also use additional technical analysis tools, such as support and resistance or technical indicators.<br /> For example, if we zoom out of the previous price chart, we can see a potential placement of two support levels that may (and did, in this case) affect a newly formed trend.<br /> <br /> <img alt="A bearish Engulfing candlestick pattern with support lines in a price chart" src="/getmedia/097e5469-ff87-4b8d-92c0-5528ed694c04/A-bearish-Engulfing-candlestick-pattern-with-support-lines-in-a-price-chart.png" /><br /> <br /> On the other hand, if you have a long position open in an uptrend, a bullish Engulfing candle pattern may serve as a signal to exit the market before it reverses. <h2>Trading with a bullish Engulfing pattern</h2> A strategy with a bullish Engulfing formation would work exactly the same, but you would go long following the same logic. With a short position in a downtrend, this pattern would also serve as an exit signal.<br /> <br /> For example, the image below shows a bullish Engulfing pattern in action &ndash; the downward reversed right after the formation occurred.<br /> <br /> <img alt="Trading with a bullish Engulfing pattern" src="/getmedia/13a3792d-d4e9-4eed-9fe4-0bbbd24b7401/Trading-with-a-bullish-Engulfing-pattern.png" /><br /> <br /> Keep in mind that even the most accurate trading signals never guarantee that the market will move in the predicted direction. That&#39;s why experienced traders always have risk management tools, such as stop loss and take profit in place.<br /> &nbsp; <p>Create a demo account to solidify your knowledge in a risk-free market environment. Alternatively, move to our next article, where we explain how <a href="/latam/trading-academy/indicators-and-patterns/marubozu-candlestick-pattern/">Marubozu candles</a> work.</p>