A Look At ETF Trading Strategies For Beginners

by Patrick Deaton on 2009/12/08

When looking at ETF trading strategies a person just entering trading will want to evaluate many factors. Some strategies are geared toward a specific type of trading. When coupled with a system or method that is not geared toward that same type of trading a person can find themselves in an unexpected reversal.

Many people get into ETF trading using an active short term trading strategy. This is a very risky type of strategy if a person does not have the knowledge that is necessary about the sectors that are being traded in. In many cases, day traders are making trades on several sectors during a day based on what they see happening in the moment. For active short term trading strategies to be effective a person needs to know the trends of the sectors they are working in to make knowledgeable decisions about the blips occurring in a sector on a daily basis. This lack of preparation and analysis is one reason that day traders overall do not make the consistent gains that traders who have done their homework make.

A stop-loss order can keep you from losing more than you intend when trading. ETF trading can move very quickly and you will want to set a stop-loss order so that you don't get caught in a reversal when you aren't prepared. Many people set a 10% stop-loss order which takes the emotional factor out of moving on changes.

Often times a person will get stuck on one strategy or system that has worked well in the past with a sector and not want to change strategies or systems for another sector. It is very important to learn about systems and strategies and which sectors they are most effective in. When the correct strategy and system are applied to the correct sector a person can make substantial gains.

When diversifying ETFs it is important to spread the risk of the sectors at the level of risk you are willing to endure. Diversifying into a portfolio that has a majority of high risk ETFs will increase the risk for loss. When first starting out, it is always wise to have more weight on the low risk side of your trading portfolio. This will give you the cushion needed to supplement the high risk losses that normally occur during the first two years of trading.

Using a system that employs trend following and setting buy and sell limits with your strategy will reduce the possibility of taking a fall in trading. The technical indicators are derived from researching the moving average, trading volume, and other historic data of a sector and setting the limits based of the trends that emerge from the data.

Many portfolios that are established for long-term investment purposes us the Buy and Hold strategy. This strategy looks toward a diverse group of low-risk ETFs that provide slow and steady growth. The ETFs most often in this type of portfolio are financial products that have a relatively steady growth over a long period of time. The investor is rarely involved with their portfolio to the extent that reallocation is made on a regular basis. In most cases a company handling the portfolio makes decisions about moving or trading ETFs on a regular schedule.

Many people with a mixed investment portfolio look at their funds on a yearly basis to see how they have done for the year. These individuals rarely trade their funds. They may be investing for retirement or other long term goals and are not looking for quick gains. They want a steady growth over a long period of time. These types of people are normally involved in a Buy and Hold strategy.

An investor who is going to be more active with their mixed portfolio, but not to the extent that they are in a higher risk for trades may use the Active Long Term trading strategy. This strategy is also diversified over several low-risk ETFs that are offering steady growth and positive overall profit to their portfolio.

When deciding on the type of strategy that will be most effective, you will want to look at the variables that make that strategy effective. When a strategy and system are geared toward long-term trends, a person will find that Active short term trading can dissolve a profit base very quickly.

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