Initial Stops

Initial stop placement is always a problem area for traders, especially if you are a single lot BPL trader like me. Many times Market will take away our stop before going in our direction. Nothing is more frustrating than this. We can’t help. It is all in the game. How can we place more effective stops? Let me share some thoughts.

I always trade away from DP so that I can hide my initial stop behind a DP. But it may not be possible always due to RR considerations. So we have to think about alternatives. We will have a look at some scenarios

Look at Pic 1. Price breaks a DP and pullback forming a swing high. Now there are three ways to enter into this pullback.1.At DP on pull back with stop below DP .2.Entry on a formation say a pin bar with a stop below it. 3. On break of swing high with a stop below the pull back low. Mostly I go for the third type.  I expect this broken swing high to act as Flip and give support on the way down. If the swing low is very far I scratch on break of the Flip. If RR permits ideal stop is always below the DP

Pic.2. deals with a TST. Ideal stop is above DP only. But I wait for a swing low formation and short below it to have two layers of defense, a Flip and a swing point. Stop can be placed above second push swing high if DP is too far. If the bar which triggered the entry is a WRB we can place the stop above this bar also.

Pics 3,4,5, refers to a BOF. For a BOF the best stop is always above the extreme. There is no point in keeping stops much above the extreme because once price moves above the extremes, stops will start triggering and price may move up causing more loss to you. As per the situation keep stop losses above DP, swing High or WRB high.

Pics 6,7 &8 relates to a BPB. As you know the ideal stop is below the DP. Alternatively it could be below a swing low. But there is always a danger of a complex pull back happening. Only way to avoid it is to have stop below the DP or exit the trade on break of the Flip as a scratch.

Pic . 9. While trading a direct breakout always be well aware of this trap. Price attempts to break a range high many times creating a lot of stops above this area. Before the breakout ,price consolidates just below the range high forming another narrow range high. After the breakout price will pull back to this consolidation high breaking the range high to the down side. We will think it as a BOF and exit. Others will short the BOF. Price will reverse from the consolidation high with a vengeance trapping the majority.

There are no hard and fast rules for price action trading. Price action will unfold in million ways. The ability to think and adapt to the changing market conditions is very critical in trading.