Moving into a new week expect continued momentum with little news due for release that is likely to derail the current momentum.
Global markets continue to surge higher as expectations for growth increase and fears of continuing the financial crisis recede. With many markets from around the globe now at record highs, it seems there is little that can dampen the party.

This week traders will focus on events both sides of the pond, although the most important news will come from the United States at each end of the week. Retails Sales figures kick off the week with CPI (Consumer Purchasing Index) figures due for release on Thursday.

Midweek attention turns to Europe with the German ZEW Economic Sentiment figures due on Tuesday and GDP figures due on Wednesday. While signs of inflation creeping up in the UK in the BoE inflation report, could see the pound curtail its recent poor run.

Elsewhere commodity markets remain mixed in their outlook and gold still looks to remain vulnerable as its price fails to break 1485 support. Given the likely continued optimism in markets, the precious metal is likely to remain under pressure and could see further falls.

Key News This Week

Focus – Gold

For a second week I am keeping Gold as a prime market to watch.

The price should remain under pressure as money is switched to equities (Stocks). 1485 has proved a touch level to break so far and should remain so in the near future. While the price remains below this support level the overall outlook remains bearish.

PUT – Use rallies to position short for an expected test of recent lows at 1320 over the coming trading sessions.

Currency Majors

EUR/USD – Little has changed from a technical perspective on the pair. Pushing as high as 1.3240 last week, gains were erased with support again found at above 1.30 (1.3030 to be exact). Continue to play the range until we see a decisive break either way.

The pair continues to remain largely range bound, showing little real conviction to break outside of the April/May trading range. Keep a close watch on the current live price and be prepared to go short if the 1.2934 support breaks. Then expect a fast acceleration to the downside form a technical viewpoint.
USD/JPY – Last week’s break of 100.00 continues the strong gains that have been made in the pair. Expect to see additional gains over the coming days and weeks. Expect gains to stall around the 101.50 region which is the 2009 high. This could be a place to position for a short -term pullback.
USD/CHF – With the dollar in demand at present (risk off) we could see some movement in this pair this week in the dollars favor. Look for a move above 94.80 (falling channel resistance) to target gains upto 96.00.
GBP/USD – Since hitting its low at 1.4830, the pair has posted a series of impressive daily gains. Expect high levels of volatility this week with the imminent rate decision. Look at 1.5600 as the likely ceiling for further gains.
Falls are expected in the pair with a break of near term channel support likely to signal further falls. On a break of channel support at 153.50 expect 1.5190 to act as the next level of support to further falls back towards March lows.

Major Indices

DOW – Now above 15,000 we are looking to see just how high this index can go. With all time highs broken and an optimistic view on markets, expect further gains to be posted. While the rally could stall on disappointing news, 14,400 would still prove a good point to go long.
NASDAQ – Key support sits down at 3300 although this is unlikely to be tested over the coming week. Bullish momentum remains strong with any likely setbacks likely to be supported above the 3400 level. Use pullbacks to position long.
FTSE – As with other major indices, expect further gains over the coming week. Here again look for any pullbacks or short term ‘corrections’ to position long. Stay with the current trend. 6500 looks to provide strong support from which to build.

Commodities

Oil – The oil price has been bolstered by growing confidence in the economic outlook. Provided that optimism remains upbeat then further gains should be expected. Call above 96.60 and go short at 92.71.
Gold – See above

Stocks

There are a few big stocks reporting this week which the binary trader should be alert of. The biggest of these is Wal-Mart which is due to report to the markets on Thursday. Keeping with the US, global Internet hardware provider Cisco is also due to update the markets on its earnings on Wednesday.

In the UK traders should keep a look out for figures for both BG Group (Tuesday), Aviva and Vedanta Resources (Thursday) and BT Group on Friday.

Positive figures on the labor front with better than expected figures on Fridays Non-Farm Payrolls were the impetus for Indices to push higher. The broad benchmark index the S&P 500 pushed above 1600 showing the continued appetite for risk on the markets.

Moving into a new week expect continued momentum with little news due for release that is likely to derail the currency momentum. Taking a broader view of economic events, only the release of the latest Chinese CPI figures on Thursday, is likely to curtail this ‘risk on’ appetite.

This week the news flow is light. In the main focus is likely to key regional events such as the rate decisions due for release by the Bank of Australia and the Bank of England.

While neither of these banks is expected to signal any key shift in current rates, the RBA (Royal Bank of Australia) is perhaps the riskier of the two events. Any sign of continued slowing growth from China could see rates drop and the AUD/USD head into a tail spin.

Commodity markets remained mixed with oil showing little clear indication of direction, while the gold price continues to look vulnerable. With the current bullish momentum in equities, the gold price looks likely to remain under pressure until we start to see signs of weakness in the current rally.

Key News  This Week

In Focus – Gold

Remaining below the bottom of a falling channel, the gold price remains vulnerable to further falls in the near term.

Expect bias to remain to the downside, with rallies towards 1500 providing what is likely to be a good level to go short. Look for a break to target and retest recent lows.

Currency Majors

EUR/USD - Little has changed from a technical perspective on the pair. Pushing as high as 1.3240 last week, gains were erased with support again found at above 1.30 (1.3030 to be exact). Continue to play the range until we see a decisive break either way.

USD/JPY - Gaining strongly following the NFP figures, the pair looks likely to have overextended itself and could be due a pullback. While longer term 1.00 could well be broken, at present a decline from current highs back to 97.00 is expected.

USD/CHF - The pair tested the 92.00 level again as expected. Look for additional gains over the coming days. On a break of 0.9383 look for a quick move and daily close above 0.9400.

GBP/USD - Since hitting its low at 1.4830, the pair has posted a series of impressive daily gains. Expect high levels of volatility this week with the imminent rate decision. Look at 1.5600 as the likely ceiling for further gains.

Major Indices

DOW– Despite strong gains and a push above the 15000 level, the index closed just short of this level on a daily close. However given current sentiment, expect to see a further move on this level early this week. 1450 remains near term support.

NASDAQ – With a strong break through 3300, bias for the index remains bullish. Pull backs from recent highs are likely to be seen as new buying opportunities. Stay long from this level.

FTSE – The Index closed the week strongly, pushing towards the previous weeks high of 6530. Expect additional gains in the coming days with strong support how as 6500 and 6450.

Commodities

Oil – Oil remains volatile and offers little in the way of a clear longer term picture. Bias remains modestly to the upside. Look for a break of 94..80 to open the way for additional gains. Support kicks in at 92.85 and 90.96.
Gold – See above

One of the newest brokers to launch on the market is Redwood Options. This a broker with big ambitions and it is already cementing itself as the choice of many traders.

Launched in 2013 a strong team sit behind this binary options broker which helps to explain the strong feature set which has been provided at launch. The binary options platform is based upon the highly popular and feature rich SpotOption platform.

It is fair to say that the solution provided is solid and has started off on a good footing. This broker is looking to expand quickly and therefore it will pay to keep a good watch out for new features and developments over the coming weeks and months.

Key Features

As has already been noted, Redwood Options is a new kid on the block and therefore it would perhaps be somewhat wrong to expect it to meet the standards set by some of the more established names immediately.

Having said that it offers an attractive trading proposition for the binary options trader built upon the reliable SpotOption platform. This offers a fully web based trading solution with a wide range of different contracts and a solid range of payouts.

A good feature is that all options purchased payout a rebate of 10% if the contract ends ‘out of the money’. New traders will like this feature in particular, as it helps to cushion the blow of any losses when you first start out trading.

Another area where this broker scores highly is in terms of the wide range of education resources it offers. In addition to eBooks and video instruction, traders can also access daily analysis reports of the major markets on the website.

Options Types Offered

As you would expect from a broker making use of the SpotOption dealing platform, you get a wide choice of different contracts and expiry times. Note the maximum investment amount on any one contract is $5,000.

The full range of binary contracts offered are:

• Binary Options – A wide range of classic Call/ Put binary contracts with payouts of typically in the 70%+ range, going up to 81%.
• Option Builder – As the name suggest you can build you own options by specifying both the market, expiry time and profit levels.
• One Touch- Earn the highest payouts from these contracts by predicting the precise level that a market will touch before the expiry time.
• 60 Seconds – The fastest way to earn a payout from the markets. Earn a payout in as little as 60 seconds with these contracts by picking higher or lower price outcomes.
• Open Platform – Similar to the OptionBuilder, the open platform allows you to structure your trades and payouts.

Mobile Trading

Currently dedicated mobile trading apps are not available from this broker. However these are expected to be available in the near future.

Accounts Types

As is the case with many brokers these days, a variety of different account types are offered to new clients. These offer differing features and privileges which can be accessed with a higher initial deposit amount.

As well as offering additional features and benefits, such as additional risk free traders and personal account management, the level of initial bonus also increases with each account type. The account types are as follows:

• Mini – Deposit required – 200-499 – Receive up to 30% bonus
• Executive – 1000- 4999 Receive up to 70% bonus
• Gold – 5000-10,000 Receive up to 100% bonus

Deposits Methods

You can deposit funds into your trading account with all the most popular funding methods. These include credit or debit card and bank wire transfer. Deposits via wire transfer that are under $500 (or equivalent) attract a $25 processing fee.

Additional deposit methods on offer include Cash U and eWallet.

Withdrawals

When you have made your profits you can withdraw your funds from your account by either debit/ credit card or bank wire transfer. Wire transfer withdrawal requests are charged at $30, while debit/credit card withdrawals are processed for free.

Note that request for withdrawal can take up to five business days to process, depending upon the method used.

Customer Support

Support is quick to respond and is currently provided in English. You can contact the broker via a dedicated support email address or via online chat.

Global markets look indecisive at present, a state which is likely to remain unchanged until the end of the week. All eyes are focused on the US economy and in particular, the Non Farms Payrolls report due for release on Friday. As a result, markets are unlikely make any major headway in either direction ahead of this release.

Last week the dollar actually ended lower, with many of the recent lagging markets posting gains against the greenback. Sterling was one of these, with the FTSE also benefiting from the latest UK growth figures which showed the economy avoiding a ‘triple dip’ recession.

Given the importance of US economic news due for release this week, binary options traders are advised to trade with caution. Markets should be watched particular closely on Friday in particular. For those people who are intent on trading Friday it is best to let the markets settle for an hour or so after the release of the figures.

Given the importance of US economic news due for release this week, binary options traders are advised to trade with caution. Markets should be watched particular closely on Friday in particular. For those people who are intent on trading Friday it is best to let the markets settle for an hour or so after the release of the figures.

Key News  This Week

In Focus – USD/JPY

95.34 provides near term support to pullbacks and any moves below this level could well see further near term falls to the 94.50 region. The overall trend however is seen as bullish.

Pulling back but holding above 97.00 (97.20 support held) the pair has so far been unable to break the significant 100.00 level. I would use pullbacks lower to position long for a break of 100.00, possibly this week.

Currency Majors

EUR/USD - The pair remains moving in a defined range of around 300 pips (1.3250-1.2950). Impetus to break out from this range could come this (Non Farm payrolls) or next (Rate decision). Until this point trading this range looks the most sensible move.
USD/JPY - See above
USD/CHF -  Having pulled back following touching a longer term trend line in place since July 2012, the bias is to the downside for now. Look for support at 93.90 or 92.00 (strong) as offering the chance to go long.
GBP/USD -  Propelling higher after better than expected GDP figures, the Pound is more likely to succumb to a longer term downtrend in the following days than see additional gains. 1.5580 could prove a reversal point if reached.

Major Indices

DOW - This week is likely to see muted moves as the market marks time ahead of Fridays major news. 14400 shows a good level of support while 15000 will remain in sight and could be breached on Friday.
NASDAQ - The Nasdaq continues to consolidate its gains as the global markets look for the next impetus to push them into a new price range. Strong support exists at 3200 while a break of 3300 would provide a good opportunity to go long.
FTSE - Gains in the FTSE off the back of the economy avoiding a triple dip recession have helped to support the market. It looks increasing likely that recent highs at 6530 could be tested if we end the week with a positive tone from the US.

Commodities

Oil – Pricing looks like a move lower could be ready to take place with 94.80 looking like a  good place to go short. On a break lower expect to see a wider test of 80.00 over the coming days and weeks.
Gold – Gold remains below the falling channel support which has dictated price movement from the end of Aug 2012. This currently comes in around 1504.  Stay bearish below this level.

Stocks

A number of major global stocks which are of interest to binary options traders report this week. These include oil major BP, Pfizer, Time Warner, and Rolls Royce.

For many people a big attraction of trading with binary options comes from the easy access this trading platform form gives to a wide range of different financial assets. Some of these, in particular commodity binary options, are not easily accessible to retail traders by other means.

While several efforts have been made to introduce these assets into traders portfolios over the years, the fact remains that commodities tend to be one of the least actively traded asset classes.  This is largely down to the fact that traders often lack the confidence to deal in them and as a result their workings are not very well understood.

While most retail traders tend to feel confident when investing on Indices, Stocks and more recently even Forex, the commodity markets are more likely to be given a ‘wide berth’. They are often considered volatile and difficult to make money on. However a basic understanding of commodities can provide the trader with an additional market that is well known for throwing up good opportunities to trade.

Types Of Commodities

The broad range of commodity options provided by binary option brokers fall into two key categories; hard and soft. A brief explanation of each is given below:

Hard Commodities – This category refers to those commodities are ‘extracted’ or mined. These are resources that tend to be in finite supply. Assets such as Gold, Silver and Oil come under this class.

Soft Commodities – In contracts to being extracted, soft commodities are ‘produced.’ Assets in this class included raw food and material crops such as Wheat, Sugar, Corn and Cotton.

The commonality of both of these groups is that they form the basic raw materials which are used in the manufacture of literally thousands of offer products. Therefore as economies grow and increase their rate of consumption, so too the demand for the commodities which fuel this consumption increases.

A good example here is Oil. As demand for goods increases, so too will the requirement for oil. It is used in the manufacturing process, the transportation of the required raw materials for production and of course ultimately in getting the end product to market.

The large price fluctuations in the commodity prices stem from the level of supply and demand as you would no doubt expect. However with commodities it is not quite this simple as it is not just the level of demand but also the ability to meet his demand which is a key factor in determining price.

The production of commodities is not simply something that can be instantly ramped up to meet demand. It takes a long time to bring new resource pools on stream. This can lead to periods of elevated prices as supply struggles to keep up with demand. Similarly once demand drops, a glut of resources in an economic downturn can quickly see prices tumble.

Commodity Trading Risk

Pricing in the commodity market is broadly dictated by fundamental factors. Price trends on most assets will tend to follow forecasts for economic growth and demand. In terms of soft commodities for example, population growth is often cited as a long term driver of price inflation. The price is assessed as to whether the production of agricultural commodities which will be able to keep up with increasingly global demand.

While long term forecasts are important, the short term ability of the markets to meet the required supply and demand will have the biggest influence on price.

Here are some specific fundamental factors which you can keep a look out for will have an effect on the price of commodity assets.

• Geopolitical factors – War, political tension, trade embargos, trade unions etc
• Regional Government Policy – Here you can think subsidies in terms of Soft Commodities, land planning and approvals
• Weather – Weather conditions can affect the ability to deliver a commodity and also the demand for it i.e. heating in winter
• Trends – Sometimes larger long term trends can pressure pricing. Moves to certain crops for example.

One final thing to think of is speculators. Gold is a prime example of a market where speculators have contributed to price gains. Investors piling into the asset or heading for the exit can cause prices to spike quickly. Of those trading commodity binary options can adjust quickly to these moves and make good profits from them.

It has been a while since I have run any live forward tests on the website. Perhaps too long. The last time I looked around the market for good Binary signals it seemed that there were a rapidly increasing number of services coming onto the market.

The reason for the growth in signals is somewhat obvious. It is a big money spinner and let’s be honest, binary options are fairly easy to come up with strategies for.

The secret to making money is of course finding a strategy that can offer a sustainable win rate. This is not always easy to do.

Anyone who has done their research into binary options will no doubt know that around the 55% mark tends to be the break-even point. Therefore you are going to need to hit a strike rate in excess of this to make money and cover any associated subscription costs.

It is against this backdrop that I am taking a look a the ‘The Binary Signals’. This is a newly launched alert service for binary options traders that quotes a 72% strike rate.

The service follows a familiar format. Signals are sent on a variety of different assets and at different times throughout the day. Although potentially a subscriber may receive an alert on almost any asset, in practice it looks like most are served up on currency pairs.

Delivery of the alerts is provided by both SMS and email to the contact details that you enter on the sign-up form.

Of note the website is clean and well laid out compared to many of its peers. All trade results are easily accessible for potential traders to view and even those who have not used binary options trading signals before should be able to grasp what is going on.

Historical Performance

The results of the last ten signals are highlighted on the homepage of the website. At the time of writing the review, 2 signals had been sent for the day (10th) while 8 signals had been sent the previous day (9th).

Of these 10 signals, eight were shown as ‘winning’ while two had ‘lost’.

This only gives a snapshot of performance.  However the service provides a full list of historical results which can be viewed on the website.

Historical results go back as far as mid February and provide a better indication of how many signals will be received. March for example, saw a total of 20 signals sent over the month.

It is from these results that the quoted 72% strike rate is derived. This is perhaps a little lower than some of the signal providers I have reviewed in the past.

What is very clear however from my testing experience with previous alerts services, is that being able to reliably ‘get in’ on the signals, is more important than the quoted performance from the provider.

In short you you need to test the signals for yourself and not rely upon any favourable performance figures provided on the website.

Price

There is no surprise in terms of the pricing for the signals which comes in at $97 per month. This makes this service pretty standard in terms of cost when compared to other similar alert services on the market.

However… and to my mind this is a big negative…  you can’t try the signals out like with other services. There is no one week trial offered as many other providers do.

While you can get the signals for a reduced  rate (advertised for $9.99)  you have to sign up with one of the brokers on the site to quality.

Personally I’m not a fan of this approach. Firstly you are going to end up getting steered into opening an account with a broker that you probably wouldn’t have entertained in the first place.

Secondly your $9.99 signals have now cost you $209 once you taken the minimum broker deposit requirements into account.

Live Testing

I intend to start placing and recording signals for this service from Monday April 15th and run the signals for one full month to see how they perform.

Anyone who has previously followed any of the live testing run on this site will be aware of the format.

All signals are placed in a live trading account when received. The actual results I get from trading the signals are then updated the following day. This helps to provide a ‘real world’ perspective on what can be achieved from following the alerts. It also provides a good way to measure the potential for building profits when using the service.

Results

Service Update

A quick update on the service so far and a couple of points to mention.

Firstly the first two days of the service saw no trading – I’m not quite sure what the error was but an email to support seemed to get things up and running.  I think there was a slight problem their end with delivery as everything was set-up OK my end (email, SMS number etc).  Not an ideal start but a good test for their support which I must say was thorough and quick to respond.

As for the signals themselves it is encouraging at this stage. At lot are very short term however and you will need a broker offering quarter hour expiry times.

My main criticism so far is the timing of some of the signals. They are sent GMT but to be honest, sending me a signal at 02:00 GMT is really not great for me…I’m asleep at that time! So far three signals have fallen into this ‘out of hours’ category. Now of course it will depend as to where in the world you are trading from as to which signals you may miss, given that they are not sent at a set time.

So far so good and watch out for my next update as the live Binary Signals testing progresses…

(** Bizarrely I woke up in the morning to find 8 trade alerts on my mobile which had been sent overnight! I’m not quite sure what happened there but needless to say I wasn’t able to place them… :-/ Also three trades were placed on a Sunday lunchtime on Tadawul and the Tel Aviv 25. Again these weren’t placed).

The Binary Signals Review – Final Update

Having tested this binary options signal service out for three weeks and due to the fact that I am unable to place the signals next week, I am drawing my live forwarding testing to a close.

Overall the performance for the service over the three weeks stands as follows -

33 wins

25 Lost

29 couldn’t place (including 8 sent overnight and three on a Sunday)

Looking at the numbers above I think the figures start to speak for themselves, with nearly 100 trades sent in a three week period! For those people that like to ‘get involved’ with their trading then this is clearly going to satisfy their urges.

However far from achieving the high published strike rate, the actual performance was less than spectacular. However this in part could be down to the alerts that I was unable to take – most commonly because I was unable to get in at the suggested price given in the signal.

For me the high volume of trades simply meant a lot of work for little in terms of results. However I would suggest that you may benefit from trying the service yourself. If you have better luck at getting in on the positions that I missed, the sheer volume of opportunities could provide you with profits.

TheBinarySignals $97 Per Month

There are many great things about trading with  binary options. Perhaps one of the most satisfying is that when trading with binary stock options you get the opportunity to make money from the fortunes of some of the biggest companies in the world.

It is against this backdrop that I thought it would be fun to take a look at the biggest stocks that you can currently trade with binary options. These stocks are often referred to as ‘MEGACAPS’ as they represent the largest listed companies on the planet.

Market Capitalization

There are various criteria on which the size of global companies can be worked out. The most common way to work out the size of a publicly listed company is based upon its market capitalization. This calculation is made by multiplying the number of shares that are in issue by the value that is attributed to a single share. This provides a snapshot of the valuation of a company at any one point in time and can be used to compare ‘size’ across different markets.

As the calculation for market Capitalization is partly based upon the company’s share price, a rise and fall in this value will naturally dictate which companies head the leader board at any one time.

The following list is based upon the official market capitalization as at the end of 2012,  for companies that are available to trade across the broadest range of binary options broker trading platforms recommended on this site. (PetroChina – Position 3 and ICBC -  Position 6 cannot currently be traded and are therefore omitted).

Remember this is just for fun. Having more information about some of the biggest stock options in binary options won’t guarantee you profits. It will however provide you with a greater insight into the companies that you are trading!

So let’s kick off by taking a look at the biggest Stock Options you can currently trade!

1. Apple

It will perhaps come as no surprise that the Californian consumer Electronics company is the biggest company that you can trade via binary options. The desirability of both the brand and its products have helped propel Apple to the enviable position of ‘the world’s largest’ company by market capitalisation.

Think Apple, think IPod, IPad, IMac, IPhone, Itunes.. the list goes on. All core electronics that have been ‘beautified’ and sold to a generation.

The success of the company has rested on it’s ability to keep manufacturing costs low and maintain a significant price premium for its products. This has kept margins unusually high. However the loss of influential founder Steve Jobs, coupled with little in the way of new product innovation since his death has hit the stock’s price as investors ponder the companies next step.

2. Exxon Mobil

The largest oil and gas corporation in the world, Exxon Mobil is also one of the oldest oil companies in the world (previously known as Standard Oil). It is headquartered in Texas and was formed by the merger of both the Exxon and Mobil Oil companies in 1999.

While the company is delivering around 3-4% of the worlds total daily oil production from refineries in over twenty one different companies, it still remains small in comparison to many ‘state owned’ oil companies. In particular those members of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) based in the Middle East dominate total production figures.

3. Microsoft

Noted for the immense wealth of its chief founder Bill Gates, Microsoft is the world’s largest software producer and one of the chief benefactors of the huge growth in technology over the past few years. It’s dominant Windows operating system is the most widely used software pin the world with thousands of business powered by both this and it’s office software.

Short term revenue growth in the stock is likely to rest on two things.  The first is the ability to convince existing users to upgrade to its latest Windows 8 operating system. The second will be how the market perceives the latest incarnation of its new gaming console the XBox 720.

4. IBM

Although IBM is very much a modern hi-tech company, its origins can actually be traced back to 1911.  Today the company  offers computer hardware, software, infrastructure and consulting services to businesses around the globe.

The company is also heavily involved in the design and manufacture of processors. For example most modern game consoles including the Nintendo Wii, Sony’s Playstation and Microsoft’s XBox run on microprocessors designed and manufactured by IBM.

5. Royal Dutch Shell

The Anglo- Dutch oil company operates in over 90 countries around the globe and like Exxon Mobile is considered as one of the worlds ‘six oil majors.’ In addition to the exploration and refining, Shell is also active in the development of bio fuels, distribution and renewable energy sources.

As with all oil companies, pricing is dictated by core demand which will be determined by the economic outlook and also the ability to maintain steady supply. Associated productions costs , exploration success and also environmental factors will also cause price movements in the stock. 

So there you have it. The worlds five biggest stocks that you can access from your binary options broker. The next thing you need to do is come up with a strategy for trading them to make your profits!

The start of this trading week is likely to be dominated by further news on the Cypriot bailout deal. Whether a deal can be brokered between the Cypriot Parliament and EU leaders will be the biggest factor of market volatility at the start of the week.

It is not yet certain that a deal will yet be made, although there is of course scope that the EU could relax it’s tough initial stance with the indebted country. Perhaps the worst case scenario is that Cyprus ends up leaving the Euro?

Whatever the outcome, this new tough stance from Euro leaders is most certain to be keenly watched by other member states. Particularly as many member states may well be needing to ask for further bailout funds in future…

News elsewhere this week of note is largely centered around the growth of the US economy. Look mid week for continued signs of growth coming from both the Consumer Confidence and Revised GDP figures. Both of these could help both Stocks and the dollar to keep up their current bullish momentum.

Also keep a watch out for the GBP Current Account deficit figures. Given recent poor growth figures in the UK economy this could provide some good opportunities for those trading the markets with binary options this week.  Further poor figures may well dampen the recent GBP/USD rally when released on Thursday while a surprise indication of growth will further fuel the rally.

Key News This Week

• Monday – EUR- Euro group Meetings
• Tuesday – USD – Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke Speaks
• Wednesday – AUD – Governor Stevens speaks, USD – New Homes Sales, Durable Goods Orders (m/m), Consumer confidence, Revised GDP
• Thursday – GBP – Current account deficit, CAD – Core CPI (m/m), USD – Pending Home Sales
• Friday – CAD – GDP (m/m), USD – Unemployment Claims

In Focus – Oil

Oils sideways movement last week left the commodities near term direction in the balance. However the early break of the 23.6 Fibonacci level signals further gains.

Call against 93.77 with a break of 94.82 accelerating near term gains.

Currency Majors

EUR/USD - The pair is testing a falling trend line that has been in place since the end of January. This currently comes in at around 1.3025. A move above this level would open the way for gains to at least the 1.3135 level.
USD/JPY - Having fallen back in recent trading 94.00 looks to provide good support. The trend remains bullish and this could provide a good level to go long.
USD/CHF -  The pair has been broadly caught up in a range extending from 0.9566-0.9380 over the past few trading days. Until a firm break occurs beyond these levels in either direction it is advisable to stand aside.
GBP/USD -  The pair has bounced strongly from the lows set at 1.4830. Given the recent strength the bias remains in favor of further gains. Above 1.5320 targets 1.5415.

Major Indices

DOW - Further gains for the Index last week with strong support showing at the 14,000 level. Given the recent support expect further gains. A good strategy could be to enter long on any pullbacks to the aforementioned support.
NASDAQ - For another week the Index has been ‘filtering’ with taking out the 2800 level which it has yet to do decisively. A strong move though this level early in the week should see extended gains to 2,900.
FTSE - The pullback on the FTSE is view as a correction given the recent strong gains. However this corrective move is likely to continue. Strong support sits at 6250 from where it is likely the market will bounce.

Commodities

Oil – (See above)
Gold – More gains look likely with the precious metal bouncing from the 1600 level last week. Below this support sits at 1585. Further gains are likely with 1620 and 1635 immediate targets.

Stocks

No major news for reporting this week.

Keeping a binary options diary is one step along from simply tracking your results. As well as just keeping a track of your performance, your diary, if used correctly, can reveal a number of factors that you can filter back into your trading process to improve your results.

The reason that so many major businesses spend millions on software packages to analyse their performance data is so that they can process this information to find areas for improvements which can increase their bottom line. As a trader of binary options, you too can benefit from this approach, though thankfully the expensive analytical software can be replaced with a simple spread sheet or pen and paper.

Reasons To Keep A Diary

There are two main reason to keep a diary of your binary options trading actions. The first of these is that by writing down the circumstances surrounding your trading, you are keeping a solid record which you will be able to refer to in future. This overcomes any failing of the memory and will prevent you from forgetting why a trade or action was taken

The second reason as to why this proves useful is that it also adds method to the trading process. A plan for trading binary options is designed to create structure and provide discipline. This will also help you to remove the temptation for making random or impulsive investment decisions which frequently lead to poor results.

What To Record

You only need to record some key pieces of information. This will prove to be sufficient to provide you with enough information to reference back your trading.

Here are three top things to record in your trading diary:-

1. What You Traded

This may seem obvious but you need to record what you are trading. As well as recording the asset it will also be useful to note the level that you entered the market (your strike price) , the time you took the trade (which trading session) and the contract type you used (Call/Put, Touch, Boundary etc).

This information may seem trivial at the time but given that many traders may make many trades per week, even knowing what you were trading a few days ago can be hard to recall. Therefore remembering the trades that you made weeks ago will be almost impossible.

2. Why You Traded It

There needs to be a sound reason as to why you traded the asset. It could be because of a technical setup on the chart or because of the fundamental picture. It maybe that you are simply following a technical trading system and that is why you took the trade. Either way you need to know the conviction behind the decision.

If you are technical trader also note the indicators that you used. Also be honest with yourself. If you took the trade simply because your strategy hadn’t traded for a while note it down. It can also be useful to note your mood or emotion leading up to the decision.

Emotions can play a huge part in the decision making process. So if you were stressed, anxious or simply didn’t have sufficient time to re-check your analysis before placing your deal, then also write this down.

3. What Was The Result

Provided you have been comprehensive and honest in filling out your diary this far, then this is where you will get the main benefit out of your binary options trading diary.

Analysing the results can help you feed improvements into your trading. Rather than asking yourself simply ‘did it win or lose’ look more into the reasons why this was the case. Your records for the first two questions here might highlight certain similarities between any losses. For example, it maybe that you always lose a trading contract when following a certain technical signals, trade on a certain asset or have a particular mindset.

In keeping a diary you will be able to regularly refer back to your trading and analyse the results that you get. This information will then be able to be used as a reference point which you can use to help evaluate your trading process and improve it. Sometimes history can prove to be an invaluable lesson which can be used to shape a more productive future.

After what has been a fairly ‘settled’ market in the last few weeks in terms  of Euro-Zone stability, this week binary options traders are going to have to prepare themselves for any fallout as the spotlight once again turns to the single currency.

The latest Cypriot bailout deal opens up a number of questions for the economic bloc and could well undermine stability. Panic could be sparked among investors following the talk of ‘tax levies’ on investors funds with the move potentially marking a dangerous precedence in approved. In particular investors in other bailout zones will be watching carefully no doubt for the next move.

On the other side of the pond the eighth week of consecutive rises on the DOW was brought to an end, with the dollar also looking softer across the board. This weakness if it continues may actually prove supportive of the Euro – or at least help to cushion a fall.

The upcoming week sees the Fed Rate statement and the key thing that investors will be looking for is any mention of an end to the current stimulus which has helped to fuel recent gains. It may prove to be that Fridays lower close turns into a temporary sell-off before markets move higher again.

Key News  This Week

• Monday – AUD – Monetary policy minutes
• Tuesday – GBP – CPI (y/y), PPI (m/m), EUR – German ZEW Economic Sentiment, USD – Building permits
• Wednesday – GBP – MPC Minutes, Annual Budget, USD – FOMC Statement, NZD – GDP 9q/q)
• Thursday – EUR – German Manu PMI, GBP – Retail Sales, USD- Unemployment Claims, Existing Home Sales, Philly Fed Manu Index
• Friday – EUR – German IFO Business Climate

In Focus

A strong bounce at the end of last week from 1.2910 saw the pair pushing back strongly above 1.30. Given the extent of the bounce the potential exists for additional gains back to towards 1.33 in the coming sessions.

However significant fundamental risk could occur at the beginning of the week (Cyprus). Until this shows some signs of being resolved look towards 1.2875. PUT

Currency Majors

EUR/USD - (see above)

USD/JPY - 95,34 provides near term support to pullbacks and any moves below this level could well see further near term falls to the 94.50 region. The overall trend however is seen as bullish.
USD/CHF -  The fallback to 0.9375 sees the pair testing a key support level. Look lower down towards 0.9000 for the week on a break of this level.

GBP/USD - A key determinate of direction this week is likely to come from the annual budget statement. Given the ‘risk’ to trading this week many binary traders may want to stand aside. However ‘technically’ the pair could be interesting with a rise to 1.5391 on the cards as the pair moves up strongly from recent low set at 1.4830.

Major Indices

DOW - Follow an extended run of gains, events this week could see the market look to consolidate its gains. On a pullback expect 14,000 to provide a level of solid support. .

NASDAQ - The Index has not shared so many of the gains of its cousins in recent weeks, although there is reason to expect accelerated gains if 2800 can be taken out. Look for a move above this level or below 2700 to determine the next strong move.

FTSE - Finishing in positive territory for the week, the FTSE looks ripe for some consolidation of recent gains. 6400 looks to provide an obvious level where a pullback, if it occurs this week, should be supported.

Commodities

Oil – Last week’s fall to and bounce from 89.34 indicates that a short term low could be in place. Against this level expect further gains, targeting 94.94. A break here will accelerate gains.

Gold – It seems that the metal may have formed a base at 1555. Given last week’s pressure on 1600 the outlook remains broadly bullish. Look for an early break of this level to ‘go long’ towards a target of 1650.

Stocks

Sportswear giant Nike is set to announce its results on Wednesday with growth in the stock expected to be propelled by higher demand from North America and across emerging markets.

Watch the stock for signs of these factors propelling growth and overcoming the impediments of rising  labor costs and unfavorable exchange rates. CALL on improved profit margins.