4 Responses to “Do experienced index and futures day traders ever lose money on trades?”

1. jack Says:
   May 22nd, 2010 at 7:08 am

   Of course, there is always unplanned natural volatility. The idea with these things is much the same as gambling. Take chances, cut your losses, and learn to place larger bets when there are signals in your favor. If you win more than 50% of the time, you’ll make a decent profit.

2. MVD34 Says:
   May 22nd, 2010 at 7:43 am

   Yes, most of them.

   The average return is routinely far short of the return on the S&P 500 Index during the same period.

   In my experience, you have to divide traders into categories by the amount of money they manage. Nobody will be taken seriously until they are managing at least $1 million of their own money. Whether you start with $10 million or $10, if you are good you will end up with real money at some point, sooner rather or later. Nobody else is worth talking about.

   Said another way: Anyone can have a $10,000 account. It means less than nothing. A $100,000 account can be skill, luck, or just savings on a decent middle income wage. It means something, but not much. $1,000,000 is a minor achievement, even if it is primarily savings. $1 million over 2 or 3 three years defies the odds (When it is just your money).

   It defies the odds because most PROFESSIONAL traders fail to beat the market average over 3,5, &10 years. (They make their money on fees and commissions) Most successful amateurs eventually combine the error of over confidence with leverage and wipe themselves out (18 months to 3 years).

   In a typical case, an amateur finds a “formula” that he repeats for a profit over & over again without realizing that it isn’t the formula that is the secret to his success but the general marketplace (momentum investing). Eventually he convinces himself that he can’t loose and he makes a really bit bet “to make a killing” and that is when the market turns and destroys him.

3. Kenny Says:
   May 22nd, 2010 at 8:24 am

   Losses are part and parcel of Day Trading. All traders must be willing to accept a losing trade.

   Successful traders have no problem closing a trade for a loss. This is one of the most common reasons people fail at day trading as they can not accept taking a loss on a trade.

   Instead, they hang on to it and before they know it they have a big hole in their account.

4. Jim L Says:
   May 22nd, 2010 at 9:00 am

   Of course they do. It is a matter of percentages, they do better but no one is infallible. The most common reason is no one is a psychic and can predict the future with 100% certainty.

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