It largely goes without saying that choosing a trading strategy is a personal decision. From the level of risk you’re comfortable with to the instruments you’re happy to trade, much of it is down to you. But it’s also the case that trading strategies come in and go out of vogue, and there are certainly some options which will appeal more in 2019. This article will explore the strategies which are on the minds of many traders as 2019 gets underway – and how you can give yourself the best shot of a successful year in the markets.
Consider CFDs
Strictly speaking, CFDs – or contracts for difference – have been in use for a few years. But it’s only really been in the last year or two that they’ve reached a wide new audience, and many traders are now starting to see the benefits of a CFD-heavy trading strategy. These instruments are leveraged, so offer potential for higher risks and rewards, and they’re also easy to access as well. Making 2019 the year in which you learn to trade CFDs, then, could well be a wise trading decision – although remember to do your research first and ensure you understand how these products work.
Britain and Europe
While those traders with a technical analysis bent may choose to ignore political and international developments like these, those of a fundamental analysis persuasion are likely to spend 2019 a little more preoccupied than usual with Brexit, Britain and Europe. Currency traders, for example, may spy an opportunity to speculate on the fortunes of the pound or the euro, while stock traders may see an opportunity to back firms based on what they perceive to be the new European powerhouses. With Britain due to leave the group at the end of March, many trading strategies are likely to at least incorporate Brexit briefly in the interim.
Day trading
In the modern age, it’s clear that working hours are getting longer and longer – and in 2019, it’s likely that we’ll all continue to work hard. And with many traders working other jobs as well as working on their retail investment portfolios, it’s worth considering trading strategies which fit in around busy lives. One such strategy is day trading: broadly speaking, this refers to trades which are placed on one day and then closed on the same day, with the aim of profiting from small, intraday price changes.
One downside to this is of course the fact that markets can – and do – plummet in value within a day, and the strategy doesn’t really allow for time to rectify this. But for a trader who simply can’t commit to trading every day of the week, it may well be worth thinking about a less time-heavy option such as day trading – as it could be the only way to kick off your investing in earnest.
There’s no such thing as a right or wrong trading strategy, and many traders manage to be successful using a strategy that another trader considers anathema! But that doesn’t mean there’s no common ground: with more and more traders going into the new year thinking about Brexit, CFDs, and more, it doesn’t hurt to consider what the wider trading trends look like before making your strategic decisions.