Which Currency Pair Do You Trade?

[FXexpert]

Which currency pair do you usually trade ??

I almost exclusively stick to the EUR/USD because I understand it's movements from years of trading it, how about you ??

[Sinnerman]

I have a strong understanding of fundamentals and usually use that to get my directional bias, then use technicals to set up the entry and exit points. The method has worked well for me, but it does keep me away from some currencies whose fundamentals I don't follow much at times, so I usually trade the majors, with a focus on commodity currencies such as AUD/USD and USD/CAD, carry currencies (JPY crosses) and of course the most liquid one of all EUR/USD. Everything else I usually stay away from because I don't follow them as closely, and also because the lack of liquidity in some pairs can cause unwelcome volatility.

[FuckingForex]

I love GBP/USD and GBP/JPY , these pair are great

[FXexpert]

It does seem like EUR/USD is easier to follow based on fundamentals, or maybe that's just an illusion but it sure seems like it.

[christinne]

GBP/USD The make a lot of pips.

[andy003]

I trade in the EUR/USD and the EUR/GBP pairs as they are the two most liquid pairs. EUR/USD pair is definitely traded by almost all traders be they novice or professionals.Where as EUR/GBP is suitable for not yet professional traders

[Sinnerman]

It seems that a lot of people like the highly volatile pairs, and I'm not exactly sure why. There doesn't seem to be any reason for it since all forex brokers offer you more than enough leverage to make up for the lack of volatility in any pair. I can't help but think that maybe not everyone here has grasped this concept yet:

It does not matter if the pair moves 1000 pips/day or 100 pip/day. Think of leverage as a "volatility compensator". For pairs that don't move as much, you simply set lower targets and stop losses and slightly turn up the leverage knob. That's all there is to it (almost). There is also the matter of pip values and spread to consider, but those usually don't make a huge difference in the majors unless you day trade, which I normally don't.

Anyway, no offense, but those who trade GBP/JPY simply because it has a high ATR, in my mind, don't know what they are doing and should carefully reconsider their participation in the market. We need some volatility in order to profit, but with 100:1 or higher leverage at our disposal, we don't need very much.

[FXexpert]

That is another strategy for those who like more static pairs. In trading you can never be too careful so going with a less volatile pair is a great way to minimize risk.

[Sinnerman]

Originally Posted by FXexpert

...going with a less volatile pair is a great way to minimize risk.

That's not really true. If you know how to size your positions correctly, and if your broker allows you a fine enough sizing granularity for your account size and risk appetite, then you know that which pair you choose to trade has very little to do with risk. In fact, the only connection between your risk and the pair you are trading is your transaction costs - if the pair has a higher spread, then that can translate into higher risk (depending on how you define risk). Besides that, the two concepts are completely unrelated.

[pipmanager]

the thing with purely relying on fundamentals is the every day must start with reviewing data ( ok i exaggerate) but technical analysis is a quick and simple way to determine entry/exit. Backed up with a sense of direction that fundamental anamysis might give the trader is a lot more comfy taaking new positions.
Volatility is an interesting one..i trade currency pairs with high intra day volatility but low interday volatility!! these give you second and third chances .. others who follow this technique know exactly what im talking about and how it has great advantages.
What i DO NOT AGREE with is that leverage compensates for low volatility!!! NO NO NO.. quite the opposite.. low volatility and high leverage means that ur mistakes are maginified with fewer opportunities to rectify...
I often trade crosses where the fundamental of the countries are strongly related..eg currencies in the asian subcontinent... or aud/nzd...