ICT Mentorship Core Content - Month 04 - Interest Rate Effects On Currency Trades
Introduction to Currency Trades
This section introduces the topic of currency trades and sets the foundation for understanding smart money accumulation and distribution.
Smart Money and Interest Rates
- Understanding interest rates is crucial in selecting trades.
- Technical analysis of key interest rates can unlock professional money management movement.
- Interest rate triads provide a visual depiction of smart money accumulation and distribution.
Interest Rate Triads
- The three key interest rate markets are the 30-year bond, 10-year note, and five-year note.
- By analyzing the price action of these three rates in relation to each other, one can unlock important insights into market movements.
- Overlaying or comparing these interest rates helps identify price action patterns.
Amplifying Trade Scenarios
- Applying comparative analysis on interest rates amplifies trade scenarios discussed in previous teachings.
- This module will highlight more probable trade scenarios based on the concepts covered.
Identifying Smart Money Accumulation and Distribution
This section explains how to recognize smart money movements in bearish and bullish conditions.
Bearish Conditions - Smart Money Distribution
- In bearish conditions, a base asset or benchmark makes higher highs while comparable assets closely correlated make lower highs.
- This indicates heavy distribution by smart money while less informed traders perceive it as underlying strength.
Bullish Conditions - Smart Money Accumulation
- In bullish conditions, a base asset or benchmark moves lower, forming lower lows.
- Smart money accumulation is seen when certain stocks do not make lower lows but instead form higher lows.
Supply and Demand Dynamics
- Heavy buying prevents prices from going lower during smart money accumulation.
- Conversely, heavy selling occurs during smart money distribution when prices are prevented from going higher.
Warning Signs of Distribution Cycle
This section highlights warning signs that indicate a distribution cycle in the market.
- In a distribution cycle, the base asset or benchmark (e.g., Dow Jones Industrial) makes higher highs, but other stocks or indices fail to make higher highs.
- This discrepancy suggests heavy distribution by smart money rather than underlying strength.
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New Section
This section discusses the relationship between the 30-year treasury bond market, the 10-year note, and the five-year note in order to identify accumulation and distribution in the interest rate market. It explains how these movements represent smart money activity and provide trading opportunities.
Overlaying Three Markets
- By overlaying the 30-year treasury bond market, the 10-year note, and the five-year note, one can observe accumulation and distribution in the interest rate market.
- Accumulation or buying represents smart money movement, while distribution or selling indicates smart money activity.
- The three interest rates should confirm each higher high or lower low when the US dollar index is at a significant price point.
Failure Swings
- Failure swings indicate smart money participation in the markets and validate trading opportunities.
- A failure swing occurs when one of the interest rates breaks a pattern of moving lower or higher.
- Smart money's entry and exit cause significant volumes to move, affecting supply and demand factors in pricing.
Underlying Strength
- The model shows underlying strength in one of the interest rates when a failure swing occurs.
- The middle interest rate highlighted in blue represents a failure swing.
- If this coincides with identifying a potential institutional order reference point in the US dollar index, it confirms a shift in the marketplace.
Confirmation for Bullish Order Block
- When looking for a bullish order block on the dollar index, if two of the interest rates show higher highs but one shows a lower high, it confirms the bullish order block.
New Section
This section emphasizes that simply having charts of open-high-low-close prices for interest rate markets is not enough. Comparative analysis is necessary to understand market movements and identify shifts.
Comparative Analysis of Interest Rate Markets
- Charts alone do not provide a clear understanding of market movements.
- Analyzing the 30-year treasury bond market, the 10-year note, and the five-year note in comparison is crucial.
- A closer look at recent moves in the dollar index reveals corresponding patterns in interest rate markets.
Failure Swing in Bond Market
- The 30-year treasury bond market shows a failure swing between the fifth and eighth days.
- A failed higher high indicates a potential long opportunity on the dollar index.
Comparison of Highs
- Comparing highs across different time frames reveals important insights.
- The 10-year note shows an unchanged high, while the five-year note forms a higher high.
- This highlights a shift in the interest rate market.
New Section
This section emphasizes that interest rates are the primary drivers of price action in currency markets. Understanding this relationship is crucial for analyzing and predicting market movements.
Importance of Interest Rates
- Interest rates are the number one leading driver for price action in concurrency markets.
- They have a significant impact on currency markets globally.
Understanding Bullishness and Bearishness in Trading
In this section, the speaker discusses the concept of bullishness and bearishness in trading.
Trade Analysis
- The speaker refers to the US Dollar Index and its movement between the fifth and eighth. The index made a lower low, indicating bearishness.
- A significant divergence is observed between the lower low on the dollar index and the 30-year treasury bond, which failed to make a higher high as expected.
Anticipating Price Movement
- Traders need to anticipate dynamic price movement when price moves into previous levels of institutional order flow.
- An example is given of an old order block in November that was traded back down into during December. This rejection led to a rally on the dollar index, suggesting bearish opportunities for foreign currencies.
Validating Order Blocks
- To validate which order block to trade off of, traders should look at the interest rate markets for clues from smart money.
- Divergence between 30-year, 10-year, and 5-year interest rates can indicate potential trading opportunities.
Impact on Foreign Currencies
- Bullishness in the dollar index suggests bearish situations for other currencies like fiber (Euro) and Euro/USD.
- Cable (British Pound) failed to make a higher high when Euro/USD made a higher high and dollar made a lower low.
Building an Action Plan
In this section, the speaker discusses how to build an action plan based on the information provided earlier.
Using Points of Focus
- Traders should use points of focus taught in the first month of mentorship when price action trades to a focus point like an order block.
New Section
In this section, the speaker discusses the importance of observing the interest rate triad and the dollar index to confirm smart money involvement in trade ideas. They emphasize that if there is no clear indication of large fund movements, it is advisable to pass on the trade idea and look for new ones.
Confirming Smart Money Involvement
- The interest rate market can provide confirmation of smart money involvement.
- If all three components of the interest rate triad (short-term rates, long-term rates, and inflation expectations) show a failed higher high while the dollar is moving lower, it indicates a bearish tone on the dollar.
- A bearish tone on the dollar can be validated by observing a lower low in one or more interest rate markets.
- When a sell signal is confirmed in the dollar index at a bearish order block or an old high that has been overrun for liquidity purposes, it suggests that the dollar will likely decline further.
- Interest rates moving higher in their price actually means that interest rates are declining, which is bearish for the dollar.
New Section
This section explains how order blocks, liquidity pools, and fair value gaps can be used to validate trade ideas. It emphasizes that simply looking at candlestick patterns is not enough; one must delve deeper into these concepts to gain better insights.
Validating Order Blocks and Liquidity Pools
- To validate order blocks and liquidity pools, it is important to understand fair value gaps.
- Looking beyond individual candlestick patterns allows traders to identify key levels where significant buying or selling pressure may occur.
- By analyzing whether price action trades up into a fair value gap or closes within a range, traders can anticipate future market movements.
- Understanding these concepts helps traders make more informed decisions rather than solely relying on buying into up candles or selling into down candles.
New Section
This section concludes the discussion on validating order blocks, liquidity pools, and fair value gaps. It reiterates the importance of looking beyond surface-level candlestick patterns to gain a deeper understanding of market dynamics.
Importance of Validating Order Blocks and Liquidity Pools
- Validating order blocks and liquidity pools provides valuable insights into market trends.
- By analyzing interest rates and their price movements, traders can anticipate the direction of the dollar.
- Interest rates moving higher in price actually indicates declining interest rates, which is bearish for the dollar.
- Understanding these concepts helps traders make more accurate predictions and improve their trading strategies.