Now, there is another side of correlation of currency pairs, which is the negative correlation. Negatively correlated currency pairs are those, which moves at the opposite direction of each other, by making almost the same kind of price action pattern in the market depending on their correlation strength.
Issues with Currency Strength Meters
This thing will only double up your trade loss. That is why you have to know the correlation between the currency pairs in order to prevent yourself opening multiple trades on several correlated currency pairs and then end up taking unwanted multiple losses. You should not just open 7 to 8 trades on several correlated currency pairs while their correlation can affect your entire trading capital and throw you out of the market!
When these currencies pair up with each other, then we can have 28 currency pairs. These are the mostly traded, highly volatile and liquid currency pairs in the foreign exchange market. You will find so many profitable trading opportunities in these currency pairs, no matter which time frame you follow. Although we have 28 major currency pairs to trade, we should not trade all of them whenever we see trade opportunities in these pairs.
Because almost each of the currency pair has correlation with the other 27 currency pairs in this list. That is why you have to know which are the correlated currency pairs and their correlation strength or correlation coefficient value with the other 27 other currency pairs, in order to make right trading decision and to be a profitable Forex trader. You can download the latest currency pair correlation report which I use for my own trading. In this report you will find the list of all the 28 most traded currency pairs in Forex with their correlation power in multiple time-frames and the correlation type positive, negative, neutral of each of the currency pair with the other 27 currency pairs.
Whenever you see trade signal on different currency pairs, then just open up this correlation report file and see if the currency pairs are correlated with each other or not, in order to prevent yourself making trade entries on strongly correlated currency pairs pairs. This will help you to minimize the risk sizes whenever you open multiple trades on several currency pairs. Privacy Policy Disclaimer. The Course. Why understanding the currency pair correlation is so important? See the same chart images below after a few days later-. Specifically, this is the share of merchandise imports in annual bilateral trade with the U.
Unfortunately, there are a number of issues when it comes to currency strength indicators - particularly when they are poorly coded.
If a currency strength meter doesn't give accurate currency strength indicator values, it's of little use, regardless of its other features. With outdated currency strength meters, traders might experience:. Some products might even produce data that's moved away from the original concept of what currency strength actually is. Some apply smoothing filters, like moving averages , while some apply other filters e.
By adding filters on top of demonstrating currency strength, traders might find themselves getting false trading signals, and could enter poor trades and that lead to a losing streak. Instead, the real best way to measure currency strength is with currency correlation. If a Forex correlation matrix has been coded properly, using the latest technologies, it is unlikely to cause any of the aforementioned issues while having all of the same benefits as a currency strength meter.
Over the years, Forex strength meters have naturally evolved into currency correlation matrices that can deliver more complex and accurate information. Forex correlation, like other correlations, signals correlation between two currency pairs. In financial terms, 'correlation' is the numerical measure of the relationship between two variables in this case, the variables are Forex pairs.
Finally, a correlation of zero denotes that the relationship between the currency pair is completely arbitrary. When pairs move in the same direction, they have a positive correlation, and when they move in the opposite direction, we observe that they have a negative correlation. A perfect correlation occurs when pairs move in the same direction, which is extremely rare. We say that correlation is high when pairs move in almost the same direction.
Because currencies are traded in pairs e. For example, if the EURGBP and GBPUSD have a correlation of , this means they have a negative correlation - these pairs are likely to move in opposite directions, so two long trades or two short trades on these pairs would likely cancel each other out. When it comes to currency strength, because there is such a high correlation between the two pairs, we can assume that the GBP the common currency between the pairs is the one that is driving these movements, and therefore the GBP is the strongest currency in this example.
There are a range of advantages to using a currency correlation matrix as a Forex strength indicator, including its simplicity, it's usefulness as a short-term indicator, the ability to eliminate double exposure and unnecessary hedging, the ability to signal high-risk trades, and the fact that it's available for free. Professional traders typically use FX strength meters as short-term indicators. They are useful as a quick guide to which currencies are on the rise, but are more of a snapshot of current strength than anything else, making them useful for immediate trading decisions or to verify signals provided by other indicators.
A major advantage of a Forex strength meter is how simple it is to understand.
How to Trade Currency Pair Correlations in Forex | IG EN
This is especially appealing for new traders - you don't need to be a Forex market expert, because you can just look at a simple graphical representation and see which currencies are faring well or performing poorly. If you want to try out a currency strength meter but are worried about investing in an expensive indicator, the good news is that you can get a free strength meter in Admiral Markets Supreme Edition plugin for MetaTrader 4 and 5! It includes an indicator package with 16 new indicators, including the Forex correlation matrix, which enables you to view and contrast various currency pairs in real-time.
Some other free features include the mini trading terminal, global sentiment widget, technical insight and Forex featured trading ideas provided by Trading Central. Ready for all this and more? Click the banner below for your FREE download! The Forex currency strength meter is arguably one of the best free currency strength indicators out there! Assets with high correlation move in the same direction. For this reason, opening multiple positions with pairs that are highly correlated is not advisable, as you are essentially making the same trade more than once.
This puts you in a very vulnerable position if the market turns against you.
Digging deeper, the aforementioned positions bring double exposure to AUD and JPY, which can be harmful for trade should the movement go in the opposite direction from the trader's expectations. With a Forex correlation matrix, you can see at a glance which currencies are correlated, which means you can avoid making these trades in the first place, and can consequently avoid double exposure to a weak currency. If the correlation strength between different pairs is known in advance, a trader can avoid unnecessary hedging. Therefore, if you opened long trades on both, you would likely win on one trade and lose on the other.
Correlation between different currency pairs can also signal the level of trade strategy risk. What might also happen is that one of the pairs indicates a strong movement, while the other is just ranging, which signals traders to avoid entering trades with correlated pairs in the opposite direction. The Admiral Markets Forex correlation matrix above shows the correlations between the following currency pairs:. In the matrix above, correlations are also divided into four groups in accordance with their strength:. This allows you to see at a glance how strong or weak different currencies are, with positive scores indicating strength, and negative scores indicating weakness.
Forex Currency Correlation
Here is what the data means:. In terms of currency strength, this indicates GBP strength and that the Swiss Franc is the weakest currency. As you can see, It's a relatively simple concept that allows you to judge the raw strength of a currency in isolation, as opposed to seeing what it is doing against another currency. While correlations exist, it's important to recognise that these can change.
Global economic factors are dynamic — they can and do change on a daily basis. Correlations between two currency pairs may vary over time, and as a result, a short-term correlation might contradict the projected long-term correlation. Looking at correlations over the long term provides a clearer picture about the relationship between two currency pairs — this tends to be a more precise and definitive data point. This is why it's important to regularly calculate correlations, and why a tool like the MetaTrader Supreme Edition correlation matrix is so helpful - it is constantly updating correlations in real time.
One of the best available currency strength meters is the correlation matrix included in the MetaTrader Supreme Edition plugin for MetaTrader 4 and 5. One of their advantages is the ability to download and use custom indicators together with Expert Advisors EAs. While both platforms comes with a useful selection of popular indicators built into the client terminal, you can also download independently written custom indicators.
As MT4 is an open platform and has such a wide community of users that indicator innovations move fast. You can search for both free and paid custom indicators from within the platform. MetaTrader Supreme Edition is a free plugin that includes a currency correlation matrix, as well as other custom indicators and a live trading simulator to backtest strategies.
It also allows you to add different custom indicators and EAs you might benefit from. As you can see, having the right platform and a trusted broker are hugely important aspects of trading. Admiral Markets is an award-winning broker that offers the ability to trade on the Forex market, to trade with CFDs, to invest in stocks and ETFs and much more. This is all made possible with MetaTrader Supreme Edition. If you're ready to boost your trading capabilities with the latest real-time market data, insights from professional trading experts, technical insight and 16 new indicators, download MetaTrader Supreme Edition for free by clicking the banner below!
How to See Forex Correlation Between Markets and Other Pairs
Once you've installed MetaTrader Supreme Edition, you can use the Forex correlation matrix by following these steps:. If you're new to MetaTrader, it might feel a bit overwhelming to navigate. To help with this, check out our video walkthrough of the platform below:. When it comes to using the correlation matrix — the true strength currency meter uses complex algorithms, but is very easy to use.
It even allows you to choose a strength for a certain period of time. For intraday trading , it is typically recommended to use up to bars, while for scalping , up to 50 bars should be enough. Bear in mind that correlations do change, and past performance is not always a guaranteed indicator of future correlations. However, this information can be used to develop your own currency strength strategy, and to minimise your portfolio's exposure. Here are some tips to consider:.
Finally, as with any technical tool or indicator, there are weaknesses to the Forex correlation matrix as well. One is that the currency strength indicator only communicates a very narrow piece of information. Therefore, it is worth considering how currency strength and weakness fit into the bigger picture. As you can see, like most technical tools , currency strength meters are more useful when used in conjunction with other indicators.
For example, you might want to use a strength meter to complement or confirm what other signals are saying. Past performance is not necessarily an indication of future performance.