Update!

I am currently half way through my 3rd month as a trader. I trade fixed income but more precisely I spread trade and scalp and typically look to make a tick or two ticks at most each trade. I come into an office every day by 7 am and trade the open with other kids my age, it is the dream job if you can earn a salary from it. Many people come and go and the success rate even after their 4 week assessment is low. They selected about 25 people to train and assess and took on 6 guys which is above the normal intake each month. Now there are only 4 of us and were only 50 trading days in...

I wasn't sure what to write on this blog but I think I have a better idea now. My story so far is I was selected as one of the 6 guys and then was selected to join one of the best teams on the floor where I get a lot more freedom and I sit next to experienced people who I can ask questions and learn from. The truth is, no one is really sure themselves on what to buy and what to sell and it's hard to teach someone else, you just have to put a lot of screen time in and I have done a few 14 hour days since being there. It eventually will cost me £2k a month for my desk plus it's costing about £70 a day to trade and I get about half of that £70 back at the end of the month. At the start of my 2nd month just before I was to receive about £800 back in rebates my account was down £2.2k and I felt like quitting. I was probably half way to being asked to leave, which is normal for the ones that make it but I still felt negative, luckily things have picked up and my account is virtually flat now. Also the guy I sit next to has bought half a stake in me from my original backer and has been teaching me what he knows and has faith in me, which is cool.

I am starting to make money trading outright also, I typically buy the euribor and sell the schatz or the other way around but together as I spread trade but once or twice a day I spot an opportunity and I lift or hit the schatz and que the otherside for a quick half a tick. After the CPI eurozone data yesterday the markets kicked off and I traded outright and then just went to the pub which is cool because if I can learn to trade outright it's going to help.

Recently the markets have been volatile and this week there was a bund and bobl stop, whereby they moved too many ticks in too little time and they close and go into netting. I was long bobl when it rocketed up and took my schatz off which didn't move anyway and ended up profiting a tick on it and taking 4 ticks on the bobl which was lucky to be on the right side of it.

Anyway things are going ok and I love the job and just wish I can build my account up and survive another month for now. Last friday everyone in the office stopped out pretty much and was down the pub by 11am, I lost 775 euros which isn't good... it's taken me a week to make it back and I am up 1000 euros (gross) this month, I haven't made much after costs but I just want to beat last months gross total of 1400, 10 trading days left, wish me luck!