Conditional Orders in Currency Trading

The trading software includes advanced order entry and tracking features which are located under the Position Management section. These sophisticated orders are very helpful to implement various strategies to trade foreign currencies.

To place an order for a given currency pair, complete the appropriate sections below:

1. Chose a Currency Pair to Trade: from the drop down list (EUR/USD in the example above).

2. Choose an Order Type:
   • Single Order: Use this option to place a regular order - a single Stop Loss or Limit order. The expiration can be set as Good 'till cancelled (GTC) or End of Day (5:00 PM EST).
   • OCO (One Cancels the Other) Order: A two-part order (two single orders). The second part is cancelled if the first part is executed and vice versa.
   • If Then Order: Another two-part order whereby the second single order is placed ONLY IF the first single order is executed.
   • If Then / OCO Order: Two-part order order whereby the OCO order is placed ONLY if the first single order is executed.

3. Choose the Order Expiration:
   • End of Day (EOD): Order will expire at 17:00 ET at the end of the trading day when it was placed.
• Good 'Til Canceled (GTC): Order will remain active until you cancel it by highlighting it and clicking the cancel button.

4. Choose "Buy" or "Sell" from the drop down menu.

5. Select the number of lots from the drop down list. The example above shows 4 lots (400,000 Euros) of the EUR/USD pair.

6. Select the Order Basis: either "Limit" or "Stop Loss."

7. Enter the Order Rate: This is the price at which the order will be executed. ANY rate other than the current spot rate can be entered. Fill this in manually and adjust the price with the arrows. If you have specified that stop orders be set a given number of pips away from the actual market price, then this field will be automatically filled in by the trading software with your selection. The number of pips away can be adjusted in the Log On section.

8. Confirm or Abort the order: When you are happy with all the order parameters you have entered, press the "Confirm" button and your order will be sent. It will then appear in the Order Management screen. If after placing the order in this fashion you want to abort it, click the "Abort" button. This will take you back to the order management window. **If you want to abort the order before even placing it, click "Abort" before clicking "Confirm." This will also take you back to the order management screen.

NOTE: Orders remain open until they are triggered or cancelled. After you close a currency position manually, make sure to cancel any other orders associated with the cancelled order.

One Cancels the Other (OCO) Orders:

The example above shows how to place an OCO order using the trading software. Notice that the order has two parts. Each part must be entered. If one part of the order is executed, the other part is cancelled automatically. In the example above the OCO order is made up of a limit order (Sell 4 Lots EUR/USD Limit = 1.1310) and a stop order (Sell 4 Lots EUR/USD Stop = 1.1270). This is commonly done by some traders after they enter a long position and want to limit their loss with a sell stop order and take profits with a sell limit order.

If-Then Orders:

When If-Then is selected from the "Type" drop down menu of the currency platform, the lower half of the order form will expand so that the second part of the order can be entered. Remember, cancelling any part of an If-Then order will result in the entire order being cancelled. The example above shows an order to Buy 4 Lots of EUR/USD at a Stop = 1.1280 that will be placed ONLY IF the Limit order to Sell 4 Lots at 1.1310 or higher is executed.

If Then / OCO Orders:

Upon selecting If-Then/OCO from the "Type" drop down menu, the lower half of the order form will expand so that thee OCO portion of the order can be entered. Remember, that cancelling any part of an If-Then order will result in the entire currency order being cancelled. The example above taken from the trading software shows an OCO order (Sell 4 Lots of EUR/USD Limit = 1.1310 / Sell 4 Lots of EUR/USD Stop = 1.1260) that will be placed ONLY IF the order to buy 4 Lots of EUR/USD at a Limit price of 1.1295 or lower is executed.

If a new currency trader is not familiar with these orders, we can cover them as part of our free training.