You can get a bigger profit if you enter a position just before the break below the minimum. When trading with a double top, moving averages can be a helpful tool to determine the optimal time to trade. The first type is to sell near the moving average when it declines, and the second type involves selling on a second breakout when the price drops below the moving average. Using moving averages can confirm the double-top pattern and increase the chances of a successful trade. It’s crucial to remember that chart patterns, like the double top pattern, don’t always accurately forecast future price alterations. They can produce false signals or unsuccessful patterns, but they are useful for spotting possible trends and reversals.

In fact, it is quite common for a trader to generate 10 consecutive losing trades under such tight stop methods. So, we could say that in FX, instead of controlling risk, ineffective stops might even increase it. Their function, then, is to determine the highest probability for a point of failure. An effective stop poses little doubt to the trader over whether they are wrong.

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A measured decline in price will occur between the two high points, showing some resistance at the price highs. By constantly incorporating volatility, they adjust quickly to the rhythm of the market. Using them to set proper stops when trading double bottoms and double tops—the most frequent price patterns in FX—makes those common trades much more effective.

Most traders are inclined to place a stop right at the bottom of a double bottom or top of the double top. The conventional wisdom says that once the pattern is broken, the trader should get out. Self-confessed Forex Geek spending my days researching and testing everything forex related. I have many years of experience in the forex industry having reviewed thousands of forex robots, brokers, strategies, courses and more.

Common Mistakes When Trading Double Tops

Besides, I don’t know too many traders who will complain about booking 270 pips of profit. That said, there is another way to estimate the potential move of a market after the formation of a double top. The first thing you need to know is that the initial breakout is not what triggers the trade setup. Now it’s time for the really fun part – finding out how to profit consistently from these setups. Up to this point, we have discussed the dynamics behind the double top pattern as well as its characteristics. So as soon as the candle above closed (the one with the red circle), we had a confirmed topping pattern.

• The break of the neckline, a horizontal line formed between the lows of the troughs, is frequently used by traders to confirm the pattern.
• The first thing you need to know is that the initial breakout is not what triggers the trade setup.
• There may be some subjectivity involved in recognizing a double top pattern.
• A real double top is an extremely bearish technical pattern which can lead to an extremely sharp decline in a stock or asset.
• First things first, we always want to use price action to identify potential targets for any chart pattern.

After the second top, the price rally downwards, and this creates a neckline between the first bottom and second bottom. The pattern ends when the support level is broken at the lowest point between the two highs, and this should happen with a high volume or an accelerated descent. Knowing this, you can apply successful trading strategies for maximum profit. Upon retesting the neckline, we could look for bearish price action on one of the lower time frames to help confirm that the level is likely to hold as new resistance.

How to Trade Double Tops and Double Bottoms

When prices reach support, they can stop falling and start rising again. One way to capitalize on this is to sell assets after a support level is reached and take a profit. First things first, we always want to use price action to identify potential targets for any chart pattern. The truth is, a double top is only confirmed and therefore tradable once the market closes below the support level (neckline). The pattern on the chart is bearish and points to a possible trend change from an uptrend to a downtrend.

• A good entry point for traders to start short positions is the break of the neckline in a double top formation.
• In short, traders can either anticipate these formations or wait for confirmation and react to them.
• So, we could say that in FX, instead of controlling risk, ineffective stops might even increase it.
• The double top is one of the most popular technical analysis patterns used by forex traders.
• Double top and bottom patterns are formed from consecutive rounding tops and bottoms.
• In fact, this pattern appears so often that it alone may serve as proof positive that price action is not as wildly random as many academics claim.

But risk control in trading should be achieved through proper position size, not stops. The general rule of thumb is never to risk more than 2% of capital per trade. All information on The Forex Geek website is for educational purposes only and is not intended to provide financial advice. Any statements about profits or income, expressed or implied, do not represent a guarantee. Your actual trading may result in losses as no trading system is guaranteed.

Use a trailing stop to set the goal

Following an uptrend, a double top is a bearish reversal pattern that develops. It comprises of two almost equal-sized peaks that are close to one another in height, separated by a trough. A potential trend reversal is indicated by the pattern, which shows that the price has reached a resistance level twice but been unable to break past it. This pattern is frequently seen by traders as a signal to sell or enter short positions in anticipation of additional market declines.

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Plus, there’s usually often a definite resistance level that is formed when two peaks at roughly the same price level appear consecutively. This level can be used by traders as a benchmark for establishing stop-loss orders and profit objectives, improving risk management and trade planning. No chart pattern is more common in trading than the double bottom or double top. In fact, this pattern appears so often that it alone may serve as proof positive that price action is not as wildly random as many academics claim.