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MACD Outline

October 24, 2016 by Jace Jarboe| Tips & Strategies

Like many of the other great tools contained in the dt Pro platform, the MACD indicator is another way to give any trader a critical edge in the futures markets. MACD stands for Moving Average Convergence Divergence. It is a trend-following momentum indicator that shows the relationship between two moving averages of prices. The MACD uses the difference between short-term and long-term price trends to anticipate future movements. This indicator is derived by subtracting the 26-day exponential moving average (EMA) from the 12-day EMA, which is already conveniently calculated for you. The MACD lets you enjoy the result of two indicators at once: “trend following” and “momentum”. It is a lagging indicator, which means it trails the current price action. In other words, the move in price will occur before the indicator has an opportunity to signal the action needed to be taken.

Why Use the MACD indicator?

Traders use this indicator to check the strength of a specific trend in the market. As one could probably guess, this benefits a trader by giving them extra confidence. The two lines with this indicator are the two moving averages (MA). The moving averages allow you to monitor the trends in the specific market. Now we must understand what the “CD” means from the MACD title. Convergence confirms price movement in a situation where two indicators come together at a specific point. Divergence is when this situation of two indicators is unsuccessful by not confirming the price movement. When the two moving averages come together for a certain amount of time, this will make the oscillator hover along the 0 line. When the two moving averages move farther away from each other, it causes the bars on the MACD to get larger.

The MACD has 3 total components.

  • MACD line
  • “Signal Line”
  • Histogram

macd-guide-1

**Please note that the colors for each line can be changed in settings, but for reference to this MACD outline let’s assume all are using the default dt Pro settings.**

The actual MACD line is the blue line. The “signal line”, which is a nine-day EMA of the MACD and the pink line on the chart, is then plotted on top of the MACD. This functions as a trigger for buy and sell signals. When the blue MACD line crosses above the pink signal line, it is a bullish sign and signals a long position. When the blue MACD line falls below the pink signal line, it is a bearish sign and signals a short position. The bars along the 0 line make up the histogram. The histogram measures the momentum in the specific market. The longer the length in the bars denotes the more momentum there is going to be in that direction. As a result, the small histogram bars show convergence and the large histogram bars show divergence. Histogram bars above the 0 line are usually a buy, while bars below the 0 line are a sell. Of course, the longer the bars the higher probability this statement is true.

This indicator is more of a confirmation tool to help traders make analyzed decisions when considering to buy or sell. The MACD should not be used as someone’s only tool to execute trades, but rather an additional resource to their entire trading platform. I currently use the MACD in my own dt Pro trading platform when analyzing different markets and reviewing clients’ open positions. If you would like to learn more about this specific indicator or the dt Pro platform, I would be happy to further discuss them with you.

Filed Under: Tips & Strategies

About Jace Jarboe

Jace Jarboe is a Futures & Options Broker with Daniels Trading. He is a licensed Series 3 and Series 34 broker with the National Futures Association (NFA). Prior to joining the futures industry, Jace attended Indiana University where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. Since 2016, Jace has been devoted to learning all aspects of the futures industry and is dedicated to helping his clients achieve their short and long term trading goals. Jace assists clients in a variety of commodity sectors, with both speculating and hedging, and through utilizing futures, options, spreads, and spot FX. He uses his combined technical and fundamental analysis trading style to identify the best market trends and opportunities available. Jace aims to present trade recommendations which are most suitable for each specific client depending on their risk tolerance and intended trade duration. He has worked with hundreds of clients in his experience. In 2020, Jace launched his own trading advisory to further promote his futures markets expertise to a wider audience. This market newsletter is called the Jarboe Trading Journal and focuses primarily on presenting real-time trade recommendations to subscribers.

Risk Disclosure

The StoneX Group Inc. group of companies provides financial services worldwide through its subsidiaries, including physical commodities, securities, exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives, risk management, global payments and foreign exchange products in accordance with applicable law in the jurisdictions where services are provided. References to over-the-counter (“OTC”) products or swaps are made on behalf of StoneX Markets LLC (“SXM”), a member of the National Futures Association (“NFA”) and provisionally registered with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) as a swap dealer. SXM’s products are designed only for individuals or firms who qualify under CFTC rules as an ‘Eligible Contract Participant’ (“ECP”) and who have been accepted as customers of SXM. StoneX Financial Inc. (“SFI”) is a member of FINRA/NFA/SIPC and registered with the MSRB. SFI does business as Daniels Trading/Top Third/Futures Online. SFI is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) as a Broker-Dealer and with the CFTC as a Futures Commission Merchant and Commodity Trading Adviser. References to securities trading are made on behalf of the BD Division of SFI and are intended only for an audience of institutional clients as defined by FINRA Rule 4512(c). References to exchange-traded futures and options are made on behalf of the FCM Division of SFI.

Trading swaps and over-the-counter derivatives, exchange-traded derivatives and options and securities involves substantial risk and is not suitable for all investors. The information herein is not a recommendation to trade nor investment research or an offer to buy or sell any derivative or security. It does not take into account your particular investment objectives, financial situation or needs and does not create a binding obligation on any of the StoneX group of companies to enter into any transaction with you. You are advised to perform an independent investigation of any transaction to determine whether any transaction is suitable for you. No part of this material may be copied, photocopied or duplicated in any form by any means or redistributed without the prior written consent of StoneX Group Inc.

© 2023 StoneX Group Inc. All Rights Reserved

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Risk Disclosure

The StoneX Group Inc. group of companies provides financial services worldwide through its subsidiaries, including physical commodities, securities, exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives, risk management, global payments and foreign exchange products in accordance with applicable law in the jurisdictions where services are provided. References to over-the-counter (“OTC”) products or swaps are made on behalf of StoneX Markets LLC (“SXM”), a member of the National Futures Association (“NFA”) and provisionally registered with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) as a swap dealer. SXM’s products are designed only for individuals or firms who qualify under CFTC rules as an ‘Eligible Contract Participant’ (“ECP”) and who have been accepted as customers of SXM. StoneX Financial Inc. (“SFI”) is a member of FINRA/NFA/SIPC and registered with the MSRB. SFI does business as Daniels Trading/Top Third/Futures Online. SFI is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) as a Broker-Dealer and with the CFTC as a Futures Commission Merchant and Commodity Trading Adviser. References to securities trading are made on behalf of the BD Division of SFI and are intended only for an audience of institutional clients as defined by FINRA Rule 4512(c). References to exchange-traded futures and options are made on behalf of the FCM Division of SFI.

Trading swaps and over-the-counter derivatives, exchange-traded derivatives and options and securities involves substantial risk and is not suitable for all investors. The information herein is not a recommendation to trade nor investment research or an offer to buy or sell any derivative or security. It does not take into account your particular investment objectives, financial situation or needs and does not create a binding obligation on any of the StoneX group of companies to enter into any transaction with you. You are advised to perform an independent investigation of any transaction to determine whether any transaction is suitable for you. No part of this material may be copied, photocopied or duplicated in any form by any means or redistributed without the prior written consent of StoneX Group Inc.

© 2023 StoneX Group Inc. All Rights Reserved

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