Trading platforms are a great way to expand your trading opportunities. One of the most attractive trader’s assistants is MetaTrader 5. A wide range of operations performed, reliability and an intuitive interface made the program one of the three leaders among trading terminals in the foreign exchange market.
MetaTrader. What is this program?
The MetaTrader brand belongs to MetaQuotes Software Corp., which develops applications for financial markets. For the first time a program with this name was released in 2003. Today, software products under this brand are used in more than 250 companies around the world.
The MetaTrader 5 trading system, released in 2010, became a universal representative of the family. It should not be considered as an updated version of MetaTrader 4 – the functionality is completely different. MT5 provides an opportunity to trade not only in the foreign exchange markets, but also in the stock markets. Written in MQL5, a special programming language, it features a wide range of tools and modes for the most comfortable trading.
Features of the MetaTrader 5 terminal
MT5 includes netting and hedging trading systems. But this is not the only feature of the platform. You can also highlight the following:
- Simultaneous work on several exchanges;
- Deep analytics with 79 instruments;
- The range of timeframes includes 21 types;
- The ability to use up to 100 charts at once;
- Several order modes and automatic trading.
Analytics
Forecasting price movements is an essential part of a trader’s job. The MT5 trading platform has a variety of analysis tools in two standard ways – technical and fundamental.
The technical approach is to use:
- Charts – line, bar and Japanese candlesticks are available;
- Timeframes – 21 options with a spread from a month to a minute;
- Technical indicators – 38 divided by types, including both basic and less common.
The latter presents various moving averages (including fractal adaptive and dynamic with a variable index), RSI, MACD, as well as indicators described in the books of Bill Williams – Alligator, Awesome Oscillator and Market Facilitation Index.
Working with indicators and charts can be combined by superimposing the first on the second, as well as using additional graphic elements for comfortable work. The performed manipulations are saved in function templates for easy restoration of the workspace as needed.
For fundamental analysis, the program has an economic calendar and a news feed, allowing you to get acquainted in a timely manner and react to the latest events. All information arrives without delay.
Automatic trading on the MetaTrader platform
A special programming language – MQL5 – is distinguished by its high performance. This makes it possible to actively use advisors that accurately work with a large amount of information in a short time. You can buy them in the MetaTrader Market, borrow from a special Library, or write them yourself. The latter option does not require deep knowledge – there is a simple application for development, a strategy editor and MT5 Strategy Tester, which allows you to test the EA in test mode based on situations that have already occurred in the past.
Automatic copying of transactions made by the best traders is carried out through the Trade Alerts copy-trading service. You can subscribe to signal providers both for money and for free. With high trading performance, it is possible to get your own subscribers.
For the autonomous operation of advisors, a VPS server connection is available with the following advantages:
- Making automatic transactions around the clock; free hosting, arranged in one click directly in the terminal;
- A good communication channel between the server and the broker;
- No unnecessary load in the form of installing additional programs and their settings.
Possibilities of orders
When working with a broker, the terminal supports the following order execution modes:
- Exchange
- Instant
- On request
- By market
To complete the transaction, it is possible to set additional conditions:
- All or None – execution of a deal only with a certain amount of a traded instrument at a specified price;
- Cancel – the operation is performed for the volume available on the market without placing additional orders;
- “Return” – similar to Cancel, but an order is made for the remainder at the price specified in the main order.
More flexible trading is carried out due to the presence of six pending orders:
- Buy Stop – buy at the ask price, which is higher than the one specified in the order;
- Buy Limit – buy at the ask price, which is lower than the one specified in the order;
- Sell Stop – sell at the bid price, which is lower than the one stated in the order;
- Sell Limit – sell at the bid price, which is higher than the one stated in the order;
- Buy Stop Limit – a mark at which an order for a Buy Limit order will be triggered at a price set in a pending order at real current prices below the stop level; Sell Stop Limit – a mark for a Sell Limit order, provided that real prices are above the stop level set in a pending order.
To conclude deals from the trading chart, the terminal has a built-in one-click trading function. It is also possible to obtain up-to-date information on market prices and trading volume by accessing the Depth of Market with a reflection of the tape of transactions. This function is additionally enabled via the menu.
MetaTrader Market
The trading system has its own store, where you can buy or rent additional advisors and indicators. Moreover, their effect begins immediately after purchase. Themed books and periodicals are also available.
Mobile version
The multi-platform terminal is very convenient – trading is carried out not only from a stationary computer or laptop, but also from a mobile phone. The functionality of the application for smartphones is similar to the full version, which makes it possible to trade on the exchange under any conditions. Two versions have been developed – for Android and iOS.
Conclusion
MetaTrader 5 is a platform with an amazing set of tools and deep functionality for a comfortable trading mode. The ability to create personalized algorithms is ideal for experienced traders with their own ideas and best practices. For beginners, the available expert advisors and indicators tested by other users will be a significant help.
