The fund remains up by 8%.

The last month has been a time for what can be called ‘backtesting’. In other words, development of trading strategies by using historical charts. As in any practice, most benefits gained when tests are as realistic as possible. And I would say that in many ways, backtesting is more exhausting because of the equivalent of several days of trading in just a few hours. But backtesting is an essential part of a traders life.

For the fund, live trading starts again this Monday. It begins slowly, that is with small risk and builds as proficiency builds. The build-up is subjective but I would expect to go to full fund entries within 2 to 3 weeks.

I aim to achieve a monthly gain of 5% to 10% going forward. I use this as a guide to help me balance risk. No trading day is the same, but it is reasonable to expect to find between 5 and 15 sound trades per day. My maximum risk (for our fund size) starts out small but builds to about £400 maximum risk per trade. More often than not I will take a half risk (£200) on most trades.

I provide this information so you can see how a traders day is a constant consideration of gaining an edge through good chart reading and awareness of risk, reward and probability. And as this gains in momentum, day after day, the 5% to 10% monthly gain is not ambitious but very achievable.

Taking a month to backtest can be frustrating to (you) the investor. It is indeed a luxury that most fund managers do not have. However, most funds lost more than 10% last month. Just a thought.