RSI and trading strategies

Before we consider RSI trading strategies, it’s worth beginning with the small definition of the RSI.

RSI (Relative Strength Index) is one of the oscillator indicators that is widely used by traders to determine reversal points. The main idea that you should keep in mind implementing different trading strategies is “if RSI rises above 70 bound, it means that the pair is overbought. If RSI falls below the 30 line – the pair is oversold.”

Let’s consider 2 simple trading strategies that you can use in your daily trading.

Strategy #1

Criteria:

Currency pair – any
Timeframe – H4
RSI – Period 8, apply to “Close”, levels: 30, 40, 50, 60, 70

Buy.

Steps:

When RSI crosses the 50 level bottom up, place Buy Stop pending order 15 pips above the candlestick where the cross happened. Don’t forget about Stop Loss! Place it at the local minimum. And remember that if the index crossed the 50 level back, you should close the position.
As soon as the index crosses the 60 level, place the second order. The Stop Loss should be placed at the local minimum as well.
When is it time to close the position? As soon as the RSI breaks the 70 level upside down.

Sell.

Steps:

When RSI crosses the 60 level downside, place a Sell Stop pending order 15 pips below the candlestick where the cross happened. The Stop Loss will be at the local high.
When the index breaks below the 50 level, place another pending order below the candlestick of the cross. Don’t forget about the Stop Loss.
If you come back to the introduction of this article, you will see that 30 line is one of the key levels. So when the index crosses the 30 level bottom up, it’s time to take profit as it’s a signal of the reversal up.

Strategy #2 (the 50^th candlestick)

Criteria:

Currency pair – any
Timeframe – any
RSI - Period 8, levels: 20, 80

Steps:

Find a pair the 50^th candlestick of that is lower than previous 49 ones.
Apply the RSI indicator. Check where the indicator crosses the 20 level upside down. Check whether the below 20 RSI corresponds to the 50^th Only after both conditions are met, you can move to the next step.
Now it’s time to wait for another candlestick that will be lower than the 50^th However, it’s important to have a look at the index. The index is supposed to provide a higher signal than the first one (it’s a divergence between the indicator and the price). If these conditions are met as well, we can look for the entry point.
The next step is to determine the entry. You should wait for the candlestick that will close above the 50^th After that, you can open the position.
The next step is very important in any trade. Place the Stop Loss. Have a look at the chart and find a reasonable support level according to the previous price moves. Your Stop Loss should be a little bit lower than the support because the price may reach the support and rebound. But if it doesn’t rebound, risks of the further fall would increase.
The last step is to find a take profit level. It’s a golden rule of traders to use 1:3 risk-reward ratio. So if you determined the Stop Loss level, you should count the distance between the entry price and the Stop Loss and place 3 such distances above the entry price. It will be your target.

Tips: all traders know that signals of only one indicator don’t give 100% assurance. It’s always better to combine several indicators. And if you see that another indicator signals the reversal, it’s better to take that signal into consideration and maybe even close the position before the RSI gives a signal.

Making a conclusion, we can say that RSI is one of the most reliable indicators. You even may combine it with other indicators to create your own strategy!

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Darya Bobrova