Living with the Market in Everyday Life
— A Week of EA Developer Risa Asahina —

"If you’re using EA (automatic trading), you don’t have to look at the market, right?"
People often ask me this. Half of it is correct, half of it is completely wrong.

It’s true that EA can trade automatically. But my day is spent facing the market from morning to night. Today I’ll tell you about my daily life as it is. I’ll include some technical bits like how I read charts and my analysis steps. It may be a bit long, please bear with me.

A habit of checking the market first thing in the morning

In the morning, I wake up and pick up my smartphone. The first thing I open is the MT5 chart. Not the news, not social media.

What I check first is the position status. Since last night Shoginryu and CHAOS_GOLD_LISKOFF_MT5 have been moving, I want to grasp at a glance whether something happened. If there are settlements, I get a profit-taking notice. If positions have increased, it means the market moved and averaging down was involved.

I believe this “check” is possible precisely because the EA is running. If I had entered manually, I would probably view things more emotionally.

Market analysis: I lean toward a fundamental-first approach

I tend to start with fundamentals when analyzing. Gold, in particular, is highly sensitive to macro movements.

Thus, after clarifying that it’s hard to go up but hard to break down, I move to the technicals. From the all-time high of $5,595 on Jan 29, we are roughly 21% lower now. The weekly chart shows a mid-term downtrend, but within the $4,370–$4,510 range, we’re holding firm.

Preparation for next week on the weekend ── Mindset before the NFP

Today is Sunday. The gold market has no trading over the weekend, so I use this time to review the week and prepare for the next week.

Next week (3/30–4/4) is particularly important. On Friday, April 4, the US employment report (nonfarm payrolls, NFP) will be released. This is one of the most important indicators of the month, and depending on the result, gold can move by more than $100. It’s a high-stakes event.

In weeks like this, I consider reducing or temporarily stopping the EA lot size just before NFP (around 4/3). EAs are mechanical, and they will enter trades even during sharp spikes right after the data release. That’s a strength, but it also means you must be cautious around key indicators.

Deciding whether to stop or not is also part of my job as a developer. With an understanding of the market environment and the EA’s characteristics, I can judge timing more appropriately.

An “ordinary day” for an EA developer

Among these, I put a lot of emphasis on the 24-hour YouTube live stream. Both Shoginryu and CHAOS_GOLD_LISKOFF_MT5 run in real time on the live screen. Not only on positive days, but also on negative days and even when in drawdown—the full picture is shown.

Is it scary? Yes. But I believe that continuing to publish beyond that fear builds trust. This week as well, the YouTube live is running, please take a look.

A Time to Step Away from the Market is Also Work

When talking with traders and investors, I often hear, “I feel uneasy if I’m not looking at the charts.” I used to think the same.

Now I am deliberately creating “time to not watch the market.” Time for dinner, a walk, reading. It’s possible precisely because the EA is running, giving me a sense of security.

However, this does not mean I can neglect it. By stepping away from the market a bit, when I open the charts again I can view the situation more calmly. Avoiding excessive emotions is important not only for manual trading but also for EA operation.

This week's gold closed the week in the $4,400s. Next week, with employment data looming, the first half may be directionless and the second half may see a big move after the data release. I will keep monitoring the two EAs and continue to build each day one by one next week as well.

Summary

• Morning routine starts with MT5 checks — 5–10 minutes to grasp the market overview
• Gold analysis starts with fundamentals (DXY, yields, geopolitics), then organizes technicals
• Around important indicators (especially employment data), consider shrinking or stopping EA lots
• YouTube 24-hour live is fully transparent — transparency is the foundation of trust
• Time away from the market is also necessary for calm judgment

This article is intended for information provision and is not investment solicitation. The performance shown is past results and does not guarantee future profits. FX/CFD trading involves risk. Please make investment decisions at your own risk.