Summary:

ICT reviews his trading on an FOMC day and shares practical lessons and market rules from that session:

– FOMC moves are two-stage: an initial “fake” 2:00 PM move (a Judas swing) often runs one way, and the real directional move usually occurs after 2:30 PM and is often the opposite. He prefers trading the reaction, not predicting Fed decisions.
– He used the 5-minute NQ (Sep 2023) chart: identified the 2:00 low → 2:30 high run, drew a Fibonacci with standard-deviation bands to project downside targets (notably near -1 and -2 SD levels), and looked for buy-stop liquidity above prior highs to be taken out before the reversal.
– Trade tactics: trade inside the tail/wick of the 2:00 candle, accumulate short positions during consolidation if a break lower is likely, and use PD arrays and FIB+SD levels to set targets. He prefers pyramiding with defined rules and partial exits.
– Risk and execution lessons from the day: he made sizable profit but was self-critical because emotions and distraction (social-media anger, lack of focus) led him to close early and miss deeper gains. He warns against trading when emotionally compromised, overleveraging, and losing focus.
– Practical advice: keep a constructive trading journal (avoid toxic self-talk), use partials and proper trade management, and don’t emulate inexperienced social-media traders.
– Personal note: he acknowledges battling bipolar disorder, dislikes being “mothered” by critics, and expresses frustration with online trolls and copycat traders.

Overall: focus on structure (2:00/2:30 dynamics), use objective technical tools (5-min charts, FIB with SDs, PD arrays), manage risk and emotions, and learn from journaling and disciplined trade management.

Quiz

1) According to ICT, how does FOMC price action most often behave at 2:00 and 2:30 New York time?
A. 2:00 is the fake move (Judas swing) and 2:30 is the real move, often opposite direction
B. 2:00 is the real move and 2:30 is the fake move
C. Both 2:00 and 2:30 moves go in the same direction most of the time
D. There is no typical pattern at those times

2) Which chart and timeframe did ICT instruct viewers to pull up to follow his analysis?
A. 1-minute ES on TradingView
B. 5-minute NQ (NQZ Sep 2023) on TradingView
C. Daily NASDAQ index chart
D. 15-minute Dow futures chart

3) What specific technical tool did ICT tell viewers to draw between the 2:00 five-minute low and the 2:30 five-minute high?
A. A simple moving average
B. Fibonacci with standard deviations enabled
C. Bollinger Bands
D. MACD divergence lines

4) Which trading approach did ICT say he is NOT?
A. A break-and-retest trader
B. A supply-and-demand trader
C. Both A and B
D. A scalper

5) Which statement best describes ICT’s emotional state and trade outcome that day?
A. He stayed calm, followed his plan exactly, and had no regrets.
B. He lost his focus, traded during an emotional period, made $111,000 on a single trade but regretted closing early and not holding for larger targets.
C. He blew his account and stopped trading permanently.
D. He refused to trade during FOMC and watched passively.

Answer Key with evidence

1) A. Evidence: “the rules I gave you for fomc is what at two o’clock that’s the fake move that’s the Judas swing” (0:05:41–0:05:50). “the real run is going to be after 2:30 which Direction’s that the opposite of what 2:00 the 2:30 was” (0:20:54–0:21:05).

2) B. Evidence: “pull up a five minute chart on NQ on trading view nqz is in zipper 2023 it’s a five minute basis” (0:04:06.599–0:04:13.439). Also referenced when pointing to the 2:00 candle on the five-minute NQZ chart (0:04:48.199–0:05:00.960).

3) B. Evidence: “draw your FIB between those two points the 230 and the 2 o’ and your standard deviation should be projecting a negative standard deviation” (0:12:32.519–0:12:46.519). “draw a fib anchored from that low up to the high formed… if you have your standard deviations on the FIB as I teach… negative -2 standard deviation comes in” (0:24:55.279–0:25:36.360).

4) C. Evidence: “I am not what I’m not a break and retest Trader… I’m not a supply and demand Trader” (0:10:01.079–0:10:16.200).

5) B. Evidence: “you saw me make $111,000 in this one single trade I’m not pleased with myself because I did it at a time when I shouldnt” (0:13:27.680–0:14:37.399). “I closed early… I will be able to trade with a much better focus and hold for those targets instead of making $111,000 $23,800 could have been made” (0:18:34.200–0:18:45.640).