The Spike Trader Expert Advisor is an automated trading system developed for MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, designed to exploit price spike reversals in the Forex market. The strategy is based on the observation that unusually large price spikes are often followed by a corrective move in the opposite direction. This concept was inspired by a trading approach published in the May 2012 issue of Currency Trader magazine.
Rather than relying on indicators, Spike Trader focuses purely on price action and bar structure, making it a simple yet distinctive reversal-based trading system.
Trading Strategy
A spike is defined as a price bar that meets all of the following conditions:
- The bar is higher (or lower, for bullish setups) than a specified number of previous bars
- The bar exceeds the previous bar by a defined percentage difference
- The bar closes within the lower portion of its range for bearish spikes (or the upper portion for bullish spikes)
For bullish signals, the logic is fully inverted.
When a valid spike signal is detected, the EA opens a position in the opposite direction of the spike, anticipating a market reversal. Once opened, the position is held for a predefined number of bars.
If an opposite signal appears, the position is closed immediately.
If a new signal in the same direction is generated, the EA does not open an additional trade but instead resets the holding timer, extending the position duration.
This strategy deliberately does not use stop-loss or take-profit levels. All exits are controlled strictly by time (number of bars) or by an opposing spike signal.
Input Parameters
Main Settings
- Hold (default: 11): Number of bars to keep a position open
- BarsNumber (default: 3): Number of preceding bars used for spike detection
- PercentageDifference (default: 0.003): Required percentage difference relative to the previous bar
- ThirdOrHalf (default: 0.5): Defines where the bar must close within its range (e.g., lower or upper half)
Money Management
- Lots (default: 0.1): Fixed trade volume
Miscellaneous
- Slippage (default: 30): Maximum allowed slippage in points
- OrderCommentary (default: “Spike Trader”): Comment attached to EA trades
- Magic (default: 173923183): Magic number for position identification (MT4 only)
Backtest Results
A long-term backtest of the Spike Trader Expert Advisor was conducted using the USD/CAD pair on the daily timeframe (D1) with default settings.
Backtest summary:
- Test Period: 9 years
- Position Size: 0.1 standard lots
- Net Profit: 16.3%
- Maximum Drawdown: 14%
- Total Trades: 120
- Winning Trades: 57.5%
- Average Trade Frequency: approximately one trade per month
- Average Loss: $130
- Average Profit: $120
The results reflect the EA’s conservative and selective nature, focusing on high-quality spike setups rather than frequent trading.
Conclusion
The Spike Trader Expert Advisor is best suited for traders who:
- Prefer price action–based strategies
- Are interested in spike and exhaustion reversals
- Accept time-based exits without stop-loss or take-profit
- Favor low-frequency, rule-driven automated trading systems
This EA is designed as a concept-driven reversal system, making it more suitable for experienced traders and strategy researchers rather than beginners.
| Spike Trader | MT4 |
| Spike Trader | MT5 |
Password:forexsignalpro.net
⚠ Disclaimer: Always test the robot on a demo account before using real money. Trading involves risk.