Execution protocol · 6A
6A Breakouts: A Rule-Based Execution Plan
A breakout is not "price went through my line." It is a state machine: a level selected before the test, an exact break condition, optional acceptance or retest, an executable entry, a price-based invalidation, a time limit and a cost model. Miss one piece and hindsight will fill it in for you.
- Level
- Predeclared
- Break
- Observable
- Failure
- Explicit
- Fill
- Costed
test→break→accept or failThe chart can produce a valid signal and an untradeable fill. Research both.
Entry is separateCosts are real
Direct answer
Trade a Defined Transition, Not a Line on a Finished Chart
A defensible 6A breakout plan selects a boundary without future information, waits for a measurable transition beyond it, and states what must happen next. The entry may occur at the break, after acceptance or on a retest. Each version carries a different price, delay, fill probability and failure profile. There is no honest way to call one "best" without testing it.
Signal question
Did the defined state change?
That depends on the data and rule: a last trade, bid or ask, bar close, excursion in current ticks, elapsed time or combination. Save the trigger timestamp and source.
Trade question
Could the order actually fill?
A stop order, limit order and marketable order solve different problems. The signal price is not automatically the fill price, especially around releases or thin periods.
Standard 6A is 100,000 AUD, quoted USD per AUD. Its current outright Globex tick is 0.00005, worth $5. If an invalidation is 12 current ticks away, the price distance is 0.00060 and the gross risk is $60 per contract before commissions and slippage.
Step one
Select the Boundary Before Price Reaches It
A level is eligible because a rule selected it, not because the breakout later looked good. Store the selection timestamp and never move the line after the trigger.
| Field | Defensible specification | Hindsight failure |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Named venue, contract and price field | Mixing cash AUD/USD and 6A without a basis rule |
| Construction | Prior high, range boundary or causal pivot algorithm | Choosing the line after the move |
| Tolerance | Fixed current ticks or volatility-scaled band | Calling near-misses exact only when they win |
| Validity | Start time, maximum age and cancellation event | Keeping stale levels indefinitely |
| Session | Exchange calendar plus explicit included observations | Using a static clock through DST and holidays |
Level record
Store contract, boundary price, selection algorithm, causal inputs, creation time, expiry, nearby scheduled events and the current tick specification. A screenshot can help audit the state but cannot replace machine-readable fields.
- Created
- Before test
- Moved
- Never silently
- Expired
- By rule
The wider objective taxonomy lives in 6A Chart Patterns. Do not import a visual structure until its pivots and boundaries are causal.
State machine
Separate Break, Acceptance, Retest and Failure
These labels describe different information sets. Combining them lets a backtest enter earlier than the confirmation it uses.
Test
Price enters the predefined boundary band. No break exists yet. Start the observation clock and preserve spread and depth conditions.
Break
The exact trigger occurs: trade, quote or close beyond the boundary by the declared tolerance. This is the first signal timestamp.
Accept or retest
Acceptance requires defined persistence outside. A retest requires a defined return to the band and subsequent hold. Either can fail before entry.
Fail or expire
Price crosses the invalidation, closes back inside, exceeds the time limit or reaches a cancellation event. Log it even if no order filled.
More responsive, less confirming information, potentially greater gap and false-break exposure.
Uses a completed bar but introduces bar-definition and delay risk.
Demands persistence but can enter farther from the boundary or miss the move.
Can improve price if a retest occurs, but non-occurrence and ambiguous touch rules must be counted.
Order and risk
The Entry Must Be Executable and the Invalidation Must Be Real
A setup can be correct on the chart and still lose because the simulated order never existed in the queue it assumes.
| Decision | Must specify | Risk to model |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger order | Stop, stop-limit, limit or marketable logic | Gap, non-fill, queue position or slippage |
| Invalidation | Exact price, close, time or state condition | Stop fill can differ from stop trigger |
| Position size | Maximum account risk divided by costed stop risk | Minimum one-contract granularity |
| Exit | Target, trailing rule, time stop or opposing state | Lookahead in bar-high or bar-low fills |
| Event rule | Named releases and entry-cancellation window | Spread and depth discontinuity |
Add commissions, fees and conservative slippage to the entry-to-stop distance. Futures margin is a performance bond, not maximum loss. CME sets minimum performance-bond requirements and a broker can require more.
Evidence gate
Keep Every Break, Failure, Miss and Non-Fill
The denominator is where breakout claims usually go bad. A fair study includes every eligible boundary and every eligible trigger.
Levels that never break or break badly disappear from the chart review.
A stop fills at the trigger despite the next available quote being several ticks away.
One bar touches entry, stop and target but the internal path is unknown.
The best-looking clock window is selected after testing many alternatives.
Most results come from a few macro releases with different execution risk.
Continuous-series roll adjustments create artificial levels or breakouts.
Validation report
Report eligible levels, breaks, entries, non-fills, failures, average slippage, costs, expectancy, drawdown and parameter sensitivity by date and regime. Freeze the final rule, then run it on an untouched period. If the result depends on one tolerance or one month, call it fragile.
- Sample
- All candidates
- Fills
- Order-aware
- Claim
- Out-of-sample
This article reports no breakout win rate, range, ideal buffer or profitable session. Those require original timestamped testing under the exact rule and cost model. The framework tells you how to earn a claim, not what result you will get.
For a focused post-failure confirmation method, see 6A Volume Reversals. For volatility-state controls, see 6A Volatility Clusters.
Frequently asked questions
6A Breakouts: Quick Answers
What counts as a breakout in 6A?
A breakout is whatever your predeclared rule says it is: for example, a trade, close or sequence of closes beyond a level by a defined tick tolerance. The rule must specify data, bar interval, boundary, confirmation, expiry and the first timestamp the condition becomes known.
Should I enter 6A as soon as price crosses a level?
Only if an immediate trigger is part of a tested plan. A first cross maximizes speed but can face spread, slippage and false breaks. Waiting for a close, acceptance or retest changes both entry price and information. Compare the variants separately after realistic costs.
What is acceptance after a 6A breakout?
Acceptance is an objective post-break condition showing price remained beyond the boundary, such as a defined number of closes, elapsed time or traded range. It cannot be a vague impression. Its threshold and observation window must be frozen before the event.
How do I define a failed 6A breakout?
Define failure as a specific return through the boundary, close back inside, adverse excursion or time-based condition. State whether failure triggers an exit, cancels an unfilled order or creates a separate reversal candidate. Do not decide from the final chart.
Do high-volume breakouts work better in 6A?
That is a testable hypothesis, not a contract fact. Use volume from the same venue and active contract, normalize it by comparable time buckets, and test whether the filter improves untouched results after costs. Volume alone cannot identify who traded or why.
Sources, method and editorial disclosure
- CME Group FX Product Guide 2026 for current 6A size, quote, tick and settlement terms.
- CME Rulebook Chapter 255: Australian Dollar Futures.
- CME Globex Notice 20201116 for the outright tick change.
- CME Group trading hours and holiday calendars.
- CME Group: Performance Bonds and Margins FAQ.
- CFTC customer advisory on exchange-traded currency futures and OTC forex distinctions.
This article provides an execution and validation protocol, not a breakout backtest. It reports no preferred level type, buffer, confirmation window, session, win rate or return. All illustrative rule fields must be tested with timestamped, order-aware data and realistic costs. Sources and contract facts were reviewed August 13, 2026.