When gold isn't moving, scalping just feeds you to the noise. ATR tells you when there's enough range to bother.
The core setup
On XAU/USD M5, ATR is your range gauge. Low ATR means gold is grinding sideways and whipsawing you. Only when ATR is high enough do you move on to reading the signal with Stochastic and price action.
How to enter
When Stochastic pushes into overbought, wait for a turn and an M5 candle to confirm before you think about a SELL. When it drops into oversold, wait for the bounce before you think about a BUY. Touching 80 or 20 is not an entry.
Trade management
Set the stop at 1x the M5 ATR from your entry and the target at 1.5x ATR. Your stop and target then flex with gold's own volatility instead of a fixed number that's wrong half the time.
When to skip it
Skip it when ATR is low or price is stuck in a tight, noisy range. No range, no edge, and even a clean-looking signal falls apart.
If you trade gold, read the volatility before the signal. A signal showing up doesn't mean the trade is worth taking.
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Publishing note: This content is not investment advice. Always test on a demo account and take responsibility for your own risk management.