Strategies / Breakout / ADX Strength Breakout (long and short)

ADX Strength Breakout (long and short)

Buys upside breakouts and sells short downside breakouts, both only when ADX is above 25 and rising. Long trades exit on a close below the prior 10-bar low, short trades on a close above the prior 10-bar high.

BreakoutLong & shortSwingBrent CrudeDaily

1.79Profit factor

16,118Net profit EUR

38.24%Win rate

68Trades

-9,154Max drawdown

237Avg trade

Best run of 3. Brent Crude, Daily, spread 5, from run pf:2026-10-11-BRENT-D.tsv:11.

Entry rules, long

ADX (14 periods) is above 25 and higher than on the previous bar

Entry rules, short

ADX (14 periods) is above 25 and higher than on the previous bar

Exit rules

The close rises above the highest high of the previous 10 bars, closing a short

Test conditions

Period	Up to 2026-10-11
Instrument	Brent Crude, Daily
Spread	5 points
Starting capital	1,000,000
Costs	Spread only. Commissions and overnight financing are not included.
Bars	Up to 200,000 bars, fewer where the instrument has less history
Last tested	2026-10-11

Every run

Markets and timeframes tested

Market	Timeframe	PF	Trades	Win %	Net	Max DD
Brent CrudeBest run	Daily	1.79	68	38.24	16,118 EUR	-9,154
USD/JPY	Daily	2.51	17	47.06	2,501 USD	-1,616
EUR/USD	Daily	1.31	167	43.71	4,286 USD	-2,496

Charts

Results by run

Above 1.0 made money, below 1.0 lost money.

The code

ProBuilder code, as tested

// ==============================================================
// ADX Strength Breakout (long and short)
// ProRealAlgos Strategy Library  |  prorealalgos.com
// Type: Breakout
// Direction: Long & short
// Timeframe tested: Daily
// ==============================================================

DEFPARAM CumulateOrders = false
ONCE capital = 10000

25 more lines: the entry and exit rules.

Setup

How to load it

Copy the code with the copy button on the code block.
In ProRealTime, open a chart of the instrument and timeframe you want to test, then open ProOrder > New trading system and choose "Create with programming".
Paste the code, give the system a name and save it.
Click "Backtest", set your own spread and position size, and run it before you consider trading it live.

Indicators used

ADX

Read this firstKnown weaknesses3 points

The best run has only 68 trades, which is a small sample to judge it on.
The maximum drawdown of 9,154 EUR is large next to the net profit of 16,118 EUR.
The code sets no stop loss, so a losing trade stays open until an exit signal arrives.

Questions

About this strategy

Can I run ADX Strength Breakout (long and short) in ProOrder?

Yes. The code is ProBuilder and runs as an automated ProOrder system. Backtest it on your own account with your own spread and position size before trading it live.

Which markets was it tested on?

It was tested on 3 market and timeframe combinations. The best run was Brent Crude, Daily, with a profit factor of 1.79 over 68 trades.

How large was the drawdown?

The best run had a maximum drawdown of 9,154 EUR at the tested position size, against a net result of 16,118 EUR.

Does it trade long, short or both?

It trades both long and short.

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Past backtest results do not guarantee future results. This is not financial advice. Curated and maintained by ProRealAlgos. ProRealTime™ is a trademark of ProRealTime SAS. prorealalgos.com Stats Docs