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Last Week Forex Trading Result
I find out the latest result of the forex trading, trade with northfinance company and using metatrader as a platform..
Found the result of the forex trading here..
http://googleeadsense.wordpress.com/2007/05/07/last-week-story-of-forex-trading/
Dont Deny Reality
If you want to be a successful trader, you must make sure you do not deny reality in any phase of your trading. You cannot deny losses, price direction, mistakes you make, being undercapitalized, or a whole host of things you would rather not think about.
Many traders think the best way to deal with unpleasant ideas, events, or personal character flaws is to shut their eyes and pretend they don’t exist.
Let’s face it, trading can be difficult, at times very difficult and it's essential that you focus on reality. Denial takes your focus away from the very thing you need to be concentrating on—the action of prices—regardless of time frame. Your mind must be clear so that you can look at the market and see what is really there.
The way I learned to handle denial was to simply write down and confront all possible ideas I had trouble accepting. Some thoughts I could fix and others I just had to accept. But facing the truth of what and who you are is the only way to deal with denial. You have to realize that for the most part the only things you can change are in yourself. Other things you just have to accept. You have to accept the reality of slippage, for example. You have to realize that indicators often give false signals and that there is no magic moving average nor is there a magical oscillator.
You have to realize that some winning trades are just lucky trades and had nothing to do with your skill as a trader. By the same token, you will also experience the bad luck of having prices make a sudden and unexpected move against you.
Rather than wasting your time in denial, concentrate your mental energies on improving yourself and improving your trading skills. Work at improving your abilities to observe. Realize that you have to survive the markets in order to benefit from the experience of the markets.
There is really only one true problem with your trading—that problem is you! However, the problem manifests in two ways:
1. Market conditions have changed and you haven’t.
2. You are no longer doing what you did when you were winning. You have drifted. You are not consistent.
The first aspect of the problem is due to poor observation. The market has changed and you haven’t changed with it. Poor observation stems from a variety of lesser but very important problems. You have married a market, or a trade. You may have allowed your ego to get the best of you and you are no longer humble. I’ve named just a couple here. I challenge you to think about the many things that can distract you from seeing when market conditions have changed. Make a list of those things and confront them.
The second aspect of the problem stems from inconsistency. Here again, you should make a list of those things that cause you to be inconsistent.
"Perhaps I was a good trader at one time, but the market conditions have changed and I may not be able to keep my reputation up." This is an issue that all traders face at some point: keeping up their reputation. When one makes big profits trading, it's tempting to tell neighbors and friends how well you are doing. It's great when you're making the big profits, but keeping up appearances is often the downfall of even the most astute trader. Again, denying your need for fame and glory, or pretending that you can maintain an unrealistic reputation, will use up your psychological energy and interfere with your ability to concentrate. Huge profits tend to go to the humble, so try not to build up your reputation. Admit that you will have difficulty keeping up appearances and just quit doing it.
One fact that traders wrestle with continuously is the notion that, "Trading is not a legitimate job." Many traders struggle with the legitimacy of trading. Some traders find that they can simply remind themselves, "Trading provides liquidity and helps control prices." Other traders, however, think this isn't good enough and need to find more meaning in their daily trading activities. For example, they may focus on how trading helps them provide for their family, or may plan to donate some of their profits to charities they view as personally
valuable. The point is, don't deny the possible truth to such ideas. You will be better off acknowledging and working through them, and then just moving on. Denying they exist, on the other hand, will use up time and energy.
Unacceptable beliefs tend to lie in the back of your mind. They remain there, lurking, and when you are vulnerable, they can powerfully influence your outlook. So acknowledge unacceptable ideas, and once you admit the possible validity of such ideas, you will neutralize their potential influence. This will free up limited psychological resources, allowing you to focus all your energy on trading profitably and consistently.
The US dollar has benefited from the strong ISM data
A slightly challenging start to the new month.
The US dollar has benefited from the strong ISM data, but the services ISM will now take on even greater importance.
The trend is down for the US dollar, but it is clearly trying to bounce just now and a break much lower in the Euro could trigger quite a substantial stop loss process for a lot of speculators still long the US dollar. The favoured scenario is the USD topping out here, but have to respect the immediate USD buying pressure at first today.
Signal-FxStreet
! AUD/NZD
: See 2349
: FLAT
: 1.1145
:
:
'
! AUD/USD
: See 2347
: FLAT
: 0.8290
:
:
'
! EUR/CHF
: See 2344
: LONG
: 1.6481
: 1.6700
: 1.6375
'
! EUR/JPY
: See 2342
: FLAT
: 162.75
:
:
'
! EUR/SEK
: See 2352
: SHORT
: 9.1893
: 9.1300
: 9.2050
'
! EUR/GBP
: See 2343
: FLAT
: 0.6782
:
:
'
! GBP/USD
: See 2338
: FLAT
: 2.0005
:
:
'
! USD/CAD
: See 2345
: SHORT
: 1.1056
: 1.0930
: 1.1110
'
! USD/CHF
: See 2340
: FLAT
: 1.2085
:
:
'
! EUR/USD
: See 2334
: FLAT
: 1.3662
:
:
'
! USD/JPY
: See 2336
: FLAT
: 119.63
:
:
'
! NZD/USD
: See 2349
: FLAT
: 0.7440
:
:
'
!
'
!
'
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[IFR Forex Watch]
[POSITION SUMMARY]
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Dollar-Where To GO??
Mid-Day Forex Technical Report - Dollar Still in Range Despite Tamer Core Inflation
Mon, 30 Apr 2007 14:23:30 GMT
by ActionForex.com Team
ActionForex.com
Forex Mid-Day Technical Report
Dollar Still in Range Despite Tamer Core Inflation
Dollar remains stuck in range against majors despite weaker than expected personal spending and tamer core inflation in Mar. Today's Mar personal income and spending data shows that inflation continues to moderate with core PCE deflator flat mom, dragging down the yoy rate from 2.4% to 2.1%, which is now much closer to Fed's comfort zone of 1-2%. Though, top line inflations high with PCE accelerating to 2.4% yoy. After all, the inflation part of the report is inline with the CPI report earlier which showed further moderation in inflation and should ease some of the concerns of Fed's members. Meanwhile, the unexpected slowing of personal spending to 0.3% casts some doubts on the underlying strength of US consumer. Other data saw Chicago PMI falling more than expected from 61.7 to 52.9 while construction spending rose 0.2%, inline with consensus.
Canadian dollar remains strong and surges against the greenback after the release of Feb GDP data which showed the growth of Canadian economy accelerated from 0.1% to 0.4% mom, much better than expectation of 0.2%. This is the fifth straight month of growth. USDCAD fell to as low as 1.1091 so far and is now close to 800 pips off this year's high at 1.1874 and is heading towards 06 low of 1.0930.
Released earlier, Eurozone M3 money supply growth continues to defy expectation and accelerated further to 10.9% in Mar, fastest pace in 24 years. Persistently strong upward momentum in M3 growth strengthen the case for further tightening by ECB down the road beyond the widely expected hike in June.
45 Ways to Avoid Losing Money Trading Forex
45 Ways to Avoid Losing Money Trading Forex |
This article looks at the most common reasons why professional and new traders lose money on the forex market. Instead of learning from failure, learn how to avoid it.
- Knowledge Deficiency – Most new forex traders do not take the time to learn what drives currency rates (primarily fundamentals). When some news or a statement is due out, they close out their positions and sit out the best trading opportunities; they are taught to only trade after the market calms down. So essentially they miss the whole move and then trade the random noise that follows a fundamental price move. Just think for a moment about technically trading the aftermath of a price move; there is no potential.
- Overtrading - Trading often with tight stops and tiny profit targets will only make the broker rich. The desire to “just” make a few hundred dollars a day by locking in tiny profits whenever possible is a losing strategy.
- Over leveraged - Leverage is a two way street. The brokers want you to use high leverage because that means more spread income because your position size determines the amount of spread income; the bigger the position, the more spread income the broker earns.
- Relying on Others – Real traders play a lone hand; they make their own decisions and don’t rely on others to make their trading decisions for them; there is no halfway; either trade for yourself or have someone else trade for you.
- Stop Losses – Putting tight stop losses with retail brokers is a recipe for disaster. When you put on a trade, commit to a reasonable stop loss limit that allows your trade a fair chance to develop.
- Demo Accounts – Broker demo accounts are a shill game of sorts; they’re not as time sensitive as real accounts and therefore give the impression that time-sensitive trading systems, such as short-term moving average crossovers, can be a consistently profitable trade; once you start dealing with real money, reality is quick to set in.
- Trading During Off Hours – Bank FX traders, option traders, and hedge funds have a huge advantage during off hours; they can push the currencies around when no volume is going through and the end game is new traders get fleeced trying to trade signals. There is only one signal during off hours – it is better to stay out.
- Trading a Currency, Not a Pair – Being right about a currency is half a trade; success or failure depends upon being right about the second currency that makes up the pair.
- No Trading Plan - "Make money" is not a trading plan. A trading plan is a blueprint for trading success; it spells out what you see your edge as being; if you don’t have an edge, you don’t have a plan, and likely you’ll wind up a statistic (part of the 95% of new traders that lose and quit).
- Trading Against Prevailing Trend – There is a huge difference between buying cheaply on the way down and buying cheaply. What was a low price quickly becomes a high price when you’re trading against the trend.
- Exiting Trades Poorly – If you put on a trade and it’s not working make sure you exit properly; don’t compound the damage. If you’re in a winning trade don’t talk yourself out of the position because you’re bored or want to relieve stress; stress is a natural part of trading, get used to it.
- Trading Too Short-term – If you’re profit target is less than 20 points, don't do the trade; the spread you pay to enter the trade makes the odds way against you when you go for these tiny profits.
- Picking Tops and Bottoms - Looking for bargains works well at the supermarket but not trading foreign exchange; try to trade in the direction the price is going and your results will improve.
- Being Too Smart – The most successful traders I know are high school graduates. They keep it simple and don’t look beyond the obvious; their results are excellent.
- Not Trading Around News Time – Most of the big moves occur around news time. The volume is high and the moves are real; there is no better time to trade fundamentally or technically than when news is released; this is when the real money adjusts their positions and as a result the prices changes reflect serious currency flow (compared to quiet times when bank traders rule the market with their customer order flow).
- Ignore Technical Conditions – Determining whether the market is over-extended long or over-extended short is a key determinant of near-time price action. Spike moves often occur when the market is all one way.
- Emotional Trading – When you don't pre-plan your trades, it is essentially a thought and not an idea; thoughts are emotions and a very poor basis for doing trades. Do people generally say intelligent things when they are upset and emotional? I don’t think so.
- Lack of Confidence – Confidence only comes from successful trading. If you lose money early in your trading career it’s very difficult to gain true confidence; the trick is don't go off half-cocked; learn the business before you trade.
- Lack of Courage to Take a Loss – There is nothing macho or gutsy about riding a loss, just stupidity and cowardice. It takes guts to accept your loss and wait for tomorrow to try again. Getting married to a bad position ruins lots of traders. The thing to remember is the market does crazy things often so don’t get married to any one trade; it’s just a trade. One good trade will not make you a trading success; rather, it is the monthly and annual performance that defines a good trader.
- Not Focusing on the Trade at Hand – There is no room for fantasizing in successful trading. Counting up and mentally spending profits you haven’t made yet is mental masturbation and does you no good. Same with worrying about a loss that hasn't happened yet. Focus on your position and have a reasonable stop loss in place at the time you do the trade. Then be like an astronaut – sit back and enjoy the ride, there is no sense worrying because you have no real control; the market will do what it wants to do.
- Interpreting forex news incorrectly – Fact is the press only has a very superficial understanding of the news they are reporting and tend to focus on one element and miss the point. Learn to read the source documents and understand it for real.
- Lucky or Good – Your account balance changes don’t tell you the whole story about your trading; fact is, if you are taking a lot of risk and making money you will eventually crash and burn. Look at the individual trade details; focus on your big losses and losing streaks. Ask yourself this - if I had a couple of consecutive losing streaks or a couple of consecutive big losses, how would my account balance look. Generally, traders making money without big daily losses have the best chance of sustaining positive performance. The others are accidents waiting to happen.
- Too Many Charity Trades – When you make money on a well thought-out trade, don’t give back half on a whim; invest your profits from good trades on the next good trade.
- Courage Under Fire – When a policeman breaks down the door to a drug dealers apartment, he is scared but he does it anyway. When a fireman climbs onto the roof of a burning building, he is scared but does it anyway - and gets the job done. Its the same with trading - it’s OK to be scared, but you have to pull the trigger; no trigger = no trades = no profits = no trader.
- Quality Trading Time – I suggest 3 hours a day of quality, focused trading time; that’s about all your brain allows. When you are trading, you must be 100% focused - half way is plain bullshit and does not work. Don’t even think that time spent in front of the computer watching the rates has any correlation with profitability; it doesn’t. Spend less time but when you are trading, be 100% focused.
- Rationalizing – Killer. Absolute Killer. Put your trade on and let it run. If it hits your reasonable pre-determined stop, you're out. Moving your stop is like getting up after being crushed with a knockout blow; it’s pointless, things will only get worse. Don’t ignore the obvious - you are wrong, so get out. Come back the next day and try again. A small loss will not hurt you, but a catastrophic loss will.
- Mixing Apples and Oranges – Have you ever done this: you see the EUR/USD trading higher, so you buy GBP/USD because it “hasn’t moved yet”. That's a mistake. Most of the time the reason the GBP/USD hasn’t moved yet is because its already overbought or some 4:30am UK news was bearish. Don’t mix apples and oranges; if EUR/USD looks good, buy EUR/USD.
- Avoiding the Hard Trades – Bank FX traders have an axiom: the harder the trade is to do, the better the trade. This I learned from experience - when I needed to buy EUR/USD and it was hard to get them, that’s when it is necessary to pay up and get the business done. When it’s easy to get them, then sit back and wait for better levels. So if you're trying to get into a trade or more importantly get out of a trade, don’t putz around for a few points; get your business done.
- Too Much Detail – If you are trading more than 2 indicators, then you need to clean house. Having many indicators stifles trading and finds reasons not to trade. A setup and a trigger is all you need.
- Giving Up Too Easy – Your first trade of the day may not be your best but certainly it’s no reason to quit. I have a preset daily trading limit and I use it; you can’t make money by making excuses. Getting trades wrong is natural and should be expected.
- Jumping the Gun – Don’t be penny wise and dollar foolish; wait for your trade signal to be clear. Put on your trade and give it a decent size stop loss so that you don’t get knocked out by random noise. Do trades and don’t buy lottery tickets (extremely tight stops).
- Afraid to Take a Loss - Trading is not personal; it’s business. Don’t think that a poor trade is a reflection on you. It could be you are just ahead of your time or a commercial order hits the market and temporarily creates a small unexpected move. Again, place your stop beforehand and NEVER increase your pre-determined risk. If it’s going bad, it will probably get worse; I think that’s Einstein “in motion stays in motion…”
- Over-Relying on Risk Reward – There is zero advantage in risk reward; if you put a 20 point stop and a 60 point profit your chances are probably 3-1 that you will lose; actually with the spread its more like 4 to 1 (from entry point if it goes down 17 points you lose or up 63 you win; 17/63 is close to 4-1).
- Trading for Wrong Reasons – Because the EUR/USD is going up is not in itself a reason to buy. Buying EUR/USD because its not moving is even worse; you’re paying the toll (spread) without even a hint that you will get a directional move. If you are bored, don’t trade - the reason you are bored is there is no trade to do in the first place.
- Rumors – Rumors are rumors almost 100% of the time; think about where in the motion you heard the rumor. If EUR/USD is up 50 points in last 15 minutes and the rumor is dollar negative, well then you missed it. Whenever you trade, determine where in the motion you are entering.
- Trading Short-term Moving Average Crossovers – This is the money sucker of the century. When the shorter term moving average cross the longer term moving average it only means that the average price in the short run is equal to the average price in the longer run. For the life of me I cannot understand why this is bullish or bearish. Easy to set up on software, complete with lights, bells and whistles, and good for the seller getting thousands for the software but in terms of creating profit, it’s a zero.
- Stochastic – Another money sucker. Personally I think this indicator is used backwards; when it first signals an overdone condition, that’s when I think the big spike in the “overdone” currency pair occurs. To be overbought means strong and oversold means weak. Try buying on the first sign of overbought and selling on the first sign of oversold; you’ll be with the trend and likely have identified a move with plenty of juice left. So if %k and %d are both crossing 80, buy! (Same on sell side; sell at 20)
- Wrong Broker – A lot of forex brokers are horrible; get a good one. Read forums and chats in several different places to get an unbiased opinion.
- Simulated Results – Watch out for “black box” systems; these are trading systems that don’t divulge how the trade signals are generated. A great majority of them are absolute garbage. They show you a track record of extraordinary results, but think about it - if you could build a trading system with half a dozen filters using the benefit of hindsight, couldn’t you too come up with a great system. Of course going forward is an entirely different story. High-speed number crunching capabilities allows for building great hindsight trading systems; BEWARE.
- Inconsistency – Every business (forex trading included) requires a business plan (trading plan). Unless you have taken the time to write down a set of rules that you can and will follow, it’s likely your trading will remain unfocused and directionless. Make a plan, have rules, follow them, set goals that are realistic, and you will achieve them.
- Master of None – Focus on one currency for technical trading. Each currency has a unique way of trading and unless you get intimate with it, you will never truly understand its underlying idiosyncrasies. Don’t spread yourself too thin. Focus – master one currency at a time.
- Thinking Long Term – Don’t do it. Stay in the moment. Especially if you’re a day trader. It doesn’t matter what happens next week or next month, if you are trading with 30 to 50 point stops restrict your thought process to what’s happening right now. That is not to stay the long-term trend is not important; it is to say the long-term trend will not always help you when you are trading in a significantly shorter time frame.
- Overconfidence – Trading is not easy; statistics show a 95% failure rate. If your doing well don’t take your success for granted; always be on the lookout for ways to improve what you’re doing.
- Getting Pumped Up – The trick is to maintain an even keel. When you are in a trade, you want to think exactly as you would if you didn’t have a trade on. To do this requires a relaxed disposition; this is not a football game. Don’t get psyched up, relax and try to enjoy it.
- Staying in the Game – I don’t recommend demo trading because traders learn bad habits when trading with play money. I also don’t think “letting it all hang out” right away is wise either. Start off doing trades and taking risk that is relatively small but still makes a difference to you if you win or lose. About a quarter to a third of what you expect to reach as your trading matures is reasonable.
GBP/USD Insider
Moves up toward today's pivot at 1.9954 after bounced at last week low at 1.9855
Moves up toward today's pivot at 1.9954 after bounced at last week low at 1.9855 . Immediate resistance seen at 2.0016 while support seen at 1.9848 .
Fri, 27 Apr 2007, 09:12 GMT
Drops below yesterday low at 1.9891 , toward first support level at 1.9848 . Immediate support seen at 1.9848 followed by 1.9786 , while resistance seen at 2.0016 .
Fri, 27 Apr 2007, 06:55 GMT
Continues to trade around opening price level at 1.9910 , below today's pivot at 1.9954 . Immediate support seen at 1.9848 while resistance seen at 2.0016 .
Fri, 27 Apr 2007, 04:31 GMT
Cinderella
I’m standing on the stairs in a magnificent hall
Wearing the dress that I bought for the ball
It’s long and flowing, sparkling white
My tiara of diamonds shines in the light
At the bottom of the stairs you’re waiting for me
And I gracefully float down for all to see
You take my hand and touch my face
You’re the only one I notice in the expansive space
We’re now dancing in shadows of flickering light
Holding each other close, holding each other tight
You kiss my neck and then touch my face
Then kiss my lips in a loving embrace
Time stands still whilst we are together
Feels so good, it seems like forever
I look at the clock, that cannot be right
But the bells start to chime, confirming midnight
But there’s no need to leave
From the ball tonight
I’ll be with you my prince
For the rest of our life.
the word of euro
"The bulls are back in business and will likely attempt to ram through the 1.3666 all-time-high. Taking it out opens the way top a projected possible top at 1.3715. Minor support slices in at 1.3586 but only below the last low at 1.3544 unwinds the upwards bias and could cause a decline to the 1.3404 area before the dust settles."
Usd Firm Against Yen
NZD shy of post-float high
The NZD ended the week in sight of post-float highs, having recovered from Thursday’s equity market related sell-off. Domestically, the currency ranged between 0.7425 and 0.7455, but again strengthened during the overnight session to post a 0.7485 high, just shy of Wednesday’s post float high of 0.7493. Attention is now squarely focused upon this week’s interest rate review on Thursday, with the market currently pricing the chances of a hike in the OCR to 7.75% at around 75%.
AUD firms ahead of key CPI release
The AUS also recovered from Thursday’s sharp sell-off to end the week towards a 17-year high. In the local session, the AUD ranged between 0.8340/66, before pushing higher to 0.8378 offshore. Key CPI data is due for release tomorrow, with markets in Australia and New Zealand closed on Wednesday in observance of the ANZAC Day holiday.
USD firms against yen
With China’s CPI and GDP figures out of the way and no immediate tightening measures by the PBoC in response, the green light was given for investors to return to the carry trade. This saw USD/JPY rally towards 119.00 as yen positions were unwound. The euro reached a fresh two year high of 1.3638 before reining in momentum and pulling back to 1.3585. GBP/USD won the prize for volatility among the majors rallying 50 points to 2.0070 then tumbling to 1.9990 after softer-than-expected March retail sales then recovering to finish the session above 2.0000.
Japan's all-industry activity index rose 0.9% in February. The AAI beat expectations of a 0.3% fall principally because IP was revised from –0.2% to +0.7% between the forecasts being collated and the release of this index. The result follows a (revised) January reading of -0.2%. However, the two months together give a steady uptrend.
Fedspeak: Fed Governor Fred Mishkin said the mostly likely outcome over coming quarters is a continued moderate rate of economic expansion accompanied by some easing of pressures on resources.
Canadian retail sales rise 0.1% in Feb. This was despite soft auto sales. However a near 5% jump in gasoline sales due to rising prices meant that ex auto sales rose 1.0%. Food sales were also solid, but this was also mainly a price effect. In real terms, sales were down 0.7% in Feb, and this will be a drag on GDP forecasts for Q1.
UK retail sales volumes rose 0.3% in Mar, on top of their 1.6% bounce in Feb. However the weak start to the quarter means that Q1 sales volumes rose just 0.4% compared to 1.4% in Q4. Hence our expectation for slower Q1 GDP growth.
French consumer spending bounces 0.7% in Mar. This leaves intact a solid trend, and with German retailing showing signs of recovering from the VAT hike in Jan, the broader Euroland consumer picture for Q1 is looking quite solid.
Have you Heard Of ETF
Everybody in this world loves money. When it comes to money then everybody will try to find a way on howto to get money in the simpler way. Many of us loves to invest but don`t know how and where to invest their hard earn cash.
Here, click here and you will find a way or a coach or a friend who will help you and guide you through a new style of investment.
Plus you can get free trial if you act now, just open the website and register your account. Hola, you`re done, and now follow the instruction on how to invest.
I qoute something from the author below :
What are ETFs?Exchange traded funds are an emerging class of low cost index funds that trade like stocks. They can be bought and sold throughout the market day and they offer portfolio exposure to the world’s leading indexes.
Why ETFs?For investors and leading financial advisors, exchange traded funds have become a popular choice for numerous reasons. Here is a brief review of some key advantages:
Lower Expense Ratios : The expense ratios of ETFs are consistently lower than actively managed mutual funds. Lower costs without sacrificing quality is a key attraction.
Tax Efficiency : ETFs are renowned for their low portfolio turnover. For shareholders, this can translate into lower tax liabilities.
Trading Flexibility : ETFs trade throughout the market day and can be bought and sold at the click of a button.
Tactical Investment Strategies : ETFs open a universe of sophisticated investment strategies such as covered call writing, cash management, hedging, tax-loss re-positioning, and core/satellite.
Long Term Investment-A Good Idea
Being an active trader can be a great thing. You often make money faster than the “buy and hold” crowd, and perhaps more importantly, you can make money when they can’t.
Even so, there are downsides to being a trader instead of an investor. What’s the difference? Generally, a trader is someone who tries to profit from short term price fluctuations. He goes for a quick turn around. The nature of whatever he’s buying or selling isn’t necessarily important, only that it can be sold for a profit. Investors, on the other hand, have a different mindset. They’re concerned with putting their money into quality vehicles which will grow over time.
So what are the bad parts about being an investor?
One of the hard parts about investing is that it’s necessarily a long-term deal. Whenever you look to park your money in something that’s going to grow and create value, that doesn’t usually happen over night. And because it’s a long term deal, you can’t pull the plug when things don’t go your way in the short term. Unlike traders who can quickly ditch a stock if the price starts to move against them, investors stick around regardless of price if the fundamentals are still in place.
Free Charting Software-Review.
Stockfetcher.com changes all that, and to boot, it provides an easy-to-use, quality back testing and stock screening functionality as well. Stock Fetcher is free, web-based charting software as well as paid, depending on the options you choose.
Charting
Stock Fetcher has what it calls SF 2.0, which is a charting application which uses Adobe Flex technology. The charts it produces are very nice. You can easily change the appearance of them, zoom and most importantly, easily add a variety of indicators and studies. Most, if not all, of these studies are customizable as well.
Stock Screening
One of the great features integrated with Stock Fetcher’s charting is its stock screener functionality. You can program the screener to search for every condition under the sun, e.g., only search for stocks which recently had a new 52 week high and are under their 10 day moving average. The screener works fast and well, and you can use it during the day, albeit off of delayed intraday data.
How To trade Currency-6 Step
Trading currency is an attractive option for many people. The foreign exchange (forex) market offers 24/7 trading, unmatched liquidity, zero commissions and low account minimums. If you’d like to learn how to trade currencies yourself, follow these two steps:
1) Learn how to read charts
Trading forex is done in one of two ways, technically or fundamentally. Fundamental trading means you’ll be analyzing economics; technical trading means you’ll be analyzing charts. Which one you prefer, or what mix you prefer, is up to you. Regardless, you should become familiar with reading charts, if for no other reason than everyone else is also looking at them. As well, by becoming “fluent” in chart reading, you’ll be able to put together a trading system based on charts. This technical analysis guidebook is an excellent place to begin learning about charts.
2) Learn forex fundamentals
Once you’ve got the charts out of the way, you’ll want to learn about fundamental factors that affect currency trades. For an introduction on fundamental factors which affect currency trades, read this. You may never end up using fundamental analysis, but you should still know about it. For example, even the most die hard chart trader can be thrown off balance by an interest rate announcement.
The Week Ahead
The Week Ahead Apr 20, 15:42 GMT
More important economic data coming out next week by iloveforex.blogspot.com
Although it is not going to be as busy as the preceeding week, there are some important economic events due out next week, in all fronts.The economic week starts on Tuesday, with some ECB representatives speaking and Account figures for the Euro-zone. Consumer confidence and Existing home sales data will top the day though, as the market will look into the US data for some clear direction.Wednesday kicks off with the Ifo business survey in the Euro-zone and UK GDP figures. There is more to come when US starts to rall the ball in, as Durable Goods Orders, New Home Sales and the Fed's Beige Book will certainly be in the spot during the third day of the week.Thursday is a slow day and only GFK Consumer Confidence data out of the Euro-zone is scheduled.Lastly, on Friday, the Bank of Japan releases its interest rate decision, Germany sends out its CPI figures, Japan is active again with Tokyo and National CPI figures and to finish the week, the US will release the annualized figures for its GDP.
Top 100 - Wall Street
Financial World
The Wall Street 100
By Stephen Taub, David Carey, Amy Barrett, Richard J. Coletti and Jackie Gold
July 10, 1990
Page 57
No. 8 GEORGE SOROS
At least $60 million
Appreciates the value of freedom more than most. During World War I, his father was captured by the Russians but managed to escape. Then during World War II, his family hid from the Nazis after Hungary allied itself with Germany. Came to U.S. in 1956 with economics degree in hand. In 1969, started Quantum Fund with James Rogers, who broke with him in 1981. Today, as a 70% owner of $2.1 billion Quantum, the world’s largest offshore investment fund, Soros and the other six managing directors split 15% of the annual profits. He spends most of his time in his home in England and helping fellow Hungarians and other Eastern Europeans reacquaint themselves with capitalism. To bankroll that effort, he created the Open Society Fund in 1979 and the Soros Foundation-Hungary in 1984. Known as "an alternate ministry of culture," the foundation helped establish a management training center in an old castle outside Budapest. Now there are foundations in 10 Central and Eastern European countries aimed at cultural and economic revitalization. Soros, 59, is the author of The Alchemy of Finance, published in 1987, in which he outlines, somewhat circuitously, his "theory of reflexivity," which holds that perceptions change events which in turn, change perceptions. This is not his first attempt at writing. Soros did extensive work several years earlier on a philosophical book that was never completed. His new book, Opening the Soviet System, is due out this month.
Financial World
The Wall Street 100
By Stephen Taub and David Carey with Alison M. Smith
July 21, 1992
Page 40
No. 1 GEORGE SOROS
Soros Fund Management
At least $117 million
Despite the fact that Hungarian-born George Soros spends much of his time these days touting capitalism in former East Bloc countries, he was still able to find a way for his $3.2 billion offshore Quantum fund, which rose around 63%, to outperform most managed porfolios and market indexes. Who says bigger can't also perform better? After he claimed a chunk of Quantum's 15% incentive fee and the fund's entire 1% management fee, Soros's personal take computed into 9 fitures. Not too shabby, considering how much time the 61-year-old globe-trotter spends away from home. One of his more recent pet projects has been the establishment of the Central European University in Budapest and Prague. In the past year or so, he still found time to launch three spin-off funds - Quasar International Partners, Quantum Emerging Growth and Quota.
Financial World
The Wall Street 100
By Stephen Taub, Nanette Byrnes, and David Carey
July 6, 1993
Page 40
No. 1 GEORGE SOROS
Soros Fund Management
At least $650 million
How do you make $650 million in one year if you’re not Mike Milken? Simple. First, start the year with about $800 million of your own money and other $4 billion of other people’s—nearly $5 billion in all under management. Then hire crack managers and traders who rack huge returns trafficking highly volatile currencies and derivatives instruments. Finally, charge hefty management and incentive fees. Result: Last year 62-year-old George Soros’s Quantum Fund was up 68.1% after fees; Quantum Emerging, up 57%; Quasar International, 55.7%; and Quota, 37.4%. Quantum and Quasar charge 1% management fees and 15% of the appreciation while the other two funds charge 1% plus 20%.
Moreover, Soros invests a big portion of his assets in currencies and index-linked derivatives—but never for long. He flits in and out of these instruments incessantly, rarely holding a position for more than a few days. As a result, he realizes capital gains on the vast bulk of the nominal returns he generates in a given year. Do the arithmetic and you’ll see that at a bare minimum, Soros extracted more than $400 million in profits from his personal hoard.
A conservative estimate of his share of his firm’s incentive fees tacks on another $200 million or so to the total. Finally, Soros awards himself all his firm’s management fees, which netted him about $50 million. Presto: $650 million, although his take might have been much higher. Today, Soros’s clutch of five offshore funds boats assets well over $7 billion, including a $525 million real estate fund he recently formed in partnership with Paul Reichmann, a former controlling shareholder with bankrupt Canadian real estate developer Olympia & York. This is not to be mistaken for Soros’s new $775 million partnership with British Land to invest in properties.
What does one do with so much dough? In the case of Hungarian-born Soros, help the desperate of Central and Eastern Europe and foster capitalism on on4e’s native soil and surrounding countries. A network of 20 foundations across Central and Eastern Europe organized most of his philanthropic activity. The first was opened in Hungary in 1984. He pledged $100 million to support scientific research in the Commonwealth of Independent States last year, donated $50 million to Bosnia and financed a $25 million revolving loan to buy heating oil that helped Macedonia survive the winter.
Financial World
The Wall Street 100
Call it the year of the hedge funds. For this elite band, it was the best year ever.
By Stephen Taub and David Carey with Andrew Osterland and David Yee
July 5, 1994
Page 33
No. 1. GEORGE SOROS
Soros Fund Management
At least $1.1 billion
In 1993, George Soros managed to earn as much individually as McDonald's did with the help of 169, 600 employees. How did he do it? Fees, great performance and the power of compounding.
Let's run the numbers: To start off, the 63-year-old manages about $11 billion in several offshore funds, including the relatively well-known Quantum Fund, as well as a real estate fund. Last year each of his funds turned in spectacular performances. Leading the way: Quantum Emerging Growth, up 109% before fees, followed by Quantum and Quota, each up more than 72%. Then Soros's operation gets 15% incentive fee, which is less than the going 20% rate for hedge funds. Soros himself gets the 1% management fee on assets as of year-end and then pays all of the expenses of the firm. He also has more than $1 billion of his own capital in the funds. Add it all up, including realized gains on his own dough, and the guy made a minimum of $1.1 billion.
What does a fellow do with all this money? Soros is well-known for his generosity. NOte that nine other people on the Wall Street 100 are Soros people - he rewards those who make the biggest contributions. In addition, the Hungarian native never forgot his roots. His Jewish family had to go underground in Nazi-occupied Budapest to survive. In 1947, Soros fled Hungary and enrolled in the London School of Economics. He moved from London to New York City in 1956, the same year the Soviets quashed the Hungarian nationalist uprising. Today, he is a longtime giver to Hungarian causes, and his 33rd-floor office in midtown Manhattan is decorated with paintings by Hungarian artists. His 10-year-old foundation has already given away more than $300 million through offices in many countries of the old Soviet bloc. One recent humanitarian gift: funding the connection of Sarajevo's water supply and natural gas lines. Soros has also pledged $200 million to revamp Russia's educational system and spend $15 million to keep about 28,000 Russians working for a year.
Financial World
The Wall Street 100
Compensation was way down in 1994 for Wall Street’s highest earners
By Stephen Taub, David Carey, and Joseph Epstein
July 4, 1995
Page 42
No. 2. GEORGE SOROS
Soros Fund Management
At least $70 million
Most other mortals would have been ecstatic to earn at least $70 million in one year, but for George Soros it was quite a comedown—a drop of more than 93% from the prior year. Why the falloff? Because, like most of the other huge hedge funds and offshore funds, Soros got whipsawed by the change in the direction of global interest rates and the sudden collapse of many emerging markets. His Quantum Emerging Growth fund and Quota fund were down 13.3% and 10.1%, respectively. And although the flagship Quantum fund was up 2.7%, its premium shrank (see FW, Dec. 8). So about all poor George got by the way of compensation was his 1% management fee. At the moment, Soros, 64, is trying to liquidate the U.S. real estate fund he started with Paul Reichmann a scant two years ago. While Soros’s philanthropic efforts in his native Hungary and other Middle European countries are well documented, he makes less publicized charitable contributions. For example, the Open Society, another of his foundations, plans to give $5 million a year for three years to examine U.S. attitudes about dying. In addition, a few years ago he began giving money to the Drug Policy Foundation, a lobbying group that is exploring various drug legalization schemes. Meanwhile, the Soros Foundation is making every effort to solve the mysterious April disappearance of Frederic Cuny, the relief expert who was setting up a hospital in Chechnya for the foundation.
Financial World
The Wall Street 100
By David Carey and Stephen Taub
October 21, 1996
Page 59
No. 1. GEORGE SOROS
Soros Fund Management
At least $1.5 billion
Push Up Bra For Pound
The European currency showed mixed trading during late Monday and into the small hours on Tuesday in New York. Reversing the previous trends, the euro traded lower against the dollar and the yen shortly before midnight.
The common currency gained ground against these currencies after midnight but the Japanese inflation data came out at 1:00 am ET strengthened the yen against the euro.
The Japanese consumer confidence index, excluding one-person households fell to 46.8 in March from 48.4 in February. To the British currency, the euro moved sideways in a wide range in the late hours and continued the same into the small hours of Tuesday.
On the other hand, the single currency traded down against the Swiss franc during much of late trading on Monday but the pair started drifting higher after midnight.
The market is now waiting for the Swiss adjusted retail sales data for February followed by the British inflation figures for March. However, the ZEW economic sentiment for the German and euro-zone economies expected at 5:00 am ET will be of major attraction in the European session of the day.
The Euro is hovering under its all-time high at 1.3670, and there is a real possibility of reaching a new record: Futures positions are still well below December’s peak and will need rebuilding so a scramble at these historically extremely expensive levels is a very real possibility.
The dollar fell against the euro and rose against the yen as traders digested upbeat retail sales data. The Commerce Department said retail sales rose 0.7% in March, higher than a revised 0.5% rise the month before. Dollar traders will be keeping a close eye on upcoming economic data this week such as key inflation figures from the US and UK due Tuesday.
Thanks to another rally this morning the pound pushed to $1.9939 at one point - its highest level since September 1992. Currency experts say the magic number of both the financial and retail worlds - $2 - could be hit as soon as today. The pound has not been that strong against the dollar for 15 years.
Sterling came within a whisker of $2 yesterday as signs of higher UK inflation pushed the pound to its highest level since 'Black Wednesday' in September 1992. UK factory gate prices rose at their fastest pace for almost a year last month.
Today's annual CPI inflation rate is set to edge up to 2.8/9 per cent in March. This is still way above the Bank of England's 2 per cent target and will raise expectations that interest rates will rise again soon, possibly as early as next month.
Headline inflation is predicted to remain unchanged at 4.6 per cent. This figure is used as a benchmark by many wage negotiators. The relatively high level of all the key inflation measures makes it very likely that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will endorse a 0.25 per cent base rate increase in May. After March, inflation is expected to head lower as the majority of the recently announced price cuts in utility bills take effect form April, although the Bank's MPC is likely to remain concerned about medium-term inflationary pressures.
The rand rallied more than 2 percent against the dollar yesterday, bolstered by strong metal prices and approval for what will be South Africa's biggest private equity buyout. The rand was bid at R7.0906 a dollar at 5pm, its strongest in seven weeks, according to Reuters data, and more than 11c better than Friday's bid price. Analysts said conditions were ideal for the rand, with commodity prices gaining, the euro strong, carry trades regaining lustre and capital continuing to flow into the country.
The rand is slightly at risk today with US inflation data due which could dampen sentiment if it came in higher-than-expected. A weaker dollar helped lift platinum to a fresh five-month peak, and gold to its best level in seven weeks. As the biggest producer of these precious metals, the local currency is often impacted by their prices.
Morning Market rates:
(Indication prices only, they are not offer rates)
GBP/USD: 1.9887
GBP/EUR: 1.4681
GBP/AUD: 2.3881
GBP/CHF: 2.4109
GBP/ZAR: 14.0899
USD/JPY: 119.02
USD/ZAR: 7.0750
EUR/USD: 1.3516
EUR/ZAR: 9.5771
GBP/NZD: 2.6865
GBP/AED: 7.3098
GBP/CYP: 0.8497
GBP/CAD: 2.2511
GBP/THB: 64.191
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