Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Put Buying Strategies, Part 1

Strategy 1: Gaining Leverage

There is value in the leverage gained using the put. With a limited amount of capital, the potential for profits is greater for put buyers than through stock short selling, and with considerably less risk.

Example: Safer than Shorting Stock: A stock currently is valued at $60 per share. If you sell short 100 shares and the stock drops five points, you can close the position and take a profit of $500. However, rather than selling short, you could buy 12 puts at 5, for a total investment of $6,000. A five-point drop in this case would produce a profit of $6,000, a 100 percent gain (assuming no change in time value). So by investing the same amount in puts, you could earn a 100 percent profit, compared to an 8.3 percent profit through short selling.

This example demonstrates the value in leverage, but the risk element for each strategy is not comparable. The short seller faces risks not experienced by the put buyer, and has to put up collateral and pay interest; in comparison, the put buyer has to fight against time. Risking $6,000 by buying puts is highly speculative and, while short selling is risky as well, the two strategies have vastly different attributes. The greater profit potential through leverage in buying puts is accompanied by equally higher risk of loss. However, even without a large sum of capital to speculate with, you can still use leverage to your advantage. This comparative analysis shows the flaw in analyzing two dissimilar strategies. Because the risk attributes are so different for each, it is not accurate to draw conclusions based only on potential returns.

Example: Comparing Apples to Oranges: You buy a LEAPS put for 5 with a striking price of 60 and 18 months until expiration. The stock currently is selling at $60 per share; your option is at the money. Aware of the potential profit or loss in your strategy, your decision to buy puts was preferable over selling short the stock. The luxury of 18 months in the LEAPS put is preferable over remaining exposed to short selling of stock. A drop of five points in the stock's market value would produce a $500 gain with either strategy (assuming no change in time value premium).

The short seller, like the put buyer, has a time problem. The short seller has to place collateral on deposit equal to a part of the borrowed stock's value, and pay interest on the borrowed amount. Thus, the more time the short position is left open, the higher the interest costand the more decline in the stock's value the short seller requires to make a profit. While the put buyer is concerned with diminishing time value, the short seller pays interest, which erodes future profits, if they ever materialize, or which increases losses.

A decline of five points in the preceding example produces an 8.1 percent profit for the short seller and a 100 percent profit for the put buyer. Compare the risks with this yield difference in mind. Short selling risks are unlimited in the sense that a stock's value could rise indefinitely, creating ever-increasing losses. The put buyer's risk is limited to the $500 investment. A drop of $1 per share in the stock's value creates a 1.6 percent profit for the short seller, and a 20 percent profit for the put buyer.

Potential losses can be compared between strategies as one form of risk evaluation. When a short seller's stock rises in value, the loss could be substantial. It combines market losses with continuing interest expense and tied up collateral (creating a lost opportunity). The put buyer's losses can never exceed the premium cost of the put.

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What is Forex Trading?

FX, Forex, Foreign Exchange are all names for the transaction of one currency for another, e.g. you buy 100.00 with $150.25 or sell $150.25 for 100.00. Traders buy and sell currencies with the hope of making a profit when the value of the currencies changes in their favor, whether from market news or events that takes place in the world.

Forex trading has been around for years. It is viewed as the largest financial market in the whole world. The estimated amount of daily volume is 1.5 trillion (US) dollars. A true 24-hour market, Forex trading begins each day in Sydney, and advances around the globe as the business day begins in each financial center, first to Tokyo, London, and New York.

Unlike other financial markets, Forex Allows investors to respond to currency fluctuations caused by economic, social and political events instantaneously, at the time that events occur, day and night. The market only closes on weekends.

A benefit of forex trading is that it is not really subject to the same kinds of swings in the market that stocks are subject to. Of course if you always buy and sell the same currencies then there will be market swings. But, because there are hundreds of currencies out there, there is always going to be something for you to make money on because while one currency is up in value another one is down and vice versa.

Forex trading does not take huge amounts of capital to start. Traders can begin investing with as little as three hundred dollars. Transaction costs are usually minimal. Often brokers will provide you with the tools and data you need to make trades for free. There are a large number of buyers and sellers all selling the same products. Information is free-flowing and there are few barriers to participation.

Forex trading is an over-the counter (OTC) market. This means buyers and sellers do not meet in central locations to make exchanges. Instead transactions are completed by phone, fax, and email or through the websites of brokers specializing in this market. Currencies are always traded in pairs. Transactions always involve selling one currency and buying another. If you believe the euros would gain against the dollar you would sell dollars and buy euros.

A very liquid market, your money is not held up for long periods of time. You will have full control of your capitol. With planning, a good system to follow, strong money management skills, and self-discipline, Forex trading can be relatively low risk and quite lucrative.

Milos Pesic is an expert in the field of Forex Trading and runs a highly popular and comprehensive Forex Trading web site. For more articles and resources on Forex related topics, online forex trading, trading tips, forex software and much more visit his site at:

=>http://forex.need-to-know.net/

The Seven Most Traded Currencies in FOREX.

Currencies are traded in dollar amounts called lots. One lot is equal to $1,000, which controls $100,000 in currency. This is what is known as the "margin". You can control $100,000 worth of currency for only 1,000 dollars. This is what is called High Leverage.

Currencies are always traded in pairs in the FOREX. The pairs have a unique notation that expresses what currencies are being traded. The symbol for a currency pair will always be in the form ABC/DEF. ABC/DEF is not a real currency pair, it is an example of a symbol for a currency pair. In this example ABC is the symbol for one countries currency and DEF is the symbol for another countries currency.

Here are some of the common symbols used in the Forex:

USD - The US Dollar
EUR - The currency of the European Union "EURO"
GBP - The British Pound
JPN - The Japanese Yen
CHF - The Swiss Franc
AUD - The Australian Dollar
CAD - The Canadian Dollar

There are symbols for other currencies as well, but these are the most commonly traded ones.

A currency can never be traded by itself. So you can not ever trade a EUR by itself. You always need to compare one currency with another currency to make a trade possible.

Some of the common PAIRS are:

EUR/USD Euro / US Dollar
"Euro"

USD/JPY US Dollar / Japanese Yen
"Dollar Yen"

GBP/USD British Pound / US Dollar
"Cable"

USD/CAD US Dollar / Canadian Dollar
"Dollar Canada"

AUD/USD Australian Dollar/US Dollar
"Aussie Dollar"

USD/CHF US Dollar / Swiss Franc
"Swissy"

EUR/JPY Euro / Japanese Yen
"Euro Yen"

The listed currency pairs above look like a fraction. The numerator (top of the fraction or "left" of the / however you want to SEE it) is called the base currency. The denominator (bottom of the fraction or "right" of the /however you want to SEE it) is called the counter currency. When you place an order to buy the EUR/USD, for instance, you are actually buying the EUR and selling the USD. If you were to sell the pair, you would be selling the EUR and buying the USD. So if you buy or sell a currency PAIR, you are buying/selling the base currency. You are always doing the opposite of what you did with to base currency with the counter currency.

If this seems confusing then you're in luck. You can always get by with just thinking of the entire pair as one item. Then you are just buying or selling that one item. Thinking like this will still enable you to place trades. You only need to be aware of the base/counter concept for Fundamental Analysis issues.

So why is it important to know about the base/counter currency? The base/counter currency concept illustrates what is actually taking place in a Forex transaction. Some of you reading this, know that short-selling was restricted in the stock market *(Short-selling is where you sell a stock/currency/option/commodity first and then try to buy it back at a lower price later). But in the FOREX you are always buying one currency (base) and selling another (counter). If you sell the pair you are simply flipping which one you buy and which one you sell. The transaction is essentially the same. This allows you to short-sell with no restrictions.

You want to be able to short-sell with no restrictions so you can make money when the market drops as well as when it rises. The problem with traditional stock market trading is that the market has to go up for you to make money. With FOREX trading you can make money in all directions.

http://www.1-forex.com

Omar Vargas; FOREX Trader and Freelance writer.
http://www.1-forex.com

Vertical Spread - Vertical Option

When option traders or investors engage in spread strategies, many times they are working with vertical spreads.

Any spread is created when a person buys and sells call options on the same stock or buys and sells puts on the same stock.

A vertical or price spread gets it's name from the vertical movement of prices. In this options strategy, the strike prices are different but the months are the same.

Vertical vs. Horizontal

A horizontal spread is when the strike prices are the same, but the months are different. They are also called calendar spreads. A vertical strategy is the opposite. The months are the same, but the strike prices on the options are different.

The strategy behind this is to make money on the strike price difference potential or the premiums - if a premium gain was achieved. All spreads come down to premium gain vs. trading or exercising potential. Verticals can be credit or debit.

Debit Spread

When a spread is created and the investor has lost money on the premiums (more money was spent on the buy then the sell), it is a debit spread. Because money was lost on the options, the investor will lose money if the options expire worthless (which is possible). The only way a debit spread holder can profit is by the options widening or getting exercised. Widening refers to the premiums growing and the contracts becoming valuable enough to trade later on. A vertical debit spread tells the trader that these contracts need to be traded or exercised for profit.

Credit Spread

When a spread is set up and the investor has gained money on the premium, it is a credit spread. The profit here rests with the options expiring worthless and the person making the premium as their maximum gain. A vertical credit spread is a strategy that does not work if the options are exercised. The strike prices would be inverted - profit wise.

Examples

Buy 1 WEF Oct 60 Call for $500
Short 1 WEF Oct 70 Call for $200

This is a vertical or price spread because the strike prices are different. It is also a debit, because the premiums have resulted in a $300 loss. This is also a bullish spread. It is bullish because the trader needs the market to rise, hoping the options get exercised. The buy call gives him the right to buy the stock at 60 and the short call carries an obligation to sell the stock at 70. This 10 point potential gain on the stock is why someone would create a vertical debit spread. If the options expire, the maximum loss would be the $300.

Buy 1 GHF Apr 30 Call for $600
Short 1 GHF Apr 20 Call for $900

This is a price or vertical spread as well, but it is a credit spread. It is also bearish. The strike prices are not attractive to this investor, as he will suffer a 10 point loss on them - if exercised. The goal here is for the stock to decline and the vertical options to expire. Credit spreads are always bearish.

These and all spread strategies are most effective profit wise, when working them with stocks you are familiar with. Knowing the trading ranges and price habits of your stocks can make them attractive candidates for options or vertical spreads.

More on Stock Option Trading HERE

Good Luck!

Nick Hunter is the President of American Investment Training. Their website http://www.aitraining.com offers investors and brokers with education courses, trading investment information and a free financial glossary look-up.

Alternative Medicine under Attack from Pharmaceutical Companies

It would seem that we in the developed world have traded our health and personal freedom of choice, on what we might feel would be the best course of action to take in regards to treating our own illnesss.

With more and more regulations put in place every day, the war between alternative medicine and pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. is heating up. Were government agencies dictate to us, what it is right or not in regards to whether we chose alternative medicine or conventional.

It would seem that we are becoming victims of economics. As it is apparent that in order To have a healthy economy you need to have a capitalistic environment to keep people working harder and always striving to produce better products for trade. It is this competitive environment that keeps the cogs of the economy turning and people working.

It is unfortunate that this same highly competitive thinking, has gotten out of control and we are all paying a heavy price in the U.S. as well as in other countries of the world. The pharmaceutical companies that generate billions of dollars into the economies of many countries, and generate thousands of spin off jobs, have effectively taken control of government agencies through the use of lobbyist, political contributions and economic pressures on governments. These efforts are made, so they can have amendments made to our laws to give them more power and control over the various agencies and regulators.

So now you have government agencies working on behave of big money and not on your behalf, and not looking out for your best health, as these institutions were originally put in place for.

This sets the stage for a very dangerous situation were it is better for big pharmaceutical companies to have the population chronically ill all the time, with many different illness and never finding cures. By having lapdogs agencies pushing for laws to take away your choices of whether or not you want to take alternative medicine, or continue taking the poison put out by the big pharmaceutical companies at absorbent prices.

Were they feed you propaganda about the dangers of natural medicine? Hire medical experts that are willing to lie to the population to give these agencies credibility. Brain wash our medical practitioners and give them incentive to keep pushing there drugs.

And the worst of it is if people were to wake up tomorrow and take back there government, and stop the madness it would cause an economic disaster. It looks like the people of the world are going to continue to needless die and suffer, for the sake of a healthy economy and the lust of money.

To avoid the trap of government agencies and pharmaceutical companies learn more about Natural herbs and remedies Or drop us an email at healthbooks@aweber.com to join our mailing list and receive biweekly information natural health issues.

Isn't It Time You Step In Front Of The Big Money-Instead Of Getting Stepped On By It?

The Trade Mechanic is committed to making you a consistent winner in the Stock Market. If you are tired of making some gain, then giving it back, tired of worrying about every news story, Futures, etc, then you have come to the right place. The Difference: Please note, other services give you a list of 15 stocks that they like every morning, then leave it to you to do the rest. Members of the Trade Mechanic, trade only the stocks that I am trading.
I will give entry and exit points, trading tips, trading rules to live by, informational blogs, and the hand holding you deserve, to help make you a winner.

The System:

The Trade Mechanic system was designed to give timed entries that are almost to the exact day a stock will move up $1 or more. This is very important because it limits our exposure time to the market, thus reducing our risk to potential hazards.

Having traded Wall Street well over a decade, probably like you, along the way I read and tried every book by all the experts. Cup n Handle, Triple Top Break Out, Candlesticks, Dogs of the Dow, so on and so on, have tried them all.

The flaw with all of these methods is they are backwards looking, work only some of the time, and expose you to high risk entries, keeping your money in the market too long, for little gain. These methods take too long to produce winners even when they are correct. Bottom line, you end up booking too many loses and burning through dollars, scratch trading.

Trademechanic.com, unlike other trading systems, does not base trades on percent moves, backwards looking chart patterns, or any other method you have read about. Our swing trade formula factors in, value, timing, external and internal bias, and a host of other mechanical factors, into a tradable system.

We base our trade results on actual dollars, assuming a 100 share purchase. We make trades that lock in $1 gain or more, over and over. You will find the key to beating the stock market, is to lock in gains, again and again, and limit loses.

We will be long no more than 1-4 stocks on any given day, and we will hold these stocks no longer than 3 days. I keep the trade amounts at 100 shares, so its easy to understand for the average trader. However, this system also sets up fantastic for 1000 or more share day traders, who can take advantage of the early pops, locking in profits.


The Stocks we Play:

The stocks we trade are best of breed, strong industry uptrend affiliation, strong institutional ownership, and have a daily range of 1 or more. Preferably we like growth over 15% and price to sales ratio above 1.50.

The simple goal is to get one of these stocks to move up just $1 a week, allowing us to lock in $100 profit on 100 shares traded. Sounds small but in 52 weeks, assuming you are starting with a $10,000.00 dollar portfolio, you have made over 50% return. Now, as you can see by the daily trades we post, we get a lot more than $1 moves most weeks. But I like to keep the goal simple, so its easy to realize the enormous amounts of money that can be made by just getting one stock, to move $1, every week.

Swing Trade Education: Along the way, you will also have regular access to my trading blogs, with trading philosophy and tips that will educate you on not only our system, but will help you start thinking like a trader, not an investor.

Try Us for Free!

It is my job, Jon Anthony, to make sure you win, win again and then win again, over and over.

The Trade Mechanic system delivers the set ups, then over a decade of trading stock experience does the rest. I would love to help you make more money then you ever thought possible. I am asking you to sign up for free, create a mock portfolio and paper trade with us for a while.

Join our community of traders, you have nothing to lose and financial freedom to gain.

Jon Anthony is has been a successful stock trader for over 10 yrs. If you are tired of the stock market taking your money, Jon is here to help. Get Jon's free stock picks for a limited time at TradeMechanic.com

Selling Uncovered Calls - Part 2

You will need approval in advance from your brokerage firm before you will be allowed to sell calls. Each firm is required to ensure that you understand the risks involved, that you fully understand the options market, and that you have adequate equity and income to undertake those risks.

You will not be allowed to write an unlimited number of naked calls. The potential losses, both to you and to the brokerage firm, place natural limits on this activity. Everyone who wants to sell calls is required to sign a document acknowledging the risks and stating that they understand those risks. In part, this statement includes the following:

Special Statement for Uncovered Option Writers

There are special risks associated with uncovered option writing which expose the investor to potentially significant loss. Therefore, this type of strategy may not be suitable for all customers approved for options transactions.

1. The potential loss of uncovered call writing is unlimited. The writer of an uncovered call is in an extremely risky position, and may incur large losses if the value of the underlying instrument increases above the exercise price.

2. As with writing uncovered calls, the risk of writing uncovered put options is substantial. The writer of an uncovered put option bears a risk of loss if the value of the underlying instrument declines below the exercise price. Such loss could be substantial if there is a significant decline in the value of the underlying instrument.

3. Uncovered option writing is thus suitable only for the knowledgeable investor who understands the risks, has the financial capacity and willingness to incur potentially substantial losses, and has sufficient liquid assets to meet applicable margin requirements. In this regard, if the value of the underlying instrument moves against an uncovered writer's options position, the investor's broker may request significant additional margin payments. If an investor does not make such margin payments, the broker may liquidate stock or options positions in the investor's account, with little or no prior notice in accordance with the investor's margin agreement.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

Types of Foreign Currency Hedging Vehicles

The following are some of the most common types of foreign currency hedging vehicles used in today's markets as a foreign currency hedge. While retail forex traders typically use foreign currency options as a hedging vehicle. Banks and commercials are more likely to use options, swaps, swaptions and other more complex derivatives to meet their specific hedging needs.

Spot Contracts - A foreign currency contract to buy or sell at the current foreign currency rate, requiring settlement within two days.

As a foreign currency hedging vehicle, due to the short-term settlement date, spot contracts are not appropriate for many foreign currency hedging and trading strategies. Foreign currency spot contracts are more commonly used in combination with other types of foreign currency hedging vehicles when implementing a foreign currency hedging strategy.

For retail investors, in particular, the spot contract and its associated risk are often the underlying reason that a foreign currency hedge must be placed. The spot contract is more often a part of the reason to hedge foreign currency risk exposure rather than the foreign currency hedging solution.

Forward Contracts - A foreign currency contract to buy or sell a foreign currency at a fixed rate for delivery on a specified future date or period.

Foreign currency forward contracts are used as a foreign currency hedge when an investor has an obligation to either make or take a foreign currency payment at some point in the future. If the date of the foreign currency payment and the last trading date of the foreign currency forwards contract are matched up, the investor has in effect "locked in" the exchange rate payment amount.

* Important: Please note that forwards contracts are different than futures contracts. Foreign currency futures contracts have standard contract sizes, time periods, settlement procedures and are traded on regulated exchanges throughout the world. Foreign currency forwards contracts may have different contract sizes, time periods and settlement procedures than futures contracts. Foreign currency forwards contracts are considered over-the-counter (OTC) due to the fact that there is no centralized trading location and transactions are conducted directly between parties via telephone and online trading platforms at thousands of locations worldwide.

Foreign Currency Options - A financial foreign currency contract giving the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase or sell a specific foreign currency contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the foreign currency option buyer pays to the foreign currency option seller for the foreign currency option contract rights is called the option "premium."

A foreign currency option can be used as a foreign currency hedge for an open position in the foreign currency spot market. Foreign currency options can also be used in combination with other foreign currency spot and options contracts to create more complex foreign currency hedging strategies. There are many different foreign currency option strategies available to both commercial and retail investors.

Interest Rate Options - A financial interest rate contract giving the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase or sell a specific interest rate contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the interest rate option buyer pays to the interest rate option seller for the foreign currency option contract rights is called the option "premium." Interest rate option contracts are more often used by interest rate speculators, commercials and banks rather than by retail forex traders as a foreign currency hedging vehicle.

Foreign Currency Swaps - A financial foreign currency contract whereby the buyer and seller exchange equal initial principal amounts of two different currencies at the spot rate. The buyer and seller exchange fixed or floating rate interest payments in their respective swapped currencies over the term of the contract. At maturity, the principal amount is effectively re-swapped at a predetermined exchange rate so that the parties end up with their original currencies. Foreign currency swaps are more often used by commercials as a foreign currency hedging vehicle rather than by retail forex traders.

Interest Rate Swaps - A financial interest rate contracts whereby the buyer and seller swap interest rate exposure over the term of the contract. The most common swap contract is the fixed-to-float swap whereby the swap buyer receives a floating rate from the swap seller, and the swap seller receives a fixed rate from the swap buyer. Other types of swap include fixed-to-fixed and float-to-float. Interest rate swaps are more often utilized by commercials to re-allocate interest rate risk exposure.

John Nobile - Senior Account Executive
CFOS/FX - Online Forex Spot and Options Brokerage

Day Trading the Emini - Training Ground For Big Contracts

In 1997 the Chicago Mercantile Exchange created a new financial instrument known as the emini futures contract. It started off small but now is a fully mature market with excellent liquidity.

Now in 2005, the emini futures contract is an investment vehicle of choice, for beginning and experienced futures traders the world over.

In this introductory article, I just want to have a look at why that is. You see for an investment vehicle to gain wide appeal it has to have a few characteristics.

It needs to be accessible to a wide public. The emini is such a vehicle. The minimum you need is around $500 to get started, instead of $5000 or more with regular futures.

It needs to be liquid, in other words there must be enough buyers to buy when you want to sell and sellers to sell when you want to buy.

The emini is very liquid.

There needs to be a significant profit. The structure of a well traded account is such that with a small amount of start-up capital very significant profits can be made, enough actually to trade for a living.

The taxation situation is very advantageous, in many jurisdictions only being capital gains tax - you should always check with a professional before making an investment decision.

The lifestyle of a successful emini futures trader can be very comfortable, an hour or so of trading in the morning and that's it for the day. It's possible to make $500 or $1000 in an hour or so depending upon how many contracts you trade. It's also possible to lose just as much, which is my obligatory sobering statement to any gamblers out there.

It's this lifestyle that gives it such appeal to people like you and me.

  • Freedom from the man
  • Working from home
  • Spending more time with the family

But that is the positive. On the dark side, with futures and emini futures there is financial risk, so this is not something that one goes into untrained.

That would merely be gambling. Successful investing, is not so much about being right or wrong or the roll of the dice, but about money management, patience and discipline to following a system. If you are a gambler then stay away from futures, for you will surely lose and can lose big.

If you are willing to learn and trade a system, and utilise money management principles then you can join the ranks of an group of successful traders are making significant profits from home.

Graeme Sprigge is the webmaster of emini-courses.com, a site which presents and reviews more than ten quality emini day trading courses and systems. Graeme has a keen interest in investing in options, shares and futures trading. Visit emini-courses.com to get an eye-opening free ebook, The Truth about Day Trading

Switch From Casual Trading to Forex Day Trading

Forex day trading is the buying and selling of foreign currency within an individual trading day. Most day traders take on this role as a full time investor and are working with significant amounts of money. Day traders tend to be highly educated as well and without them, there would be no liquidity within the Forex market. Forex day traders have a pivotal part to play by keeping the markets flowing liquidly through their daily activities on the Forex market.

Many people who initially set out to invest in the Forex day trading field are typically funded through various sources and have made it the full time job of choice. There have been many companies that promise huge results to the beginner. Specifically promising large returns in Forex day trading however, the majority of those who try to day trade without a fundamental understanding of the workings of the market generally lose their shirts. Don't be fooled, there is no get rich quick scheme hidden behind the curtain of Forex day trading. It has to be understood and all aspects of the Forex day trading business need to be comprehended fully in order to succeed.

The pivotal difference between casual trader and Forex day traders is usually the amount of capital, which is a definite advantage. The average Joe who gets into Forex day trading hoping to make a ton of money on intra-day movements is in for a huge disappointment. In order to benefit from Forex day trading, a large amount of capital is required as well as able to be lost. Capitalizing on small investments can accrue earnings but it is a much longer process when using small amounts of capital. Like most things, you've got to spend the big bucks to generate the big bucks. But not without the knowledge and safeguarding measures that Forex brokers can provide for any investor.

Gaining a complete understanding of the Forex day trading market will bring forth personal strategies. Coupled with the tried and true strategies that are utilized in by Forex brokers will give an individual investor the tools needed. Forex day trading strategies such as swing trading, trading news and arbitrage are a few of the most common ones that are implemented by brokers and investors. Remember that these strategies that are in print are strategies that have previously tried until they showed effective limit losses and a solid history of profits consistently.

With the Forex day trading system rising so rapidly in popularity there has naturally been a negative connotation associated with this controversial subject. The Forex day traders that are both professional and individual investors keep the Forex market rolling day after day. Many people suggest avoiding day trading at all costs while others will state that Forex day trading is the only way to generate substantial income from the foreign exchange market. If there is not the presence of required skills to navigate the financial markets and the resources needed, it is best the amateurs leave the Forex day trading to the professionals.

Troy Degarnham is the author and webmaster of http://www.forex-trading-brokers.info an informative website about Forex Trading Brokers.

Extensive help and tips on systems, software, signals, forex day trading, forex brokers, courses, and other secrets to help you gain financial freedom.

Forex Trading Not Only For Banks and Investment Houses

Forex trading online is a booming business and a lot of people make a good living from it. Forex trading is a very interesting business idea, simply because it allows people from all over the world the chance to trade and strike it rich in a market that has enormous liquidity. Forex trading is a serious business and it is vitally important that you gain proper education, before committing your hard earned money to the markets.

Online forex trading are spreading like wildfire as people are looking to generate income. Online currency trading allows you to make transactions any time of the day, at your own convenience. The reason why this market has grown much more than other financial markets, is because of the rise in the number of traders working online rather than using the more old fashioned method of trading by the phone.

Systems for Forex trading are methods that makes it possible to verify entry and exit points, based on parameters, which have been validated by historical examination, on quantifiable data. Whether you are a smalltrader with as little as $200 to start with or a bigger investor wanting to trade multiple contracts, you'll need to have a reliable trading system.

To be able to trade with profit, you must be able to define and choose low risk entry points. A lack of self discipline in following a well thought out trading strategy will lead to losses. Now, with the proper education and big amount of self discipline, this is a striking and profitable Internet investing opportunity. You can trade from your PC or connected laptop from any place in any country in the world.

There is a wide variety of online training available. Therefore You'll be able to get educated from the comfort of your own home. Now, if you're interested in forex trading, you must start off by getting some good forex training. Make sure that your education includes currency simulation training, to help you understand the process and to minimize mistakes when you switch to the real deal.

Forex trading is an extremely lucrative, yet volatile and therefor risky market. It is very appealing to the online trading newcomer as it is a controlled environment, and quite simple to understand. Currency trading is no longer the private playground of the banks and investment houses. Forex trading is one of todays hottest business opportunities.

http://www.small-biz-ideas.net Provides you with a broad range of small business ideas. Learn more about Forex trading!

Greek Market

General economic indexes:

This country is quite economically and politically developed and stable recent years, but it is the fact that it is one of the poorest members of the European Union members. Moreover, some European representatives consider that Greece is a drain on the overall European Unions economic results. The GDP of Greece equals to 226,400,000,000 USD approximately, the GPD per capita equals to 21,300 USD approximately (these are good indicators for Greece); inflation rate equals to 3.4 percent, unemployment rate equals to 11 percent (quite large indicator), external debt equals to 57,000,000,000 USD, industrial growth rate in Greece makes 7 percent a year. All these indicator prove that Greece is a developed country and its average statistical citizen can afford drinking expensive spirits such as whiskey from most price categories.

Drinking preferences:

Greece is a very ancient country with long and interesting history. From the very beginning of a Greek history its population consumed alcohol especially wine. Wine was an essential attribute of the meals. Of course spirits are not alien to Greeks.

So malt whiskey are completely compatible with the Greek market of spirits.

Investment Climate

a. General information:

Greece is a member of many international business organizations such as World Trading Organization, World Customs Organization and others. Its major investors are European Union members and the United States of America. Greek economy is not so open to the foreign investments as other countries are even though there was established an agency which has to attract investments to Greece (the Hellenic center for investments or ELKE). However Greek government makes steps and improvements to make investment climate in Greece more attractive to foreign investors (for instance subsidies and other incentives). Domestic investors have privileges comparing to the foreign one. But despite of investors origin they receive significant incentives if operating in the less developed Greek regions.

Banking system and financial sector correspond to the norms of the European Union and developed enough. Getting a credit in Greece is not very complex procedure both for domestic and foreign investors.

b. Taxation:

Greek income taxation system bears progressive character. Personal income tax rate varies from 5 up to 40 percent of personal taxable income. Corporate income tax rate equals to 32 percent from the taxable profits (but there is an exception for partnerships income tax rate equals to 25 percent).

Social contributions from employers equal to 28 percent of the wages fund. From 2005th year value added tax (VAT) in Greece equals to 19 percent (this is not too much for European country). VAT is imposed on all goods in services which sold within a country. Additionally there is a reduced VAT rates exist in Greece (9 percent and 4.5 percent).

Dividends paid are not subject to Greek taxation provided.

So taxation rates are quite moderate in Greece.

c. Legislation:

There is an expropriation of private property possible in Greece under certain conditions but in such case all costs will be refunded to the owner. All commercial laws are harmonized with international law and the legislation of the European Union. Thus Greek legislations and regulations can be considered as transparent and consistent so-called: Foreign companies, however, report that they have encountered cases where there are multiple laws covering the same issue, resulting in confusion over which law applies in which situation, and very complicated! Very often Greek courts often make controversial and not logical decisions.

d. Corruption:

The problem of corruption obviously exists in Greece. The officials of all ranks are involved in bribery (up to ministers). Greek legislation provides severe punishment and penalties for corruption and bribery, the government actively struggles against these phenomenon.

e. Competition:

One of the most significant Greek branches of economy is tourism. Hence tourists consume lots of Greek goods and services each year and fulfill the budget significantly. This factor makes all major producers of alcohol and alcohol beverages to sell their products in Greece. Consequently competition on a Greek market is quite developed and it would not very easy to enter this market without the appropriate marketing strategy and finances.

f. Entering barriers and other disadvantages:

A disadvantage of Greece market is that there are only three free-trade zones located at the Piraeus, Thessaloniki, and Heraklion port areas. Another disadvantage of investing money in Greek economy is that intellectual rights are not protected on adequate level, trademarks are not protected too. Thus there can occur misunderstandings and frauds.

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Futures and Future Index Stock Trading Information

The one thing that a person looking to get into this business will not lack is a choice of where to start. A person might even go so far as attempting sports trading if they were so inclined. It is ultimately this variety of choice that keeps people coming back to the markets time and again in an attempt to succeed.

While this kind of enthusiasm in trading is definitely good to have, it is also good to maintain a healthy amount of skepticism. For every person that is able to make a very good living from trading some kind of commodity, there are many others who get into trading and eventually fail. To be in the successful minority, you need to have some understanding of how trading works before you take the plunge and start dealing. By the time you get to the end of this article you will learn about futures trading, stock indexes and future index stock trading.

Futures Trading

One particular type of trading that has become really popular of late is futures trading. This type of trading does not actually involve any kind of physical stocks, bonds, currencies or anything of that nature, but rather involves the state of a proposition at a certain date and time. The date and time in question are referred to as the expiration date and the expiration time. A contract is then drawn stating whether or not the specific proposition will be over or under a certain value by the time the expiration date rolls around. An example of this would be the price of crude oil on January 28, 2007. Contracts circulate with different price predictions and as the price changes and the date gets closer to the actual date, the value of each contract goes up or down.

This is a very challenging type of trading to get involved in. However, for people that are good at predicting short-term fluctuations, it can end up being much more lucrative than just straight stock trading. Examples of futures trading include future stock trading, future index stock trading and future forex trading.

Stock Indexes

Another type of trading that is growing in popularity nowadays, is the trading of futures in stock indexes. Before you can understand exactly what this type of trading involves, you need to understand what a stock index is. Stock indexes are basically groups of stocks that are all related in some way to each other. The strength of the stock index is based on the combined strength of all of the different stocks that make up the stock index. The DOW, for example, is a stock index that is well known to seasoned traders as well as novices in the world of trading.

Now that you are reasonably familiar with what a stock index is, we can move onto the next section, which lists a relatively new and very exciting type of trading that many people are able to make a very nice living from. This kind of trading is referred to as future index stock trading.

Future Index Stock Trading

The concept of this type of trading has evolved due the fact that values of stock indexes are published at the end of each day and, therefore, it is possible to try and predict the future values of the stock indexes. As with other futures trading, there are contracts in existence with a specific figure and date and the values of these contracts fluctuate up or down depending on what a specific stock index does at the end of a particular day. You can buy and sell these futures just like you would any other futures and because of the ease of information available about stock indexes, many novice traders find this type of trading easier to get into.

If you are a novice looking to get into trading a bit more seriously, dealing in future index stock trading options is probably the way to go. You can read up more on the basic strategy involved and then using readily available information on fluctuations in a specific stock index, you can go ahead and buy or sell to your hearts content.

Conclusion

Hopefully this article gave you a good glimpse into the world of futures and future index stock trading. Now that you know the basics of both of these potentially lucrative trading options, it is time to take things a step forward and accelerate your learning curve a bit more. One of the biggest factors that novice traders fail to take into account is the fact that they are not going to be able to make continuous expert predictions and a high percentage of good deals right off the bat. It takes time and experience to learn any market and because of that, it is important to make sure that you use proper money management techniques in your stock trading.

Do not ever use money that you cannot afford to lose. Divide your full bankroll into portions (i.e. into 25% chunks) and only use a portion of the bankroll at any specific time. Following both these steps will help ensure that your education and initiation into the world of stock trading will be as painless as possible. Following both these plans will also help ensure that you are not affected financially by any blunders made during your educational phase.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

Avoid "Buying" Mutual Fund Dividends

At this time of year, you need to be aware of the ex-dividend date of any mutual funds you plan on purchasing. If you heed this advice, you avoid some nasty tax and investment performance consequences.

To explain why, let me first define ex-dividend date. On the ex-dividend date, all registered owners of a mutual fund become eligible to receive any declared dividends and capital gains distributions. If you do not own the fund by that date, you do not receive the payout. You also want to keep in mind the distribution date. After that date, you can go ahead and buy your shares without the negative impact on the NAV (Net Asset Value).

At this time of year (Oct Dec), most mutual funds declare their dividend and capital gains distributions. You have nothing to worry about if you want to buy stock. Such distributions do not impact the share price. However, if you own mutual funds you need to consider the impact of this distribution on the NAV or share value. On the day of the distribution, you will see the NAV of your mutual fund shares drop by the declared dollar amount. In industry parlance, we call this buying dividends.

Heres how it works. Throughout the year, the cash from dividends paid by stocks within the fund and capital gains realized from the sale of assets either accumulates adding to the funds cash balance or gets reinvested in equities by the fund manager. At the end of the year, the fund must distribute at least 95% (?) of the dividends/realized capital gains not reinvested in new securities. Typically, funds declare this distribution in the months of October and November.

At the end of the year, the NAV of the fund reflects the value of all the investments it contains plus the starting cash balance and the accumulated cash resulting from dividends and capital gains. When the fund manger distributes the dividends and capital gains, the NAV drops a corresponding amount. Thats fine for the people who have owned the fund most of the year. They enjoyed the NAV appreciation that resulted from the growth of the investment, the dividends, and the realized capital gains. An investor who buys just before the ex-dividend and distribution dates has purchased cash value. When the fund distributes the cash, the new shareholder sees the value of her fund shared decrease, receives back part of her investment, and then gets to pay taxes on in essence her own money! Not a good deal.

A look at an example will show why you want to avoid buying dividends. Suppose the ex-dividend date is tomorrow and you buy shares at a NAV of $25. The fund declares a dividend of $3.00 per share. Doing so means that tomorrow the fund distributes $3.00 of the NAV so your shares are now worth $22 instead of the original $25. You now owe taxes on $3.00 per share even though you didnt enjoy the price appreciation you would have had if you had purchased at the beginning of the year.

You can see that you lose in this situation. You should avoid buying dividends. Instead, wait until after the after the distribution date to purchase your shares. Then you will get to enjoy any price appreciate throughout the year and not pay taxes on the return of your own cash!

About the Author:

Catie Fitzgerald is a 10+ years veteran of the money management profession and the founder of Financially Savvy. Financially Savvy provides investors with the education and resources necessary to gain confidence in making their own financial decisions. We offer a variety of educational venues including classroom sessions, one-on-one coaching, and online resources. If you have a personal finance question you would like answered, contact Catie at cfitz@financiallysavvy.com.

How to Determine The Worth of a Bond

The value of a bond is determined by the interest that it pays along with the state of the economy. A bonds interest rate will never change even though other interest rates do. If the bond happens to be paying more interest than is available elsewhere, investors are willing to pay more to own it. If the bond is paying less the reverse happens. Interest rates and bond prices fluctuate like two sides of a seesaw. When interest rates drop, the value of a bond usually goes up. When rates climb the value of an existing bond usually drops. Several factors such as a bonds yield and return will affect whether or not a bond turns out to be a good investment.

If a bond investor buys a bond at par, and then holds it to maturity. The longer the maturity of the bond , the greater the risk that at some point inflation will rise dramatically and reduce the value of the dollar that the investor is repaid. If a bond pay more than the rate of inflation, the investor will come out a head. However many bonds, particularly those that have a maturity of five or more years, aren't held by one investor from the date of issue to the date of maturity. Investors will trade bonds in the secondary market. In the secondary market the prices of the bonds will fluctuate according to the interest that the bond pays, the degree of certainty of repayment and the overall economic conditions, especially the rate off inflation, which influences interest rates.

Yield is the amount of money that you will actually earn on a bond. If you purchase a ten year bond for $1,000.00 dollars that is paying 6% interest, and then you hold on to it until it matures, you will have earned $60.00 dollars, for ten years at the same interest rate. However if you purchase a bond in the secondary market, after the date of issue, the bonds yield might not be the same as its interest rate. This happens because the interest rate stays the same, but the price that you pay may vary, changing the yield.

Most bond charts express current yield as a percentage. Investors use the yield to compare the relative value of bonds. The return is what you make on the investment when the par value of the bond, and profit or loss from trading it, and the yield are computed.

If you would like to learn the truth about bond trading or discover some useful bond trading tips then need to visit: http://TheWorldoOfBonds.BlogSpot.com

Why Is Eric Sprott Bullish on Uranium?

Eric Sprott may be Canada's answer to Warren Buffet. He's got the Midas Touch and currently manages more than $3 billion. We talk to Eric Sprott about uranium and why is bullish on nuclear energy.

Interviewer:

Uranium had been inching higher from 2001 until a year ago. Since then, it has soared up the price chart. What is a realistic price for uranium and how high can you envision it reaching?

Eric Sprott:

There is obviously a shortage between current mine production and current uranium consumption. In order to correct that imbalance, it would have to be economic to open up new deposits. Im not suggesting that it (uranium) has to go to $100 to become economic. I dont think thats true. Probably at $50, it becomes very economic. The reality is that weve been so slow in getting started that I think the whole nuclear industry will ultimately prove to be the key energy source of the future. With demand today at 170 million (pounds), who knows? It might be 300 million pounds in twenty years. The argument in the article we wrote is that based on the previous peaks, prices if you put a normal inflation rate on it, it would equate to something like $100. So, its not that far fetched that we might get there.

Interviewer:

If it takes four or five years, or up to a decade, to get a nuclear reactor going, why are the Chinese building so many so quickly?

Eric Sprott:

Because theyve been doing it right. One of the nice things about a centrally organized government is they deal with big issues. Obviously, China has a big issue in energy. If you were sitting over there, you would realize, My god, were starting to import two million barrels of oil. We used to export coal and now we dont export coal. What are we going to do if our growth rate continues to grow at eight or nine percent per year? How much power are we going to need? And where is it all going to come from when there are already shortages of the two most commonly used energy sources in the country?' The option you fall back on is, Well, lets go nuclear. We have to go into all of them. And of course, now theyre predicting two nuclear reactors every year for the next ten years. Who knows? Maybe five years from now, that will be four reactors every year. Perhaps when we all realize the extent of the energy shortage.

Interviewer:

How is this going to be sold to North America and Europe in the wake of Three Mile Island and Chernobyl?

Eric Sprott:

The way things might change is now that we have $50 oil, and the price is almost going up in an unlimited fashion. Now that weve got coal at double and uranium thats gone up, people might finally realize there is not an infinite supply of certain things that we rely on. And that we might have to take a more pragmatic view of the nuclear option. Im sure that is exactly what certain countries, including Japan, China and France, have done. The other thing is that there is a new reactor where you cant have a meltdown. Im not technically strong enough to explain it. The uranium is in graphite spheres, and they wont melt down unless temperatures reach 2000 degrees. The highest it ever goes to is 1600 degrees so its just not going to melt down.

It doesnt matter if things are out of control. They wont break down. If that kind of assurance were accepted by the public if someone could prove that that was the case I think the nuclear option would be an incredibly viable option. Another thing that would make people think differently would be having brownouts for a while, or hyperinflation because of the shortage of coal, natural gas, and diesel fuel. If we had brownouts for a while, and of course they have brownouts in China, which is probably why they are proactive in moving nuclear along.

Interviewer:

How realistic is the global energy crisis moving toward a Hubberts Peak, an energy scenario from the year 1970?

Eric Sprott:

My view is that it seems very realistic. I think it is very important that we do go back to 1970. Look at the fact that Hubbert said in 1956 that 1970 will forever peak out (in terms of energy production). Lo and behold, it peaked out! It almost goes down every week in the United States. Almost every week, there is a little less production. This is now with very high oil prices. It looks like his theory, for the geographical area called the United States, worked. Do we think it is going to work in the world? I tend to believe it is. I believe there are projections for Great Britain, which I think are at about 4.2 million barrels/day right now, that in ten years from now, will be down to 700,000. Thats what happens when fields go into decline. They go down, and you can not resuscitate them. Everyone who studies the topic knows that no significant discoveries have been made since the 1960s.

What I mean by significant are giant oil fields like Ghawar. For example, people now consider a 100-million barrel field a big deal, and 500 million is great. Well, one hundred million is like 1.2 days of worlds supply, and 500 million is eight days supply. You have got to find a lot of those every year. We dont find them. We have hardly found anything. The Caspian Sea? I am guessing it is 500 to 700 million. Its the one thing we point to, the thing in the Caspian Sea, which we have been pointing to for the last three years. Lets say it is 800 million barrels, it is ten days supply. Its nothing.

Interviewer:

There have been some pretty incredible estimates as to how high oil can go. The highest were read of stands at $182 for a barrel of oil and $15 per gallon of gasoline. Your comments?

Eric Sprott:

When you get into any commodity, where there is a bonafide shortage, there is no limit on the price. There is hardly any limit on the price. Because that last guy still wants that last barrel of oil. I always say, when a commodity is starting to break loose, Never put a ceiling on it because you never know where it is going to go. You look at what is going on in the world oil situation. If I was (in charge of ) certain countries, I would probably be changing what Im doing. You can see China going throughout the world signing agreements with countries to assure oil supplies. Its a government mandate to go out and secure their supplies. I think people at the government level realize, We have issues here that we have to solve. If we dont have assurance of supply, what happens? One thing about Hubberts Peak that most people dont go to is the economic impact. Forget the price of oil. What if we produce 83 million barrels today, and in 25 years we have 55 million barrels? What is the world going to do? Do we just have to shut down economies because we dont have a replacement for hydrocarbons?

Interviewer:

Do you think the world governments are prepared for this?

Eric Sprott:

Not at all. They show no interest. In fact, I would say one of the real problems with the democratic process is, unfortunately, too much time is spent thinking about politics. Hardly any time is spent planning for the future.

Interviewer:

On uranium, you recommended a number of uranium companies in your special report. Cameco (NYSE: CCJ) seems to be the one many recommend. Other uranium companies seem to be in the exploration or the more speculative category, and now have some momentum because of the bull market in uranium. How strong are the fundamentals in those companies?

Eric Sprott:

I think the fundamentals for some of the companies are spectacular, quite frankly. Its interesting for us because we had the same thing happen in gold, when the price of gold was $250. We tried to imagine what we should buy if, and when, gold went to $400, which we thought it would, or $500 or higher. The real opportunity always lay in, Well find someone who has a large resource that is uneconomic today, but if you move the price up, it becomes quite economic. I would say Strathmore Minerals (TSX-V: STM). They have a large resource already identified. In fact, they are acquiring properties all the time that were identified years and years ago. Yet, at $20/pound uranium, they probably dont make any sense. But, at $40/pound uranium, they are likely to make tremendous economic sense. Of course, the value of the shares can almost not go up exponentially but they can go up a lot.

You finally tip over that breakeven level, and everything after that is profit. We had an analogy like that in gold area, where one guy went out and bought all these deposits that would make sense at $400 gold. The stock has been a tremendous winner. I think it is up 500 percent. I think the same can happen in uranium. Thats why we go to Strathmore and UEX (TSX: UEX).

Interviewer:

How do you feel about precious metals?

Eric Sprott:

We feel pretty good about precious metals. Weve been pretty bullish for quite a while now. We have liked the fundamentals for gold for a long time for any one of ten different reasons. The one reason I fall back on, that gives me tremendous comfort, is the fact the world consumes 4,000 tons of gold per year, but mine production is 2,500. Anybody who uses any bit of logic knows, in due course, the price will go up to reflect the imbalance between demand and supply. I dont care how much gold Central Banks sell, ultimately they are going to have no gold. I think people realize that Central Banks have made a big mistake selling their gold.

Interviewer:

The China card keeps driving global commodities as they bring their country more technology. How do you feel about the base metals?

Eric Sprott:

We havent really gotten involved in the base metals. One of the reason we havent gone there is we have believed we are in a secular bear market, and there could be a financial implosion. In that kind of scenario the base metals dont do well. But the precious metals can provide safety. Thats the distinguishing mark we make between the two. On the China thesis, the demand for all of these things would go up. Our problem is we still expect some fallout in the financial arena, which ultimately would even affect China. We feel more comfortable with the precious metals, and we feel more comfortable with energy. Simply, energy demand in an economic implosion is pretty inelastic. It doesnt fall off the table. Demand for zinc, lead, copper, and aluminum can fall quite precipitously if there was an economic slowdown.

Interviewer:

Are you expecting an economic slowdown?

Eric Sprott:

Absolutely, yes. We might be in it now. There are certainly lots of signs that there is not much robustness in the U.S. economy. I have some very strong views as to what should ultimately happen in the U.S. My views are predicated on the fact that the government reports a deficit of $400 billion, but there are also government reports that suggest, on a GAAP accounting basis, that the true deficit in 2003 was $3.4 trillion. We can all ignore it, and everyone has ignored it. But, the reality is that the liabilities are accruing for Social Security and Medicare in the U.S. at a tremendous rate. There has been no provision for it. There was a paper released by the U.S. Treasury Department about a year ago that said the present value of their obligations, that are not funded, is $44 trillion. Again, we can choose to believe it or not believe it. I happen to believe it. I made the point that politicians are in it to be re-elected, and they are not dealing with the real issue.

The real issue is they are making promises to their citizens that they cant keep. And theyre not going to keep them. I would hate to be a retired person or a young person in the U.S. Somebody is going to have to bear the brunt of all these funding issues that havent been taken care of. Beginning in 2008, the baby boomers start collecting these things. Thats a real cash problem. Before, it was just a bookkeeping problem. Youll have a huge influx of people collecting their Social Security and getting free Medicare. Its got to be funded. Anyone whos looked at the problem has agreed that no one has done anything about funding it. You have to cut what your promises were, which is what all the European governments are now trying to do. Theyre all cutting back on the pension. Most companies are cutting back on them because they cant fund them. The trend is in place here: What we thought we were going to get, were not going to get it. Am I bearish? Gosh, weve had forty years of living off of savings that were supposed to be saved to provide this future. It was all spent. Everyone just chooses to ignore it.

COPYRIGHT 2007 by StockInterview, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

James Finch contributes to StockInterview.com and other publications. StockInterviews Investing in the Great Uranium Bull Market has become the most popular book ever published for uranium mining stock investors. Visit http://www.stockinterview.com

Can You Make Money In Penny Stocks?

Yes, you can! But the amount of money you make in penny stocks is directly proportional both to the amount of homework you do and the amount of discipline you have. Penney stocks are one of the most volatile investments into which you will ever put a dime, capable of breathtakingly fast gains and even faster collapses. So if you intend to trade penny stocks, you must be willing to monitor your investments constantly during market hours, and sell when you are in profit. You should also use stop-loss orders if your broker allows it.

Reasons For Investing In Penny Stocks
Keeping all the caveats in mind, there are still good reasons for including penny stocks in your portfolio. As their name suggests, they dont cost a lot, so you can build a significant positions in a company for a relatively small amount of money. While you may never own a thousand shares of a blue chip stock, you can own tens of thousands of shares of a penny stock.

Because you can own such large amounts of a penny stocks, you dont need to see a large gain in price to make a respectable profit. Each time the price of the penny stocks of which you own ten thousand shares goes up a single penny, your position will increase $100 in value. But if you get greedy, you can lose your profits by waiting too long to sell.

What To Learn About Penny Stock Companies
Penny stocks are not merely gambles if you spend the time to research them. You just need to educate yourself in certain aspects of the companies in which you want to invest; pay particular attention to the industry in which the company operates; the expertise and reputations of the companys management and the market acceptance of the companys product or services; past trading patterns of the companys stock; and how the sector which the company is in is influenced by economic and political factors.

You can find brokers to trade you penny stocks, but you will pay a commission much larger than that charged for stocks traded on the larger exchanges. Your broker will fill your buy and sell orders, so you wont have to monitor you penny stocks so closely, but his commissions will eat into you profits or add to your losses.

Penny stocks make up an over whelming percentage of all the stocks traded in the US each day. Over three-fifths of all NASDAQ and over three-quarters of all NYSE trades are of penny stocks, and this enormous liquidity means that you will almost never have difficulty getting your penny stocks orders filled.

Penny stocks are a worthwhile investment for those who the effort to understand them, and have the discipline to stand apart from the crowd.

You can also find more info on Hot Penny Stocks and Investing In Penny Stocks. Pick-pennystocks.com is a comprehensive resource to get information about Penny Stocks.

Chinese Imports Killing Americans - White Washing of Reality

In the United States of America the FDA often stops imports from certain countries that do not meet our health standards and the list of banned products from our trading partners is endless. In the US our FTC, FDA and even Homeland Security often intervene to protect Americans from American Companies selling us products. Why do the Chinese get a free pass after the recent abuse?

Well could it be that they are holding much of the US debt or that the US wants to remain on the Chinese "good list" as their middle class grows into a consumer class - 1.3 Billion new consumers is a huge future market for US exports too. Agencies like the FDA and FTC say they need more budget monies if they are to deal with this Chinese poison issue, but why should we give these agencies more money after all their failures in the past?

Besides if the FTC was really going to help us Internationally, what about the OPEC Cartel? You see the FTC always asks for more budget and always under-performs. They asked for more SPAM money, Identity Theft Money and all they EVER do is round up the "usual suspects" and participate in PR, "Tailor of Panama" style propaganda. I am only interested in one thing; Winning - not PR, not another underachieving Federal Agency. You see, it is not our problem it is the Chinese Problem:

  • Lead Paint on Toy imports = No Toy Imports.
  • Poison in Food Additives = No Food Additives.
  • Neuro Toxins in Tooth Paste = No hygiene products!
Period, no games, no more screwing around; Sorry, but this is what we do to every other country that imports here and realize that China does it to us, so does Japan and other nations. Free Trade is Fair Trade. Recently, the Chinese "executed" their head of ministry in the agency, similar to the FDA here. This dramatic execution is typical Chinese PR. Our Government must protect the American People, if it can't, then one has to ask the question, why do we need them? Seriously, no more BS, why is it that no one can run this bureaucracy or agencies like the FDA or the FTC with any common sense. Once the Chinese know we are serious the BS will stop, until then the lip service is all a waste.

We should not reward "piss poor performance" in any government agency and we need accountability and transparency not more lip service. Often, regulatory agencies make up cases to serve the will of Senators doing the bidding for lobbyists. Adam Smith warned us of this and the FTC is a perfect example in my opinion of MY government running a muck, let's fix government this next time around shall we?

L. Winslow is an Economic Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist and retired entrepreneur http://www.worldthinktank.net . Currently he is planning a bicycle ride across the US to raise money for charity and is sponsored by http://www.Calling-Plans.com and all the proceeds will go to various charities who sign up.

History Of The NYSE - A Brief History Of The New York Stock Exchange

Also know as the "Big Board" the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) was created by a merger of the NYSE and Archipelago Holdings, which is fully electronic, and became known as the New York Stock Exchange Group.

The NYSE is made up of 5 rooms used for trading and is found on 18 Broad Street, New York City. The NYSE can trace its roots to 1792, however it did not become known as the New York Stock Exchange until 1817 when the organization drafted a constitution.

It is the largest stock exchange in the world in the amount of dollars that flows through it each day and has the second largest number of company listing, exceeded only by NASDAQ. The global capitalization of the exchange is $2.1 trillion with $1.7 trillion of that being companies not based in the U.S.

The NYSE works similar to that of an auction. Each company listed trades in one location. A specialist broker employed by each of the listed companies has the duty of acting as an auctioneer at the company post.

Buyers and sellers of a certain stock come together around a particular post and an auction takes place. This form of trading helps produce a price for stocks that is efficient and fair for both buyers and sellers. The human interaction and the expert judgement helps differentiate the New York Exchange from other stock exchanges that are fully electronic.

In recent times orders for stocks are increasingly being delivered to the trading floor electronically. The development for a Hybrid market bringing together the elements of human interaction and electronic markets is currently in the works.

The NYSE has been made famous by a number of big budget Hollywood movies. Its history has also been a very interesting one. In 1920 a bomb was planted on Wall Street right outside the NYSE building. When it exploded it killed 33 people, injured more than 400 and caused considerable damage to the surrounding buildings. The terrorists who planted the bomb were never captured.

There have been a number of famous Wall Street crashes the most famous of which is known as Black Thursday which happened on the 24th of October, 1929. The selling panic which ensued is often blamed for coming of the Great Depression.

The current President of the NYSE is Catherine Kinney and the CEO is John Reid while Marsh Carter is the Chairman.

Check out http://www.stock-trading-made-ez.com/ for more articles on bank of newyork emerging markets 50 adr index and stock option picks.

Forex Brokers & Online Trading

There is one important thing you will need to do before you start your Forex trading career. This is, you will need to set up an account with what is known in the trading world as a Forex Broker. Once you start your search for the perfect broker, you may feel there are too many of them who offer their services online. Deciding on a broker requires a little bit of research on your part. Experience and reputation are two good starting places for the selection process. do as much research as possible and ask in online forums for anyone who may have a first hand knowledge of the company.

A forex broker is an individual or a company that buys and sells the orders placed by the trader according to his decisions. The way brokers earn money is by charging a commission or a fee for their services.

You must consider that a serious forex broker will need to be associated with a large financial institution such as a bank in order to provide the amount of funds necessary for what is known as margin trading. In the United States a broker must be registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) and also with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). These credentials will ensure you have peace of mind, knowing that you have protection against any case of fraud and abusive trade practices.

What youll always want will be to find a broker who executes orders quickly and with minimum slippage. All reputable online forex brokers will offer automatic execution once you place your orders and will let you know their policies regarding slippage. A good broker should be able to tell you how much slippage can be expected in both normal and volatile markets.

You should always be skeptical when looking for a good forex broker. Always examine any suspicious claims made about high returns and low margins, especially if the broker company is vague about the risk involved in the transactions and are unwilling or unable to disclose financial information on the strength of their company. Low margins may sound competitive, but in reality this is because the broker is speculating against you and relying on the low margin to stop out your gains.

Learn these great Forex trading strategies and become a profitable trader.

=> http://www.1-forex.com

Learning The Stock Market-What You Need To Know Before Investing

Many people are interested in learning the stock market and how to make money with their investments. So what are the most important factors to making a fortune with the market?

First of all, you need to realize that you need to have a method of investment before beginning. Many investors simply jump in and start investing without having a clue what their strategy is or what they want to accomplish from it.

First of all, you need to sit down and think about what you want to accomplish with investing. Do you want a car by the end of the month, or is your goal to buy a house in 5 years? This will dramatically effect your strategy.

For instance, if your goal is to have enough money to buy a car in a year or so, you will want to invest conservatively such as a bond, something that is guaranteed to pay you money. If you need quick money, there are no guarantees in the stock market, and you are just as likely to lose all your money as you are to make it.

However, if you what to have enough money to buy a house in 5 years, your strategy will be to invest in the market in order to maximum your return on investment. While volatile in the short term, the market is very stable long term, and you can be much more sure of making a positive return on your investment.

If you do plan on jumping into the market as opposed to bonds, you need to determine whether you want to be a value investor or a technical analyst. Here is the difference: a technical analyst looks at trying to make more money short term with a particular investment, and is not concerned about investing in a company long term.

A value investor, on the other hand, wont invest in a company until they can be sure its long term prospects are sound and it has a solid financial future. Only after theyve seen this will they move forward and invest.

So which method is best? It really depends on which strategy you are more comfortable with.

Technical analyst requires constant studying of stock charts and you have to always be checking up on your investments. Also, one wrong move can literally wipe out your portfolio overnight, not to mention the money you have to pay for the transaction to begin with, which can often times wipe out your entire gain.

Value investing, on the other hand, is much more stable and requires much less attention to your investments because you are generally assured of making money in the long term. Therefore, you should only engage in technical analysis once you are absolutely sure you know what youre doing.

The bottom line is this: many people have money using either strategy. However, by far more people have lost money engaging in short term technical analysis than have made a fortune.

Therefore, you should look into both methods and decide which one works best for you. The most important part is to make a decision and not second-guess yourself. Simply commit and move forward as best you can, and in the long run you will make a fortune with the market.

For more info on how to buy stocks, and tips for investing in the stock market, visit http://www.stock-investing-tips.com, a popular site that teaches how to make a fortune from your investments.

Foreign Exchange Rate - Foreign Currency Exchange - Foreign Exchange Student

Several scenarios make a great decline of currency value like political uncertainties, unemployment that leads to higher inflation, other relevant issues that can hamper commerce and business from functioning well, and other macro-economic situations. This simply means you make decisions to buy or sell but dont put any real money down. The official currency of the European Union (EU), the Euro, was launched in 1999 with coins and banknotes issued in 2002.

This World recession effectively killed any growth in FX speculation as disposable income was at a premium. When people or companies hold foreign assets, there is an extra source of possible gain or loss, over and above the rate of interest or rate of profit earned by the asset itself.

If Denars are rare - their price will remain high in DM terms, i.e. But a strong currency (the Denar, in this case) is not always a positive thing. This World recession effectively killed any growth in FX speculation as disposable income was at a premium. Euro is a floating exchange rate, therefore market demand and supply controls the value of the currency.

Placing a foreign exchange hedge can help to manage this foreign exchange rate risk. At the end of WWI there was a brief period of massive currency speculation.

Stock trading is similar to owning part of a company or organization. It is often wise for the beginner to dabble in stocks trading before looking at Forex trading. If its people have the most employment, there are more needs for commodities and supplies that businesses are revolving as well as it use of money. All other currencies were pegged to the dollar at a certain rate.

Investors used to invest domestically mainly, but with the Euro introduction more investors are now attracted to euro areas. The exchange rate refers to the value of the US dollar against the values of currencies of other countries. It is an excellent way to get your feet wet without a whole lot of risk. If the US INFLATION rate is HIGHER, investors are LESS likely to prefer the US -even with higher interest rates- because of the expectation that the value of the dollar will be ERODED by inflation.

This has benefited the poorer member states which had weaker currencies previously for example Portugal, before the euro the Portuguese escudo was not that popular outside its own country or a particularly strong currency but now since Portugal is part of the EU its markets are much more attractive to other EU and non EU countries. Their lenders will also be afraid to lend them money, because these lenders cannot be sure that the borrowers will have the necessary additional Denars to pay back the credits in case of such a devaluation. If Forex exchange rate in our terms is equal to 100 yen to the dollar, the inverse would be $0,01 (one cent) per yen. One important way of encouraging people (and firms are made of people) to do things - is to allay their fears.

Learn more about Foreign Exchange Rate Foreign Currency Exchange Foreign Exchange Student

Hermit in an Otherwise Inside Academic World

From all that is seen and unseen no unusual learning impediment, or idiosyncrasy for that matter, has probably ever etched its stone in a sociologically renowned two-year college in downtown Bridgeport, CT before I walked in. I was told before I registered that I would need a significant amount of (confidential) documentation describing the limitations associated with my high-functioning autistic self; I took it to heart that there were several, maybe hundreds of, others who had the same disability and applied to the same college, but my kind of disability was probably more of a normal kind than that of other autistic savants. It was not that difficult to contemplate--possibly because I was diagnosed with a mild kind of autism during my childhood--the social, personal, and academic hardships that would, nonetheless, lie ahead in an advanced post-secondary institution. But what you could say is that I never gave up my fullest scholastic and extracurricular potential, even if I continued to be a consummate outsider once and for all.

It is, without question, that Housatonic Community Colleges location isnt exactly located where, ironically at first, intellectual outsiders like me would consider an ideal environment. The heavily diverse city, which is only 20-30 minutes from the equally diverse city of New Haven and about 90 minutes away from the quintessential melting pot of Brooklyn, is notorious for its governmental and judicial corruption, inadequate public education systems, grimy and unaffordable apartments, aging infrastructure, vacant factories and department stores and high-rises, street drug dealings, and, ultimately, its socially and culturally disadvantaged inhabitants. There is a section of this city in which warm and cozy middle-classmen like me reside, but no where in the heart of this city are there effervescent kiosks and shops for them to buy the colorful discretionary goods they most desire. What I have to tell you right now is that this is a slight, maybe big for that matter, misconception. For better (or slightly for worse), Housatonic is a school where people from all walks of life, even those below the poverty line and detached from the outside world, seek a solid educational foundation and, as a result, have their lives radically transformed for more productive employment opportunities and, for the lack of a better word, a more self-sufficient future than they could ever imagine first off.

The two-year schools main attraction, the Academic Support Center, which is the reason why so many enroll here in the first place, is, indeed, for students of all scholastic skill levels. Not once did I come across one who complained about discriminatory practices or negative stereotypes administered by the otherwise caring and supportive body that truly makes this learning center tick. The experienced tutors, as well as the apprentice-like tutors, act like they have known you since those angst-ridden years you finally came to full terms with your coming of age, which is, in and of itself, no small way of looking at your own meaning of life, albeit in a personal or professional light. Better yet, the tutors can sometimes act like a dogs owner, constantly vying for your encouragement at any random moment of unease and incompetence. There is something fulfilling about this revered student lounge, there is something sacred about this secular shrine, that cant be dismissed by almost any student in the halls of this color barrier-breaking, inner-city academic Mecca.

Almost every time I came here to seek the help I needed in the perplexing arenas of Spanish, biology, and chemistry, there is no way in which I left the center without knowing how much sympathy they had for even my most profound intellectual adversities. I tried to alleviate some mind-numbing, socially discouraging forms of pigeonholing that infect the autistic soul, of the impact it had on MySpace and other self-indulgent online chat rooms, and the reactions the executives of those web pages would have if a robot like me finally bashed out of the closet, and said nothing about my own friends and family, who having perceived certain disabled stereotypes to the point of innate exaggeration never, at bottom, socialized with autistics (which they described as humanoids) for having ignored them, to be most precise, for technically no apparent reason. I thought of autistics as special needs students arriving with no motive other than sheer IQ merit that can knock normal people out of their seats, other normal people who would rather despise them, as I was a special student there, and sat back trying to meditate on their information-asphyxiated brains and relishing at the sometimes abnormal body language of their closest ilk, which I sometimes felt very sorry for.

I, by no means, fitted with that "Rain Man" stereotype pop culture and the wider college frat subculture made it out to be, since I did, later on, happen to communicate with the overwhelming assortment of students and faculty all so present on the small yet culturally multihued campus. It is true, also, that my friends off-campus enforced me to check those chat rooms I mentioned before out, for only to experience some rather routine spamming and hacking in turn. This is not to say that all of them appreciated the strengths of my mild autism, as I still dont know how to smoothly converse with beer-chugging, cocaine-snorting brats, but, as it turns out, they were, nevertheless, astounded at my capability to perform uniquely studious techniques, such as my quick-witted style of creative writing. I didnt drink to the point of sleepless intoxication, as they all proved to me just how emotionally and physically devastating alcohol consumption can really be, to say the very least. So here lies my alienation from the all-important 21st century late teens/early 20s demographic, which, believe it or not, is becoming increasingly amoral and, most unfortunately, free of values and of discipline.

If every one I came to know and value the most at the secularly sacred two-year college posed any anti-establishment measures against the now-popular autistic conscience, it was a needlessly significant rallying cry that really turned out to be nothing more than a Paris Hilton-bashing, "National Enquirer"-style gossip column. For this gossip to be, indeed, truthful, therefore, the entire Housatonic administration would have been completely compliant with a rather disingenuous piece of protest that would not be worth protesting against because autism, just like other mental deficiencies that are now talked out with and to others, is becoming a more socially acceptable medical condition in which future generations may have to cope with, since there is no miracle cure for this otherwise non-sickly illness.

According to a recent report conducted by the Autism Society of America, 1 in 150 are afflicted with some form of autism, but, fortunately, even the most mainstream college communities have finally stepped up to the plate to address the possible causes and effects of what is, in todays increasingly multifaceted world, not literally a disease in any word, shape, or form. It can also be said that (mildly) autistic outsiders like me didnt happen to engulf themselves with so much of the egotistical or self-centered sensibilities that those unaware of their fate happen to, unfortunately, indulge in. This said, the inside academic world, like that of the two-year college I silkily bathed in, was an essential, if not indispensable, life skill for me, as well as for all those who continue to seek their own career paths--without ever resorting to social and cultural insensitivity or insider trading--in the process.

For More Comprehensive Info. on Housatonic Community College, or to Enroll There Part- or Full-Time, Please Visit:

http://www.hcc.commnet.edu/

If You Want to Make a Difference in the Autism Community, Please Visit:

http://www.autism-society.org/

Best Online Stock Day Trading Services

What is Online Day Trading?

Answer a simple question. If God approaches you and asks what do you need the most now? Money would be your answer most of the times. Or may be peace. But for peace, you will have to get rid of the basic human instinct of envying the new expensive car your neighbor has just bought. But come on that is human. So, to get rid of the jealousy you will have to buy a car costlier than him. Well that needs a warmer pocket for sure. And you and I know that it rains dollars only in dreams. So, what is your next course of action? Day trading is an interesting option.

Day trading is the first thing you need to know. Shares and stocks are the basic units of trading. Do you know shares? If yes, it would be simple for you to understand this. But if you are ignorant of the term, just know that as you buy shares from a company, you give it a small amount to invest into business and as it earns some profit, it gives the percentage of profit equal to your share. So here, the company works with your money and pays you the profit, without you actually working. Now let us come to day trading. Here you buy the shares and sell them as soon as the value raises to a level you have decided. You earn some profit. Or may be, if the share loses its value, you might lose some money as well. Experience is an important factor here as it helps to make a more informed and accurate decision.

We will show you how, even you, though naive, can earn through this business, toil-less money. What you need here is an experienced hand, for you cannot afford losing a lot before gaining it yourself. So, you need to go to a day trading stock broker now. Now whos that? A broker is a person who represents a brokerage firm and helps you buy and sell shares and takes some commission for his service. There are many day trading firm that are offering their services online.

SogoInvest is an online day trading firm that offers a variety of advantages to the investor. Actually, this discount brokerage site is one of the best and the most reliable of them around. It has two account types namely SogoInvest and SogoElite. Also its various investment packages the Platinum, Gold and Bronze give you further options to select what suits your budget and your individual preference. What more, it has strategies to minimize the financial risk. It has the choices of making automatic investments daily, weekly or monthly. This best day trading stock broker also offers another very great benefit. It allows you to buy shares in fraction, i.e. you can buy any expensive share in fraction if you do not have enough money to buy the full one but are still interested in buying that share. So, with this day firm trading for you, you can earn safe and easy money.

We offer you very easy route to earn and that too online, without perspiring whatsoever. Have more queries? Just visit www.sogoinvest.com, the day trading stock broker and see if its discount online trading strategy to earn can benefit you.

I wrote this article to share my views about best discount day trading services and online day trading.

Stop Foreclosure Quick and Save Your Home

First, understand that the banks and lenders really do like you and desperately want to negotiate a payment plan that you can afford. The bad part of this is that although you may be able to make the adjusted house payments you will not be gaining on your house balance or principle. This article will look at some ways to stop foreclosure quick.

One of the fastest ways to stop foreclosure quick is to make a call to the bank or lender and explain your situation. You may need to be a couple payments over due before they will realize the situation, but it can't hurt to act now. If you have lost your income due to layoff, but plan to be employed soon you may be able to stop them form foreclosing on the home.

You can stop foreclosure quick if you know your home has some equity and you want to keep your home. It might be wise to check the value of some other homes in your area to make sure that your home is worth keeping. If you determine that you want to stop foreclosure quick then make an attempt to call them immediately.

You may be able to stop foreclosure quick by checking the local newspaper for some investors to by your property from you. The bank may be willing to sell it at a reduced rate to get it done. The investor may be willing to allow you to stay in the home at a reduced rent and some work labor. it is always worth a shot.

You could possibly stop foreclosure quick by finding an investor that may be willing to buy the home from your bank or lending institution and then rent the home back to you at a reduced rate. If you can do some handy work you may be able to put some labor into the home in exchange for a nice reduction in your rent from the new investor.

If you have a larger home then trading places with someone who may want to upgrade is a possibility to stop foreclosure quick. Of course, you will need to have the other home with a lower payment so that you can afford to do the swap. If the payment is lesser then you may be able to stop foreclosure quick and make a deal.

It is possible to stop foreclosure quick and save your home from the dreaded foreclosure market. You must act fast, but it can be a great reward to stop foreclosure quick.

If you need more foreclosure help then quickly head over to http://foreclosure-help-now.com where you will find helpful foreclosure tips, advice and resources including information on foreclosure plans, negotiating and more Stop Foreclosure Quick.