Year: 2019

Stocks Trading Software – The Best For Beginners
5 min read

Stock trading software is a program that allows you to research potential stocks, view charts, read analyses, set up watchlists, and more.

With today’s volatile market trends, picking the right stock trading software is crucial. Honestly, there are very few stocks worth trading each day. That means you have to identify them before they make their big move. And, that separates the profitable traders and the rest. Before you enter, you have to check the trading software reviews first.

Much of the stock market uses extremely sophisticated computer programs to analyze data at unbelievable speeds.
Unfortunately, the majority don’t have access to those applications. But still, we can take advantages of technology.

The better stock trading software you use, the better trader you are.

They are easy to use, comfortable, intuitive, feature-rich, and full of useful information.

Trading software is a set of computer programs that facilitate trading in financial instruments such as stocks and currencies. It also helps develop stock-picking decisions through fundamental and technical analysis features. Some software also allows transaction processing.

Brokerages offer the trading software either for free or for discounted pricing. Sometimes they offer software as a stimulus to obtain a particular amount of trading volumes. Independent vendors also supply software to assist traders.

Importance of accurate stock market data

A stock market is a place where you may trade shares of publicly listed companies. Investors in the stock market want to gain their returns by buying and selling their investments at a fitting time.

Stock market data is highly time variant and follow a non-linear pattern.

Analyzing stock market data is very important for divining the future prices of the stock. Therefore accurate stock market data entry is important for traders, investors, and market analysts. Accurate stock market data provides them to keep abreast of market trends. Stock market companies employ data entry services to maintain all types of stock market records.

The main part of the stock market is the price of shares. But it varies very often. The price of shares is reported every minute because of people who are buying and selling shares. Any error in the entry of data can cause tremendous losses to companies and individual traders and investors.

Entering the data is a very important factor in the stock market. That financial data has to be entered perfectly. Inaccurate data can create market volatility that can cause the disorder.

Stock splits, mergers and spin-offs are common activities that take place every year.

Stock splits occur when the price and volume of shares change when two companies merge. In that situation, one of the shares stops be traded and their value gets added. When there is the spin-off, a company may separate and also, there will be a change in the price of shares. In such circumstances, the stock data must be updated to reduce market volatility.

Historical data about stock markets is also fundamental for long term investors. It is helpful for them to understand the type of shares and its price variations.

Accurate data entry is necessary for stock markets. If traders have reliable data they can identify the right time to buy and sell shares and earn the profit.

What to look for in trading software components
- Analytical methods and strategies
If you want to be an active trader, which is different from the long-term buy-and-hold, you must have the opportunity to use several strategies, including day trading and swing trading.

In day trading, the position is closed out within the same day.

Swing trading involves holding a security for one to several days in an attempt to profit on the swings or price changes.

Good trading software must offers traders the ability to control and manage open positions. Some of the order types are a market order or pending order. A pending order can be a buy limit, buy stop, sell limit or sell stop. A trader should have the opportunity to attach a stop loss or take profit order to a pending order, for example.
- Historical and real-time data
Real-time data is an indication and information promptly provided. OK, there can be a short delay because of the time of distribution of information. Many websites promise free real-time quotes, but they are regularly delayed by up to 20 minutes.

Real-time data is important for traders. Even a small variation between the quote and the actual price of the security may lead to the reducing of profits or a loss.

Historical quotes are also important. Because the price of assets moves in known patterns and trends which tend to return over time
- Stock screener
Stock screeners are tools which can separate stocks based on criteria defined by the trader.

Every good software must have a screener.
- Backtesting software
You must have the opportunity to test an opened trading strategy using historical data. Backtesting assists as a method for testing the effectiveness of the strategy. It simulates the trading strategy across a particular time frame and then analyzes the results from the perspective of return and risk.
- Live news
The market is volatile and it moves on a multitude of developments, including economics, geopolitics, and corporate news. We know that stocks are highly volatile.

If a trader wants to make a profit such has to react immediately to market news thanks to a live news reference.
- Portfolio tracking
This will help you keep a close track of all previous trades, helping you to identify mistakes and hone your strategy.

How to correctly use stock trading software

The new stock trading software programs can look scaring to the beginner, we know that. But, don’t be. The better choice is to engage yourself and get used to its features.

The charts are the most important hallmarks for the best stock trading software programs out there. Because you need charts that are easy to read, customizable, and trackable.

The top stock trading software platforms offer paper trading, which we always highly recommend. Do your paper trading like a stock simulation program. You execute trades, buy, sell, and short, without placing money. If you are new on this field and you’ve never traded before, this is a great way to enter.

When you’re familiar with paper trading, you should move on to the real account. Otherwise, you will never get a profit from the stock market.

The whole truth is that everyone uses stock trading software in a different way. Maybe you will reveal a new strategy to pick data from software programs.

Trading software providers tout their platforms’ endless features. Some are really good but some are trash. Here’s a kind of guide that can help you make smart investment decisions.

Analyze

Scanner: Scanning tools continually comb the stock market for trading possibilities. You can personalize your scanning tool to explore specific models and get a signal when they are found.

Charts: Customizable charts will help you to analyze the markets. Choose several indicators to compare new or historical data. You have to know changes in the market to recognize stock patterns.

Monitor

Streaming data: Permanent access to data gives you the information and you are able to make smart decisions about your investments. Software platforms provide access to data about stock prices, companies’ worth, quarterly reports, etc.

News: Better trading platforms can provide up-to-date news from third-party sources to keep you on course.

Research reports: Trading software gives you access to related industry studies from third parties about particular stocks or analysis of more extensive market issues.

Trade

Simulation: Yes, paper trading or simulators give you a chance to practice without real money.

Automated trading: A tool that buys and sells securities automatically based on pre-programmed criteria. It is used frequently by advanced investors who make various trades each day.

Customer service: Online trading platforms are a “do-it-yourself” mind. But most major software providers have some type of customer service, whether it’s 24/7 assistance, live-chat capabilities or a chance to speak with an advisor.

Online platforms are generally much cheaper than full-service brokers. Still, think carefully about what you spend on trading software.

It isn’t hard to find providers that give traders the option to test the stock trading software before signing up to pay for the service. Some also offer commission-free trades and cash bonuses.

Top Stock Trading Software – The Opinion of Traders Paradise

E-TRADE

Choose between E-Trade 360 for casual investors, or E-Trade Pro for active investors. A mobile version is also available for on-the-go trading.

E-trade stock trading software

It isn’t just a stock trading platform. It ranks among some of favorite stock trading brokerages for a number of reasons.

Namely, its access to real-time data, research, and analysis in its brokerage platform. Nothing is powerful as historical and real-time data that enables you to act on the best stock trades possible. E-Trade also offers a collection of educational sources: webinars, blog posts, and news.

It isn’t among the cheapest, but it’s commissions aren’t the steepest either. You can start your stocks trade at $6.95 with volume discount available, options start at $0.50 per contract. And, moreover, the brokerage even offers hundreds of commission-free ETFs.

Anyway, it is best for experienced traders.
- TD Ameritrade
TD Ameritrade stock trading software is well suited for investors of all skill levels. Traders will appreciate the wide range of tools and screeners, and its platform for practicing simulated trades is one of the best.

TD Ameritrade stock trading software

TD Ameritrade has some of the most extensive tools we tested. And, very important, it continues to add to its toolbox.

There is the brokerage’s chatbot to execute trades and access market news on Twitter or on Facebook Messenger to perform a range of functions. It is from looking up stock quotes to placing trades and chatting with a live agent.

TD Ameritrade’s powerful trading platform, Thinkorswim, is customized for novice and advanced traders. The control center screen delivers all important information together in one place. So, you can create alerts, access research from over 400 technical studies, search for stocks and interact with real traders.

It’s also the go-to destination for practicing simulated trades with paper money.

Educational offers combine videos, webcasts, and tutorials, for both novice traders and experienced investors. Its broker-assisted trade fee is a high $44.99, but its other hallmarks can make it worthy of the high cost.

TD Ameritrade is best for simulated trades in Traders Paradise’s opinion.
- Fidelity
This trading service combines a wide range of investment choices. Along with advanced analytical research from some 20 providers, including Argus.

Argus Research is one of the newest options for research providers to Fidelity.

The main plus, Fidelity has low pricing.

Fidelity stock trading software

You can choose from over 10,000 mutual funds and 93 commission-free exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The brokerage permanently enhances its platform. So, here you can find two new screeners: one that enables you to tailor your screen with up to 140 criteria for stocks, and an ETF research tool and screener.

Also, new is Trade Armor, a tool that lets you to visually search profit and loss scenarios. All that by using charts, news, alerts, and research for potential or existing stock positions.

Fidelity’s Learning Center offers a full table of issues classified by skill level.

There is no minimum to open a brokerage account to buy stocks or shares in an ETF, but most mutual funds require an initial $2,500 investment.

The mobile app features all the tools to manage your accounts. Also, you can inspect your balances, account positions and watch lists. Moreover, you can search for information and real-time quotes for trades.

The bottom line

When you start to evaluate how easy a stock trading software is to use, you should consider several questions.

Is it easy to make watchlists? Could you set up alerts? Can you customize them? What kinds of screening tools are available?

Are the charting tools work well? What technical indicators can you use?

One of the most important things is a fast and efficiently accessible order process. Markets change instantly and being able to execute the order in a short time is an important part of your investments.

risk disclosure
24th February 2019
Bitcoin rise comes from fiat

1 min read

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and EOS have all experienced an unexpected rally in the last seven days.

Bitcoin is up 9.84%, Ethereum is up 21.24%, Litecoin is up 23.13%, and EOS is up 35.72%

This shows that the rally has strength. It looks that fresh money is flowing into the entire area.

“Interestingly, it appears that the momentum behind the recent Bitcoin rise comes more from fiat and stable coins than from other cryptocurrencies,” says Michael Noel, CEO Blockchain Consultants. “This move from Fiat currencies shows at least some consensus that BTC value, is better long term than in traditional currencies.”

BTC/USD

BTC/EUR

BTC price – 2/22/2019

The last bull flag had a golden cross and this is the main reason why Bitcoin plummeted.

It seems the Bitcoin rise comes from fiat

This new support of over $3,900 looks strong. More money is coming into the market and people want gains like it was in 2017. Fear of missing out is another factor why people will buy BTC. Many claims there is still a bear market but they can’t confirm when will it hit a bottom. It looks that BTC will be fluctuating between $3700 – $6,000 for a long period.

Bitcoin price plunge to $3,700 expected, the traders say. A retreat is a blessing for crypto.

Following a rapid surge in the Bitcoin price from $3,614 to $4,000 within a span of three days, traders are expecting BTC to retrace by around 7 percent to $3,700.

The projection on the price trend of the ruling crypto asset comes after the failure of Bitcoin to climb beyond the crucial $4,000 resistance level.

On February 19, it achieved $4,000 across major crypto exchanges including Bitstamp and Binance. But soon, it fell to the low $3,900 region and today, below the $3,900 level.

The price trend of Bitcoin in the past four days is similar to its trend from February 8 to February 12.

In early February, in a frame of four days, the price of BTC surged from $3,337 to $3,711 and pulled back to the $3,500 region.

In the upcoming days, traders foresee Bitcoin demonstrating a similar movement as before.

The bottom line

The near-term minor correction of Bitcoin could positively affect the trend of the crypto market in the next weeks. We can see more stability and a strong spot to begin short-term rallies.

BTC showed an expansive period of stability and initiated a strong rally to $4,000.

If the asset regains momentum in the upcoming days and potentially establishes a strong floor to cleanly break out of the critical $4,000 resistance level, it may benefit the market.

CCN reported that economist Alex Krüger stated that although $3,700 remains as a strong support level, breaking out of the

$4,200 resistance level could trigger a rapid upside movement.

The explanation for the short-term prosperity of the crypto market is for Bitcoin to break out of major resistance levels with strength.

The daily volume of the market has largely recovered. And the interested in the asset class has significantly increased. So, we will see. Bitcoin looks stronger than some expects.

risk disclosure

22nd February 2019
Economic Downturn – How to Prepare

2 min read

Foretelling an economic downturn can seem as mystical and convoluted as reading the horoscope charts. However, financial experts are warning that the economic winds are changing.

There are some economic indicators causing financial analysts to prognosticate slim financial time. First, economic growth is postponed. The rate of salary increase has stagnated. As the economy continues to slow down, consumer interest rates will rise and investment earnings will lose momentum, possibly even losing money.

We have to be honest, there’s no magical way to predict just how bad things will get. Anyway, burying the head in the sand is a terrible idea. Here are a few things you can do to protect your finances against the coming economic downturn.

Dow Jones Industrial Average Market index

When the storm is approaching, the first thing you do is preparing your home for that attack. You cover windows and surround your home with sandbags. An emergency fund does the same thing financially. It’s the added layer of protection that can assist you when the economy drops. Also, it provides you a fighting chance to protect what you’ve increased.

Grow your emergency fund

The emergency fund is anywhere from three to six months’ worth of daily living expenses. During the meager economic time, you want to have more than the standard recommended amount.

Under normal circumstances, the average period of unemployment lasts roughly three to six months. But experts assume that number is sneaking and could double in an indolent economy.

To be more clear, when it comes, you have to plan

To be unemployed at least one month per every $10,000 you earn. So if you earn $80,000 a year, you should plan for unemployment that lasts at least 8 months. This formula is a great measure in helping you discover how much you need in your emergency fund.

Balance your budget and allocate debt

In anticipation of a natural disaster, people buy supplies and lasting food items. Balancing your budget by reducing expenses in preparation for a financial collapse follows the same principal.

Your holiday and home renovation may have to pause. The key is to prioritize your expenses. You have to recognize what you can skip. Also, you have to stop living on overtime, bonuses, and side-gig money. It is better to put that money into your emergency fund.

You must be focused on quickly paying down debt. Get rid of some of your smaller debts fast. If you reduce debt, you owe less and have more money at your control. It can be your care package during a downturn.

Increase professional skills

This is a nonfinancial thing. Let’s say you have a primary job, but you also have a bunch of hobbies. These things can be turned into job opportunities.

Take time to renew your resume and hone or add to your skill set. There are a lot of companies out there offering training.

Take those opportunities now, don’t hesitate.

Evaluate your investment portfolio

The stock market usually becomes extremely volatile during an economic downturn. Financial experts recommend not to remove your money off an investment while you panicking. Fear should never encourage your decisions.

Look at your investment portfolio now. Try to find if there are any additions you’d like to change. Generally speaking, risky funds will probably lose money during a downturn. But truth is, they also rebound instantly during an economic restoration. Safer investments may not lose a lot, but you will not earn much too.

One method or investment technique isn’t superior over another. They all have pros and cons. The key is to evaluate yourself. Do you have a weak stomach? If so, go with something less risky. But if you’re convinced you can manage the turbulence of a risky investment, stay seated. Don’t forget to take financial advice before you decide, anyway. And remember, the knee-jerk attitude is the fastest way to lose big when it comes to investing.
Stay in control!

The bottom line

These are just a few of the small steps you can take to prepare yourself and your family for potentially difficult times, for the economic downturn.

The economy has been expanding since hitting bottom in mid-2009. That makes this recovery three years longer than the average growth cycle since 1945. If it reaches 10 years, it will match the record for the longest expansion. We have a few months to see that.

Maybe the slow pace of the recovery will allow it to run longer than usual. The odds of it ending get stronger as time goes on.

risk disclosure

22nd February 2019
Bargain Hunting – The Holy Grail of Investing

If you understand the terms overvalued and undervalued you will find plenty of stocks that look cheap

By Guy Avtalyon

Stock investors are bargain hunting! From time to time, that is a title for a lot of news reports when it is a general market decline. For example, after the 2007/2008 prices have been cut by 40-60% so for sure there were some bargains out there.

People’s intuition about what is worth to buy can have dangerous side effects when it comes to investing. However, winning instincts can be very profitable. This is what the concept of value investing is all about.

People spend their money to buy expensive things in order to indicate status. But the other way is to get a good bargain. If you can combine both, it would be ideal. Having the status-symbol normally cost a lot, so we would like to get them at a good bargain. That sounds like a good deal.

The dogma that expensive things are better, forms human behavior in some unusual ways.

What is Bargain Hunting

For example in drug testing, patients mostly find they feel better if they know that the medicine that they use is more expensive. Incredible! That means that people instinctively look for bargains. They use price itself as information to estimate if something is a good bargain. That is indirect logic.

The defining value investing, hence, comes down to the simple concept of buying quality stocks that are undervalued. Not always the cheap is bad, and if something is expensive, then it isn’t always good. Bargain hunting means that a stock is worth less than it should be and is therefore undervalued. The ability to pick undervalued stocks or so-called value-investing is quite a talent. But is there really such a thing as an undervalued stock?

The stock price is a mixture of investors’ estimates for later growth. So, the opinion as to whether that stock is undervalued can be very questionable.

How the bargain hunting works

In less than 10 minutes reading about stocks you will come across the terms overvalued and undervalued. If you do a bit more examination, you will find plenty of stocks that look cheap to one financial theorist, but expensive to others.

How exactly can you calculate the value of a stock?

Well, it depends. There are a number of different metrics that may answer that question under different conditions. Here are some simple methods.

Use Price-earnings ratio (P/E)

The price-earnings ratio is one of the simplest valuation metrics. Just divide the price per share by earnings per share.

That’s the P/E. The lower the P/E, the less value it has.

Many investors like to use trailing 12-month earnings because they’re tangible results. But many like using calculations for the next period. Well, investors care most about the future, not what a stock’s already done.

EXAMPLE
Stock price = $30/share
Previous year’s earnings = $2/share
P/E = 15

Use price/earnings-growth ratio (PEG)

The utilities, for example, trade at low P/E, indicating low expectations for future growth. HiTech companies frequently trade at high P/E because investors are counting on fantastic growth. Price/earnings growth (PEG) is transforming growth expectations into the valuation. To calculate this you have to divide P/E by annual earnings per share growth. With PEG, less than 1 is rated undervalued, and anything over 1 is rated overpriced.

EXAMPLE
Stock P/E = 15
Estimated 5-year annual earnings growth: 15%
PEG = 1

Use price-sales ratio (P/S)

When some company hasn’t earned, it has revenues, after all.

A low P/S is cheap and a high P/S is expensive. For example, Twitter was flagged for having a high P/S early after its initial public offering. It was more than double of Facebook. But, that corrected thanks to disappointing results. Twitter’s P/S dropped from nearly 30 in December 2013 to about 5 as shares plunged more than 70 percent.

EXAMPLE
Stock price = $30/share
Previous year’s revenues = $5/share
P/S = 5

Use price-dividend (P/D)

Price-dividend is a less used metric, but it is quite good for measuring dividend stocks. To calculate, you have to divide the price by dividend. This ratio will tell you how much you have to pay to receive $1 in dividend payments. This is most useful in comparing a stock’s value against itself or against other dividend payers.

EXAMPLE
Stock X price = $30/share
Previous year’s dividend = $1/share
P/D = 30

Enterprise value-sales is an alternative to price-sales, just like Enterprise value-EBITDA is an alternative to P/E. But you can use them, of course.

The most important, all this is in the future, so you have no control over it.

The only thing you can control is the price at which you can buy the stock. Moreover, whether you buy it at all at a settled price. Everything that happens in the future is in the shadow of the price. The same investment can be good or bad depending on what price you paid.

How to find bargain hunting?

Let’s say, it is impossible to estimate an investment without the context of its price. There are equity investments which are bad despite the price. Still, there aren’t any investments that are good despite the price. If there is no bargain to be had, the instinct of buying only at a bargain is the most important thing in investing.

22nd February 2019
Tilray Make More Cheerful The Manitoba Harvest

1 min read

Tilray makes the richest deal in an effort to jump into U.S. CBD market. Tilray buys hemp-food maker Manitoba Harvest for $419M.

Tilray is acquiring the parent company of hemp-food maker Manitoba Harvest for up to $419 million in a cash-and-stock agreement. Cannabis producer from the Nanaimo quickens its entry into the North American CBD market. This deal will give Tilray ownership of a high-profile brand and one of the biggest hemp-food makers in the world. It also gives Tilray access to Manitoba Harvest’s retail network of 16,000 stores across the U.S. and Canada that includes Costco, Amazon, and Wal-Mart.

Investors like this Tilray’s arrangement, with shares of the marijuana producer jumping close to 5% in intraday trading. But Tilray’s acquisition of Manitoba Harvest should encourage more than a temporary gain.

With its new deal, Tilray appears to beat its biggest rivals, Aurora Cannabis (NYSE: ACB) and Canopy Growth (NYSE: CGC). It looks Tilray manage to stake its claim in a potentially huge market.

Tilray Overtakes Aurora Cannabis and Canopy Growth in the U.S. Hemp Market

The biggest Canadian marijuana producers, all three, weren’t modest about showing their tends to enter the United States’ market. The problem is, marijuana is illegal at the federal level. So, they can’t operate in the U.S. and hold their listings on major stock exchanges in such a situation.

Hemp is a different story. By definition, hemp is cannabis that contains low levels of the psychoactive ingredient THC. The U.S. legalized hemp in December 2018. That opened the way for the major Canadian marijuana producers to jump into the U.S. hemp market.

Canopy Growth was the first. The company published in January that it had ensured a license to produce and prepare hemp in New York state. Canopy also plans to spend between $100 million and $150 million to build a large-scale hemp production facility in New York.

Meantime, Aurora Cannabis has been much more careful. CEO Terry Booth said that Aurora would “enter when it’s proper to enter, and when it’s legal to enter into the United States market.”

Tilray’s smart move

But Tilray’s acquisition of Manitoba Harvest sets it winning of both of the bigger rivals.

Tilray’s acquisition of Manitoba Harvest seems to be a smart activity. The deal gives Tilray an immediate position in the North American hemp CBD market. Tilray is financing the acquisition through both cash and stock. More than 1/5 of the buying price isn’t expected until six months after the transaction closes.

This acquisition is just the latest exemplar of Tilray’s business courage. The company’s acquisition of Natura Naturals last month boosted its production capacity. That deal was part in cash and part in stock with much of the purchase price associated with reaching predefined quarterly production milestones over a 12-month period.

Tilray showed an intention to win the total cannabis market. Its entrance into the potentially lucrative U.S. hemp market is the sign of that. The company’s chances of taking a leading role appear to be greater than ever.

risk disclosure

21st February 2019
Day trading stocks – How to find best trading platform
4 min read

Day trading stocks are powerful and exciting. Moreover, they are easy to buy and sell. With the progress of technology, the market is easily available. Speculating on prices going up or down in the short term is absolutely visible.

Also, stocks are simple to understand and follow.

Attempt to identify which stocks to trade intraday won’t be as challenging as it is in other markets. But if you want excitement, you can choose to trade in the complex technical world of cryptocurrencies or forex. Even if it burns your mind. Of course, you can manage with the triumphs and potential traps of Google and Facebook far easier.

Day trading vs stock investing

Before you start day trading stocks, you should analyze whether it surely suits your conditions.

For example, intraday trading regularly expects a couple of hours each day. One of these hours has to be early in the morning. You have to be there when the market opens.

Longer term stock investing, however, normally takes less time. It gives you more flexibility as to when you do your research and analysis.

Further, intraday trading returns can beat those of long-term investing. This is the influence of leverage. This allows you to borrow money to capitalize on chances, to trade on margin, in other words. However, with grown profit potential also comes a greater risk of losses. Do you know that? Moreover, you will also invest more time into day trading for those returns.

Somebody would say day trading is harder because you focus on day trading one stock only. This is because interpreting the stock ticker and spotting gaps over the long term are far easier. You also don’t have to hurry to make judgments when investing. Hence, this also means intraday trading can provide a more exciting and stimulating environment.

Day trading stocks platform

The major advantage of CFDs and spread betting over traditional assets investment is the ability to “go short“. It isn’t easy to make money in a collapsing market using traditional approaches. Day traders, however, can trade regardless of whether they think the value will rise or fall.

Frankly, there is no precise answer in terms of day trading vs long-term stocks. Spotting trends and growth stocks in some ways may be more simple when long-term investing. On the other hand, intraday trading may yield you higher returns.

How to day trading stocks

The best day trading stocks can give you opportunities through price movements and opulence of shares being traded. This will provide you to enter and exit those opportunities quickly. We recognize these circumstances as volatility and volume. So, let’s break down these terms:

Volume

Volume is the total number of shares traded in a security or market during a specific period. Each transaction adds to the total volume. If, for example, in one day is made 32 transactions, the volume for that given day is 32.

How a day trader can use this in order to make his stock picks?

Volume is an indicator giving weight to a market move. If there is an unexpected spike, the strength of that movement is dependant on the volume during that time period.

In simple words, the greater the volume, the more significant the move.

How to use volume?

If you have a solid capital, you need stocks with notable volume. Well, your brokerage account will possibly provide you with a list of the top 20-25 stocks. But you would like to expand your search a little wider.

That way you can find opportunities that are below other trader’s radar. You have to find stocks with a spike in volume.

For example, a stock mostly trades 2.5 million shares per day. But you notice that it usually trades 4 million shares by 9 AM.

What does it mean? It means that you have made a good examination and you have a better opportunity.

Hence, you have to choose the platform with the diligent screener for high volume stocks.

Volatility

Volatility refers to the amount of risk/unpredictability in the size of changes in a security’s value. If there is high volatility the value could be spread over a large range of values. This means the price of the security could change dramatically in a short frame of time. It is perfect for the fast-moving day trader.

On the opposite situation, if it has low volatility, the security’s value will remain almost steady. But it will offer less opportunity for a quick profit.

How to use volatility

One way is to use the beta. The beta predicts the total volatility of a security’s returns against the returns of a relevant benchmark (normally the S&P 500).

Day trading stocks

A stock with a beta value of 1.4 has moved approximately 140% for every 100% in the benchmark.

So, a stock with a beta of just .6 has moved 60% for every 100% in the comparative index.

The way you use these parts will affect your possible profit and will depend on your strategies for day trading stocks.

Day trading platform

This is the general name for any software that helps you analyze, and make a trade. It may grant you access to all the technical analysis and indicator tools and resources you need. The best day trading platform may also identify trades and even automate or execute them in line with your strategy. No matter you’re after trading platform for beginners, or as an advanced trader. With more options than ever before, doing your research is more important than ever.

Firstly, you’ll find out exactly how these platforms work. Also, you will touch upon the platform’s demo accounts, equipment, and regional differences.

It may be difficult when you select a broker for day trading. As a trader, you want to pay several dollars per trade. That’s because you want low-cost trades. But a platform with great tools is important to you too. Therefore, you have to pay more and you are agreed with that.

Some day traders will tell you the platform design isn’t important so much. Day trading as a profession is risky business. So, it is very important to find the best trading platform.

So, we feel free to recommend 2 of plenty we tested for day trading stocks.
- Fidelity
It is a full-service broker with over 19 million retail brokerage accounts and over $2 trillion in client assets.

Fidelity charges $4.95 per stock trade, $4.95 plus $.65 per contract for options trades, and is highly regarded for its quality customer service, extensive retirement services, and all-around investment offering.

The company’s tradition of putting clients’ interests “before our own is a big part of what makes Fidelity special,” the fund firm says in its mission statement.

Streaming quotes are included as well as 48 total columns of data to choose from. Furthermore, the workflow is seamless, making it a breeze to transition into equity research or into the docked order ticket to place a trade.
More about Fidelity you can read on our Wall of Fame.
- TD AMERITRADE
The company offers an electronic trading platform for the purchase and sale of financial securities. Such as stocks, futures contracts, exchange-traded funds, options, mutual funds, and fixed income investments.

It also provides margin lending, and cash management services.

Ameritrade develops and provides innovative brokerage products and services. They are tailored to meet the varying investing and portfolio management needs of individual investors and institutional distribution partners.

Through its brokerage subsidiaries, it provides a dynamic balance of investment products and services that fit the changing needs of investors. The company’s full spectrum of services for the individual investor includes a leading active trader program.

Such as long-term investor solutions, including a national branch system. As well as relationships with one of the largest networks of independent registered investment advisors.
21st February 2019
Danske Bank Closed Branch in Estonia – Money Laundering Scandal Saga

1 min read

Danske Bank in Tallinn, Estonia

Estonia ordered Danske Bank to close its local branch within months on Tuesday.

Danish and Estonian regulators faced an EU investigation into their efforts to prevent one of the largest money laundering scandals ever.

Danske Bank’s Estonian branch was found to have helped funnel some 200 billion euros ($226 billion) in suspicious payments from Russia, ex-Soviet states and elsewhere.

According to OCCRP (Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project), Danske Bank Estonia is already implicated in other money-laundering schemes, involving billions of dollars from Azerbaijan flowing through the branch, some of which ended up in the pockets of European politicians who praised the Baku regime, a chronic human rights abuser.

Another investigation, the Russian Laundromat, revealed that US $20–80 billion was moved out of Russia through a network of global banks, including Danske.

Danske Bank Estonia is already implicated in other money-laundering schemes, involving billions of dollars from Azerbaijan flowing through the branch.

This ultimatum was made public as Danish and Estonian regulators found on Tuesday they are being investigated by the European Union’s own banking watchdog.

Laundry and run

The Danish bank is being investigated in Estonia, the US, Denmark, the UK, and France for handling billions of dollars that flowed through its Estonian branch on behalf of non-residents from Russia and other former Soviet states between 2007 and 2015.

One of the banks mentioned was the little-known Promsberbank, based near Moscow, that lost its license in 2015. Promsberbank collapsed in 2016 after it transpired that some three billion roubles had disappeared from its accounts.

One of Promsberbank’s board members was Vladimir Putin’s cousin, Igor Putin. It looks he was involved in the Russian Laundromat scheme.

The Danske Bank case focuses on money moved between 2007 and 2015. The questions about the supervision of the Danish bank were raised, prompting the EU’s executive European Commission to ask the European Banking Authority (EBA) to investigate.

The EBA’s investigation will take two months, and if it finds a breach of EU law, it can make recommendations to the two regulators to address failings.

Danske Bank is not alone

Swedish television said it had uncovered documents connecting the bank to suspicious transactions with Danske in Estonia.
And Swedbank defended its money laundering rules and controls.

Swedbank spokesman Gabriel Francke Rodau said that fighting money laundering was one of Swedbank’s highest priorities.

“We are comfortable with the systems and processes we have to prevent and avert money laundering. When we get signals, we act,” he said.

The Swedish TV (SVT) said that transactions by 50 of Swedbank’s clients should have raised red flags as they were companies with no visible operations, had unknown beneficial owners or were represented by suspected “goalkeepers”, people who only provide a front for an organization.

“The investigation covers more than 1,000 of Swedbank’s clients in high-risk countries who are known from the money laundering scandal in Danske Bank,” SVT states on its website.

The bottom line

So, as we can see, criminals don’t need bitcoin to launder money.
Traditional banks and fiat are good enough for that.

risk disclosure

20th February 2019
Gold Markets Break Out Above The Resistance

1 min read

Gold markets rallied significantly during the trading session on Tuesday. If the US dollar continues to fall, and it certainly shows itself likely to do so, the Gold markets will quite often rally by proxy. This market has a significant amount of resistance above. We are towards the top of the overall consolidated range, you have to keep in mind.

At this point, there is a lot of sounds spreading to the $1350 level. So, this is a very bullish looking candle. It would not be surprising to see some sort of pullback in this marketplace but now the $1325 is support level. It was resistance before.

If gold can break above the $1350 level, the break will become the gate opened, and the market should very promptly go towards the $1400 level.

Hence, the idea of buying pullbacks in this precious metal sounds quite good. Well, as we can see, the strong uptrend certainly looks likely to continue.

Take a look at this chart. You can see that the market just broke out above a bullish flag, and of course, have cleared a significant resistance. So look for value and you will be rewarded.

But the $1300 level underneath is a massive floor in the market. It will be difficult for this market to break down through there. If so, then the $1275 level should offer support. There’s a couple of various places where the buyers will return. Look at short-term charts, but you should get the opportunity to pick up gold cheaply fairly soon.

Maybe too many traders have rallied to buy on this level.

It would make sense that the pullback happens.

A precious metals bullion coin sales rebounded in January with the strongest monthly sales in two years. The U.S. Mint sold 65,500 troy ounces of the gold American Eagle and 4,017,500 troy ounces of the silver American Eagle in January 2019 – 12% and 24% increases respectively over the same month last year. In January 2018, investors purchased 58,500 troy ounces in gold bullion coins and 3,235,000 in silver bullion coins.

Many analysts credit the Washington Gold Agreement of 1999 as the seminal document at the heart of this precious metal secular bull market. In it the top central banks agreed to gradually curtail the sale and lease of gold reserves, two activities that kept the price rangebound for much of the 1990s. At the time, it was stuck in the $270 to $300 price range. From there, it never looked back.

Fast forward to 2011 and we begin to see central banks moving from the net seller side of the gold fundamentals ledger to become net buyers. Some analysts applauded the simple retreat from sales and leases as a major victory for gold bulls. The move to becoming net buyers was the icing on the cake. In 2018, central bank gold purchases reached their highest level in fifty years according to World Gold Council data – a profound development the machinations of which have yet to be fully digested in the marketplace.

The bottom line

The gold market fresh 10-month high could be the start of a renewed uptrend in the precious metal. Because the market has broken important resistance levels, according to some economists.

Commodity analysts have been turning more bullish on gold since last month. It came after the Federal Reserve signaled that it would pause its interest rate hike cycle for the foreseeable future.

Analysts have noted that a “patient” U.S. central bank, will keep real interest rates low and provide less of a tailwind for the U.S. dollar. Growing economic risks and the rising fear of a global recession will also keep the pressure on equity markets, economists have also said.

risk disclosure

20th February 2019
Position Trader: Know When To Go Long or Short
Position trades requires just a half of hour work per day, but profits can be great.

By Guy Avtalyon

Position trader has a long-term approach to trading. Rather than ready, set, go, it’s more like ready, set, stay for a while. It is a trading methodology that seeks to capture trends in the market.

The idea is to reach the income without getting stopped out on the retracements. Hence, it is great for traders who prefer analysis but may not have as much time to dedicate to continually watching stocks.

Here, we’ll give you some insight into the pros and cons of position trading. Including what it is, is it right for you, and how to start.

When it comes to trading, do you go long or short?

Many traders do not have the time to trade the most well-known styles such as Intraday, Day, or Swing Trading. All of these styles want more time, a higher capital base, and the ability to be trading early morning or afternoon while the market is open.

Position trading is a unique type of trading that is defined by longer holds of security. It provides an alternative that is actually more profitable with less time.

Typically position traders hold time anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, which is the resistance that will stall or reverse the trend.

But, it applies the same fundamental research methods as shorter-term trading.

Pros:
- It requires less than 30 minutes a day
- It’s fitting for those with a full-time job
- Less stress compared to swing and day trading
Cons:
- You’ll watch your winning trades turn into losing trades, often
- Your winning rate is too low. It is around 30 – 40%.
Can you accept this?
Excellent!
Let’s go further!

If you search online for position trading, you will find a decent amount of information about forex trading.

But very limited information you can find about position trading stocks.

Let’s say, the first challenge, then, is to find a definition of position trading.

Position trader definition

A position trader is a trader who holds a position, usually stocks, for the long-term. It can be from weeks to months and even years. Position traders usually use a combination of technical and fundamental analysis. That’s in order to make proper trading decisions and often do more to evaluate the companies behind the stocks.

Position trader, often known as “buy and hold” trader, takes longer-term positions usually based on long-term charts and macroeconomic circumstances. These traders work in almost every market, including stocks, ETFs, forex, and futures.
They aren’t only committed to buying. They can also hold long-term short positions making money as an asset decline in value.

Position trading benefits

Position trading is taking a position in an asset, expecting to participate in a major trend. Such traders aren’t concerned with minor price fluctuations or pullbacks. Instead, they want to capture the bulk of the trend, which can last for months or years.

The main glamour of this approach is that it doesn’t require much time. Once the fundamental research is done, and the position trader has decided how they want to trade the asset, they enter a trade and there’s little left to do. They monitor their position from time to time. But since trivial price fluctuations aren’t a concern, the position requires little oversight.

Who is a position trader

It is the opposite of the day trader. Day traders make trades each day and spend hours trading.

Swing trading is less time-intensive than day trading since trades last a couple days to several weeks. But this still expects time to monitor and find new positions each week.

Position traders usually make zero or three trades a year in assets they own. Swing traders would make a few hundred trades per year, and day traders would make hundreds to thousands of trades at the same time-frame.

Where to find trends

Support and resistance let you buy low and sell high.

An uptrend occurs only after breaking above the highs of a range. So, if you want to enter your trades before the price breaks out, you have to do so at the moment when the market is changing.

And the best place to go long is at support, the point when the market is moving.

Trends often begin with a breakout of a range or other chart pattern that had limited the price action. So, when the price breaks out of the pattern it can often trend for some time. This is especially true if the chart pattern lasted for a number of years. That indicates the price could trend for a number of years once it breaks out.

Chart patterns range, triangles, cup and handles, head and shoulders, an inverse head and shoulders, all indicate a trend could begin or re-rise.

As an investor, you want to pick a stock that will benefit you over time from a long-term trend.

The timeline isn’t a fixed and unchangeable part, you might hold a position for a week to even years.

In an aim to ensure that your investment can pay off over time as a position trader, you need to put a lot of emphasis on fundamental analysis. You have to do plenty of research about potential companies, examining press releases, earnings reports, and analyzing charts before making decisions about which stocks to trade.

But position trading is not the same as long-term investing.

When position trading you must have this approach: it’s actually the last level of trading before you called it long-term investing.

The main difference between position trading and long-term investing is that the former can be a long-term position, but depending on the trajectory of the trend, it might not be. Hence, the latter is only a long-term position.

Why use position trading

This is a simple but important fact: If you want to be a successful trader, it’s important to figure out what type of trading the best suits you.

This is usually the sum of various factors:
- The size of your account
- The amount of attention and time you can dedicate to trading
- How fast you want to grow your account
- And last but not least, of course, your risk tolerance.
Your trading experience also matters.

We wouldn’t tell anyone to jump right in and try to take advantage of pre-market trading, for example.

This is a more advanced method that requires experience and courage.

How to find position trades

There are several ways to position trading. For example, buying assets that have strong trending potential but haven’t started trending yet. Or alternatively, buying an asset that has already begun to trend.

Buying assets that have already begun to trend is a less intensive attempt. Hence, it is favored by many position traders.

Finding a trend is the main component of a position trade. This will usually eliminate any assets trading within a range.

Unless the price range is very large and crosses for many years. In such a case, it could take years for the price to move from one side of the range to the other. But this suits the position trader very well.

Is a position trader a long-term investor?

No, it’s different. Being a trader, what might attract you to try this style?

The main benefit, position trading is somewhat accessible to new traders. The speed isn’t as wild as day trading or swing trading. So you have a bit more time to draft your course of action and build a trading plan.

Position trading is less demanding on a day-to-day basis. You don’t have to watch charts on an hourly basis. All that is need is to check your investment to make certain it’s operating according to the trend you identified previously.

On a deeper level, position trading can also be more attractive in various types of markets.

For example, if there is a bull market in a scene and there are strong rising trends, it can be a good time to engage in position trading.
20th February 2019
Facebook Accused of Behaving Like ‘digital gangsters’
2 min read

UK parliamentary commission has accused Facebook to act as a ”digital gangsters”.

After 18 months, 73 witnesses, 4,350 questions, and innumerable hours of testimony, British lawmakers presented a finding on Facebook’s year. Direct from hell.

A report from this UK body has taken direct aim at Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, accusing him of “contempt.”

A UK parliamentary committee published a report on Monday, 02/18/2019, accusing Facebook of putting profit over privacy, misleading lawmakers, and being a “digital gangster” that considers itself above the law.

British politicians also said democracy was “at risk” from foreign countries trying to influence UK elections through social media ads.

The new report by British lawmakers is brutal to Facebook and it’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg. They said that Facebook “intentionally and knowingly” obstructed U.K. data privacy and anti-competition laws. And that’s why it urgently needs to be regulated and investigated.

Facebook has shown the arrogant and dishonest face.

Mark Zuckerberg refused to present himself to the committee.

To cite the report:

“Facebook seems willing neither to be regulated nor scrutinized…

Facebook intentionally and knowingly violated both data privacy and anti-competition laws …

We consider that data transfer for value is Facebook’s business model and that Mark Zuckerberg’s statement that ‘we’ve never sold anyone’s data’ is simply untrue.”

In the 108-page document, lawmakers called for the making of an independent regulator for social media sites and a mandatory code of conduct that. If someone breaches it, their suggestion is – “large fines.”

Mark Zuckerberg continually refuses to show the leadership and personal responsibility that should be expected from someone who sits at the top of one of the world’s biggest companies, says the committee.

Damian Collins, chair of the committee, said on the committee’s website: “Mark Zuckerberg continually fails to show the levels of leadership and personal responsibility that should be expected from someone who sits at the top of one of the world’s biggest companies.”

This was, however, not the only reason why British politicians accused Facebook of behaving like “digital gangsters” in the online world.

“Companies like Facebook should not be allowed to behave like ‘digital gangsters’ in the online world, considering themselves to be ahead of and beyond the law,” the report said.

“We are open to meaningful regulation and support the committee’s recommendation for electoral law reform,” Karim Palant, Facebook UK public policy manager, was quoted as saying by The Guardian.

But, something has to be noted, the problem is bigger than just one company. Google and YouTube, which are barely mentioned in the report, play almost as important a role in the dissemination of misinformation online. And they are happy to profit from it. As the information commissioner, Elizabeth Denham has warned, we are now being sold political ideas online with the same techniques that are used to sell shoes and holidays.

Buying the wrong ideas is less obvious than the pain of old-fashioned shoes. The political sale is much more easily made.

There is a paradox of the amazing effectiveness of Facebook and YouTube when it comes to the distribution of ideas.

Some people trust what they find there.

The online channels, seem to offer intimacy to their users. But this fake intimacy is, in reality, a place where people can be more manipulated than ever before. Well, the advertisers know much more about us than they could before we entered it.
But, Facebook wants you to know that it is turning. Its ads tell you so. Its PR hires tell you so.

“While we still have more to do, we are not the same company we were a year ago,” Karim Palant, U.K. public policy manager at Facebook, said.

But the report requests for significant changes to the way the UK regulates its elections and technology, including:
- Stricter rules that will force tech firms to take down illegal content on their site
- A code of ethics that defines “harmful content”
- An independent regulator to oversee enforcement of that code
- New laws around political advertising online
The UK Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright will head to the US this week to meet with the heads of major tech firms, including Zuckerberg. Wright wants to talk about dangerous content online.

risk disclosure
19th February 2019