Project

How to trade financial instruments?

Related links		Project home	What market?	Data services	Charts and data	my data-chart project
Related links		International standards	Some financial terms	Other papers	Data babble

preamble

I have been following the financial markets for a while, using different tools, only to discover that all are more or less biases.
In my opinion, biased because most writers conceive a program that fits their needs.
I have to agree with them, I reached a state where I have to design something to fit mine.

The purpose of my project will primarily be based on:

earn money on the financial markets
meaning that I will have to analyze tradeable instruments,
determine possible strategies,
determine trading positions,
evaluate risks,
determine which sources can provide the needed informations,
evaluate the need of real-time fee services vs. less time sensitive information which can be retrieved for free,
price the time spent in collating free information in terms of time lost in opportunities
evaluate the need of maintaining my own database, the size of it, the cost of it: obviously any service will never provide WYWWYW - What YOU wish, whenever YOU want.

temporary structure of the project

Define the universe of financial instruments

Overview
Data babble - What is behind not so evident basic information.

Overview of available services

data services
data and chart services
tradestations
other sources, examples of not so delayed and delayed data

Ways to select an instrument

monies and economies rotate:
time cycles - cycles vs. waves, long waves vs. short waves, the "inventory cycle"
industry/sectors cycles - cyclical, non-cyclical, base materials, energy, interests,...
drill-down approach, from trading universe to instrument
screening approach, spot opportunities based on criteria
are there short-cuts?

Can we automate trades?

trading is a competition
ways to step back from the major fights
the broker

What do I really need in final to trade, what and when, by how much?

which instruments can I trade?
what do I need to be informed?
charts anyone?

Once I can make a decision, all I have to do is to trade.
This means that I will have to manage my capital, weight risk/rewards, analyze costs and profits, manage my taxes (long term gains vs. short term), .... which are covered on other sites.

Reference material:

References - International standards relevant to the financial markets.
Finance babble - Some definitions.

Work in progress. I currently favour content over fancy layout.