Slowdown in US economy weighs on S&P April 30, 2012 U S STOCKS dipped yesterday, dragging the S&P 500 into its first monthly decline since November on signs the US economy may be slowing and as a recession in Spain highlighted risks in the Eurozone. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 0.11 per cent to 13,213.63. The S&P 500 Index fell 0.39 per cent to [...]
FTSE dips in April as euro debts sap confidence April 30, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index snapped a four-session winning streak yesterday and ended lower for the month of April, with Man Group and SSE falling on earnings worries as Europe’s debt crisis rumbles on. The FTSE closed off 39.33 points, or 0.7 per cent lower at 5,737.78, and ended April down 0.5 per cent as concerns [...]
Helicopter Ben remains unafraid to press print April 30, 2012 THE question of whether we will see another round of quantitative easing (QE) from the US is one that is constantly being asked, especially after bad data, such as yesterday’s surprising ISM-Chicago manufacturing figures for April – showing the weakest growth rate in 29 months. Another massive pump of cheap cash into the US economy [...]
THE TIPSTER April 30, 2012 Rolls Royce has steadily gained ground since 2009, even in an era of reduced defence expenditure. Its shares had a quiet 2011 until October, when they began making impressive progress, up almost 40 per cent to date. Increasing orders make its shares a more compelling possibility, even if they reside near all-time highs. IG Index [...]
LOW PROFITS MAKE AMAZON A GAMBLE WORTH AVOIDING April 30, 2012 INVESTORS often make the mistake of confusing a great product with a great investment idea. The latest stock to benefit from such a misperception is Amazon. The company’s shares skyrocketed by more than 15 per cent, after its earnings release last Thursday, despite the fact that it barely makes any money. Don’t get me wrong. [...]
Four weeks to go: Buy your ticket for City A.M.’s trading conference April 30, 2012 Q What is your trading background? A In 1992, I started in the Goldman Sachs graduate training program in New York, where I learned to trade NYSE and Nasdaq listed shares. I also spent time on the famous Risk Arbitrage trading desk. After that I traded UK and European shares, both for clients as well [...]
The facts behind trading indices April 30, 2012 AFTER trading individual equities, retail traders are usually inclined to dabble in trading their indices. So what is an equity index, how are they priced and what are they actually trading? An equity index is a benchmark value of a basket of stocks. Each index will clearly define what its constituents are and how it [...]
Analyst picks for 30 April 2012 April 30, 2012 CURRENCY STRATEGIST JOEL KRUGER My pick: Looking to sell euro-dollar Expertise: Technical analysis Average time frame of trades: 1 day to 1 week A closer look at the $1.3300 level shows a confluence of resistance, including the psychological barrier, some falling trend-line resistance off of the February 2012 peak, the upper Bollinger Band, and an [...]
The legitimacy of technical analysis is beyond dispute April 30, 2012 Traders are looking at what makes money and what doesn’t THE debate on whether technical analysis is hocus-pocus or not has been replaced with the question: Which type of technical analysis do you employ in your trading? Central to technical analysis is the assumption that the price of a stock already trades at a level [...]
MARKETS STRUGGLE TO FIND THE ENERGY TO RISE HIGHER April 30, 2012 CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST AS APRIL gives way to May, markets are struggling to find the necessary enthusiasm to push much higher. Unlike last week, when we had plenty of things to worry about in the Eurozone, this week seems to be far less exciting, at least for the moment. The Eurozone crisis continues to boil [...]