The New Year is finally here, and we are anticipating the market to make an exciting New Year’s resolution that will benefit traders. While volatility lacked in 2016, we expect the market to change it’s ways, and be more volatile 2017. The key driver for volatility revolves around the uncertainty of Trump’s economic policies. With […]
30
Dec
Dec
Let’s face the facts— The news has been notoriously wrong about a lot of things this year. From Brexit to this U.S election, the mainstream media can’t seem to get it right. If there is one thing we learned this year, it is that the market listens to no one. For one, Brexit was completely […]
19
Dec
Dec
Statistical Arbitrage is a pairs or spread trading strategy, predominately used by hedge funds, investment banks, and professional traders. The strategy involves tracking the difference in notional value between two highly correlated instruments, like Silver and Gold futures, or the NoB spread, which is a trade between the 10 year and 30 year treasury futures […]
14
Dec
Dec
After ten years, the Federal Reserve is finally making moves to tighten the belt on monetary policy. The question is, did they wait too long? In the beginning of the year, the Fed raised interest rates for the first time in a decade and the results were less than desirable. With the market dropping nearly 10%, […]
12
Dec
Dec
A fed rate hike this Wednesday is imminent, but will the markets flinch? Interest rates have gone in one direction since the last market crash, and that is down. It was not until the beginning of this year, that the fed made its first rate hike in 10 years, resulting in a mini flash crash [...]
12
Dec
Dec
When the stock market is closed, and you have a position in a stock, your hands are tied. If an opportunity arises outside of market hours, you can't take advantage of it, and worse, if you have to exit a position, you can't until the market opens the next day. But in the world of [...]
11
Dec
Dec
Have you ever been locked out of trading because of a trading violation? Maybe your broker claimed you were a patterned day trader? Or have you missed an opportunity due to short selling restrictions? Perhaps shares weren't available to short? This happens a lot with small priced stocks, but can even happen with big stocks [...]
10
Dec
Dec
I was trying to explain leverage using futures to my wife. I used terms like Notional and Big Point Multiplier. She didn’t get it. She asked me, where did you come up with this phantom number, and what does notional mean, what’s a multiplier? And she went on and on, finally I said ok, OK […]
29
Nov
Nov
A futures contract has an expiration, and upon expiration there are costs and obligations associated with the settlement of the contract. The contract is settled one of two ways, either physical settlement or cash settlement. If you are a hedger, or your business deals in the physical asset, then you probably would choose physical settlement, […]
28
Nov
Nov
Treasury futures are standardized futures contracts used to purchase US government notes and bonds for future delivery. When you acquire a treasury future, you are not obligated to take delivery unless you hold the futures contract through expiration. Only a hedger would do that. I’m assuming you are a speculator, not a hedger, that’s looking […]