Larry Levin's Blog – February 2013 Archive (6)

Presidential Ponzi

ponzi

With the markets closed for the President’s day, American took time off and paused to honor this iconic office. While many of us have grown disenchanted with the current state of affairs, our presidents have a rich and storied history.

From national icons to Carl Ichan, the only real market news on Friday was this battle with William Ackman over Herbalife,  cause there’s nothing like a couple of Wall Street tycoons getting in a…

Secret Trading Tip #20

Understanding Candlestick Patterns – Harami

I've already covered some of the better known patterns like doji (Tip #18) and engulfing (Tip#19) – now it's time to add harami to your candlestick chart pattern arsenal. Let's take a look at what this technical signal looks like, and what opportunities might be presenting themselves when you see it.

Harami patterns can be bearish or bullish

Harami, like engulfing patterns, are…

Secret Trading Tip #8

Avoiding Mental Sabotage

I have heard that 95% or more of all traders ultimately fail.

Have you ever wondered why?

Most traders will tell you it was the system or method they were using. They'll also tell you they had a few bad trades they couldn't recover from. Or their dog chewed through the telephone cord just as their computer crashed, and they couldn't get out of a losing trade.

Everyone has a different…

Secret Trading Tip #14

Getting Technical

If you know your way around a price chart (Tip#5) then you are ready to learn a little more about technical analysis. This kind of analysis is defined as an attempt to try to forecast price movements based on patterns observed in price changes on charts, or other changes that are not rooted in fundamental observations.

For technical analysts the key to observing the market lies in signals and…

Super Bets

Over 150 million people watched the super bowl last night and we can only guess how many people had wagers on everything from the final score of the game to whether or not Alicia Keys was lip synching during the national anthem.

Superbowl Sunday is a fabulous time to be an odds maker as they will make money no matter who wins. But what if they booked bets on the market? Even with the benefit of hindsight, it may be not be such a great proposition.

Think…

Secret Trading Tip #5

Knowing your way around a chart

For most traders, charts are like their road maps to potential trades. Technicians see potential patterns, key clues that they interpret for trading opportunities. Fundamentalists see confirmation of news stories or supply and demand dynamics playing out in the price fluctuations. Charts are indispensible to traders

Understanding what a chart is telling you is paramount for traders

We are going to…