Investment Articles

In today’s tough economic climate, people are looking for ways to get back some of their wealth that they lost over the last few years. Most conventional markets did not perform as well as they have in the past, which caused investors to lose a large sum of money. If more people would have invested in alternative markets, they would have been better prepared to weather the economic storm and would not have lost as much of their money as they did.

Outperform Traditional Markets

One of the best ways investing in alternative markets can help grow your portfolio is that these markets typically outperform conventional markets during bear markets. When every other investment opportunity is struggling to show a profit, alternative markets can be providing terrific ROI figures. It is because of this ability to return a positive ROI, even in a down economy, that every investor should add alternatives to their stock portfolio.

Independent of Other Markets

Another great reason for investing in alternative markets is to diversify your portfolio. All of the traditional markets such as cash, stocks, and bonds are intertwined and dependent on each other. When one of those markets starts to perform poorly, the others will tend to follow. If you had all of your money tied up in these traditional markets, you could potentially lose a large portion of your wealth whenever one of those markets started to perform poorly.

On the other hand, alternatives are not correlated to the traditional markets and therefore are not subject to their influence. If the traditional markets start to tank, alternative markets can still thrive. This will allow you to continue to see your investment portfolio grow even when traditional markets are tanking. Not putting all of your investment eggs in one basket is the only way to ensure you do not lose all of your wealth at one time.

Investing in alternatives is also a great way to take advantage of emerging markets. Most investors focus a large portion of their time and efforts into the traditional markets. Since these investors are not on the lookout for new markets to get involved with, you are able to take advantage of these new investment opportunities and get in on the ground floor. This could help you realize a tremendous return on your investment should you discover a highly profitable alternative market.

Developing a sound investment strategy is vital to your future financial independence. If you stick all of your investment eggs in one basket, you run the risk of losing all of your wealth when one of the traditional markets collapses. However, if you spread your investments around to include alternative markets, your chances of going broke are greatly reduced.

If you do not know which alternative markets you should invest in, consider seeking the advice of a company such as Altegris. This type of company can help invest your money wisely in alternative markets.

“The Crash is over,” says Mark Zandi, the Chief economist for Moody’s Analytics. With a recovering US Housing Market, now is the best time to invest in USA property. The only thing you have to decide is where to buy. Read on for info on the Top 5 USA Property markets…

1. TEXAS- Hands down the number 1 place to buy property in this economy with a 11.5% estimated profit increase according to the ROI. “Texas Real Estate defies US property market” says Texas Real Estate Magazine. The rise in property prices means an increase in returns and value for your investment. Finding reliable tenants for your property is also extremely important. It is a good thing that Austin is a job creating machine that expects to have created more than 810,000 new jobs by the end of 2012. Unemployment is also expected to drop from 7.1 percent in 2010 down to 5.8% by the end of the year. The bottom line is that buying USA property in Texas will give you ample returns and tenant security.

2. FLORIDA- All the recent speculation about the USA property market has thrown the media into a frenzy. However, when it comes to the Florida market, everyone seems to agree. Zillow and Florida Relators are reporting an upward shift in prices across the state. The numbers show that single family home sales are up 30%! The increase in sales is a good sign that prices will begin to rise steadily for 2012. This prediction is supported by the Federal Reserve’s report on an increase in borrowers wanting prime residential mortgages. Banks are expected to start issuing more loans over the course of 2012.

3. ATLANTA- This place has the total package for USA property investment. For the past decade, Atlanta has seen some of the largest population increases in history. A growing city certainly means a growing economy and a decrease in unemployment. Still, prices are extremely low due to the large number of foreclosures. At the same time, rent hasn’t seen the same decreases most other cities in the USA. A strong demand for renters means that you won’t have problems finding quality tenants!

4. TENNESSEE- Memphis and other cities in Tennessee faced hard times during the housing crisis. Right now, prices are extremely low because of the large number of foreclosures. Have you ever heard the expression “Buy low, sell high?” Property prices in Memphis are expected to rise steadily over the course of the next decade, making it a hot spot for potential USA property investors.

5. OKLAHOMA- The best thing you can do is stay away from the West Coast. Places like California, Nevada, and Arizona are bust markets. Instead, look at middle states with strong economic fundamentals. Oklahoma City has a reliable economy and steadily increasing housing market. Sometimes, the safe play is also the best!

I am an Investment Adviser for U.S Invest, a company that specializes in US property investment for Australians. We help you purchase exclusive properties with the best possible returns and the lowest amount of risk. Get more free information at http://www.usinvest.com.au/free-gift/. Contact me at usinv.team@yahoo.com

Prior to 2008 the Federal Government remained diligent upon separation of private business and fiscal policy. All of that changed in September of 2008. The initial federal stimulus of Wall Street was sparked by plummeting Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs). Yes, we have all heard the news. However, there is still an inherent misunderstanding of the trillions of dollars of stimulus that followed.

After the initial bailout of Wall Street that exceeded $800 billion; the Federal Reserve, led by Bernanke, remained vigilant to ensure that a financial crisis would not be repeated again in an attempt to prevent another financial collapse on US soil. This “federal assistance” still continues today, and there is still no end in sight.

The first step of the Fed’s vigilance (after the initial Federal Stimulus) was to enact Quantitative Easement I (QEI). On 11/24/2008, Bernanke announced additional Federal stimulation that was to start on 01/01/2009 in order to help ensure that another financial crisis would not cripple the US banking system. The Fed promised to purchase $500 billion in Mortgage bonds to act as a foundation of a volatile market. On 03/18/2009, the Federal Government extended the initial $500 billion to an additional $1.2 trillion. The added stimulus purchased another $750 billion of mortgage backed securities and an additional $300 billion in long – term Treasury securities over the next 6 months. The total estimated Government funds for QE I came to $1.8 trillion. This extension of Federal funds caused our 30 year fixed mortgage to fall to 4.78%, the lowest rate on record since the mortgage interest rates were tracked in the early 1970s.

The market rallied quite considerably after QE1. During this time several talking heads were praising the Federal stimulus, saying that the recession had finally come to an end. It was to no surprise that many of these same talking heads were the same ones who went on record reassuring the strength of the US economy right before the initial Federal stimulus of 2008.

However, just as with any short term solution, the market would eventually start to fall again throughout 2010. When the artificial foundation of QE1 starting crumbling; all market indexes fell, which caused the Fed to act again on 11/03/2010. In the latter part of 2010, Bernanke announced the second round of Quantitative Easement known as QEII. QEII was a promise from the Fed to purchase $600 billion in long – term treasuries over the span of the next 8 months.
Ironically, this Federal stimulus expired just a couple of months before the debt ceiling had to be raised again in August of 2011. As anticipated, extreme volatility took center stage and the realization of our nations spending came into the spotlight. Many financial professionals today argue that the volatility brought on by the raising the debt ceiling offset the need for QEII, causing wasted Federal spending.

Because of the volatility of raising the debt ceiling, the Fed acted on a new program of spending known as Operation Twist. On September 21st, 2011 the Federal Reserve announced a plan to sell $400 billion of Treasury securities with a maturity of less than 3 years old in order to purchase the same amount of longer – term Treasuries having a maturity range from 6 to 30 years. The buying and selling of these Treasuries are to extend through June of 2012. The purpose of this Federal intervention was to help keep interest rates low, as the Fed promised through 2014.

Earlier in May of 2012 the Dow Jones Industrial Average was above the 13,000 mark, and disappointing data reflecting jobs data and a faltering Euro is causing volatility in the market again. Many argue that the market has been propped up by the Fed’s printing press ready to intervene with QEIII at a moment’s notice.

Make no mistake about it, this trend is very likely to continue for the next several years; causing excessive drops and gains in the market to become the norm. Volatility has been prevalent over the last decade because of a securities and banking industry that revolves around a business philosophy of leveraging assets. By the end of this year the total tally of the Federal Spending could exceed $5 trillion dollars, especially of QEIII becomes a reality. Bottom line, the end of this correction is nowhere in sight and our mounting debt proves it.

However, there are ways to protect your money from these unprecedented times. Through annual reset, core concepts of non leveraged assets can offer financial guarantees. Interest crediting methods known as indexing will allow for moderate returns to be locked in without a threat of volatility. Investors are embracing this philosophy of financial protection regardless of the Fed’s short term solutions of Federal stimulus.

One of the things that you really need to think about before you even decide to put your money in a financial vehicle on the way to fiscal independence and early retirement is the risk tolerance that you are going to have. What does that mean? Well, simply put, you need to be absolutely comfortable with the amount of money that you are going to invest. That may sound easy enough but you are not going to believe how many people fall prey to the notion that they are going to have to put more money than they want into a prospect.

The concept seems simple enough: who dares wins. If you want to gain substantial returns, you must be ready to make substantial sacrifices. You really do not expect to make a dollar from pinching pennies, right? You must be ready to part with a lot of money for a longer amount of time – you do not make a fortune overnight and you must resist the temptation to buy out of your investment. People miss the fact that the moment you decide to buy out, that is the end of the road for you and it would be hard for you to recover if you already made a mistake in pulling out far too quickly.

You need to be really at ease with the money you are going to put into a stock or a bond or whatever it is that you are going to use as your way out of the job market and into the round the world cruise that you have always wanted. If you can’t sleep soundly with the amount, then it might be a good idea to reconsider. You definitely want to spend your earnings on things of pleasure and leisure, not to cure the medical bills that you have accumulated in the process of your stressing about the initial sum.

Of course, some people can’t help but to be bothered about it. Of course, naturally you would assume that the people who are younger can stand to lose more than the older people because of the fact that their youth allows them an opportunity to bounce back from a loss, something that old people might not have, and that is indeed how it goes. Of course, at the end of the day, it all comes down to how much you want to win and what you are prepared to lose to get it.

This is one of the better sites that you can visit if you want to know more about risk tolerance, among other topics, of course.

Cerium, for example, is the 25th most abundant element at 68 parts per million, very similar to copper in fact. What gives them the name Rare Earth Elements is a result of their dispersal in the earth’s crust. REE are typically widely dispersed and rarely found in concentrated and economically viable mining concentrates. Hence it was this apparent scarcity that gave them the name rare earths.

The first such mineral to be discovered was gadolinite. This is a compound of cerium, yttrium, iron, silicon and other elements. This mineral was first extracted from a mine in the village of Ytterby in Sweden and many of the rare earth elements bear names derived from their location.

Modern mining techniques and the big demand for the Rare Earth Elements in the electronic industry has now made it much more economically viable to mine. The important Rare Earths are:

Lanthanum Oxide

Cerium Oxide

Neodymium Oxide

Praseodymium Oxide

Samarium Oxide

Dysprosium Oxide

Europium Oxide

Terbium Oxide

China was quick to grasp the importance of many of these metals back in the 90’s when it out-priced global competition, causing massive mining / refining closures in developed Western nations.

They understood early that the advancement of technology was not only dependent on typical base elements, but rather on rare metals which can maintain higher durability ratings.

Today, China control over 95% of the world’s and are firmly set on keeping the status quo. Over the last year, they’ve had a slash fest. In 2010 they cut a whopping 72% of their RIM export quotas for the last part of the year. In December, they again whittled 35% off the quota for the first half of this year. Some analysts believe that China will completely shut out the world by 2014 in order to secure their own demand and manufacturing dominance. Obviously this is creating somewhat of an international crisis. Nations with technology backbones are currently taking heed and hedging themselves with alternative suppliers – and they’re limited.

Only recently, The Korea Times reported that their Ministry of Knowledge and Finance is slated to add Indium to its critical substances list because the nations’ heavy hitters like Samsung and LG, are dangerously dependent on the element. Rare metals are one of the most important basic necessities for all of the world’s industries. For example, German industry, is one of the top exporters of cars, medical equipment and many other products, is acutely aware of the increasing prices and limited, diminishing, supply of these high demand rare industrial metals.

One of the major influences affecting the demand and supply of these rare metals is the booming Chinese local and export market. It is well known that China has signed many mining contracts with countries in Asia, South America and Africa in order to maintain and control access to these high demand metals.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the President of the Federation of German Industry forecast that the demand for these rare metals and their prices will continue to rise due to the economic growth of the BRIC countries: (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). The BRIC’s need a huge amount of these rare industrial metals for the construction of their infrastructure and industry.

China alone is one of the biggest consumers of rare industrial metals. According to assessments by experts, China will need about one quarter of all the rare industrial metals available globally for its future economic growth and will need to import these metals by 2013.

Due to the fact that the exploitation of new deposits can take many years, mining enterprises are unable to increase their supply in the short run. The shortage of supply, bottlenecks and the current upheavals in global financial markets will help boost rare industrial metal prices for the foreseeable future.

For further information go to Rare Earths Investment

Permission to use this article is granted provided the link to Swiss Metal Assets is included.

Michael Moore http://www.swissmetalassets.com/michael-moore

A lot of people don’t seem to comprehend that, despite how much work owning and running a farm can be, farming investments have some of the greatest return out of any industry in the country. Farmland offers, and has offered in the past, stable returns for any investor looking to support the industry. In New Zealand, agriculture contributed two thirds of exported goods between 2006 and 2007. The sector is mainly comprised of pastoral farming for beef cattle, sheep, dairy and other livestock, but land being developed for horticultural use is definitely increasing.

Farm investment offers a lot of benefits for anybody looking for something with a quality return. As such a big part of the economy in the country, there is not a lot of risk through well placed funds. New Zealand also supports free trade in agricultural goods. While other countries have to offer government subsidies to keep their sectors afloat, New Zealand has one of the most deregulated farming industries in the world. Because government subsidies were removed in the mid 1980s, the country’s farming industry had to develop new techniques and technologies in order to increase efficiency in operations.

Sheep are iconic in New Zealand because of the animal’s heavy farming. Close to 1 billion NZD worth of wool is exported yearly as well as over 2 billion NZD of lamb and mutton. Other farmed livestock garners impressive figures as well. Over 1.5 billion NZD in beef and veal is exported yearly. As the demand for New Zealand product grows because of its high quality, so does the number exported.

One of the latest growing aspects of New Zealand livestock farming is deer farming. In the past thirty years, the country has gone from having a small herd of 150,000 animals to over 1.5 million. This growth has pushed the country to be the number one exporter of farmed venison in the world. As deer are a pest and have a negative impact on the country’s biodiversity, their farming began after live deer recovery operations in the mid 1980s removed them from areas they were becoming a nuisance.

With such a booming industry, it makes sense to make your investment an agricultural one. With stable returns and high appreciation due to the limited amount of farmland available worldwide, it is only going to grow bigger and better. Whether you are looking for a change of lifestyle or just an opportunity to silently finance one, farming in New Zealand is a great choice for you.

Find out more about Waibury Investment Farms here.

The art of bonsai has been cultivated over 500 years since the Japanese borrowed the idea of growing trees in small pots from the Chinese. Where the Chinese simply saw this as somewhat of a scientific practice of collecting very old trees the Japanese saw something in its beauty and the ability of a craftsman to emulate a tiny version of a tree, scrub or vine. One such variety is Bonsai Ginseng, a fig plant native of Taiwan and now common in many households around the world as a bonsai plant.

In recent times bonsai has spread around the world and has picked up admirers from Tokyo to Melbourne, Osaka to New York. With as many as 800 varieties a green thumb or bonsai enthusiast is unlikely to get bored with choice. In addition they may indeed become a worthy investment with regular sales of bonsai reaching 20 to 30 thousand Australian dollars and one as high as 1.2 million Australian dollars last year. It was a very large but stunning five needle pine which sold in a private auction in Japan.

So when choosing a bonsai be it of the bonsai ginseng variety or any other, a couple of things hold true; craftsmanship and character including the ability to look at the plant in wonder are something that a true bonsai grand master will adjudicate on. A great bonsai will draw the attention of the viewer and would almost trick them into thinking that this small bonsai is a tree worthy of a mountain top. Many would also believe that a bonsai has a height limit, but this is not the case, with the plant which sold in Japan recently for 1.2 million Australian dollars close to 300 years old and very large.

To get a good feeling of the kind of bonsai to invest in one should view many bonsai pictures and become familiar with one variety be it bonsai ginseng or any other. Having a good understanding of the way a certain variety should be pruned and how it should look will go a long way in providing the investor with the best chance of achieving a positive result. When a variety is finally chosen, be sure to check the plant for damage and the roots for rot. A good trick to checking the roots are healthy is by pushing a finger into the soil, if the roots are slimy there may be some issues with the plant. Other than that, good luck.

Please visit my website http://www.bonsaiginseng.net for further interesting articles on bonsai ginseng and bonsai in general.

If you have remembered 2008-2009, that may be the worst financial year we have ever faced since Singapore became independent in 1965. With the credit crisis in US then unveiling its dark closet, the Dow Jones Industrial fell approximately 54% from its high of 14,164 in October 2007 to finally hit bottom on March 9 at 6,440. The truth is – the Final Impact of that tsunami is yet to hit us and it’s on its way now.

Now in 2012, major economies like the US and Europe are slowing. Retail sales in US and Europe are running at their lowest pace in five months, and US and Europe corporations ended 2011 with their slowest profit growth in two years. 2011 was the worst year for new home sales in the US since 1963 and housing prices are set to fall again in 2012. Yet, people are lured back to the stock market, thinking that things will be fine and controlled as portrayed in the main media. When this final wave of tsunami come, even Singapore may have to retest its Straits Times Index low of 1513 in Mar 2009.

Backdrop of US

With the US budget deficit at US$ 1.3 trillion, the official US national debt exceeds US$15 trillion. President Obama just got approval to increase the US debt to US$16.4 trillion in 2012. With all these in mind, the US unofficial national debt could be close to US$100 Trillion if we take into account unfunded liabilities and entitlements in US. If US is running like a corporation today, it is already technically Bankrupt. US as a leading economy and empire, is history.

Backdrop of Europe

When Greece announced to the world that they are in trouble of defaulting their national debt, the euro zone leaders said that they would bail out Greece in 27 October 2011. However, by 20 February 2012, the Euro zone finance ministers agreed to a second bailout for Greece. Greece has technically already defaulted on its debt, with Spain and Italy not far behind. Having said that, Germany is the only real foundation of the European economy. Will Germany get tired of bailing out its poorer and mismanaged European counter-party one day and each country just go back to its own currency? If that happens, Euro will die and so do the weaker European countries like Greece, Spain Italy and Portugal.

Current Scenario

Have you heard of the Great Depression? If not, quoting from Wikipedia, “The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s. It was the longest, most widespread, and deepest depression of the 20th century.” Why am I mentioning about the Great Depression? Do you know that there is a great similarity between the years 1934-1937 and 2009-2011?

Let us re-examine these two scenarios

The stock market crash in 2008 is similar to the crash in 1929 crash which eventually led to the great depression. After the crash in 1929, there is a bear market rally that started in 1934 which lasted until 1937 and it took the Dow Jones from a level of 90 to 185, a positive gain of 106%. The Dow Jones then collapsed and did not recover till seven years later, 1944. If you look at this past trend, isn’t the bear market rally from 2009-2011 similar to that of the bear rally back in 1934-1937? I hope I’m wrong but if I’m right, we are heading into some serious financial tsunami that will ultimately bring the current US stock index below March 2009 low (6,440). If this happens, Singapore may also retest its STI low of 1,513 occurred on March 2009.

Gold Investment

With losing faith in currencies and stocks, the only way for gold is to move up. The correction within the year should not be taken as a bear, rather than as a correction. Looking at the situation today, I expect the gold price to hit 3,200 before the gold rally is over in approximately 3-5 years time. It is to be noted that for 11 years, the price of gold has closed each year higher in price than it started the year. I have previously written an article on gold investment back in 2009 and if you will like to have a look, it’s under my Ezine articles

My two cents worth of advice

Ensure that you have enough liquidity to ride out this coming rough financial tsunami which may last several long years from 2012-2018.
Ensure that you have minimum financial liability moving forwards by not borrowing unnecessarily.
Ensure that you have enough insurance coverage to pay off hefty hospital and medical bills when jobs and income are tighten during this period.
Ensure that you stay out of stock market and exit now for any gain that you have made currently. Do not be greedy. However, there are a few categories of stocks that you can hold and make money when the tsunami come..Put on your thinking hat…I shall reveal one in part 6 below.
Ensure that if you hold on to any investment portfolio, they are continuously rebalanced with at least 50% Bonds in Asia.
Ensure that you diversify your investment by buying into gold or gold mining companies as gold price continues to rise.
Ensure that you dispose any US$ or Euro as they will continue to depreciate in value as outline in my discussion above.

A Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Financial Practitioner (FChFP), Registered Financial Consultant (IARFC) and a member of the Insurance and Financial Practitioners Association of Singapore (IFPAS), Philip has demonstrated a high standard of professionalism in the Finance and Insurance related industries throughout his career.

To boost your financial knowledge with Wealth Mastery, go to: http://www.PhilipChua.com/MWMSU.html.

In recent years, many investors have started to realize that the investments that were previously viewed as safe may not be as safe as they thought. Traditional forms of investment such as the stock and bond markets don’t provide the same kind of safety that many people think. Because of this, many investors are starting to look for alternative investment options that can provide superior returns without taking on much more risk. For these types of investors, there are plenty of other alternative investment options to consider.

Precious Metals

One way that individuals can stay ahead of inflation is to put their money into precious metals. For those who want to invest in precious metals, there are plenty of options to consider. Investors can put money directly into precious metals like gold, silver or palladium. They also have the option of investing in precious metal certificates. These certificates provide investors with a certificate that shows they own a certain amount of precious metals in a secured storage facility. Investors can also invest in funds that focus on precious metals as their primary underlying asset. Precious metals mutual funds and exchange-traded funds are two similar options that allow investors to speculate on the values of these assets. Investors could also put money into mining company stocks, whose profits are based on the value of the metals that they mine.

Currencies

Another form of alternative investment that some choose to participate in is currency investing. Trading currencies is a discipline that takes advantage of the changes in the exchange rate between multiple currencies. This type of investment is done with the help of Forex brokers who make it possible for their customers to trade currencies. This is a high-risk type of investment, but it can be very lucrative if done correctly.

Assets

Some investors are turning to other physical assets for their investment needs. By purchasing physical assets, the investors know that they’ll always have something of value. With securities like stocks or bonds, this isn’t always the case. Some examples of assets that investors put their money into are antiques, baseball cards, stamps, race horses and real estate. All of these things have the potential to increase in value over time.

Regardless of what an investor puts his money into, it is important to keep a diversified portfolio. This helps reduce the risk of some of the alternative investments which are chosen.

Learn more Here

Sports fans always want the score. The score tells fans which team is the winner and which team is the loser. The score settles the contest and provides a clear sense of finality. For ES emini futures day traders, the closing bell determines if you were the winner or loser for that particular day and just like the score in a sports contest, the closing bell gives the day trader finality. In any sporting event there will be examination and evaluation after a contest has been determined and added to the record. Botched plays and successful strategies will be scrutinized and analyzed through the processes of examination and evaluation to improve results next time. So it should be for the futures day trader or any trader employing short-term trading tactics to take profits from the markets. Through examination and evaluation of daily trading results we can uncover deficiencies in our trading skills, money management model and general approach to trading the markets which in turn will lead to improvement if examination and evaluation are done correctly.

Mirror, Mirror On The Wall…

The fact that 90 percent of all people attempting to day trade the markets will fail has been discussed ad nauseam, you know why? It’s true! Most will fail for one glaring reason and it has nothing to do with their trading platform, broker or surprisingly enough, the financial markets. No, none of these are the reasons for failure. The reason is as simple as looking in the mirror. If you are failing as a ES emini futures trader, the reflection in the mirror is the source of your failures. This does not mean however, that a successful trader is not somewhere to be found in the mirror. On the contrary, a successful trader can emerge from within if they are honest and accept things as they truly are and use the processes of self-examination and self-evaluation honestly.

Are You Hearing Voices?

All struggling emini day traders hear voices in their head. With that statement I don’t mean its time to call the guys in white uniforms to cart off all struggling ES futures traders and place them in straight jackets to begin a regiment of shock therapy and Thorazine injections. The voices in their head we are speaking of are the emotional ups and downs of inexperienced traders which manifest in the forms of fear, greed, self-doubt, indecision and the worry of impending trading account destruction. All inexperienced traders hear their inner voice warning them of looming disaster and the voice becomes louder and more frequent with each losing trade. Through examination and evaluation the voices will eventually silenced as new emini traders learn to become more disciplined, grow in confidence and commit to learning how to improve their trading.

You Will Fail and Success Will Be The Result

How can failure equate to success? Every trader has failures. Even the best traders on the planet have failures when trading ES futures with the difference between a successful trader and an unsuccessful trader being how they manage their failures and overcome them. Bad and broken trades are part of trading – it is simply a part of the equation and unavoidable. Professional traders know they will have losing trades but have the tools in place to minimize the effects of losing trades. They adhere to the rules of their trading system and obey their stops every time one is reached without exception. Stubbornness and an unyielding will in an effort to always be right have no place in trading for short- term profits. Take the loss and get out of the market when your system tells you its time or the loss can and will turn into a larger loss that will be difficult to overcome. Make sure all losses are small. Strive to end the day with a profit everyday, no matter how small. If you are trading multiple contracts, scale out on winning trades and lock in profits by closing one position and let the remaining contract(s) add to your profit. Let winning trades run.

Set goals which are achievable in the beginning and within reason to match your skill level and confidence. Shoot for 1 point a day and stop trading for the day once you gain it and mark it down as a success. Bask in the glow of your success that day, enjoy the feeling of following your trading plan and let your confidence grow as you learn to capture one point each day. Of course there will be days the market will not present opportunity and losing days will happen. On these days you will follow the rules of your trading plan as you do on winning days and adhere to your stop and close the trade quickly once your stop is reached, no exceptions. If the market offers another opportunity, try again but never force a trade to make up for a prior loss. This will only lead to larger losses and is the sign of an inexperienced and undisciplined trader.

Examine and Evaluate

Examine your trading results after the closing bell each day. Determine why you made each trade and note the time of day. Was the market trending? Was the trade a bounce play off strong support? A reversal? Did you short the market in over-bought conditions in anticipation of a pullback? Was the trade taken during the morning, mid-day or afternoon session? How many contracts were traded? Did you obey your stop-loss? Examine all aspects of the trade and make notes. Over time you can evaluate the data and determine where mistakes are being made and take corrective action as patterns emerge. As your skill and confidence grows through the process of examination and evaluation, you will find the score each day more times than not, in finality, to be in your favor.

Join us for our weekly Emini Trading Show – FREE! We discuss the index futures market while helping new traders understand the dynamics of trading the ES Emini Futures. We use traditional day trading methods and strategies to capture short term gains from the market, discussing in detail each method. Sign Up to catch the next show at http://trader.eminiprofits.info/