rather than pick out individual stocks to trade, it can often be worthwhile to trade the indices themselves, especially in times of high volatility.

for those so inclined, i attach below charts for FTSE and FTSE 250, though one might equally be tempted to trade Dow or S&P, which is significantly broader in its coverage, or even NASDAQ

for ease of reading, i have attached 1 year and 3 month charts in each instance

Shortie - as posted previously, I'm still net short on the FTSE and have tried (unsuccessfully) to add Thursday and Friday by limit.

I've had a couple of 20+ point shorts closed in the high 6000's.

I've also been scaling back in the building sector - so that at least should continue upwards!

I've never really invested into the building sector, had a punt on Galliford Try some time ago but have always preferred the likes of Redefine, Segro and buy to let Paragon over the likes of Balfour, Taylor etc. Inland has been on my wtch list for some time but I've never invested into it.

RBS has been gaining nicely and I'm thinking about selling out, wouldn't surprise me if the government decided to sell some of their stake suddenly...

why do they like losing our money?

Check to whom "they" sell.

Halifax - If the questions, Do the goverment like losing our money? Well they probably don't enjoy losing it but the fact remains that they still do.

U.S. Stocks Fall on Apple as Investors Watch Earnings

By Rita Nazareth - Jan 14, 2013 4:13 PM GMT

U.S. stocks declined, following a two-week advance in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, as Apple (AAPL) Inc. slumped on reports it curbed iPhone production on weak demand and as investors watched corporate earnings reports.

Apple, the world’s most valuable company, sank 2.8 percent to the lowest level on a closing basis in 11 months. Sprint Nextel Corp. dropped 3.5 percent after the wireless carrier was cut at JPMorgan Chase & Co. Hewlett Packard Co. (HPQ) rose 3.6 percent as market researcher Gartner Inc. said it retook the spot as the top personal-computer maker from Lenovo Group Ltd.

Japan says confidence in Dreamliner at stake amid probes

TOKYO | Tue Jan 15, 2013 7:04am GMT

(Reuters) - Japan's transport minister acknowledged that passenger confidence in Boeing Co's new 787 Dreamliner jet is at stake, as both Japan and the United States have opened broad and open-ended investigations into the plane after a series of incidents that have raised safety concerns.

Japanese authorities said on Monday they would investigate fuel leaks on a 787 operated by Japan Airlines Co, and the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said later its agents would analyse the lithium-ion battery and burned wire bundles from a fire aboard another JAL 787 at Boston's Logan Airport last week.

The Dreamliner, the world's first mainly carbon-composite airliner, is billed as Boeing's most fuel-efficient jet and a potential game-changer for civil aircraft. It was initially scheduled to enter service in May 2008, but production delays held up its commercial debut until late last year.

GBP CPI y/y 2.7% consensus 2.7% previous 2.7%

GBP PPI Input m/m -0.2% consensus 0.0% previous 0.1%

GBP RPI y/y 3.1% consensus 3.0% previous 3.0%

GBP Core CPI y/y 2.4% consensus 2.6% previous 2.6%

GBP HPI y/y 2.1% consensus 1.7% previous 1.5%

GBP PPI Output m/m -0.1% consensus 0.0% previous -0.2%

AAPL - 1HR chart downwards channel broken out of and 50990 support smashed... Now to test support at 50136 being a low point so I haven't any confidence this will hold. The 50000 point may offer some support but looks good to me for a continued rolling short.

USD Core Retail Sales m/m 0.3% consensus 0.2% previous 0.0%

USD PPI m/m -0.2% consensus -0.1% previous -0.8%

USD Retail Sales m/m 0.5% consensus 0.2% previous 0.3%

USD Core PPI m/m 0.1% consensus 0.2% previous 0.1%

USD Empire State Manufacturing Index -7.8 consensus 1.9 previous -8.1

Toya,
your post (10496) reminded me of the shorters who are crying like the babies these days.

U.S. retail sales rise 0.5% in December, led by improvement in auto sales, the government says. ...... that may be ahead of consensus, but market reaction is distinctly muted, perhaps overshadowed by what looks like rather sickly other data

S&P 500 Futures Remain Lower After Retail, Factory Data

By Michael P. Regan - Jan 15, 2013 1:34 PM GMT

U.S. stock futures maintained losses as a gauge of New York-area manufacturing contracted for a sixth straight month, while another report showed retail sales grew more than forecast.

Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures expiring in March retreated 0.4 percent to 1,458.8 at 8:32 a.m. in New York. Contracts on the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 40 points, or 0.3 percent, to 13,393 today.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s general economic index fell to minus 7.8 from a revised minus 7.3 in December. The median forecast of 54 economists in a Bloomberg survey called for a reading of zero, which signals no change in conditions. Readings of less than zero signal contraction in New York, northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut.

The 0.5 percent gain in retail sales followed a revised 0.4 percent increase in November that was more than previously reported, Commerce Department figures showed. The median forecast of 83 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 0.2 percent rise. Sales excluding automobiles and gasoline climbed 0.6 percent for a second month.

Shortie - if you are about, how about a footsie chart - resistance support @6086?

Skinny 30-Minute chart as requested

AAPL has my attention at the moment.

Cheers - low (so far) 6,086.21. (Not traded!!!)

An 'Eiger' of a chart.

i shorted this yesterday (very belatedly!) and am idly contemplating extending that