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

Nice arrers Hils! On the subject of scalping, I still have that stuff Ruthie posted about her & her brother scalping the FTSE and creaming it - but it was all highly disciplined, not the sort of stuff you can do all day every day and keep sane.

I for one was glad of the Twitter post. :-) Tell Ruth Iain says hello

BOJ's new price forecasts Friday to be credibility test

TOKYO | Thu Apr 25, 2013 1:46am BST
(Reuters) - The Bank of Japan is set on Friday to project that it will meet its 2 percent inflation target in two years, a forecast analysts say may be too optimistic and could put the bank's credibility on the line.

Exclusive - Verizon eyes roughly $100 billion bid for Verizon Wireless stake

NEW YORK | Thu Apr 25, 2013 4:08am BST

(Reuters) - Verizon Communications Inc has hired advisers to prepare a possible $100 billion (65 billion pounds) cash and stock bid to take full control of Verizon Wireless from joint venture partner Vodafone Group Plc, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

South Korea economic growth hits two-year high

South Korea's growth rate hit a two-year high in the first three months of the year, boosted by a rebound in construction, investment and exports.

The economy grew by 0.9% in the January to March quarter from the previous three months, the central bank's estimates showed.

The data is likely to help allay fears over the health of the Korean economy.

EUR Spanish Unemployment Rate 27.2% 26.5% 26.0%

Just been filled short @6,464!!

funny you should say that .... though ftse has opened brightly enough on the view (presumably) that GO will offer some sort of stimulus package later following the numbers, it must surely be already built in .... therefore "sell on the news" syndrome is the likely result

skinny your doing well then I need it to go sub 6400

having also taken profits on (another) ftse long earlier this morning, i too am now short, but considering banking that nice profit

=============

and done at 6418 :-)
what a nice start to the day; not usually that smart it has to be said

Out @6421

GBP Prelim GDP q/q 0.3% 0.1% -0.3%

GBP Index of Services 3m/3m 0.1% 0.0% -0.2%

Rock on George - Chancellor George Osborne - 'Today's figures are an encouraging sign the economy is healing' live

and long again at 6430 :-)

i really should try to do some "proper" work, but at the moment at least, this is much more fun!

Just wish I had more time to trade. Too busy with "proper" work!

IMF, ECB square off in Europe austerity debate

LONDON | Thu Apr 25, 2013 11:59am BST
(Reuters) - A heated debate about Europe's austerity drive flared back into life on Thursday with leading IMF and European Central Bank officials sharply at odds and Angela Merkel declaring that Germany required higher interest rates.

With the threat of the currency bloc's break-up receding, some euro zone officials are saying now is the time to throttle back on debt-cutting drives because calmer financial markets will not react badly.

USD Unemployment Claims 339K 352K 352K

U.S. Stock Futures Rise; S&P 500 May Extend Two-Week High

U.S. stock futures rose, signaling the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will extend a near two-week high, as companies from Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. to 3M Co. reported earnings that topped estimates and jobless claims fell.

Cliffs Natural soared 8.3 percent and Akamai (AKAM) Technologies Inc. rose 18 percent. 3M slid 3.8 percent as profit trailed estimates and the company cut its full-year forecast amid a slowing global economy. Qualcomm Inc. lost 4.8 percent after the biggest seller of semiconductors for mobile phones forecast profit that may miss some analysts’ projections.

Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in June advanced 0.5 percent to 1,581.7 at 8:37 a.m. in New York after the gauge closed at the highest level since April 12 yesterday. Contracts on the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 54 points, or 0.4 percent, to 14,669 today.

if dow closes strong (again), then london is likely to follow north in the morning
strangely today, hg+hc index did very little except drift slightly south
therefore, if above comes to pass, then an early punt (top up for me) in hg+hc could well prove very profitable

BOJ stands pat, to face credibility test with new forecasts

TOKYO | Fri Apr 26, 2013 5:53am BST

(Reuters) - The Bank of Japan will probably project on Friday that it will meet its 2 percent inflation target in two years due to its massive stimulus plan, a forecast analysts say may be too optimistic and which could put its credibility on the line.

In a reminder of how ambitious and stiff the target is, data on Friday showed core consumer prices marked their fifth straight month of annual declines in March even as the yen's recent falls pushed up import costs.

Yen Rises as Bank of Japan Maintains Monetary Pledge; Gold Falls

The yen rose as the Bank of Japan maintained a pledge to double the nation’s monetary base in two years. Gold headed for its biggest weekly increase since October 2011 and Asian stocks pared gains as companies from Bank of China Ltd. (3988) to Japan Tobacco Inc. (2914) reported earnings.

The yen strengthened 0.4 percent to 98.81 per dollar as of 2:15 p.m. in Tokyo. New Zealand’s dollar advanced 0.4 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.1 percent, paring a 0.4 percent advance. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures lost 0.2 percent. Spot gold increased 0.4 percent, while copper in London sank 0.7 percent.

German Import Prices m/m -0.1% 0.0% 0.3%

BOJ projects to meet CPI target by 2015/16, analysts have doubts

TOKYO | Fri Apr 26, 2013 8:21am BST
(Reuters) - The Bank of Japan forecast on Friday that inflation will rise to around 2 percent towards the latter half of the next three years due to its massive stimulus plan, a projection analysts say may be too optimistic.

In a reminder of the task ahead, data on Friday showed core consumer prices marked their fifth straight month of annual declines in March even as the yen's recent falls pushed up import