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

i am now short Dow, with guaranteed stop in place ..... i have guaranteed it because, on announcement of the employment figures, the index could move 100+ points in a literal second, thus stopping one out much lower than intended

I read the prediction for employment figures last month were 58k, market took heart from prediction and rose from 5965 to the 6000 level. Thankfully I managed to cancel a sell order at 5995 before reached. Too hard to call now. So have placed a short order on KGF, in case markets spike this afternoon.

I'm staying well out 12785 for the DOW but didn't think it'd get here this quickly, seams to me that a goodwill bubble has formed, how long this will last is anyones guess. If the charts show a similar trend to yesterday then I'll think about getting in. FTSE also to me looks too high too soon as does the DAX. A fallback I think is coming but when I don't know, all this goodwill is great for equities so fingers crossed I'll soon be looking at even more blues and taking profits....

-17000, expected 70000+

have traded successfully today and taken some profits off the table - no one ever went bankrupt putting the cash in the back (unless NRK!) ...... Dow short modestly in the money, and still running.

inter alia, sold RIO (again!) but suspect i shall get back in later today, though shall place a guaranteed stop lest all goes pear-shapeed

I have sat on my hands this afternoon and watched and learnt from the masters. If I had followed my instincts - I think I would have made a few bob - but staying cautious for now.

bhunt - You'll have to share the masters tips with us also...

Lol, I tried to short FTSE twice and although could have banked a profit earlier, ended up unsucsessful, lesson learnt, dont go against the grain... I actually posted earlier that money appears to be coming back to the market and even a potentially nasty piece of news from the states has been brushed aside, perhaps we are safe again for a week or so, or 200/300 points before the next down leg... who knows???

Big Ted - I think you hit the nail on the head when you said 'don't go against the grain', its abit slow at the moment for my liking but there is still a range that can be traded as long as you don't mind sitting at the screen trading it. I'm sat here just waiting for what I consider the right time to get in, have charts also running to I can see history, helps get a feel on the range..

I must say this thread seams to have a nice bunch posting on it, many others I just flick through as I've seen the ramping and abuse. This really concludes only one thing, be very careful who you listen to or maybe take advice from.

Good weekend all - I shall be decorating for my sins

And you bhunt, I have new skirtings to fit also....

In on wall st 12660 buy

Sold 12691, small profit but then and again range is only small today.

Not willing to take the gamble as I believe long term the DOW will go up as already stated in earlier posts so looking to only buy at the lower points of the range. To me this limits the risk of being caught out betting against where the support line will be.

for Dow to break the downtrend, it needs to break through 12800 with impetus and to hold it ..... you're a brave chap if you think that will happen in the immediate future, though with the current contrariness in the market, you may see Dow teasing through, only to fall flat and sharply

Brave..... Not sure about that, the old nerve is starting to go as it looks closer to test... Theres just no momentum at the moment, easy time to get burnt, yes I know but hey I'd rather be in it than saying 'if I have, I could have made'...

The buys now 12734, too high even for my comfort levels, thats me done, nice profit as well this week.... Maybe take advantage of the BRR sp which looks low, means averaging up though but have the weekend to think about it.

confess to being amazed that wall street finished so strongly ... fully expected a big sell off in last 30 or whatever ..... certainly an ace day for me today, and from memory, for too much has happened in the interim, i think a good week overall too

as mentioned above, was very surprised indeed to see strength in US last night but find it hard to trust or believe that it can hold ..... Dow is now very close (12757) to the chart-critical level of 12800 and would be amazed if it blazed straight through that

Charting is a area I have lacked knowledge, so I haved started to study it, starting with moving averages. A Dead Cross is a very significant event, this happens when the 50ma moves down through 200ma and the 200ma also move downwards. Look at the FTSE 100 chart below, this happened appx 7th January, the last time it occurred was the end of 2000 and lasted to 2003.

The price now is moving up, and the resistance should be at the 50ma which is at 6150, this will be a crucial week to decide where the FTSE is trending. I would be interested to hear from people with charting knowledge, if I have read these charts correctly.