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

Today is a great example why opposite views can still make de money.

I stuck with my hunch that the Dow was a long today until about 1pm. +50 pts too good not to bank a profit and unsure what the US would do at the open. So I was right initially, wrong at the moment and only time will tell if a medium term bullish approach is correct or not.

i don't think any sell-off will have a long life ..... the perception now is that world economies are recovering (i have been saying that for a while - increasing chemical shipments), and the eurozone probs are now relegated to the backburner

Correct Cynic.

My own view is that resumption of the uptrend will kick off again soon. There will probably be lower lows before that happens but once all the bears have been wiped out, we'll be off up again. Usual routine, woe is us, markets in terminal decline and then all will be well in the world again.

12900 is the magic number to watch .... i confess that a week ago, i thought that was going to be severely challenged, but now i am not so sure ...... mind you, 13005 would not be a bad support either and there is reason for that too

i too closed my short dow after hours (at 13058 as it happens) ...... though the US elections will make the markets somewhat twitchy, it is certainly now looking as though Obama will be re-elected - thank goodness, says i ...... with the (confirmatory) news that China's economy is now growing again, it is tempting to think of going long Dow once more ..... as always, entry point is the tricky one to judge

Sony, Sharp in turnaround battle; Panasonic battered

TOKYO | Thu Nov 1, 2012 8:14am GMT

(Reuters) - Struggling Japanese TV maker Sharp Corp warned it might not be able to survive on its own, as it almost doubled its full-year net loss forecast to $5.6 billion (3.4 billion pounds), and said it was considering alliances with other companies.

"Our corporate group has booked massive second-quarter net and operating losses ... and now see a serious negative operating cash flow. This raises serious doubts about (our ability) to continue as a going concern," it said in a statement on Thursday.

Thousands fear losing their job as Comet faces collapse

Thousands of jobs are at risk as Comet, the 240-store electricals retailer, is poised to appoint an accountancy firm as administrator just nine months after the UK chain was bought for a token £2.

I keep forgetting that the clocks have changed!!

GBP Manufacturing PMI 47.5 consensus 48.1 previous 48.1

You must have been getting up early then Skinny!

Thanks for the info, though not all that cheery

good morning mistress :-) ....... are you out frolicking today in the late autumn sunshine?

Good morning to you Cynic - no, was frolicking last night - and it's grey and dreary up here in the North!

USD ADP Non-Farm Employment Change 158K consensus 138K previous 162K

The method/calcs re the ADP figure have changed after criticism.

with the election imminent, it comes as no surprise that numbers were good, he says cynically ....... anyway, glad i took a small dow long this morning at 13108

cynic looking good @13200+!

it's pretty much there already; target remains much higher than that, but don't know timescale!

Not convinced target remains to the upside, I think the rally is overdone. Running the dollar printing press 24-7 has alot to do with the bullish behavour I think, but this can't go on forever.

i hear you, but surely even you must admit that 13,000 (12,940 actually) is proving a very strong support

Was broken back in May though, some support but wouldn't say it was strong... All this QE and the debt poition will weaken the USD and provide the resistance against a long term rally. The DOW may test 13500 again but I doubt will break it, before falling back to test the lower end of its range around 12500. I would say 12940 was more upper range support / lower range resistance or the pivotal point in the current range of trading.

have you re-opened a short then?

Standard Chartered close to U.S. settlement on Iran transactions

WASHINGTON | Thu Nov 1, 2012 11:55pm GMT

(Reuters) - Standard Chartered is close to wrapping up discussions to resolve U.S. investigations into its Iran-linked transactions and nearing agreement on a fine in the $300-million (185-million pounds) range, mirroring a much-publicized state settlement over similar allegations, according to four people familiar with the matter.

The London-based bank agreed in August to pay New York's banking regulator $340 million after that authority filed a surprise order accusing the bank of hiding some $250 billion worth of transactions with Iran.

UK economy may grow 1.1 percent in 2013 - NIESR

LONDON | Fri Nov 2, 2012 12:29am GMT

(Reuters) - Britain's economy will return to modest growth in 2013 after flatlining this year, with developments in the euro zone posing the biggest risk, a leading think-tank said on Friday.

The National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NIESR) forecast that GDP would dip this year by 0.1 percent, up from its August forecast of a 0.5 percent contraction, after surprisingly strong expansion in the third quarter.

Asia's green shoots allay global slump fears

Green shoots are sprouting across much of the Far East as stimulus begins to feed through, greatly reducing the risk of a deep global slump next year.

A slew of economic data from China and the Pacific Rim show that orders are picking up and trade is rebounding after the industrial recession of the past few months.
The Baltic Dry Index, measuring shipping rates for commodities – watched as a proxy for Chinese demand – has come back from the dead, rising 50pc since July.