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

one way and another, a very good finish that should see some more good gains in london tomorrow .... will be nicer still if PRU's numbers and forecast are also better than expected

March 17 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks advanced, erasing more than half the loss in the Standard & Poors 500 Index since President Barack Obama took office, on an unexpected rebound in homebuilding and speculation that the Federal Reserve will outline plans to bolster the economy.

Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. rose at least 7.7 percent as the KBW Bank Index extended its gain since March 6 to 46 percent. KB Home, the fourth-largest U.S. homebuilder, rallied 9.3 percent and Home Depot Inc. rose 6.7 percent as housing starts unexpectedly climbed 22 percent in February, the most since 1990. Apple Inc. added 4.4 percent to help lead technology shares higher after updating its iPhone software.

The S&P 500 increased 3.2 percent to 778.12, led by a 6.6 percent gain in financial companies. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 178.73 points, or 2.5 percent, to 7,395.7. The Nasdaq Composite Index surged 4.1 percent. About eight stocks rose for each that fell on the New York Stock Exchange.

The market was depressed to an extreme level because of the constant stream of bad news and events, said Mark Freeman, a money manager at Westwood Management Corp. in Dallas, which oversees $7 billion. The mere fact that the negative news has stopped allows the market to come back up to a reasonable level.

Sentiment definitely seems to be changing to a more positive stance, imo. The danger now is being left behind if markets continue to rise. Am looking forward to Strawbs finally joining the fray! ;o)

Well I've piled on a few overnight shorts for a gap close and may be let some run,what a difference a week makes! Oil is having a good run though is close to your 52 resistance,also inventories tomorrow and March expiry on Friday I gather. Contemplating ditching the long ETF when it hits 52. Certainly not convinced ETF's are best way to trade oil . Bought when wti at $44 and only breaks out even when it hits $47! Possibly a result of extreme contango and roll over costs but I am not impressed,no wonder Barclay's want rid of Ishares!

Lovely,Nikkei hit limit for 120 points,ftse at b/e

FWIW Houses in Notts are starting to sell. In fact with some estate agents in certain areas, alot on their books have recently sold as people jump in. Of course, it may be short lived if we have another downturn but for now things have definately taken a turn for the better.

Much the same here in Manchester dealerdear.

and now watch the gov't stop everything dead in it's tracks by enforcing limitation on mortgages to 3x salary ..... i wonder if there will be any allowance made for joint salaries or if it will be main earner only.

as it is, the banks and building societies virtually refuse to offer mortages unless the buyer can put up 20/25%, which of course is out of the question for nearly all first time buyers

No point bolting the stable door after the horse has bolted,though try telling that to the Government. They know it, but think they are being seen to do the right thing by the voters

Of course that is only going back to the conditions that existed 25+ years ago when some of us bought our first house and it was normal to have to put up 20% deposit and be limited to 2.5x salary.

The present government policy on the economy (including housing) is bound to fail because they are in effect throwing money at it trying to restore the conditions that caused Armageddon in the first place. There may well be a partial recovery but that will just be the prelude to another collapse.

Not that I blame the government entirely. They are stuck between a rock and a hard place. Either they accept that the economy was on fire and desperately needed to contract, so let it contract and lose their jobs, or they pretend that they can change everything with a few tweaks here and there and waste billions achieving precisely nothing and still lose their jobs.

I'll buy another house when prices are at 3 times earnings and not before.

i think your memory is faulty, or perhaps mine is ..... my first flat was bought in 1972 and i am sure just 10% deposit was required and certainly 3x salary was allowed - may actually have been 3.5x; also second income also came into play, though not with full multiple

Falco .... you'd better start earning more then!

I seem to remember 3x single income or 2.5x joint income, but yes my memory is probably faulty :-) Also 90% mortgages were possible but you had to pay for a mortgage protection policy.

Yes cynic my target price, for a 3 bed semi is 30 based on my 3 times earnings!

Ah yes I've got, it was 3x single income + 1x partner's income, with sometimes an alternative of 2.5x joint income.

that sounds about right, but deposit was 10%, would you now agreee

Yes but 90% mortgages were seen as stretching things and you had to pay for the insurance which of course covered the building society and not you.

The basic problem with the economy is that few people save any more. Either you carry on with people not having to save, in which case by definition the economy is founded on credit with all the excesses and danger to the unwise that that brings (and the need for large and comprehensive safety nets), or you go back to people needing to save for the future, in which case the economy has got to contract hugely while people save the money they would otherwise be spending.

My guess is that the effect of the credit bubble will be to go back to a savings-based economy which will have to be smaller than now.

My nearly all blue stockwatch screen has now turned red, with a few notable exceptions (VPC, PCI etc). DOW futures were gently drifting into negative territory all morning which was possibly a warning sign. Profit taking or worse???

"Profit taking or worse???"... probably yes and yes H -):