I often find all manner of reference to Technical Analysis whilst reading threads, questioning certain elements, asking for advice on indicators and also requesting advice on a stock and whether it's a good time to buy, sell, hold or remain indifferent. I am the first to admit that my own TA is still in its infancy, but I do spend time on expanding my knowledge (hopefully in the right direction!).

Rather than having to ask a TA question on a particular thread, perhaps this thread could be used as a forum for TA queries and become a knowledge base. Just a thought, if there is little or no interest, the thread will sink without trace and that will be the end of that. I will personally add a few snippets to help those with less knowledge (if that's possible) to keep things rolling. There is a danger that the thread will receive countless requests for opinions on a variety of stocks and there is only so much I can do alone, therefore I would more than welcome input from other posters, no matter how rudimentary they believe their own knowledge to be, hopefully some real experts will take the time to contribute.

too sophisticated for my tiny brain i fear! ...... EMG still a very good company but will inevitably refelct market swings ....... Dow indications, having been +30 or more earlier are now flat

maggie, EMG gapped up into a gap, level to watch is todays open and low price, if it can hold and the USA gets bouncy later it might just continue up, be warned theres now another GAP below though!.. lol

If I were you Id find a nicer stock to "trade" , theres far better ones for smoother moves in the top FTSE stocks. Try BLT or CCL. I assume you are trading via CFD/Spreadbet and are not actually buying shares?

maggie buys/sells physical
have just noted both BLT and CCL have jumped nicely, though both are still (just) below 25 dma with 50 dma a little higher

I do both, invest in shares like lloy for div try to trade with spreadbets . Have only been spreadbetting for about year.Was alright to start then got adventurous and things went down hill but would like to master the art. Thanks again for advice will look at BLT and CCL

no art other than black! ..... it's all smoke and mirrors and scares and things that go bump in the night - lol!

Question: How far back can one look to judge a support level on a graph?
Looking at the 5 year graph for NRK, the sp is looking like it should be at a support level, but that level is sept/oct 2005. But is that too far back to be of any relevance?

maggster

you got to get a style which suits you. decide how much screen time you can dedicate and then adjust your strategy to fit. If you only have a hour or two a day at screen then maybe medium term swings are best for you. (edit) with larger stops and smaller stakes. Always base your stops on price action and never just a "value" like say 30 points etc. Always look for a high/low/close of a bar which you would not want to be in the trade if it passed that point.

Thanks Dy I spend quite a lot of time trying to learn the TA. Please correct
Larger stops = further away from opening?
price action = how big swings between highs and lows are?
One of my problems is I keep moving the stop loss down expecting an upturn. Hopefully if I can read the signs(TA) better I will know when to get out.

if you set a stop loss, then by and large you should stick with it for otherwise no point in having same

Cynic I know that's right just need more discipline.
Question - If there is a reversal bar but all other indicators are not in place what do you do?

dynamix's stuff is far too esoteric for my tiny and ever shrinking brain .... i'll stick to my very basic chart interpretation aided and abetted by PT and my guru in the City ....... with care, observation and a quick finger, there is certainly decent money to be made on Dow at the moment; i assume you have access to real-time trdaing ... it is very very volatile, so if you pick your entry point, money can be made either long or short, but don't get greedy and be prepared to lose a bit!

maggster, leave it, its not a set up.

larger stops = yes bigger stop loss BUT use smaller stakes if thats the case.
price action is just what the price has done, eg its open high low close levels, any higher lows etc etc

DO NOT move stops. I want the market to tell me Im wrong by stopping me out, and Im happy to be stopped out knowing if it had went past that point the set up for the entry is not there anymore.

Example. BLT reversal bar (today). If your indicators confirm (which I havent checked) then you would enter if it pulls back into today range at all, timing is up to you, but this is where experience comes in. Stop loss would be just under this bar (pink line). You do not want to hold if the trend breaks down straight away, its a false signal (or its time to reverse and go short!). If it continues in your favour move up your stop at the end of each day to just under the current days low. If it is a trend which is taking the price up a level you would normally get a few consecutive days of higher lows so should stay in the trade. Once you are in profit and confident its moving higher leave your stop at a comfortable level locking in a bit profit and walk away or take your profit whichever.. but you should be trying to lock in at least 2 or 3 times your stop amount in profit (if you can) to make this work..



Advice. Market aint going no where. Get a demo CFD account and dummy trade it for a few months. If it works for you then theres plenty time to make s :) the market will still be doin' the same old thing. Up and down.

also get RB. on your monitor for future trades, its a good one when it gives a signal it moves for a day or two usually.

check out todays bar after I told of the reversla bar getiing printed

Quite used to loosing a lot!!!! Trade with IG presume that's real-time trading. Can only find wall street so that must be Dow. Find it a bit scary the way it races up and down but maybe I could start with a 1 a point. Do you use the wall street cash and does that only last for a day? Sorry to be such dope!

Dy You sound like Jesse Livermore. Hope you're as profitable on the stock market. Understand all you've explained, thanks, makes very good sense. Will also take your advise and try a demo CDF. Cynic, maybe I should leave the Dow till I've practiced for a bit

I dont trade the dow. If you find the need to trade any US index trade the S&P or RUS 1000. I make money maggie, but I also lose. These days I dont mind losing for the reasons above, but for a long time it used to annoy me. I was not a profitable trader when I felt like that about losing.

look at german stocks or index also.

99% of my trading is down via CFDs ...... i am currently only playing with Dow because it's so damn volatile .... for instance, when i got home at about 19:15 yesterday it was +186; an hour later it had got back to flat or even down a few points and then in the last 30 mins it shot up 140 points ..... i never take a heavy position (all relative) and will only have an open position while i can actually monitor ..... if i have a position running when i leave the office, then i will almost always hedge it with a stop or even a limit while i go home, though that is only about 10 minutes walk.

Right, I've got to stop being annoyed by losing so will try CFD practice run that way I won't mind losing and I can try all the different markets and put what I'm learning here into practice But don't think you've got rid of me I've still got lots of open positions to deal with:o)