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

Well, it's the Sooty (Darling) and Sweep (Brown) show today...another crap budget..more plans on "how to bring the country down on it's knees".... ? ....It'll be good to get rid of them !...bah.bah....everybody...bye...bye...

Assuming they go (Brown & Co) is there much point in this budget???

No...but they will hang on to the end...

The nightmare scenario is that the massive client state NuLabour have created will vote the lot in yet again. Gives me the shivers!

wake up guys; where have you been? .... hung parliament is strong odds-on .... the only question is what the gap between Cons/Lab seats will be, as in many ways that will determine the flavour and of the next gov't and the restrictions put on it

I cannot put up with these muppets in power for another 5 years or so...gnnnnnagghh...

little choice i fear, though i think their lack of an overall majority will shackle them pretty firmly, and i would be surprised if a hung parliament can last 5 years

Has this happened in the UK before?

In the first of the two elections in 1974 there was no outright majority.

Labour won 301 seats compared with the Conservative Party's 297.

Harold Wilson formed a minority government, but it did not last for long, with another election in October 1974 giving Harold Wilson a slim majority of only three seats.

There was also a hung parliament following the 1929 general election, with Ramsey MacDonald's Labour Party winning 287 seats to Stanley Baldwin's Conservatives' 260 and David Lloyd George's Liberals' 59.

Occasionally, parliaments have also become hung parliaments in the middle of a session as a result of by-elections, as happened to John Major's Conservative government in 1996.

But that still means there have only been a handful of hung parliaments in the UK.

I don't care what the polls say at the moment, when it comes to putting their X on the voting card, my money is on the tories winning the day, even if it's by a tiny majority, particularly if the public sector workers (supported by an emasculated Union) don't get their way.

Odds on favourites get beaten, hopefully so will this one. HC I think the main point today will be how it affects our 'Triple A' rating.
2517

The problem with the Tories is that they give out that "suit and tie" prat image of themselves....it doesn't appeal to me either...and puts off a lot of "on the fence" voters...

Rf, that's a shocker! We have got way past the 'Posh tory toffs' v 'the flat cap labour thickos'. Those people who were firmly entrenched in a Union & therefore voted labour are a fading force. Modern voting youth take much more of an interest now in issues rather than social prejudices.

klal's post 4964 says it all, if this shower get in again they will make sure the clientele referred to in that post grows ever larger and it will be impossible for them(labour) to be voted out in future---------nightmare.
2517

short INDU @ 10866

i think that is a smart move, but as i am already short, am bound to say that!

time to add then cynic?

Bull Flags? Only kidding,good call splat:o))))

i have sufficient exposure

we'll have a little less exposure on here, it's a family board :-)
CC :-)

tell 'em to stop looking then!