From the category archives:

VIX volatility

Understanding How the Beta of Your Stock Works

March 5, 2010 · 4 comments

in VIX volatility, financial education, investment tools, market trends, risk, stock picks, stocks, technical analysis, terminology

If you’ve never paid attention to Beta (β) (or “B”) before, listen up.  Even if you don’t consider yourself a technical analyst or a seasoned investor, or if you are just getting into stocks now, beta is fairly easy to understand and can help you with your stock picking decisions.
Beta is a mathematical measurement of [...]

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The Four Most Basic Types of Options

February 19, 2010 · 2 comments

in VIX volatility, financial education, hedging, indexes, international stock market, investing, investment tools, market timing, options, risk, side income, stocks, technical analysis, terminology

There are many different types of options, and they’re not all equally risky.  Some options investing strategies are highly risky, whereas others have a much lower level of risk.  If you’re still new to options investing, you might want to first read my post on learning the basics of options trading.
Before you can get into [...]

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The New Volatility, or Are Stock Markets Affected by Political Influences Reaching A Tipping Point?

January 26, 2010 · 4 comments

in 2010, DJIA, Federal Reserve, Obama Effect, S&P 500, VIX volatility, banks, central banks, earnings, economics, economy, market reports, market trends, news and updates, politics, recession, special dates, stocks

State of the (Economic) Union 2010: is political news now a leading indicator of stock markets?
I can’t remember where I read it recently, perhaps even in the End of Influence, but the consensus among some who know more about it than I do is that stock markets, and most notably the U.S. stock market in [...]

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When Stock Market Trading Volumes Thin

December 22, 2009 · 0 comments

in VIX volatility, behavioral finance, holidays, market timing, market trends, stock exchanges, technical analysis

In the days leading up to Christmas, and various other times throughout the year, stock market trading thins considerably.  Trading volume levels decrease as stock exchanges close early and many institutions are simply happy to hold onto their positions and wait out the end of the year with their gains.
Lower trading volumes mean less liquidity [...]

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Finally Learning the Basics of Stock Option Trading

November 24, 2009 · 6 comments

in CME, VIX volatility, commodities, financial education, forex, hedging, indexes, investment tools, market timing, options, stock exchanges, stocks, technical analysis, wealth protection

One area of investor education that I’ve been putting off is learning about trading stock options online.  This is because as risky as the stock market can be if you don’t know what you’re doing, the risk associated with options is even greater if you don’t know what you’re doing.
So why bother learning then?  Because [...]

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Remaining Problems That Could Cause A Second Stock Market Crash in 2010-2011

November 8, 2009 · 14 comments

in US economy, VIX volatility, economy, emergencies, financial fitness, layoffs, market bottom, market crash, news and updates, recession

I’m an extremely cautious bull on the current markets.  Cautious, because, if a few criteria are met, the mini bull market (or bear market rally, if you prefer) we’ve seen since March 2009 could easily tip over and provide the catalyst for the hypothetical “double-dip recession.”
Commentators have recently been pointing out the fact that the [...]

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Stock Market Investment Outlook November 2009

November 2, 2009 · 0 comments

in DJIA, November, Q4, VIX volatility, economy, interest rates, market reports, news and updates, recession, seasonal investing

Last Friday, the final trading day of October 2009, saw triple-digit losses following the previous day’s excellent U.S. GDP numbers.  Are traders and institutional investors just taking money off the table for some profits?  Or will this be the beginning of the retrenchment that we didn’t see in September or October?
One thing that is for [...]

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