optionsXpress Bonus - get $100 when you open a new account

If you are looking for an online broker, optionsXpress is a good place to start especially if you are only beginning to trade. If you have never traded before then first of all you need to see how brokers work, you need to do some virtual trading, check what fundamental analysis and technical analysis tools could be used for trading. You can get all these at no charge - FOR FREE - and even get $100 deposited to your online trading account.

You will have access to streaming quotes and charts, various research reports and various trading tools for free. - You do not have to trade, as long as you have some funds on your account, your optionsXpress account will remain opened and you may use all fundamental and technical analysis tools available with optionsXpress. This is a great opportunity for a novice trader to learn about trading for free (and get $100).

Get promotional invitation from optionsXpress

Discount Codes to online financial services and web sites

20% discount to the stock market charts on MarketVolume.com. Uniqueness of the service is these guys provide volume, money flow, soloing buying volume, advance decline, TRIN, advance decline momentum volume charts for S&P 500, DJI Russell 2000, NYSE and other indexes and exchanges.

Promo Code: MVC220

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20% discount to the Uncovered options signals with options-trading-system.com.Be cautious and do not run into uncovered options trading until you check margin requirements and trading access level - many traders cannot afford to trade uncovered options.

Promo Code: QMT220

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20% discount to the daily market outlook with stockmarket-outlook.com. Outlook is quite straightforward and could be divided into two outlooks: one for the next trading session and one longer-term outlook. Outlook is based on the analysis of the money flow. The outlook is quite accurate and there could be feeling that is partially mechanical - with time you may notice the standard set of the sentences that are used in the outlook. There are still some rare days when next day outlook fails - mainly when there are some overnight news make market (usually are not covered be covered by technical analysis) to open deeply down or high up. Still the price is quite cheap for the offered service

Promo Link: http://www.stockmarket-outlook.com/signup/?p=smo01
(If you do not want to sign up now, I would recommend to bookmark this link for future references)

ETFs Trading

Exchange Traded Funds have become very popular over the past decade. This is one of the simplest way for many investors to trade the market. Amazing thing is that not just retail traders are using ETFs, but many professional investors, portfolio managers and big companies are investing into the ETFs.

One of the best thing about Exchange Traded Funds is that there is no need to perform fundamental analysis in order to start trading, especially when it comes to the trading funds that track indexes. You do not have to do it! Why? Because it is already done by the sponsors of the indexes. The index listing is revised on the regular basis and weak companies (stocks) are removed. As a result, a trader (investor) may solely focus on other aspects of trading such as technical analysis, developing a trading system, and etc.

So, do not waste you time in research of the magic stocks that can make you a fortune. Focus on something you are capable of doing. I do not believe that a simple trader has ability and access to precess thousands of information (reports, balance sheets) for thousands of stocks and do it on regular basis. trust the professionals who already do it for indexes and trade indexes through the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).

Technical Analysis - Moving Averages

What is the most important indicator in technical analysis? Some of the traders may name you a row of various indicators which they learned from the bottom to the top and which they consider as the most useful and the most important in making a trading decision. The reality is that the most important indicator is the simplest one. The indicator without which technical analysis would not exist at all. The correct answer on the question about the most important indicator is - Moving Average.

Moving average is the basic and the simplest indicator in technical analysis. I would recommend to any beginner in technical analysis to start from moving average. Moving average is simply average value over specified period of time (price bars). There are a number of various moving averages, starting from the SMA (Simple Moving Average), EMA (Exponential Moving Average) and by finishing various complicated Weighted Moving averages. This technical indicator could be analyzed by itself but it also used as a component in most of the other indicators.

There are several thing that on the first view could be seen obvious, yet, that every trader should always remember about moving averages:

1. Moving averages are used to smooth movement fluctuation. It could be applied to price, volume, advance/decline data or any other data and technical indicator to smooth choppy movements and to see general direction of the movement of price, volume or any other indicator.

2. While moving average smoothes movement it brings factor of a delay (also known as a lag). The more you smothe the bigger lag is and the further in the time the moving average is shifted from the real movements.

When you go deeper in technical analysis there always will be a conflict. From one side you want to avoid choppy trading (frequent signals) which usually generates number of fake signals and from other side you want to keep the lag (delay in trading signals) as small as possible and to avoid late entering and exiting a trade. From one side you will have desire to increase bar period setting of a moving average or any other technical indicator to have more smooth trading and from other side you will be willing to have signals as close to the tops and bottoms as possible.

The truth is it is not as easy as it looks like. There is no golden rule what bar period setting should be used with moving averages or any other technical indicators. Before, selecting a setting for an indicator (in our case moving average) that would generate signals, a trader should learn how to recognize different market conditions. Because in different markets different setting would be recommended.