Is spread betting right for me?

[sheeru]

Hi guys,

Iv never SB before or have done any other form of investing. Iv just finished uni and am starting my first job in around 3 weeks. The questions i wanted to ask are:

1. Is starting with a demo acc and then somewhere like FXCM doing forex only the best way to start? Right now i have no money to invest but i am i right in trying to determine a strategy for SB on paper and demo acc to see if its a profitable strategy?

2. Where is the best place to find out about how the market is moving? financial times?

3. Could i do this in the evenings? and how long does it take for a normal SB session?

thanks im sorry its long!

 

[Xenophobia]

Hi guys,

Iv never SB before or have done any other form of investing. Iv just finished uni and am starting my first job in around 3 weeks. The questions i wanted to ask are:

1. Is starting with a demo acc and then somewhere like FXCM doing forex only the best way to start? Right now i have no money to invest but i am i right in trying to determine a strategy for SB on paper and demo acc to see if its a profitable strategy?

2. Where is the best place to find out about how the market is moving? financial times?

3. Could i do this in the evenings? and how long does it take for a normal SB session?

thanks im sorry its long!

Answers.....

1. Try IG Index they are the biggest spread betting firm in the UK and offer far more instruments to trade and the spreads are fairly low. I have used them for 8 years.

2. There is a variety of sources you can use, the financial times is just one and it is the one source I use. I only daytrade shares so its all I need for information.

3. Depends on what you are going to trade, and what style you are trading.
For instance, are you going to swing trade and position trade this means holding positions for days/weeks/months. If so then yes you can do you're analysis in the evenings. Also if you are going to trade the FX market then you can trade that 24 hour a day.

 

[sheeru]

Answers.....

1. Try IG Index they are the biggest spread betting firm in the UK and offer far more instruments to trade and the spreads are fairly low. I have used them for 8 years.

2. There is a variety of sources you can use, the financial times is just one and it is the one source I use. I only daytrade shares so its all I need for information.

3. Depends on what you are going to trade, and what style you are trading.
For instance, are you going to swing trade and position trade this means holding positions for days/weeks/months. If so then yes you can do you're analysis in the evenings. Also if you are going to trade the FX market then you can trade that 24 hour a day.

thanks for replying. I hearf FXCM has pip of even 7p permenantly while IG Index has a 10p pip for only 2 weeks which then increases. Whats swing trading( I had a quick look on wiki) and which is easier to learn and more profitable?

sheeru

 

[Xenophobia]

thanks for replying. I hearf FXCM has pip of even 7p permenantly while IG Index has a 10p pip for only 2 weeks which then increases. Whats swing trading( I had a quick look on wiki) and which is easier to learn and more profitable?

sheeru

Swing trading is short term price momentum swings that last 24 hours to around 5 days.

Position trading tends to involve buying and holding a position for weeks/months but mostly years.

Day trading involves opening and closing a position(trade) in the same 24 hour period.

There is no easy route to success, and there is no easy way of trading. It takes hard graff, learning and trial and error before you will become profitable in you're trading.

Don't think that there is some holy grail way of trading or more profitable way of trading. Different styles fit different personalities.

You have to think in terms of capital size, what kind of time you will allocate to trading and learning and what you need on a weekly/monthly/yearly basis to survive.
And how much you can afford to allocate to you're trading education.

The way in which I became profitable was to try many styles and put in a lot of hours learning quality trading ideas, but even when doing this I still had to go through the trial and error where I lost money before I started earning money.

I only day trade a handful of shares that are listed in the FTSE 100 everyday, I use 1 hour and 15 minute charts as well as support and resistance - chart patterns and trend lines. This way of trading fits me personally, but may not fit others and may not fit you.

As far as spread betting goes its a great tool and I do use this everyday to place my trades. But it can easily be misused and you can lose a lot of money if you don't understand the basics.

Have you read any books on the subject ?

If not I recommend you buy the Financial spread betting handbook by Malcom Pryor. This will give you a pretty good understanding of spread betting before you dive in.

You can probably pick this book up on amazon or e-bay for less than £15.

 

[sheeru]

Swing trading is short term price momentum swings that last 24 hours to around 5 days.

Position trading tends to involve buying and holding a position for weeks/months but mostly years.

Day trading involves opening and closing a position(trade) in the same 24 hour period.

There is no easy route to success, and there is no easy way of trading. It takes hard graff, learning and trial and error before you will become profitable in you're trading.

Don't think that there is some holy grail way of trading or more profitable way of trading. Different styles fit different personalities.

You have to think in terms of capital size, what kind of time you will allocate to trading and learning and what you need on a weekly/monthly/yearly basis to survive.
And how much you can afford to allocate to you're trading education.

The way in which I became profitable was to try many styles and put in a lot of hours learning quality trading ideas, but even when doing this I still had to go through the trial and error where I lost money before I started earning money.

I only day trade a handful of shares that are listed in the FTSE 100 everyday, I use 1 hour and 15 minute charts as well as support and resistance - chart patterns and trend lines. This way of trading fits me personally, but may not fit others and may not fit you.

As far as spread betting goes its a great tool and I do use this everyday to place my trades. But it can easily be misused and you can lose a lot of money if you don't understand the basics.

Have you read any books on the subject ?

If not I recommend you buy the Financial spread betting handbook by Malcom Pryor. This will give you a pretty good understanding of spread betting before you dive in.

You can probably pick this book up on amazon or e-bay for less than £15.

thanks for your help..I think there is alot to SB and the best way for me to learn would be to invest a small amount or even a demo acc and read and learn as i go along. Il look into the book. thanks

 

[Xenophobia]

Have a look at the ETX capital website they are offering £250 cashback agaisnt loses.

You can always open other accounts with the same offers and use the SB firms money to learn.

This may help you get started.

 

[Xenophobia]

Have a look at the ETX capital website they are offering £250 cashback agaisnt loses.

You can always open other accounts with the same offers and use the SB firms money to learn.

This may help you get started.

Ahh scratch that the offer is only for the first 10 days.

 

[sheeru]

lol thanks anyway. I just set up a demo acc on FXCM and am extremely confused on how to get started with their software. i feel ig has a more user-friendly interface.I feel way in over my head..will watch some vids on how to use their software and platforms.

 

[montmorencyt2w]

If you want a simple interface, try Tradefair.
Competitive spreads also.

Not as sophisticated as IG, but it doesn't sound like you need sophistication at this stage.
Maybe try the demo system first.

They might still have a cash match offer (subject to certain conditions).
They don't have particularly small stake per pip sizes unfortunately. (Min £1 for most, if not all). That being the case, you probably need to start with at least a moderately sized acount (e.g. of the order of £1000, rather than £100). A bit less would be ok, but it limits your scope a bit.