Trading for Dummies® 2nd Edition

Introduction

Trading used to be the purview of institutional and corporate entities that had direct access to closed securities trading systems. Recent technical advances have leveled the playing field, making securities trading much more accessible to individuals. After the stock market crash of 2000, when many lost large sums of money because professional advisors or mutual fund managers didn't protect their portfolio principal, investors chose one of two options — getting out of the market altogether and seeking safety or finding out more about how to manage their own portfolios. Many who came back into the market ran from it again in late 2008 when the market saw its worst year since the Great Depression.

The concept of buying and holding forever died after that 2000 stock crash; it saw some revival from 2004 to 2007, but then suffered another death in 2008. People are now looking for new ways to invest and trade. While investors still practice careful portfolio balancing using a buy and hold strategy, they look much more critically at what they are holding and are more likely to change their holdings now than they were before the crash. Others have gotten out of the stock market completely.

Still others have moved on to the world of trading. Many kinds of traders ply their skills in the markets. The ones who like to take on the most risk and want to trade as a full-time business look to day trading. They never hold a position in a security overnight. Swing traders hold their ...