Book Description

One of the best selling options books ever. This newly updated classic will show you how to play the options game where profits of 100% or more are not unusual and where you can earn profits of 100% to 300% on any one trading day. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

A very good option book
If you are a fan of Lawrence McMillian and love to thread through pages of frivolous information, you probably won't enjoy this book.

The Complete Option Player is 46 chapters and 500 pages of powerful information. Once you begin reading, you won't want to put this book down.

You will find insider secrets and other advice that you will not find anywhere else.

Chapter 38 - Option pricing is probably the most important chapter in the book, especially for new traders. Trester also includes call and put option tables to assist the investor.

Overall, a very good book and a great supplement to Wall Street Money Machine #1 and #2. I would also recommend Wall Street Money Machine #4, which is all about option trading in addition to this book.

Hope you're not the visual type
If you are brand new to options and you are not the visual type (there isn't a single graph in this book) and you like cute little cartoons, then this book is for you.

Most of this book focuses on various naked strategies which work great in certain markets, but can be instant death in others. Also, there is very limited information on resources to use in your research.

From a literary point, the flow of the book is quite good, so I could see someone reading it from cover-to-cover. If you are a self-help person, you'll love this book, but you will still have the same issue that after you finish it, you may feel better, but you aren't any smarter.

Go do some searches on the web for info. Optionetics.com, optionvue.com, and 21stCenturyOptionsEducation.com are all good places to start. _The Stock Market Course_ by Fontanills and Gentile (Optionetics) is great and for general trading info and an attitude adjustment, check out _Trading for a Living_ by Elder.

Happy Trading!

One of the best options books I have read
This is one of the best options books I have read. Ken Trester
gives details of what situations to apply the strategies instead
of the usual boring options books that just describe the strat-
egies. His newsletter services are very good. I have tracked the
trades in his Put and Call Tactician newsletter and most of them
have performed admirably - he even recommended AAPL Put just
before the stock collapsed.

Too simple and selling newsletter
This book is too simple and the goal is selling you the subscription service.

I subscribed to the newsletter service and lose money on every trades, the strategies did not work.

Misses the mark
This was very disappointing. I bought this and his newsletter which lost lots of money. I wish I had stuck with other option experts than try this unknown Mr. Trester. Lives up at Tahoe financing a life style from selling his opinion.

The book is just a retelling of the simple option strategies that other authors have adequately covered. No vision and no new angle.

I have bought other books that were easy to understand and got to the point. I used the Amazon Top 10 option bestsellers to find the best books and have only been disappointed by this one. At least I can return it to Amazon for a credit and buy the right book next time.

Retire Mr. Trester. It is time. ... Read more

Book Description

This book brings together the best minds in trading to produce a wide-ranging and informative volume that will provide lasting value to traders of all kinds. Covering everything from Elliott Wave to seasonals to money management, the book touches on virtually every significant approach to trading. Most important, each chapter is written by an acknowledged expert in that particular field. Highlighted in the new edition: Joe Krutsinger, a leading trading system consultant, explains the key ingredients behind every succesful trading system; David Caplan, a top options educator, discusses the importance of volatility in formulating a trading strategy; Donald Jones, the developer of the patented overlay Demand Curve, provides a rule-based approach to using the Market Profile; Robert Koppel and Howard Abell, the authors of The Innergame of Trading, show how to master the psychological skills that are essential to successful trading. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Essential Elements of Futures Trading
In Indian capital market, a historic change is going to take place on July 2, 2001. Indian capital market has a system of carrying forward the trades done on the stock market till the party completes the delivery of cash or certificates as the case may be or squares off the transaction with a buy or sell as appropriate. During the carry forward period, the margin may or may not be paid by the investor, but he has to pay carryforward charges from settlemet period to settlement period. This practice is being stopped from July 2, 2001 and India will have a derivative market in financial securities in which only the players can take positions by paying margins.

Hence, there is a lot of interest in the country to read books on futures and options trading. People are moving from library to library to read books on derivatives. It is in this context that I came across this book.

This book is edited one. Right at the beginning of the book, the editor focusses the readers on the three essential elements of future trading: discipline, well designed trading system, and adequate capitalization. A chapter on discipline by Jake Bernstein stresses the importance of continuous effort to track the market data and act upon it.Kenneth Upshaw's chapter on conserving capital is a very useful chapter. In a recent seminar, a number of experienced brokers commented that clients in general do not like stop loss actions. That means many traders in the markets are doing a basic mistake. The call of the editor to traders to review the basics of trading is very appropriate. Eighteen chapters are devoted to discuss various technical approaches that were used by master traders successfully.

The last chapter summarizes all the chapters in the book and provides the common threads of the master strategies.

This book is recommended for study by every aspiring futures trader. Only difficulty could be that you have to find it in a library. ... Read more

Book Description

"Kolb and Overdahl have produced a clear and well-written introduction to derivatives that should serve as a useful foundational text. Their mixture of mechanics, pricing, and risk management is as well-balanced as their blend of theory and practical applications."
–Christopher L. Culp, PhD, Adjunct Associate Professor of Finance at The University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business and Managing Director at CP Risk Management LLC

"The third edition of Kolb and Overdahl presents a nice blend of theory and application of financial derivatives. The concise anthology introduces institutional background and valuation issues and then shows how each instrument can be used to manage risk. This book is sure to be of interest to risk managers as well as business students about to embark on their finance careers."
–Steve Swidler, J. Stanley Mackin Professor of Finance, Auburn University

"Financial Derivatives is an excellent, accessible introduction to some of the fastest growing markets in modern finance. Kolb and Overdahl clearly explain the uses (as well as the problems underlying several well-publicized abuses) of financial derivatives as risk management tools. Practitioners, regulators, and students of finance will all profit from exercising their option to acquire this book."
–Michael Ferguson, Assistant Professor of Finance, University of Cincinnati ... Read more

Reviews (3)

super book, fun to read
Just entering the business from a EE background so I am reading this book to get down terminology and concepts before reading John C. Hull. At first "selling short" sounded like something shady.

This book is written in a friendly, interesting style.

Requires some math background (high school algebra) and basic knowledge of statistics (Gaussian distribution).
I have been verifying all calculations. For the asking, I have written some programs to automate interest rate calculations and Black-Scholes (...).

Next I'll write a program to do the work of 100000 stockbrokers in finding and executing arbitrage/reverse arbitrage opportunities.

Sound introduction to derivatives
An easy to understand text that establishes the fundamentals of financial derivatives such as futures, options, and swaps with an emphasis on risk management. Great for business students.

Quick and Easy Guide
This is a quick and easy guide to understanding derivatives. Excellent as a brief reference quide. Would recommend to professionals working with these products. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Excellent book, but not perfect
This is an excellent book for beginners and intermediate traders. It explains TA in a deep but simple way. The real value of this book (for me) is that it explains what is happening, who is buying and who is selling during chart patterns. It also explains how to trade each pattern.

After reading this book i feel much more calm and confident about what is actually happening on the markets. I can now have my own ideas of market movements, despite news, newsletters and other bloated sources of information. This book will serve as a reference for years to come.

The section on chart patterns is deep and complete. It contains all needed informations, but keeping a focus on price action.

The section on indicators covers (well) the most common ones. I would have liked more indicators.

A TA good book but not amazing
This is a solid book but it is not a 5 star book. Probably closer to 3 1/2 to 4 stars. Lots of stuff about pennants, flags, support lines, etc. The author does walk you through using the indicators which is very helpful. A lot of TA books describe and indicators and fail to tell you what to do with it. The sections on RSI and stochastics are also good.

I have been using some of the ideas with powerinvestor.com's software and been very pleased. Their web site uses simple to use sector models that have returned 30% a year since 1996.

...

A fresh new book on technical analysis.
Bruce Kamich has written one of the best books on technical analysis that I've seen in a long time. Unlike most introductory books, it neither over simplifies, nor does it make it seem as if you need a PhD to learn how to use technical analysis. The book explains how and why technical patterns and indicators work in an entertaining way. On top of that, the examples of patterns in the book are not "text book". You actually get to see what these things might look like in the real world instead of the perfect picture you see in most books. This is invaluable. On top of that, the book is a bargain!

Solid Advice for Chartsists, Technicians of All Levels
Barron's named this book one of the best of the year - and for good reason. "How TA Works" is a friendly and easy-to-read (but not *too* simple) guide to charting and technical analysis. Instead of focusing on a single methodology, this book provides an arsenel of tools and explains how they're used for market timing, stock selection, and risk management.

Many of the studies and tools used in the book can be used for free or little $ at TA sites like Prophet ..., the source for charts in the book. It's definitely a good idea to learn from this book while trying it out with the online charts at the same time. That way, you can see how different studies, for example, work on different stocks.

Also, comparing the price to other books in this genre, "How TA Works" is a very good value. Highly recommended, the market not withstanding...

How Technical Analysis Works
As a student of markets and an industry employee, I've read numerous books. After reading Mr. Kamich's book, it's clear that he's put in a tremendous amount of effort and has leaned heavily upon his extensive experience. As a subscriber to a popular quote/news vendor that he works for, I know that he has successfully transalated some of his real life experiences into this book. A distinguishing feature of this book is the idea that the reader should think alongside the various examples. This is extremely helpful. Too many books give you the gospel - easy to chew through, but not helpful in real life. Trading is very much an individual pursuit, so having the reader think and react, not told, is quite refreshing. This is probably not a book for newbie's, but for everyone else, you'll be pleased. Let's hope a cequel is in the offing! ... Read more

Book Description

This guide provides strategies for coping with volatile returns and profiting with this exciting new asset class. Specific topics include: Profiles of major funds; Historical performance of hedge funds; Hedge funds as a part of the institutional portfolio; Selecting a hedge fund manager; Legal, tax and accounting issues. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

An excellent resource, sure to slash your billable hours.
The list of books written on hedge funds is a short one, and this book is certainly the finest on the subject. The professionals who contributed their specialized knowledge are of the highest caliber, and better yet, many of them can be reached for counsel. Any investor with the capacity to invest at this level ought to know the mechanics of the various methodologies as clearly presented by the authors. I found all of the information to be useable and valuable information with absolutely no filler. Particularly of interest to me was all of the legal, tax and regulatory information which quite literally provided me with a blueprint from which I will begin building my (as GP) Private Investment Partnership. This book will eliminate countless hours with a securities attorney because now I know exactly how to direct the counsel. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Day trading such stocks as Amazon.com, eBay, and Yahoo! sounds like a game for the gun slinger: jump into the fray and pull the trigger. Is that really the case? No, according to author Christopher Farrell, who earns his money just as Wall Street does--by making very small, short-term, high-percentage trades. Farrell, who works from home, has traded over 15,000,000 shares of stock via the Internet, producing a 65 percent annual return for his investment fund in its first year. Using detailed, user-friendly examples, Farrell shows how to place orders online and then sell minutes later for small profits that can potentially add up to thousands of dollars a day--if you pick the right stocks. He explains how the New York Stock Exchange allows traders to buy on the bid and sell at the offer, just like the professionals. Farrell also includes loads of tips, such as how to choose an online broker, how much to pay for commissions, and how to cope with a technology that's still in its infancy. If you've been thinking about joining the estimated 5 million online traders, then this book is for you. --Thom Hartle ... Read more

Reviews (164)

BE CAREFUL
Well, I have been trying the method for four weeks now and my total net profit is $143.50. I believe it can work, but in today's marketplace it is very difficult. Things happen that are not described in the book. For instance, once you purchase a security for say, 6 1/2 (a sixteenth above the bid) and turn around to try to sell it for 6 9/16, you watch the spread change to 6 7/16 to 6 1/2. Bammm. I have lost hundreds of dollars this way. Also, one "loss" is a minimum of $145.00 and more likely much more. If you are impatient you can lose $1,000 or more. It has taken me quite a few "wins" to make up for one loss. Sometimes the trades work exactly as described in the book. Four minutes and I make $104. Most of the time, however, I am stuck in a trade ALL DAY to try to just break even. You can only do one or maybe two trades at a time unless you have a lot of money. The most I made in one day of trading was $220. Also, contrary to what Farrell says in the book, market conditions play a very BIG part in this kind of trading. Look at the utility sector last week and tell me it doesn't. Overall, I think the method works in an "up" market with good volume. Doesn't work so well in sideways or down market with medium or low volume. If you try this method, just be careful.

Noone ever made me angrier!
A pamphlet would have accomplished what this guy said in the entire book! I wanted to strangle him! Repetitive, condescending, overly simplified and so BOOOoorrring!!! Here is the nuts of it all: Pick a stable stock with a narrow spread between bid and ask. Buy 2000 shares and then sell it 1/16 higher right away. Everything else is simply preamble... over and over and over. Hope I saved you 20 bucks.

''Excellent Primer''
Even though this book might be dated(1999) it contains excellent ideas on day trading and tells about the author strategies on pecking away at the Specialist & Market Makers. It's very simple read,It tell's you to stick to a game plan to keep your profits ahead.

Good Read

Might have been a good book but now obsolete
A few ideas in this book that aren't in other books. Unfortunately, the market system changed significantly since. NYSE shares can trade off the floor. There's before market and after market trading. Decimalization also is a major change. Some of the ideas are still useful in today's market so it might be worth a read just for that. But to blindly follow the advice here and assuming you can make a living on it is a receipt for disaster.

Author mentioned it isn't uncommon for a trader to make 100% returns in one year and compares it with the market doing 20% in a good year. HHHmmm...100% is halved because he mentions using using 100% margin. Even without the leverage, the risk isn't the same as buying and holding a portfolio of stocks. Author understates the risks involved in his strategy--the downside risk in buying for the 1/16 is still the price of the entire investment--bad things can happen even to low volitility stock when the broader market tumbles--the downside risk certainly is not just 1/16 mentioned in the book. Plus 20% is a _good_ return on the market but certainly not the best--returns of 40% isn't that rare and if you're speaking of picking 10 or so stocks, returns of 50% isn't that uncommon. In any case, the idea is to make day trading a part time or full time job. If that's the objective, you need to average the returns out and only the amount of money you make in excess of buying and holding an inexpensive no-load mutual fund should be considered your average return for your work. Not too many people have that much risk capital to make that work--the only reasonable option seems to be to start a hedge fund like the author did and charge the client for managing money. But a lay person probably won't attract too many clients because of zero professional trading experience factor--the author was a professional trader at a few major firms.

The author's own hedge fund only did 65% in the first year. I wonder how well he's doing now?

Not Very Helpful Book
This book is based on the authors opinions instead of a book that gives crucial innformation. No technical analysis help and barely any fundamental help. Horrible book ... Read more

Book Description

How to profit from put options, the straightforward, versatile tool that any investor can use

Put Options provides complete information for understanding and using puts, the easy to-use investment designed to help investors lower risk and increase overall returns. Misunderstood by most investors as being far too complex, aggressive, and risky to bother with, puts are actually one of the safest end most versatile risk-hedging instruments available, and suitable for virtually any investor.

Put Options explains why and how.

Author Jeffrey Cohen outlines a foolproof, back-tested strategy for incorporating put options into any investment portfolio--or even creating a stock-free portfolio.

Put Options features:

• 9 put rules for saving both money and frustration
• Put strategies for profiting in up, down, or sideways markets
• Tips for using puts to increase trading leverage and success

Reviews (3)

Put Options
You should know I'm biased. Mr. Cohen is my personal financial consultant. Over the past three years while many of my friends were losing a fortune in the market, my portfolio grew substantially thanks to the principles discussed in this book. If you can't have Jeff as your personal advisor, the next best thing to do is read his book and see how he does it. - Wm.G.Hayden,M.D.

Opportunity to earn consistent double-digit stock market ret
If you were like most investors, you would leap at the opportunity to earn consistent double-digit stock market returns with greatly reduced risk. This excellent book on Put Options introduces you to an innovative, proven program designed to do just that--produce consistent and regular stock market returns while minimizing the risk of losing those returns during a down market.
The secret, as described in detail in the book, is in implementing a low-maintenance, easy-to-follow program of selling put options on quality stocks while hedging those investments by buying puts on the overall market. Far easier to implement and track than it sounds, this strategy is frequently used by institutional investors, whose reputations and careers depend on garnering decent returns without assuming unnecessary risk.
Put Options explains this proven technique in terms that virtually any investor can understand and implement. The rare investment book that supports its claims by providing the actual results of actual trades using actual household-name stocks, Put Options provides a step-by-step template on how you can use author Jeffrey Cohen's SafetyNet program.
This book is for the individual small investor that makes his own investment decisions. The existing base of such investors is huge, and growing rapidly, as evident by the subscriber growth rates of the online brokers. The reasons for these investors making their own decisions and thus controlling the performance of their portfolios is quite clear when you consider the following scenario:
The savvy investor is no longer content making a 2% annual return in a passbook savings account or 4% on a Bank Certificate of Deposit. Some mutual funds may do a little better than this but their performance is not always consistent.

Today, everyone wants his or her money put to hard work, aggressively generating more money. Since the stock market outperforms all other investments over time, people are increasing turning to the stock market and the options market, where much higher rates of return can be made with relative small increase in risk to capital.

Before the later part of 1997, it was difficult for the small investor to become actively involved in the stock market. The commission fees charged by the full service brokers were high. Research into companies and analysis of stocks were difficult, obtaining timely information was nearly impossible for the average person. It used to be that stock and option investing was considered the domain of professional money managers and the wealthy elite. The Internet has changed all that by providing a wealth of financial information and online brokerage firms. There are hundreds of Internet sites that provide free instant access to stock quotes, stock charts, company profiles, late breaking company news, detailed technical analysis, and even specific stock and options recommendations.

With computers and Internet connection available to everyone inexpensively, the small investor has opportunity like never before! These days, virtually everyone knows about the stock market. The number of mutual funds has grown 50 folds since the 1970's... 401(K) plans have flourished ... kids these days get stocks as birthday and graduation presents... there is 24 hour stock coverage on TV... online trading accounts are everywhere...

My point is this: we have become a generation of stock investors. We are raising our children to be stock investors. And with savings interest rates hovering around 1%¾there are trillions of dollars in cash still waiting on the sidelines¾with no place to go except right back into the stock market. All it will take is more good news from sectors recovering from over growth and the recent pullbacks.

The most important of all is the fact that investor expectation of reasonable return on investment has been moderated after the recent stock market bubble burst... and a 20% to 30% per year return on a sustainable basis is very attractive and acceptable. In my opinion, anyone who has a portfolio or manages investor or corporate funds is a potential reader [of the Put Options book] and user [of the SafetyNet program] by Jeffery Cohn.

Put Options will change the way you invest by literally changing the way you view investment. It shows you how to invest in today's best blue chip and technology stocks in such a way as to profit when they do well while protecting yourself when they do poorly. Packed with facts, figures, and actual examples of SafetyNet program in action, it unquestionably supports the bottom-line premise that writing options can, if done correctly, be far safer than owning shares of stock--and then shows you exactly how to do it.

Super strategy
Cohen's book is a compelling analysis of selling put options and covering the risk with the purchase of index puts. He compares this strategy with the purchase of long stocks and describes how the strategy reduces risk. Overall a solid description of a well developed strategy. Not some get-rich-quick scheme! ... Read more

Book Description

On his hugely popular Web site Undergroundtrader.com, Jea Yu tells traders how to stand firm, trust their instincts and knowledge, and grab the day trading profits they deserve. Traders trust Yu's hard core, just-the-facts perspective to cut through the fluff, hype, and misinformation, and deliver effective trading tips and strategies on techniques, order routing, technical analysis, market maker activity, and more.

Here, Yu dynamically transfers his methods for making daily, real-time recommendations to the printed page. Traders will derive instant benefit from Yu's straightforward, Web site-driven analyses including:*
Vital and detailed information on the different stock markets*
Techniques to profit from IPOs and Internet stocks*
A day in the life of a successful electronic trader ... Read more

Reviews (36)

Not too good: but appendix A is worth the money
This is not a very good book on daytrading.

Best book I read regarding this subject is "Fiancial freedom trough electronic daytrading" by Van K Tharp and Brian June. They give you a step by step way to build your plan, including the three main elements of any trading plan: Psicology, risk control and posotion sizing.

Second best is Tony Oz's "Stock trading wizard".

Anyway, Appendix A of "The Undergroundtrader.com Guide to Electronic Trading" ,written by Russell Arthur Lockhart, Ph.D. and titled "A different style of trading", is excellent and gives you, as the title says, a different way to daytrade, without the stressing pressure of level 2 surveillance and the subjectiveness inherent of the decission making using this tool.

Lockhart method (3PB)is purely mechanical and focussed only in price action. No indicators such as stochactics or MACD are needed. It tells you, also, how to improve this method using fibonanci price targets and pivot points.

Based solely on this appendix ( 35 pages) i'm glad I bought this book.

FSC

Book+Video+Chat+Practice=$
Read the book twice. Jay says in 200 pages what it takes others 500 pages to say. Its cut to the chase baby. If you want straight talk, thats that fact jack, then this is the book. Add the video and join the chat service (Jay is a coach, like Bobby Knight, if your screwing up he lets you know about it!!) and you might have a chance to succeed. Face it, no matter what system you choose, most daytraders fail, Jay provides simple yet effective methods for scalping or swinging intra-day but you must follow them, get greedy or loose focus and your toast.

I have only been a chat subscriber a short while, but he has honed my skills, helped me to stay focused and learn the techniques. As far as the daily calls on the website, I've seen them all called live and they are real. However,I dont take those trades unless I know the stock. Thats one of his techniques. Your basket stock, pick one stock and learn that sucker forwards and backwards and quess what, it becomes your personal ATM machine, yea baby$ Stray from your basket and quess what, ya go home red.

totally worthless
It always amazes me how some people have the ability to write a whole book with nothing to say. If you can make money using the techniques in this book please email me, as far as I'm concerned this book is only meant to promote their services. The second half of the book is surely meant to impress, not to teach. I hate these selling techniques: they even make us pay for their promotional material.

Pragmatic advise to those who can listen.
If one were to follow the advise in this book, they would be successful. The author leaves nothing to chance and is trying to teach the reader that he too must leave nothing to the whim of the market. The premise on which this excellent book is founded is to react to the market and not forecast it. As Jea Yu points out, it is harder to do than you might expect. The battleground is really the "baggage" that we all bring to the table - our ego's, our budget and most of all our bad judgment. This is a great book and teaches a winning style, if the trader has the discipline to follow it.

Outstanding. Read it again and again.
A novice should probably read that fluffy Toni Turner book to get an idea of the lingo, but no one should contemplate day trading without reading Lu. This book is a detailed description of the intricacies of no-nonsense, hardcore daytrading, written by a consistently successful practitioner.

I have read dozens of books on trading and this is the only one that I read again within one week of finishing it for the first time. It's simply too good to store on a shelf. Read it, learn from it, read it again, profit from it.

To use an old cliche, the small amount of money spent on this book will be the best investment you'll ever make. I'm not kidding. Read Toni Turner's sappy book if you must, if you're new to the game, but don't open an account until you read Jea Lu. His explanation of Level II screens, the use of stochastics and moving averages, and his advocacy of zero-emotion trading are all gems, which alone would be worth the price of the book.

I'm currently re-reading it, cover to cover, for the third time. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Understandable primer on ETFs
While I have been following the growth of ETFs for a some time in the financial media, I've been confused about how to select them and why they're sound investment alternatives. This book provided sound discussions about the various funds and why this is a good investment strategy. The charts were helpful and overall this is a very well written investment book

Want to learn more about ETFs?
I did, and I found that this book gave me a clear and comprehensive knowledge base for this new (at least new to me) investment vehicle. ... Read more

Book Description

The very rare trendline methods of Alan Andrews have been research by the author for over ten years and finally brought together in this single volume. The trendline methods are used for short to intermediate term financial trading and have never all been published in one place before. Also included are the latest trendline advancements built on Alan Andrews methods. The new material is exclusive to this book. ... Read more

Book Description

The key concepts and essential strategies behind the successful use of options
Written by Simon Vine, a seasoned trader who has over ten years of experience on Wall Street under his belt, Options is the definitive book on options for traders, investors, and risk professionals. Options provides a step-by-step approach to trading, hedging, and investing using options, and shares the key concepts essential to successful options use. Options also explores how to use a wide variety of options strategies and shows readers how to select the strategy that best fits their own psychological risk profile. Filled with real-world examples and proven strategies, this invaluable resource will be of interest to all professionals-and newcomers-who'd like to exploit options for strategic advantage, risk management, or profit.
Simon Vine (Moscow, Russia) is deputy head of the investment banking division at Alfa Bank, the largest private financial institution in Russia. He holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA from the Institute for Finance and Economics in Moscow. ... Read more

Book Description

The foreign exchange (FOREX) market used to be the exclusive arena for professional currency traders and major financial institutions. With the barriers to this market now removed, you too can participate and profit from currency trading–but first you must learn how.

In Currency Trading: How to Access and Trade the World’s Biggest Market, expert trading veteran Philip Gotthelf provides a cutting-edge and comprehensive overview of the largest market in the world–where currency trading volume exceeds $1 trillion daily–and shows you how to take advantage of the fluctuations within currency markets to reap enormous rewards.

Currency Trading is filled with in-depth insights and valuable advice that any level of currency trader can appreciate. Numerous real-world examples and case studies help drive each point home in a straightforward, no-nonsense manner. Topics discussed include:

• The principle of "parity" and how to master it
• How currency markets such as futures, options, Interbank, and forwards work
• Events that affect currency value–from interest rates to a country’s economic position
• Forecasting using fundamental and technical analysis
• Basic to advanced trading strategies for currency markets
• How to avoid scams and take advantage of legal manipulations within currency markets

The dynamics and rules of currency trading are constantly changing. There is no point in following the outdated advice of "experts." Currency Trading offers practical information which will allow you to cultivate your own views of currency trading, sharpen your skills, and ultimately, draw your own conclusions on where, when, and how to trade almost any currency–from U.S. Dollars to Euros. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Thanks Disappointed and Disgusted from Northern California
The author spends way too much time explaining basic economic indicators that should be basic knowledge for any investor. After I read another review that outlined the blundering editorial mistakes, I had to see for myself. All true! I cannot continue reading this text... How can anyone who makes this many conspicuous mistakes get a book deal much less be right about anything? Not worth the $70 price tag!

Great book to start with!
As the author of the book "Futures For Small Speculators" I tend to be very critical of books that discuss my industry. Although this book had a few editorial mistakes, Mr.Gotthelf still did a solid job of getting his point across. For a beginner this is a great start. For more indepth analysis I would go to Mr. Cornelius Luca's books.

Hastily slapped together, poorly written, sloppily edited
It appears that Gotthelf dictated much of this book into a tape recorder, some far-away typist created the manuscript, and nobody bothered to read or edit the final result. How else to explain that "Jim Ellis is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Oracle" on p.43 (I thought it was Larry Ellison)? These sorts of editorial lapses are rife throughout the book.

To name but a few examples, Fig 6.5 caption says "Cash Currency trading screen" but it's actually a bar chart of Yen futures (p.124)

The data for Figure 8.11 (a perpetual contracts bar chart of Yen) is presented with the caption of Figure 8.10 ("Soybeans futures monthly chart"). No soybeans chart is presented at all; instead, a Nikkei futures chart mysteriously appears (p. 212)

Figure 8.41 is printed upside down! (p.236). Honestly. This is perhaps the ultimate insult to the reader and ought to be a source of acute embarrassment to the editor and author.

Academy Award nominee James Caan, with two a's, will be amused to read p. 89 which states "... has been depicted in fiction such as the movie Rollerball starring James Cann" with two n's.

Those who buy the book believing it may deliver on the dustjacket's promise "How to trade the world's biggest market" will receive a disappointment. The only trading strategy Gotthelf reveals is "Go Long when price crosses above a moving average, Go Short when price crosses below a moving average." Then he regurgitates standard methods of creating a synthetic position using options. There is absolutely nothing new here.

No review would be complete without mentioning Gotthelf's mysterious concept of Parity. First he tells you it's "a ratio that always equals one" (page 24). Next he tells you "there are no exact relationships" in FOREX (page 32), leaving you to wonder how Parity could always equal one if there are no exact relationships. Then he muddles through two hundred more pages and eventually you, the reader, decode the fact (which Gotthelf never bothers to state exactly) that his "Parity" actually means "Equilibrium". Great. But where's the insight?

I own several other Wiley Finance books and all of them have wonderful quotes from important figures in the trading world, in the form of testimonials and gushing recommendations on the rear dustjacket. Kaufman's "Trading Systems and Methods" has five, Hill and Pruitt's "The Ultimate Trading Guide" has four, Ryan Jones's "The Trading Game" has five, Sweeney's "Maximum Adverse Excursion" has three, et cetera ad nauseum. But this currency book by Gotthelf has exactly zero quotes on the dustjacket. No recommendations, no congratulations, no endorsements. I suggest you follow the advice of everyone who DIDN'T write a recommendation for Gotthelf's book: stay away.

Soros's Resource
OK, I don't know if Soros used this resource, but he probably would have enjoyed it. This is a classic for anyone who wants to engage in serious trading or speculation in the foreign exchange markets. This book entertains as it illustrates. One caveat is convertibility risk detailed in Tavakoli's book on "Credit Derivatives". We saw this happen in several Latin American countries, Iran, and more, and that effects settlement on foreign exchange and foreign exchange options. Another product Tavakoli writes about is credit default contingent foreign exchange. One can speculate and earn big premiums, but the risk is difficult to evaluate. ... Read more

Book Description

Learn How to Profit from Option Selling and Time-Value Decay

"John Summa and Jonathan Lubow make a special contribution to the trading literature with their book Options on Futures: New Trading Strategies. Among other notable features of the book, the authors present their favorite trading setups for S&P 500 and commodity futures options, an excellent chapter covering SPAN margin requirements, and actual trades and follow-up adjustments under far from ideal market conditions. The book drives home the point that options on futures should be part of any trader’s arsenal. The authors’ premium selling approach will come as an eye-opener for many options traders who remain confined to option buying strategies. If you want to learn how to trade options on futures, there is no better place to start. This outstanding book, coauthored by John Summa, who is one of the best options educators and traders in the business, provides a practical, hands-on explanation of how to trade options on futures. Options on Futures is full of trading nuances and key insights that make it uniquely effective. Highly recommended reading!"
–Steve Bell, General Partner, Intraday Investments
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Bravo
I recently carefully studied your book entitled "Options on
Futures" and found it just fascinating. Of course, I have long been a
seller of SPX cash market options and your book broadened my understanding
of what can be done in the futures and options on futures markets. Your book
and workbook are very clear, understandable, and applicable.

Another book about selling options...
This book is really no different from the many other books about options and why it is better to be a seller of option premium rather than a buyer. ... The only real difference from most other options books is that this book focuses on futures options instead of stock and index options. The only chapter that addresses any slightly new material is the chapter about the margin requirements of trading futures options. And even that chapter is lacking. In order to fully be able to employ the material abouts margins, you have to buy a ...computer program. I can't really recommend this book to anyone with even slight experience trading options. For beginners only!

Options on Futures
This is a very simple, canned presentation. The book is primarily boilerplate that may be read free on any exchange website. There may be value for the novice here, but anyone with experience will put the book down 15 minutes after picking it up.

One of the best Options books out there....
Very good treaty on trading options as a net seller, sellers being the options traders in the market who make the real money. Well written, clear examples, margin reqs covered thoroughly...

Glad I got this one
I like to buy straddles. That makes me a debit spreader. Since this book is all about CREDIT-spreads, you'd think that I would stay away from it.

Nevertheless, I'm glad that I bought the book and consider it to be an important addition to my library. The authors do a good job of:
-- explaining why speculators should be interested in options on futures;
-- explaining why speculators should think twice about buying premium... as opposed to selling it;
-- showing how to take and then adjust positions on certain basic strategies.

The book is:
--less theoretical and more immediately useful than Natenberg's "Option Volatility & Pricing";
--better organized than Caplan's "The New Option Secret";
--more focused and informative than Spears' "Commodity Options", and...
--less combative than Gallacher's "The Options Edge".

To be honest, I'm glad that I've had a chance to read and re-read ALL these books -- so I'm not saying that you shouldn't get any of them. It's just that Summa and Lubow make an especially good case for credit-spreading.

One last point: "Options on Futures" is a must-have if you follow the recommended trades on... ... Read more

Book Description

Hedge funds now account for 25 percent of all NYSE trading volume and are one of the fastest growing sectors in today’s financial industry. Managing a Hedge Fund examines every significant issue facing a hedge fund manager, from management of numerous types of risk to due diligence requirements, use of arbitrage and other exotic activities, and more. Broad-based where most hedge fund books are narrowly focused, it provides current and potential managers with a concise but comprehensive treatment on managing—and maximizing—a hedge fund in today’s fiercely competitive investing arena.

Reviews (1)

Hedge Fund and Investment Books
Hedge funds can be arcane and complicated investments, and difficult to understand. Black is able to sift through all the complexity and lay the "parts on the table" for analysis. At a time when the interest in alternative investments is gaining momentum, readers of this book will benefit from Black's excellent guidance on the subject. It provides in-depth background for investors who want to enter the alternatives world, and entrepreneurial investment manangers that are ready to start their own hedge funds. ... Read more

Book Description

The first book to demystify hedge funds-insightful, practical, and easy-to-follow. Cash is flooding into hedge funds at a remarkable rate. The industry has experienced a $38 billion growth spurt in the last two years. 1997 alone saw a 40% increase in investor capital. Surprisingly, this tremendous growth has been fueled largely by individual investors, not by professionals. Though sophisticated investors see hedge funds as an attractive and viable option, until now information has been scarce. This is the first book for consumers who want to learn more about investing in hedge funds. It's the only resource that describes how hedge funds work specifically for individuals-including risk factors.Written by a professional investment adviser, Investing in Hedge Funds demystifies hedge funds and walks the consumer through the investment process step by step. This is the definitive guide to the increasingly popular hedge fund universe. Hedge funds are investments, run by fund managers, that use one or more alternative investment strategies, including investing in assets, such as currencies or distressed securities; hedging against market downturns; and utilizing return-enhancing tools, such as leverage and short selling. Consistency of return is typically the primary investment goal, not magnitude. Includes: Hedge fund basics: what they are and how to invest in them; Insights from top fund managers; How-to strategies clearly explained; Risk management and monitoring; Appendix with useful information sources; Sample portfolios. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Only for the most basic hdege fund newbie
This book had a lot of promising reviews, but what a deception! The typography is very bad, some pages are writen so big that 2 pages could be condensed into 1. The overall layout looks like it was taken from a glorified powerpoint presentation...

The book reviews different strategies hedge funds can employ in one chapter. Thereafter one complete chapter is devoted to each strategy. However, you don't learn much more by reading the detailed chapter. If you have even a basic understanding of different hedge fund techniques such as market-neutral, merger arbitrage or global macro, then you will probably not learn anything new from this book.

The more interesting part of the book is the last part where the author tries to forecast where the industry is going. However, this is full of known truths such as "hedge funds will continue to exist and take on more importance"... duh! Maybe the book is simply too old and should be revised?

Don't waste your time and money on this one.

A Good Read!
While this book is meant to serve as an introduction to the complex world of hedge funds, hedge fund managers and hedge fund investors (in short, the hedge fund dynamic), it is decidedly not of the For Dummies family that currently dominates the do-it-yourself investment section of the book store. This is a highly sophisticated look at what has become one of the most exciting sectors of the investment world. If you have some knowledge of finance and its terminology, and you want to know what a hedge fund is, what kinds of strategies most hedge fund managers use and whether or not you'd want to or be able to invest in hedge funds, we ... recommend this highly specific book to you. On the other hand, if you just want to gain some insights into the investment world, you'd be better off picking up the financial section of the newspaper. Hedge funds are serious and so is Joseph G. Nicholas' book. (... note: Despite the 1999 copyright date, the book makes no reference to Long-Term Capital Management, the hedge fund that collapsed in 1998, nearly bringing about a global financial crisis.)

UNDERSTAND THE HEDGE FUND STRATEGIES MANAGERS USE
Nicholas examines all the hedge fund strategies in detail and provides the investor with examples of all the strategies used by managers. Excellent for understanding the mechanics of each strategy. As a doctoral student in business administration doing a thesis on hedge funds, I highly recommend this book for all investors

A good book overall
In the recent flood of often useless books aimed at investors this book stands out as a little gift. It provides a clear and detailed introduction to hedge funds useful to investors and to anybody with an interest in understanding how hedge funds work. The book is math-free, but thinking is not optional. I like the summary of hedge fund strategies and the description of their returns and weights in the universe of hedge funds. Unfortunately, one has to hope that the chapter and the charts will be updated frequently for they will be soon obsolete. As this book definitely deserves to see more editions, I hope that the author will go through the trouble to include both more examples and more details for each of the eleven strategies. That would definitely make the book more appealing to those readers with sophisticated backgrounds and useful to be used in classrooms as well.

Any personal library is lacking without this book.
Hedge Funds by Joe Nicholas offers a clear view of the complex world of hedge funds. He explains the individual strategies of fund managers and illustrates each on with an intelligible example. Nicholas then takes you through the steps necessary to incorporate this infromation into your personal investment strategies. This book has the clarity and educational value of a good textbook with all the readibility of a novel. No personal finance library is complete without Hedge Funds by Joe Nicholas.

A reader from the University of Chicago ... Read more

Book Description

Now updated and revised with all new charts and key information on the euro.The introduction of the euro and the recent explosion of electronic trading has changed the outlook of the foreign exchange market dramatically.Global currency trading offers staggering rewards for those with the knowledge to capitalize on it.

This updated guide provides an easy-to-follow roadmap for beginners and experienced traders alike on how to use technical analysis-with revised charts and graphs-to cash in on these enormous opportunities.The only guide of its kind to focus solely on all aspects of technical analysis, Luca explains and illustrates:The fundamentals of technical analysis and how it applies to foreign exchange What one must learn about trends and trend patterns How the major players in foreign exchange analyze their charts The quantitative methods of analysis-including all types of moving averages, oscillators, and other indicatorsThis book provides a thorough, yet easy-to-grasp explanation and analysis of point and figure charting, candlestick charting, the Gann methods, and the Elliot Wave principle.Also included is an updated CD-ROM that lets readers test the methods presented and apply them to real trading-and quickly increase proficiency in charting and chart analysis. ... Read more

Reviews (25)

To be critical is to be constructive.
If this book is very bad, I am glad to learn it from people who consider themselves knowledgeable and who have read it.But should it be possible for such critics to propose another reference which they appreciated the content.It would be much more instructive for readers who are shopping for quality books.

Not any help at all...
As a Foreign Currency Dealer, I was NOT helped from this book at all! Actually the title is misleading since he does NOT concentrate on FX, he only shows some graph examples using FX crosses instead of stocks... The author just refers to a lot of TA indicators only reviewing their typical Buy and Sell signals that are written in every TA book, and furthermore the sections are very bad structured. Really very very disappointed!!!

Very Very good book
This is a very good book. If you want to start trading currency online(like me) you must read this book first.

excellent value!!
I haven't completed the book but if I never read another page it's well worth what I payed compared to some prices of other simular books on the market. I don't know what the initial cost was, but those who wrote the unfavorable reviews should have waited to purchase. Maybe they would have been more positive.

Very very bad indeed
I have read many many book on Forex trading and this is one of the worst written ones I have come across in 8 years or so. As other reviewers have pointed out you'll notice all the good reviews on this book (all 5 star not surprisingly) seem to be written by the same person or persons. Don't waste any money on this what so ever!!! ... Read more

Book Description

This book offers an extensive and up-to-date review of market risk measurement, focusing particularly on the estimation of value at risk (VaR) and expected tail loss (ETL).

Measuring Market Risk provides coverage of parametric and non-parametric risk estimation, simulation, numerical methods, liquidity risks, risk decomposition and budgeting, backtesting, stress testing, and model risk, as well as appendices on mapping delta-gamma approximations and options VaR.

Divided into two parts, the book also comes with a Toolkit containing 11 toolboxes dealing with technical issues often used in market risk measurement, including quantile error estimation, order statistics, principal components and factor analysis, non-parametric density estimation, fat-tailed distributions, extreme-value theory, simulation methods, volatility and correlation estimation, and copulas. The book is packaged with a CD containing a MATLAB folder of 150 risk measurement functions, with additional examples in Excel/VBA.

Measuring Market Risk is designed for practitioners involved in risk measurement and management. It will also be of use to MBA, MA and MSc programmes in finance, financial engineering, risk management and related subjects in addition to academics and researchers working in this field. ... Read more

Book Description

Pairs trading is an effective trading style that has traditionally been utilized by institutional investors such as hedge funds and savvy individuals who trade for a living. But today, this style has been adopted by a broad range of traders–from the novice to the veteran. With the help of technology and some commonsense guidance, you too can begin using this technique to boost the profits of your portfolio.

Written by Mark Whistler, a licensed securities trader and broker and leading arbitrage expert, Trading Pairs clearly illustrates this profitable technique, and allows you to gain a new perspective on the markets as well as a new approach to investing. In addition, if you have access to the Internet and Microsoft Excel, the companion CD-ROM can help you put everything in this book to practice, as well as track your pairs.

"Mark Whistler has produced the ultimate guide to pairs trading that is a must read for any technical or fundamental market trader. Better yet, he’s done so with a sense of humor that makes for an even better read!"
–Scott Cortelyou
cohost, Business for Breakfast, 760 AM, The Zone, KKZN ... Read more

Book Description

Pricing derivatives theory comes alive in this self-contained interactive experience in financial pricing. The no-arbitrage perspective in a one-period state-preference model drives the book, and the Maple® and Matlab® programs help readers visualize payoffs and respond to various constraints and conditions. With clear explanations and lavish illustrations, Pricing Derivative Securities: An Interactive, Dynamic Environment with Maple V and Matlab teaches the core theoretical concepts so often disguised behind difficult terms and institutional details.
Readers can experiment with the electronic packages forever, using the book and its solutions manual as a tutorial that can help solve problems of increasing complexity.

Key Features
* Enclosed CD-ROM includes the student version of Maple V; it provides an interactive, dynamic and friendly environment allowing students to learn through hands on experience
* Enhances learning by altering the commands in the on-line files, varying them at will, in order to experiment with applications of the concepts and different (reader-generated) examples, in addition to the ones already in the prepared file
* Provides both the framework and the tools, based on the no free lunch concept, by which readers can analyze and appreciate different scenarios, including those that are not covered in the book, related to derivative securities
* Basic concepts of stochastic calculus are enriched with demonstrations using animation, simulation and three-dimensional graphs thereby overcoming mathematical complexity
* The MATLAB® Graphic User Interface provides the ability to bring to life on the screen the theoretical material of the chapters ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Pricing Derivative Securities
For when life throws you that derivative that you just can't look up in some book...
This book provides the building blocks on both the practical and theoretical levels that one needs to price derivatives. The book provides an essential combination of three things: 1) clear explanations and examples of fundamental concepts, 2) a hands on approach to software and pricing algorithms, and 3) emphasis on graphic visualization in understanding the behavior of derivatives in general. While clearly a textbook for a Master's level course, from the point of view of a practitioner, this book has also become my first reference source at the office for those times when I can't just look up the answer, and have to resort to first principles.

Pricing Derivative Securities: An Interactive Dynamic Envir
The theory of financial derivates is now much easily understood by combining mathemtical models with the symbolic, numeric and visualization capabilities of a CAS such as Maple. The author made an excellent choice to select Maple (primarily) and Matlab. Maple is used extensively in many academic and industry settings, and its integration into the presentation of the materials makes the content come alive. Great addition, that (even) every mathematician should read! I highly recommend it.

Pricing Derivative Securities if You Can't Program at All
Based on the title and description of this book, I bought it hoping to learn more about developing financial tools, specifically interest rate models, in Matlab. After working through most of the book, I have concluded that the use of the name "Matlab" in the title is misleading: it only means that Maple, the main tool of the book, may be accessed via the kernel of Matlab.

The book appears to be targeted primarily at undergraduates and MBA students, not practitioners in the field. Such an audience may have little interest (or need) in learning to develop code or the intricacies of the underlying mechanics of financial models, and for them, the book would no doubt be very helpful. The software that comes with the book includes a stripped down version of Maple, (which is nice, since you can't really use the book without it), and author-developed analytical tools. These tools support the goals of learning through the ability to quickly vary inputs and see the impact on the output, but as they are more or less a black-box, do not add much to one's independent ability to model new financial objects or extend existing ones.

The book includes the de rigueur definitions of typical financial instruments and explanations that facilitate understanding of these instruments (such as how to read and understand option data in newspapers, the mechanics of currency swaps and so on), but one really has to follow along with the Maple commands page by page to derive benefit. The fixed income section is very skimpy. It seems like the book is best suited as an extended set of lecture notes.

I like the book but would not recommend it to prac