Views not News

I hear you already saying, why not writing more often. Because of credibility and all this. But I suppose, more important for many could be, why not talking about what happens every mad day on the bourse and on the international financial markets?

Well, I am deeply convinced this is not necessary. See, there is a myth I encounter very often when talking to people about stock markets and investing. They (all) think, one ought to be very “professional”, very busy, very much of insider, minute-to-minute-glazing-at-a-monitor-trader to be successful. To know, what is up out there.

That’s because the most people of course have no clue of all the financial stuff and the news coming to them every time sounds irritating, sophisticated, technical etc. They apply a natural logic – a fundamental issue of our economical and social life is the devision of labor (and knowledge, means, professions etc.), the “professionalization” if you want. Everyone has to do want he knows, and in oder to know something right in our modern world, you should invest lots of time (and money?) and spend many hours a day doing it. Else it is somehow unimaginable.

Well, I think, as right this all can be in the “real” life, concerning speculation and investing it is not true. Speculation is a lazy job. You don’t need to rush. The news comes – that’s right – every second through the ticker, and the market is in a perpetual move. But, should this bother you that much?

I do not say, one doesn’t need do be informed. Yes, critical and careful observation of the developments in many areas is necessary. But not a crazy day-to-day-doing. You’ve got time. Think about it: you have damn lot time to take the right decision. Better spend time thinking about general, important things and factors, which will influence the next big move.

Even from the top of the new economy bubble, you didn’t have to react on the minute. Some months later a good, precise decision could have made it just right.

Or now – see, there was and is a lot of time to take the right positions. The market does not move that fast as supposed in Hollywood pictures.

But – stop for a while! Let us first make some “definitions” clear. I consider it important.

On the stock exchange there are three types of actors: the Trader (yes, its actually the overall term, but the way it sounds to me is more concrete…), the Speculator and the Investor.

The Trader is involved in short term bets on the fluctuations of prices. He is news-driven, rumors-driven, acting on more or less daily and weekly basis. He is the one concerned about if the company X will report earnings 1 cent below expectations, or Bernanke will mention two vs. three times the word “inflation” in his next statement. Read more »

How do they start writing? A welcome? An introduction? Let us be realistic – until this blog will have some visitors, no one will bother about an introduction or a welcome message. So let’s start it straight forward: … The bourse …

The Americans do not use to say ‘bourse’, they say ’stocks’, ’stock exchange’, ‘Wall Street’… I don’t know if it is due to the peculiarity of the English language not to have that strong and distinguishing grammatic genders – but in all languages I know, ‘bourse’ is feminine. ‘Stock exchange’ is not. And that’s way I like to say ‘bourse’.

Well, I may have a somewhat ridiculous English, but I still may have something to tell you about the bourse. And now or later we will come to its feminine side, which is important. Very important.

Because you have to have spent some time with ‘her’ to know how hard it can be to understand the way ’she’ goes. I have spent some time. You too? - So let’s talk about her.