Call Option Trading Secrets » Trading http://calloptiontrading.net Making money with call options Wed, 03 Mar 2010 05:37:21 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 The Joy of Options http://calloptiontrading.net/the-joy-of-options http://calloptiontrading.net/the-joy-of-options#comments Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:11:39 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/the-joy-of-options Owning stock has only two, maybe three, possibilities. The stock goes up. Or the stock goes down. Or, as a third possibility, it does a little of both. If you buy a stock, all you want it to do is go up.
If you sell a stock short or close a position (or consider buying it and then decide not to ;) , all you want it to do is go down. I call this one-dimensional trading. You’re long, you’re short, or you’re flat. Your gains and losses travel up and down the number line you may remember from elementary school in lock step with the movement of the stock. Not only that, but it takes a big move to make a big profit. And a big move against you can mean a big loss. Potentially all the way down to zero.
You need to add a second dimension to your trading. You need more choices than picking a direction and hoping you are right. You need to limit your losses, improve your returns, and increase your flexibility. You need options.
For many people, options are something to avoid, being dangerous, complex, and scary. I would like to introduce you to the joy of options. Any time you think you want to buy a stock, I’d like to get you in the habit of first looking at how you could do more with less using options.
In the stock and commodities markets, the type of option we just described would be known as a call. A call typically represents 100 shares of a stock. In the commodities markets, a single option contract represents a single futures contract. (For simplicity, from this point forward, I will talk about options on stock. Just remember that the same discussion applies to options on futures.)
Owning a call gives the owner the right to buy 100 shares (usually) of the underlying stock at the agreed upon strike price at or before the expiration date. (I say “usually” 100 shares because, due to splits or acquisitions, there are times when an options contract may represent something other than 100 shares.) Selling a call gives the seller the obligation to sell, if asked, 100 shares of the underlying stock at the agreed upon strike price any time up until the expiration date.
The other kind of option is called a put, and it is exactly the same as a call with one simple difference. A put gives the owner the right to sell 100 shares (again, usually) of the underlying stock at the agreed upon strike price at or before the expiration date. You can think of a put as insurance. No matter how badly the stock price crashes, having a put means that you can sell your stock for the strike price. On the flip side, selling that put means you may be obliged to buy stock at far more than its current market price.
An important distinction to always keep in mind: Buying an option gives you rights. Selling an option gives you obligations. Buying an option cannot cost you more than what you pay for the option. Selling an option can cost you far more than what you receive for selling the option.
Let’s examine the terminology of calls and puts. The underlying is the actual instrument such as a stock or commodity that is being represented by the options contract. In the real estate example, the house would be the underlying. Options are said to be derivatives because their value is directly tied to or derived from that of the underlying. An option has no meaning without an actual asset underlying it. It is the right to buy or sell that underlying asset that gives the option a reason for being and some value.
The strike price is the agreed upon price for which the underlying can be bought or sold under the terms of the option contract. In the real estate example, the strike price was $100,000. The expiration date, obviously, is the date when the option expires. The day after expiration, an option is worthless. This is the single most important fact about options that you must remember. This is why your friends think you are crazy for your interest in options. Unlike a stock, which you can hold forever, an option has a clearly defined shelf life.
One term remains, and that is the premium. The premium is what you pay for the option, when you are the buyer. Or what you receive for an option, when you are the seller. In our real estate example, the premium was $500. That’s what it cost you to hold the right to buy the house any time in that thirty-day period. The last day of the thirty-day period would, again, be the expiration date.
We have barely scratched the surface. I say that not to intimidate you, but to make you realize that you only have enough knowledge to be dangerous to yourself. Please do not think that you are ready to go out and buy calls or place spread trades. You are not. You don’t know how an option moves relative to moves in the price of the underlying. You don’t know what time does to the value of an option. You don’t know what volatility is or how it plays into option prices. You don’t know the types of spreads or what they are used for.
Please, please get yourself better educated before you start putting money into option trades. Resist the temptation to buy some cheap options, just to try it out. This is expensive education. There are plenty of advantages to trading options, but it’s still a ruthless market, happy to take your money, your wallet, and your hand if you give it an opportunity. Learn the rules of the game before you put money on the line.
Trading options can be satisfying, rewarding, stimulating, and fun. I invite you to add another dimension to your trading by including options to your repertoire.

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/the-joy-of-options/feed 0 The Secret of Reduced Margin Spreads http://calloptiontrading.net/the-secret-of-reduced-margin-spreads http://calloptiontrading.net/the-secret-of-reduced-margin-spreads#comments Sat, 23 Jan 2010 17:46:14 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/the-secret-of-reduced-margin-spreads One of the best kept secrets in trading is that of reduced margin spreads. You cannot name a trading method that provides more safety or a greater return on margin than does a reduced margin spread, while also being one of the least time-consuming ways to trade. Have you ever asked yourself why it is that many of the largest, most powerful traders trade spreads? I’m going to show you why!

WHAT IS A REDUCED MARGIN SPREAD?

Because of perceived lower volatility, exchanges grant reduced margins on certain types of spreads. Spreads consist of being long in one or more contracts of one market and short in one or more contracts of the same market but in different months—an Intramarket spread; or being long in one or more contracts of one market and short one or more contracts of a different market, and in the same or different months—an Intermarket spread.

DISTORTIONS ABOUT SPREADS

There are some distortions about spread trading that need to be dispelled. If we get them out of the way, I can show you the tremendous advantages spread trading has over any other form of trading.

It is said that spreads do not move as much as outright futures. I agree 100% with that statement. However, spreads trend much more often than outright futures, they trend much more dramatically than outright futures, and they trend for longer periods of time than do the outright futures. For these reasons you can make much more money with spreads than with the outrights.

The second distortion about spread trading goes like this: “You have to pay double commissions when you trade spreads.” Yes! You have to pay two commissions for every spread you enter in the market. So what? You are trading two contracts instead of one. You pay two commissions because you are trading two separate contracts, one in one place and the other in an entirely different place. Paying two commissions for two separate trades is hardly unfair. Let me tell you what is unfair—paying a round turn commission for an option that expires worthless. Why don’t you hear people complaining about that? You pay for a round turn, and you receive only half a turn. Doesn’t make a lot of sense, does it?

ADVANTAGES OF SPREAD TRADING

There are so many advantages to trading reduced margin spreads that I hope I don’t run out of room here before I can tell you all of them. Let’s begin with return on margin, i.e., yield.

Yield: As I write this, the margin to trade an outright futures position in soybeans is $1,050, whereas a spread trade in soybeans requires only $250, only 23% as much. If soybean futures move one full point, that move is worth $50. If a soybean spread moves one full point, that move is worth $50. That means either a 5 point favorable move in soybean futures or a 5 point favorable move in a soybean spread earns the trader $250. However, the difference in return on margin is extraordinary: In the futures the return is $250/$1,050=23.8%. For the spread, the return is $250/$250=100%. Think about that!

Leverage: This leads us to the next benefit of spread trading—with the same amount of margin, you could have traded 4 soybean spreads instead of one soybean futures. How’s that for leverage? Instead of making $250 on a five point move, you could have made $1,000. Reduced margin spreads offer a much more efficient use of your margin money.

Trend: Earlier I said that spreads tend to trend much more dramatically than outright futures contracts. Not only that, but they trend more often than do outright futures. I don’t have room here to show you the dozens of sharply trending spreads that can regularly be found in the markets, so we’ll have to settle for a recent one. You’ll have to take my word for it that this sort of trending happens frequently when trading spreads.

Opportunities: Because spreads tend to trend more often and more dramatically than do outright futures contracts, they offer more opportunities for earning money, and they do so without the interference and noise caused by computerized trading, scalpers, and market movers. Spreads avoid the “noise” in the markets. There are numerous reduced margin spread opportunities, enough to keep almost any trader busy. And it is the lack of interference by market makers and shakers that leads us to one of the most important advantage of trading spreads, whether they be reduced margin or full margin.

Invisibility: One of the primary problems with any kind of trading in the outrights, whether it be in futures or stocks, is that of stop running. The insiders love it when they can see your order. Even when your entry or exit is held mentally, they know where it is. They are keenly aware of where people place their orders. That is why they love Fibonacci and Gann traders. They know precisely where those people will place their orders. The same is true for anyone who uses one of the more commonly known indicators. The insiders fade moving average crossovers, and so-called overbought and oversold—regardless of which indicator is used to show either of those conditions. They know when prices have reached the outer limits of the Bollinger Bands, and they know the location of supposed support and resistance, etc. But with spreads, they have no idea of the location of your orders. You are long in one market and short in another. Your position is invisible to the insiders. They can’t run your stop, because you don’t have one. You cannot place a stop order in the market when trading spreads! Your exit point is entirely mental; it exists exclusively in your head. In that respect, spread trading is a more pure form of trading. It is the closest thing in trading to having a level playing field. Could that be the reason you hardly ever hear about spread trading?

Liquidity: Attempting to trade in “thin” illiquid markets is one of the surest ways to encounter serious stop running and bizarre price movements. However, other than occasional problems with getting filled, spread trading does not suffer from a lack of liquidity—which in itself creates more trading opportunities. I would never consider taking an outright position in feeder cattle. Feeders are a thin, illiquid market normally best left to professional interests. But a reduced margin (feeder cattle)-(live cattle) spread is something I look for all the time. Some of the moves in this particular spread are incredible. They are worth hundreds and even thousands of dollars per spread, several times a year. They are highly seasonal in nature due to the birth and growth cycles of cattle. The same thing is true of spreading both live and feeder cattle against lean hogs. These spreads are seasonal, which brings us to the next great advantage to spread trading – seasonality.

Seasonality: Whereas seasonality doesn’t always take place as planned, i.e., seasonality can come early, late, or not at all, but when it is happening, you can see it. It is obvious when a seasonal trade is working as expected. Seasonality is not subject to the whims of man. Seasonality is one of the strongest reasons for trading spreads. Crops are planted within a given period of time. Calves and piglets are born according to their birth cycle and they grow according to their growth cycle. Even futures based on financial instruments are seasonal, and many of them offer reduced margin spreads.

Backwardation: Along with seasonality comes the huge profits that can be made when an underlying goes into backwardation. This is true for any agricultural commodity as well as any financial instrument. I don’t have space here to explain backwardation, but when it occurs, which is commonplace, the spread between front and back months widens tremendously, thereby offering marvelous profit-making opportunities to the spread trader. As if that weren’t enough, the same opportunity becomes available when the period of backwardation ends and the relationship between front and back months returns to normal.

Probabilities: If we eliminate those trades in the outrights in which you get yourself whipsawed in a sideways market and maybe win or lose a little, the actual odds of winning on any trade is 50%. If you are long and prices move down, you lose. Conversely, if you are short and prices move up, you lose. It doesn’t matter how accurate is your trade selection, the bottom line is that your chances of being right once you enter a trade are one in two. However, when you enter a spread you are not primarily concerned with the direction of prices. Your primary concern is with the direction of the spread.

With a spread you can make money when both legs of the spread are moving up, both legs are moving down, when both legs are moving sideways but one more so than the other, or best of all, when the leg you are long is moving up and the leg you are short is moving down! As long as the leg you are long is moving better than the leg you are short, you will have a winning trade. There is only one situation in which you can lose with a spread, and that is to be dead wrong about both legs. So with a spread you can win even if you were wrong about the direction of price movement, as long as you’re not too wrong.

There are additional opportunities in spread trading, including spreads that require full margin. You can trade spreads with stock indexes, sector funds, and single stock futures. Did you know you can daytrade stock index and currency spreads? These are topics for another day and another time.

Unfortunately, either by accident or design, much of the truth of spread trading has been lost over the years. There are many more aspects to it than I have touched on here. Furthermore, there are some wonderful and inexpensive tools available that make spread trading a delight. Spread trading is one of the most relaxed ways to trade. It rarely takes more than 1-2 hours of your time each day, and more often than not, we are talking about only minutes per day to seek out and trade the wonderful opportunities that are available in reduced margin spreads.

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/the-secret-of-reduced-margin-spreads/feed 0 How to Make Consistent Profits Futures Trading http://calloptiontrading.net/how-to-make-consistent-profits-futures-trading http://calloptiontrading.net/how-to-make-consistent-profits-futures-trading#comments Fri, 22 Jan 2010 05:30:22 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/how-to-make-consistent-profits-futures-trading The issue of direct access is an important one and it becomes more important the more short term your trading is. The market can change from a state of seeming paralysis to one of shocking volatility and activity in a flash. The length of time it takes between you deciding to enter an order and the order actually being in the market is obviously important.
When I first started trading I used a phone broker and was dismayed that my fills would often be so far from the price the market was trading when I first entered the order.
The first time I visited the trading floor, I discovered why. When I called in an order, first my discount broker would check my account equity, then he would call a phone booth on the floor, the phone broker on the floor would then write the order down and pass it on to a booth next to the appropriate pit, at that booth my order would be written down again and then signaled to a broker in the pit to be executed.
As you can imagine this would take quite a long time, even longer of course if the market was very active, as this would mean that the broker in the pit would be too occupied to take new orders. Compare this to my experience of trading as a pit trader. In the pit I was in the heart of the market and could observe every single order as it was executed (there was no delay in my price feed!).
To initiate a trade, whether it was to buy or sell at the market, or join the bid or the offer, all I had to do was open my mouth. You can start to see the huge advantage that trading on the floor gave me over off floor traders; and that doesn’t take into consideration the fact that my round trip costs fell by 96%.
Now the floor no longer exists, not in Europe at least, so why talk about the advantages of pit trading? Well the level playing field is now open to all, but very few take advantage of it. Trading with an electronic trading platform is exactly the same as trading in the pit, except I can sit down, it is much quieter and there are no crude jokes flying around.
I can trade with the click of a mouse; my order shoots to the exchange, enters in the market and appears back on my screen before I have time to blink. I think the advantages of direct access trading are clear and any futures trader still using a phone broker should move to direct access, they will also find their commissions are less (around $8 for private client traders).
The next question that arises is why trade futures? That is an important consideration given that there are a variety of alternatives vying for your trading capital (spread betting, CFDs and options), but in my opinion, futures are the only option (no pun intended) for successful short term trading.
A lot of traders are trading the stock indexes like the FTSE, the DAX, the S&Ps, NASDAQ and the DOW, but rather than use futures they are using spread betting firms. The reasons for using these firms is that they require very small amounts of capital to get started, a trader can trade very small amounts (like $1 a point on FTSE as opposed to $10 for FTSE futures) and these firms make opening an account so easy.
I understand the lure of being able to open an account with very little money and trading small amounts, but I have some serious considerations about using spread betting as a realistic vehicle for professional trading.
The two biggest selling points are no commissions and no capital gains tax. There are many different costs to trading, commissions are one and the spread is another (especially when you have to trade at the market as you do with spread betting, with futures you have the choice of joining the bid or the offer).
Commissions are important for an active trader and as an active trader you can get them very low, but lets assume they are $8 per round turn for futures and lets assume that the spread in FTSE futures is an average of 2 points. If the spread with a spread betting firm for FTSE is 6 points and assume that we are trading $10 a point we can compare the two trading vehicles.
Last week I made an average of 2.42 points per contract traded and I traded 48 times. That is, for each contract I bought and sold I made $24.20 before commissions, assuming my commission rate is $8, I made a profit of $16.20 per contract traded, which is $777.60 net profit if my average size per trade is one contract.
Had I had the same success trading with a spread-betting firm, with a 6-point spread, I would have lost $1718.40! Now I would rather pay tax on a profit that no tax on a loss.
There is one other very important reason for trading the futures market rather than a non-exchange traded market such as those offered by spread betting firms. The futures markets are exchange traded and this means that they are fully transparent, i.e. everything is visible and above the table, I can see every single trade that happens. Imagine the trading pit, as it used to be when traders stood physically in a ring trading with each other.
When a trade is entered, the order goes into the pit and is represented there, free to be taken by any other market participant. We can all see what is happening, we trade with the same information and with the same advantages/disadvantages.
Now assume you are a trader who can only trade with one broker in the pit, you can trade as much as you like, any size you like, but he sets the spread he is willing to offer you and you have to trade at market (i.e. buy at his offer and sell at his bid). This broker doesn’t want to loose money, naturally, so he always makes his spread wider than the real market spread, he also, naturally, puts his interests before yours, so he won’t always be willing to trade when the market is moving fast and he is uncertain.
Remember whenever you make money he loses, so he is very careful to maintain his advantage at all times. Who wouldn’t want to be in this brokers position (he isn’t really a broker, though he claims to be)? When you trade with a real futures broker, all the broker does is facilitate your trade; he gives you the ability to have you orders represented in the pit. A real brokers concern is that they execute your order as efficiently as possible, that is their job, they do not take positions and they do not take the opposite side to you.
They naturally want you to make money because by making money you become a client who will continue to pay them commissions. Trading with a spread betting firm is absurdly costly, spread betting firms are like amusement arcades, they can be fun, but to imagine you are going to make your living from slot machines is illusory.

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/how-to-make-consistent-profits-futures-trading/feed 0 Options Trading Is a Opportunity For The Small Investor Too http://calloptiontrading.net/options-trading-is-a-opportunity-for-the-small-investor-too http://calloptiontrading.net/options-trading-is-a-opportunity-for-the-small-investor-too#comments Mon, 18 Jan 2010 05:42:30 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/options-trading-is-a-opportunity-for-the-small-investor-too The stock market appeals to people for many reasons. Some see it as a quick way to make a nice nest egg to tuck away for their eventual retirement. Some see it as a way to live out their fantasies of being a powerful, corporate type. And some are actually more logical about it, seeing the stock market as a potential way to make money, if they play their cards right. They know that there are no sure things in life and nowhere is that more clear than in the stock market. But options trading is a opportunity for the small investor too.Options trading has grown in popularity, especially with the smaller investors over the course of the past ten years. Unlike other forms of trading that can require large amounts of venture capital, options trading can be accomplished with often a very small initial outlay. Of course, because they can be easily started, it can allow the uninitiated or poorly informed to get in well over their heads in a matter of a very short time. Not allowing yourself to understand the market before you make the first trade is financially foolhardy and personally dangerous. First of all, as the name implies, option trading is not buying actual stocks, but rather busying the right to own or sell them. The options trader can make the same profit with stock options that he would make as if the owned the outright stocks, but that also means that he would face the same risks if that stock did not do well on the market. As with other forms of trading, options trading will require that you learn some facts and make some decisions before hand. Know everything you possibly can about options trading, as well as trading in general. Know how to track stocks for movement and know how to watch for trends. Know what the basic types of options trading is- and understand how each works. And, as with any other type of trading, make sure you know and adhere to your personal limits, including your absolute loss cap. Do not overextend yourself, even if you just got a tip on a great stock. Options trading can focus on stocks that are heading in one of two directions, up or down. Call options will focus on rising stocks, while Put options focus on those on the decline. Both allow you the right to buy the option on a stock at a fixed price, but do not force you to do so. Knowing how to work this system to your best advantage is key.Invest in yourself, learn the basics and expand on that to become profitable in options trading.  

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/options-trading-is-a-opportunity-for-the-small-investor-too/feed 0 Option Theory and Trading: A Step-by-Step Guide To Control Risk and Generate Profits (Wiley Trading) (Hardcover) http://calloptiontrading.net/option-theory-and-trading-a-step-by-step-guide-to-control-risk-and-generate-profits-wiley-trading-hardcover http://calloptiontrading.net/option-theory-and-trading-a-step-by-step-guide-to-control-risk-and-generate-profits-wiley-trading-hardcover#comments Fri, 15 Jan 2010 23:43:28 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/option-theory-and-trading-a-step-by-step-guide-to-control-risk-and-generate-profits-wiley-trading-hardcover Option Theory and Trading: A Step-by-Step Guide To Control Risk and Generate Profits (Wiley Trading)

Praise for Options Theory and Trading “I’ve had the pleasure of teaching with Ron Ianieri at numerous live seminars for traders and investors, and one thing is for sure-Ron knows options! Now Ron has created a thorough, easy-to-read guide that you can benefit from in many ways, whether you are experienced in options trading or just starting out. I believe you will find Options Theory and Trading like Ron himself . . . full of knowledge, entertaining, fast-paced, and a joy to be around.” —Price Headley, CFA, CMT, founder of BigTrends.com “I’ve had the pleasure of knowing and working with Ron for many years now. When managing funds in our asset management company, Ron has always been our ‘go-to guy’ on anything options-related. I’ve also taught a number of seminars side by side with Ron over the years where I’ve always come home knowing more about options than when I left! The man is truly the ‘pitbull’ of derivatives.” —Peter Reznicek, Chief Equi (more…)

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/option-theory-and-trading-a-step-by-step-guide-to-control-risk-and-generate-profits-wiley-trading-hardcover/feed 0 Trading Options at Expiration: Strategies and Models for Winning the Endgame (Hardcover) http://calloptiontrading.net/trading-options-at-expiration-strategies-and-models-for-winning-the-endgame-hardcover http://calloptiontrading.net/trading-options-at-expiration-strategies-and-models-for-winning-the-endgame-hardcover#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 21:27:11 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/trading-options-at-expiration-strategies-and-models-for-winning-the-endgame-hardcover Trading Options at Expiration: Strategies and Models for Winning the Endgame

“Learn and profit from Jeff Augen’s book: It clearly explains how to take advantage of market inefficiencies in collapsing implied volatility, effects of strike price, and time decay. A must-read for individuals who are options oriented.” –Ralph J. Acampora, CMT, Director of Technical Analysis Studies, New York Institute of Finance “A fantastic, insightful book full of meticulously compiled statistics about anomalies that surround option expiration. Not only does Augen present a set of effective trading strategies to capitalize on these anomalies, he walks through the performance of each across several expirations. His advice is practical and readily applicable: He outlines common pitfalls, gives guidance on timing your executions, and even includes code that can be used to perform the same calculations he does in the text. A thoroughly enjoyable read that will give you a true edge in your option trading.” –Alexis Goldstein, Vice President, Equity Derivatives Busin (more…)

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/trading-options-at-expiration-strategies-and-models-for-winning-the-endgame-hardcover/feed 0 Stock And Option Millionaire Psyche http://calloptiontrading.net/stock-and-option-millionaire-psyche http://calloptiontrading.net/stock-and-option-millionaire-psyche#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 05:49:30 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/stock-and-option-millionaire-psyche If you are like most of us, we have all lost our fair share of money in the stock markets using strategies written by so-called gurus and experts costing thousands of dollars.
Have you ever wondered, how does these stock and options trading experts develop these strategies, prove its worthiness all over the internet and in books, made money with them, but when you use these stock or option trading strategies, its magic fades away and you started losing money…
Going deep into the core of the problem revealed that there was nothing wrong with these stock or option trading strategies! I say again, nothing wrong with these strategies! What was wrong was that I found it difficult or if not impossible for many amateur traders to do many things EXACTLY the way these stock or option trading strategies demanded it! Have you ever held on longer then the stop loss policy allows? Have you ever let profits run when you are supposed to take profit? Haven’t these situations resulted in the loss of thousands of dollars and most importantly, a loss of trading confidence?
Why does that happen? Well, the Holy Grail of trading systems and trading strategies is in fact a complete system completed by the investor himself! The psyche of the investor makes or breaks the trading system! Your character determines what kind of trading strategy works for you! With a strategy that compliments your character, you can truly find your personal Holy Grail of stock and option trading strategies and be on your way to becoming the next stock market millionaire!
MASTER YOURSELF FIRST, THEN MASTER THE MARKET!
There are 3 dominant trading characters which you belong to. Short term aggressive trader, mixed class trader and long term stability trader. By using the respective trading strategy for your character class, you will be able to attain better trading profits with much much less effort than before.
I have developed a free online trader’s psychometric test to help you find out your dominant trading character. Please take the test now at http://psychometric.mastersoequity.com

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/stock-and-option-millionaire-psyche/feed 0 Beware the Hype in Options Trading http://calloptiontrading.net/beware-the-hype-in-options-trading http://calloptiontrading.net/beware-the-hype-in-options-trading#comments Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:30:18 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/beware-the-hype-in-options-trading Selling education on options trading is a big business. We see infomercials on television and receive emails advertising free trading software and foolproof trading systems. Unfortunately, there are many “snake oil salesmen” operating in options education. They are busy selling the dream of instantaneous riches without effort – and their price tag isn’t cheap.I recently came across the following statements on option education web sites or advertisements for those web sites:

Make all the money you ever dreamed of trading options! Trade options like a pro tomorrow! Want to make 627% trading options?

The first statement doesn’t even deserve comment. The second statement is extremely misleading. It is certainly true that ordinary people of average intelligence can learn how to trade options – but it won’t happen tomorrow! Learning the fundamentals of options terminology, how options trade, how they are priced, and then all of the different options trading strategies and their behavior in differing markets simply does not happen overnight. It requires time, effort, and practice. In my experience, a minimum of six months is required for the fundamental education, paper trading, and then some taste of success trading in small lots before scaling up in volume.The advertising line, “Want to make 627% trading options?”, is preposterous, but apparently it sells and brings in people. Certainly, it is possible to make returns of several hundred percent trading options. But it is also true that you could easily lose 100% of your money very quickly if you did not know what you were doing. Options trading strategies with the potential of several hundred percent returns are inherently trades with low probabilities of success. So, yes, I would like to make 627% trading options, but the presumption in this advertisement is that you can do that on most, if not all, of your trades. That is simply not true.If you are interested in learning to trade options, here is a checklist to ensure your success:1.    Find a reputable options education firm.2.    Continue your search if the options education firm hypes the potential returns or suggests this will be quick and easy. 3.    Check references from former students.4.    Expect to spend at least three months learning the fundamentals and trading on paper.5.    Hire a trading coach who will be on call to help and answer questions as you begin to trade with real money (this will actually save you money).6.    Scale up slowly.Learning to trade options and generate a steady income from the markets is indeed feasible. But it requires time, effort, practice, discipline, and coaching to be successful. Don’t be deceived by the hype.

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/beware-the-hype-in-options-trading/feed 0 Forex Options Trading – What is Forex? (part 1 of 2) http://calloptiontrading.net/forex-options-trading-what-is-forex-part-1-of-2 http://calloptiontrading.net/forex-options-trading-what-is-forex-part-1-of-2#comments Thu, 07 Jan 2010 17:25:11 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/forex-options-trading-what-is-forex-part-1-of-2 Forex or foreign Exchange or FX involves the buying and selling of one currency against another currency. They are always traded in pairs e.g. EUR/USD, USD/JPY. So when you are buying Euro dollars (EUR) you are also selling the US dollars (USD) in exchange for the Euro dollars. If you want to buy US dollars then you would sell the Euro dollars in exchange for buying the US dollars.

An example that we would encounter frequently is when we travel overseas and need to exchange the local currency for the foreign destination currency and we would head to the local money changer or bank to buy the foreign currency. This is a good example that we are familiar with.

By buying and selling currencies at the money changer or bank we are already involved in this huge foreign exchange market. Banks and central banks, investment funds, hedge funds, exporters and importers, companies and retail forex traders are among the main participants in the forex market.

Banks trade to generate profits and also act as buyers and sellers of one currency against another for their clients trading and commercial transaction. While central banks buy and sell currencies to hold as reserves and protect the reserves. They also act to moderate their country’s currency strength to facilitate reasonable terms of trade in the international markets for their exports and imports.

Investment funds have a percentage of their portfolio in the forex market for many reasons like diversification, hedging, etc. While most hedge funds will speculate on currencies as it is the biggest market in the world thus able to accommodate their large trading size which is quite difficult to do in the equities or futures market.

To be continue.. at – Forex Options Trading – What is Forex? (Part 2 of 2)

]]> http://calloptiontrading.net/forex-options-trading-what-is-forex-part-1-of-2/feed 1 An Introduction to Trading Stock Options (Investments) (Kindle Edition) http://calloptiontrading.net/an-introduction-to-trading-stock-options-investments-kindle-edition http://calloptiontrading.net/an-introduction-to-trading-stock-options-investments-kindle-edition#comments Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:32:12 +0000 admin http://calloptiontrading.net/an-introduction-to-trading-stock-options-investments-kindle-edition An Introduction to Trading Stock Options (Investments)

An introduction to trading stock options. Learn more about trading stock options, what are options, what can you do with them. Why do you trade options and how can you lock in profits, insure your gains, and make money in the investing world.

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