Using technology for Arbitrage
Technology has had significant impact on human race in almost every sphere of life. So why not use the impact of same on trading. I discussed in brief about using technology for trading purposes in my last article on Algorithmic trading. Continuing on the same lines, I now want to tell you in very simple words how algorithms can be used in arbitrage which is the bread and butter of almost all traders across the world.
What do I mean by Arbitrage
It is a kind of trading where traders earn profits by exploiting price difference of similar or identical financial products on different market or in different forms and this Arbitrage exists because of market inefficiencies.
Example: – A program can buy or sell the future stock of a commodity like gold depending upon the spread level of same product of different expiry month contract in the Indian commodity market (MCX). More >
Mistakes Mutual Fund Investors Must Avoid
Last few months have been difficult for equity investors in India and all around the world because of the rough weather and high volatility in the global as well as Indian markets. In times like this lot of investors, especially the lesser active ones, want to take advantage of the correction by investing in equity linked instruments like mutual funds. The decision of selecting mutual fund is based on sound underlying principles that it is a professionally managed, well diversified investment avenue to directly participate in the equity markets without worrying about timing the market.
In such difficult times we have to ask a few difficult questions to ourselves before committing our money to any mutual fund scheme. Here I give you three questions which you must contemplate on – More >
Should You Buy Highest NAV Guarantee Plans?
Today a Relationship Officer from my bank visited me to educate me on how to use the surplus fund in my salary cum savings account. I actually didn’t have any expectation that he would be able to help. However, I felt that there is no harm in listening to him.
What he ended up glorifying was – Highest NAV guarantee ULIP plan. The way he was pitching the product anyone could have fallen in the trap without actually understanding the product’s nitty-gritty. I thought I must write on this subject to make people aware about the actual pros and cons of this product. (Before this, read – understanding ULIP)
Car Insurance: Comparing The Insurance Packages
Getting your own car insurance is very easy nowadays, especially with the multitude of insurance providers. However, the ubiquity of the options you have may sometimes become a little overwhelming, as it may cause you to become unsure of which insurance to get. To make this task less troublesome for you, the following are some of the pointers that you should consider.
RBI: Rates, Banks and Inflation
There could not have been a more opportune time for me to write this article. With every passing day since the last year, Dr Subbarao’s job is getting increasingly tougher. With inflation still keeping up against RBI and absence of significant structural actions on Government’s part to control inflation, options for policy actions with RBI have been reducing. With the whole onus of managing inflation falling on RBI, I think it is apt to rename RBI as suggested in the title of the article.
All about algorithmic trading
The new buzz word among the securities market enthusiasts is ALGORITHMS. Traders across the globe have been affected by the use of algorithms. Positively, if they are doing and obviously, on the negative side if they are not into it. Algo, or system trading (as is known by many in the market place) has been in vogue since quite some time in developed financial markets while developing ones (yes, I use this classification for capital markets as well) are awakening to this concept gradually. Not many participants still know what it is and how does it impact. I will try and answer some of the basic questions through this post. More >
IPO Note – SRS LIMITED
I have generally observed that during a bear phase in the market, companies defer their fund raising plans. I was going through the IPO column of NSE and came across 3 companies. Two of them had already announced their plans however, one, SRS Limited’s IPO will open on August 23. I found this company a bit interesting and hence thought of doing some research on the same. Here is what I found.
Company and business
SRS Limited is a diversified company with a business portfolio which includes cinema exhibition, food & beverages, retail & manufacturing and retailing of jewellery. SRS Limited was incorporated in August 2000 with the objective of becoming a FMCG company. Initially it came as SRS Commercial Company Limited and was later renamed to SRS Entertainment Limited in January 2005. The retail arm of the group is consolidated under two brands namely SRS Value Bazaar and SRS Fashion Wear. The Company has 23 retail stores in North India. SRS cinema operates in six cities with 11 properties having 30 screens and 7608 seats. SRS Food court runs under the SRS 7 dayz brands under the name “Punjabi Haandi” which runs 11 food courts across north and Central India.
Ban on Gender Discrimination Will Cost Women Dear?
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) recently ruled that from the 21st December 2012 it will be illegal for insurance companies to discriminate on the grounds of gender when calculating premiums for consumers in European countries.
It is hoped that this will spell an end to the sky high car insurance premiums which are now being offered to young male drivers, with research by MoneySupermarket.com suggesting that 5% of drivers have already been forced off the road as a result of these price rises.
However, not everyone is happy about this ruling; with it expected that female car insurance premiums will rise by up to 50%. We therefore take a closer look at these regulations, which are expected to have a cross over impact on countries outside of Europe.
Trading as a Career
If you are considering a career in finance, as many fresh B.Com, BBA & MBA graduates do, and all you have found are placements in the Financial Services sector, then maybe you have not considered a very large area of finance – the Capital Market.
Opportunities in core finance careers in the Capital market are innumerable – ranging from analysis & trading of different asset classes to brokerage to investment banking & private equity. The jobs with no front end involvement are those of Analysts & Traders. Of them the most lucrative is that of a Trader.
Not many are aware, but trading can be pursued as a full time career and not as a mere part time investment opportunity.
Two factors which create significant opportunities for traders are Volumes on major exchanges across the asset classes viz equity, commodity and currencies, which have more than doubled in the last 2 years, and increased number of instruments and contracts available for trading in the Indian capital markets.
What kinds of Trading Careers are available?
There are many kinds of trading – starting at arbitrage & jobbing and escalating to Options & Multi-Asset trading with opportunities in Spreads, Options, Momentum & Technical Trading lying in between. With a market capitalization of over 67 Trillion rupees – and growing – there are great opportunities in the Indian Markets. Not many are aware, but trading can be pursued as a full time career and not as a mere part time investment opportunity.
Two factors which create significant opportunities for traders are Volumes on major exchanges across the asset classes viz equity, commodity and currencies, which have more than doubled in the last 2 years, and increased number of instruments and contracts available for trading in the Indian capital markets.
