Trading Summary Week Ended 17th December 2021

58 Trades:

12 US 500 - 954 BPS.

44 US 100 + 78 BPS.

2 UK 100 - 487 BPS.

35 long trades - 157 BPS.
23 short trades - 1,206 BPS.
42 intra-day trades + 506 BPS.
16 multi-day trades + -1,869 BPS.

Total trades net -1,363 BPS.

Return on account for the week - 4.30 % net.

P:L ratio 0.59:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 101 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A very difficult week on the equity markets.

We saw a lot of volatility following the FOMC statement and press conference on Wednesday.

I took a hit on several swing trades on both the SPX and the FTSE.

Not a good week. I traded £ 517 k in total.

Hoping for better figures next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 10th December 2021

67 Trades:

8 US 500 + 70 BPS.

56 US 100 + 560 BPS.

3 UK 100 + 27 BPS.

41 long trades + 401 BPS.
26 short trades + 256 BPS.
60 intra-day trades + 341 BPS.
7 multi-day trades + 316 BPS.

Total trades net + 657 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 4.14 % net.

P:L ratio 5.46:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 90 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

More volatility on the equity markets.

The US market recovered from last Friday's steep drop, and the SPX traded back above 4710.

Then on Thursday we saw some weakness on both the SPX and the Nasdaq, before a rally on Friday after the CPI data was released.

US markets are still very near the all time highs, and we are in the most bullish period of the year, so it would not surprise me to see new all time highs before year end.

I made the majority of trades on the Nasdaq, with a total of £ 736 k traded on it during the week (compared to just £ 64 k on the SPX and £ 22 k on the FTSE).

Well above my 2.5 % weekly benchmark.

Hoping for more trading opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 3rd December 2021

95 Trades:

41 US 500 + 980 BPS.

35 US 100 + 693 BPS.

19 UK 100 - 282 BPS.

64 long trades + 876 BPS.
31 short trades + 515 BPS.
80 intra-day trades + 627 BPS.
15 multi-day trades + 764 BPS.

Total trades net + 1,391 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 7.45 % net.

P:L ratio 5.18:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 82 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A volatile week in the equity markets.

COVID worries continued to spook investors, and the SPX dropped to 4,495 on Friday. 

A challenging week, and I missed some good trades, and closed others too early. 

More than double my 2.5 % bench mark though.

For the month of November, I made a total of 202 trades, and a net return of 27 %.

Hoping for more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 26th November 2021

59 Trades:

29 US 500 + 932 BPS.

14 US 100 + 90 BPS.

16 UK 100 + 171 BPS.

52 long trades + 1,910 BPS.
7 short trades - 717 BPS.
48 intra-day trades + 305 BPS.
11 multi-day trades + 888 BPS.

Total trades net + 1,193 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 8.57 % net.

P:L ratio 4.66:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 80 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A volatile week in the equity markets.

Markets were fairly quiet heading into the Thanksgiving holiday in the US.

Then news of yet another new COVID variant in South Africa caused a sharp sell off on Friday morning, with the Dow being over a thousand points down at one point (although at recent levels, a thousand points is not the huge drop it was a few years ago).

Crude oil was very weak, helping push the FTSE commodity stocks lower.

A decent week, although I missed some good trades. Friday was busy, and I closed 19 trades on the day.

Well above my 2.5 % bench mark.

Hoping for more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 19th November 2021

34 Trades:

5 US 500 + 706 BPS.

10 US 100 + 73 BPS.

19 UK 100 + 48 BPS.

29 long trades + 1,149 BPS.
5 short trades - 322 BPS.
26 intra-day trades + 88 BPS.
8 multi-day trades + 739 BPS.

Total trades net + 827 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 4.59 % net.

P:L ratio 3.18:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 99 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

Another challenging week in the equity markets.

We saw some more market volatility.

The SPX made another new all time closing high on Thursday, then FTSE sold off after expiry on Friday, testing the 7,200 level. 

Crude oil was weaker, helping push the FTSE commodity stocks lower.

I had a friend over in the early part of the week, so that was a bit of a distraction.

Above my 2.5 % weekly bench mark anyway, despite some very poor trade exits.

The COVID situation seems to be getting worse here in Europe, with Austria going back into lock down and possibly Germany too. This news led to quite a sell off in equities on Friday.

Hoping for more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 12th November 2021

40 Trades:

2 AAL - 558 BPS.

16 US 500  + 39 BPS.

17 US 100 + 172 BPS.

6 UK 100 + 308 BPS.

20 long trades  + 1,579 BPS.
20 short trades - 1,618 BPS.
30 intra-day trades + 154 BPS.
10 multi-day trades - 193 BPS.

Total trades net  - 39 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 5.25 % net.

P:L ratio 1.83:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 68 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A long and very challenging five days in the equity markets.

Markets were very volatile, especially the Nasdaq. The FTSE briefly broke 7,400 for the first time since the COVID19 crash. The SPX was weaker, and did not test the 4,718.50 high we saw last week.

 

I spent a few long days watching the screens, and it was tiring. Still, double my 2.5% bench mark. 

The negative BPS figure is due to the two trades on AAL being very small compared to the index 

trades, (about 1/20th of the size.)

Hoping for for more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 5th November 2021

39 Trades:

1 STAN + 48 BPS.

18 US500  + 536 BPS.

10 US 100 + 89 BP.

10 UK100 + 289 BPS.

21 long trades  + 1,043 BPS.
18 short trades - 81 BPS.
35 intra-day trades + 183 BPS.
4 multi-day trades + 779 BPS.

Total trades net  + 962 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 2.90 % net.

P:L ratio 4.15:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 58 days.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A very volatile week on the equity markets.

Markets continued to make new highs, with the SPX, DJI and the Nasdaq all making new all time highs.

The FTSE made a new high for 2021 on Friday, above 7,300.

The SPX has now more than doubled since last March.  Astonishing. The Dow has made a similar move.

 

I made some very poor exits, basically not running longs, especially on the US indices, this is truly a buy the dips and hold market.  

Hoping for for more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 29th October 2021

35 Trades:

24 US500  - 460 BPS.

11 UK100 - 140 BPS.

18 long trades  + 1092 BPS.
17 short trades - 1692 BPS.
27 intra-day trades + 64 BPS.
8 multi-day trades - 664 BPS.

Total trades net  - 600 BPS.

Return on account for the week - 4.22 % net.

P:L ratio 0.69:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 47 days min.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A very poor week for me on the equity markets.

The market continued to grind higher, and the SPX and Dow made new all time highs.

Crypto markets were very strong again, ETH made a new all time high above $ 4,400.

For the month of October, I made 121 trades my P&L was + 0.51 %.

Hoping for for better returns next month.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 22nd October 2021

23 Trades:

21 US500  + 51 BPS.

1 US 100 + 3 BPS.

1 UK100 + 4 BPS.

11 long trades  + 35 BPS.
12 short trades + 23 BPS.
23 intra-day trades + 58 BPS.
0 multi-day trades.

Total trades net  + 58 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 0.69 % net.

P:L ratio N/A.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 138 min.
Shortest trade duration: 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

Another difficult week on the equity markets.

Equity markets were weaker early in the week, and the FTSE traded below 7200, before rallying, but it was stuck in a range from around 7180 to 7220.

The SPX made another new all time high on Thursday, at over 4550. All dips are still being bought on the US equity market.

Tricky trading, I made some very poor trade exits.

Well short of my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

The crypto markets were very strong, Bitcoin making a new all time high above 66k, after the first Bitcoin ETF began trading on the US market.

The other large cap coins also rallied, with ETH rising over 4100, Solana and Polkadot were active too.

I hold all of these, so that was encouraging. I do think that the wider general public is still largely not participating in the crypto market, and if they do, that may drive prices higher. We shall see.

Away from the markets, I may have said before here that I like to get out in the evenings and at weekends. I do a fair bit of cycling, which is a good way of de - stressing after a difficult day, and it also keeps me fairly fit.

Anyway, I took this photo on my ride on Thursday evening, I thought the sky was pretty dramatic, although it was pretty short lived:

It's important to appreciate our beautiful world, after all, we aren't here all that long.

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 15th October 2021

34 Trades:

24 US500  + 267 BPS.

10 UK100 + 29 BPS.

11 long trades  + 4 BPS.
23 short trades + 292 BPS.
29 intra-day trades + 74 BPS.
5 multi-day trades + 222 BPS.

Total trades net  + 296 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 2.38 % net.

P:L ratio 8.3:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 21 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A difficult week on the equity markets.

The SPX traded down below 4330, then rallied up above 4460 on Friday, when we had expiry.

The FTSE also broke above 7200 for the first time since August, helped by a strong rally on the commodity stocks after the recent weakness. 

Tricky trading, I missed a few very good moves.

Short of my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 8th October 2021

24 Trades:

1 AAL + 84 BPS.

15 US500  + 318 BPS.

1 US30 + 4 BPS.

7 UK100 + 176 BPS.

11 long trades  + 102 BPS.
13 short trades + 480 BPS.
17 intra-day trades + 166 BPS.
7 multi-day trades + 416 BPS.

Total trades net  + 582 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 4.52 % net.

P:L ratio N/A.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 8 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

Another volatile week on the equity markets.

Indices sold off again, with the SPX trading back below 4,200 on Monday, before staging a strong rally back to 4400.

A better week, but I should have been more patient with the longs on the SPX. 

Still, well above my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

Here is the one hour chart of the SPX, showing the rally off the lows:

Away from the markets, we've been spoiled for choice with pro cycling recently, we had the World Championships, with Julian Alaphilipe holding onto the rainbow jersey in a wonderful race. 

Then an amazing Paris - Roubaix in the mud last Sunday, that was absolutely spectacular.

And on Saturday we have Il Lombardia. 

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 1st October 2021

33 Trades:

21 US500  + 490 BPS.

12 UK100 - 740 BPS.

12 long trades  - 259 BPS.
21 short trades + 9 BPS.
22 intra-day trades + 162 BPS.
11 multi-day trades - 412 BPS.

Total trades net  - 250 BPS.

Return on account for the week - 1.76 % net.

P:L ratio 0.70:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 74 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

Another very volatile week on the equity markets.

Indices sold off with the SPX trading back below 4,300, ad the FTSE testing 7000.

A very poor week, could have been worse I suppose, still well below my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

September lived up to its reputation for volatility on the equity markets.

Over the month, I made 197 trades and a net return of 31 %.

Looking forward to more opportunities next month.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 24th September 2021

52 Trades:

35 US500  + 636 BPS.

17 UK100 + 383 BPS.

14 long trades  - 19 BPS.
38 short trades + 1,038 BPS.
41 intra-day trades + 454 BPS.
11 multi-day trades + 565 BPS.

Total trades net  + 1,019 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 7.23 % net.

P:L ratio 3.25:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 80 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A very volatile week on the equity markets.

The news from China about the possible collapse of the Evergrande property financing company sent futures heavily into the red on Sunday night, and on Monday the FTSE fell to 6,828.28 and the SPX hit 4,305.91.

The markets rebounded very strongly, with the SPX trading back above 4,400 by Wednesday, and over 4,450 by Friday morning.

A pretty busy week, made some poor trades, but still well above my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 17th September 2021

54 Trades:

1 AAL - 356 BPS.

29 US500  + 213 BPS.

2 US 30 + 4 BPS.

22 UK100 + 242 BPS.

19 long trades  + 58 BPS.
35 short trades + 45 BPS.
45 intra-day trades + 313 BPS.
7 multi-day trades - 210 BPS.

Total trades net  + 103 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 4.62 % net.

P:L ratio 5.55:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 52 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

Another volatile week on the equity markets.

The FTSE broke below 7000 and this time closed below it on Friday.

Miners got hammered, this was the headline;

'Iron ore price dives 7% on China’s lower steel output data'

I had quite a busy week, made some poor trades, but still well above my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

(The percentage net return was much higher than the net BPS figure suggests, this is because the trade on AAL was very small compared to the index trades.)

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 10th September 2021

43 Trades:

18 US500  + 236 BPS.

19 UK100 + 188 BPS.

6 US 30 + 16 BPS.

21 long trades  + 211 BPS.
22 short trades + 229 BPS.
36 intra-day trades + 125 BPS.
7 multi-day trades + 315 BPS.

Total trades net  + 440 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 10.78 % net.

P:L ratio 383:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 19 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A volatile week on the equity markets.

The FTSE broke below 7000 briefly.

I made some poor trades, but still well above my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Away from the markets, this weekend we mark the twentieth anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon.

I remember that day vividly, I first heard about the plane crashing into the Trade Centre from a post on a trading forum, but initially, it was reported to be a light aircraft. 

Of course, as events unfolded, the picture became more and more horrific.

I remember going to the pub that night, and finding it difficult to process everything that had happened earlier that day. Having worked (and lived in) the City of London, it somehow felt very close, I had spent time working at Merrill Lynch, a US broker/investment bank. 

I watched the TV coverage of the memorial ceremonies, and some of the original TV pictures this weekend. It brought it all back. 

In many ways, it was the  day the world changed.

 

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 3rd September 2021

37 Trades:

12 US500  + 266 BPS.

24 UK100 - 346 BPS.

1 US 30 + 1 BPS.

26 long trades  + 353 BPS.
11 short trades - 432 BPS.
25 intra-day trades + 76 BPS.
12 multi-day trades - 155 BPS.

Total trades net  - 79 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 4.80 % net.

P:L ratio 2.2:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 57 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A better week's trading on the equity markets.

We saw quite a bit of volatility, with the SPX again making new all time highs.

Well above my 2.5 % bench mark.

(I should explain that although there was a net loss in basis points, I actually made a net profit, since the longer term trades on the UK 100 which I closed for a loss were much smaller than the intraday trades.)

Looking forward to more opportunities next week.

Cycling wise, we have the Tour of GB starting this weekend, so I'll be keeping an eye on the action there too.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 27th August 2021

32 Trades:

1 BHP + 10 BPS.

17 US500  + 50 BPS.

14 UK100 - 321 BPS.

19 long trades  - 167 BPS.
13 short trades - 94 BPS.
29 intra-day trades + 75 BPS.
3 multi-day trades - 336 BPS.

Total trades net  - 261 BPS.

Return on account for the week - 0.63 % net.

P:L ratio 0.68:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 104 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

Not a great week's trading on the equity markets.

Closed a couple of very poor trades on the FTSE.

Not a disaster, less than 1 % loss, but not great either.

Looking forward to better numbers next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 20th August 2021

60 Trades:

2 BHP + 156 BPS.

39 US500 + 138 BPS.

19 UK100 - 220 BPS.

32 long trades  - 79 BPS.
28 short trades + 153 BPS.
56 intra-day trades + 392 BPS.
4 multi-day trades - 318 BPS.

Total trades net  + 74 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 3.40 % net.

P:L ratio 2.49:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 36 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A very volatile week on the equity markets.

The US markets sold off after the latest release of minutes from the FOMC, after making a new all time highs on both the SPX and the Dow on Monday.

The debacle in Afghanistan didn't help sentiment.

Above my 2.5 % weekly bench mark, despite some very poor trade entries and exits.

Looking forward to more trading opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 13th August 2021

24 Trades:

1 AAL + 468 BPS.

1 ETH + 37 BPS.

9 US500 + 11 BPS.

1 US30 + 2 BPS.

12 UK100 + 249 BPS.

19 long trades  + 762 BPS.
5 short trades + 5 BPS.
19 intra-day trades + 72 BPS.
5 multi-day trades + 695 BPS.

Total trades net  + 767 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 5.17 % net.

P:L ratio N/A.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 37 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A better week's trading.

The FTSE broke through 7200, making a new 52 week high, whilst the SPX and DJIA made new all time highs (again).

Buying the dips is still the most profitable strategy at the moment.

More than double my 2.5 % weekly bench mark.

At some point, we will see some profit taking in the stock markets, but timing it is a fool's game.

This weekend we have the start of the Vuelta a Espana. Should be an interesting race.

Looking forward to more trading opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.

Trading Summary Week Ended 6th August 2021

30 Trades:

5 ETH + 231 BPS.

5 US500 + 7 BPS.

20 UK100 - 188 BPS.

25 long trades  + 446 BPS.
5 short trades - 396 BPS.
23 intra-day trades + 337 BPS.
7 multi-day trades - 287 BPS.

Total trades net  + 50 BPS.

Return on account for the week + 0.17 % net.

P:L ratio 1.05:1.
Days traded: 5.
Longest trade duration: 29 days.
Shortest trade duration: < 1 min.
(All PNL expressed in basis points for the purpose of comparison.)

Thoughts

A difficult week on the equity markets.

The FTSE traded in a range between 7032 and 7142.

I made some poor trades, and ended the week barely positive.

I made a few small trades on Ethereum, which was pretty volatile in the run up to the 'London' update.

Equity markets over the pond were strong again, with the SPX making a new all time closing high, closing at 4429.10 on Thursday, before making another all time high on Friday, after the July payrolls numbers were announced.

Buying the dips is still the most profitable strategy at the moment.

I do wonder if we are due a bit of late summer profit - taking, we shall see.

Looking forward to more trading opportunities next week.

Stay disciplined.
Stay focussed.
Stay humble.