Economic Calenders

When it comes to economic calendars you will find an assortment of them on-line. There are only two online calendars that I use on daily basis. They are the Forex Calendar @ Forex Factory and Bloomberg Calendar the screenshots of these calendars shown below:

Out of these two calendars my favourite would have to be the Forex Calendar it has more features and has a much easier workflow then Bloomberg. 

Forex Calendar Features

The first thing you will want to do with both these calendars is adjust your time zone. After I have done this I like to get out my trading notebook and I enter  the announcements that will be relevant to me on that given day. To get more detail about a specific announcement simply click on the detail button. The detail window gives you the following information:

• Source
• Measures
• Usual Effect
• Frequency
• Next Release
• FF Notes
• Why Traders care
• Derived via
• Acro Expand
• History
• Related items

The screenshot below shows the Forex Calendar detail feature in action:

The other unique feature the Forex calendar has is the ability to chart historical release data. Like the detail feature you simply click on the chart icon and an interactive chart will be generated within the same window.  The image below shows the chart feature in action:

Software Tools

I use the free tool FF Calendar to news software as it provides an easy way for me to build a database of future and historic news events on my local computer. This is very handy for some system design work I do. The screenshot below shows my news events history database:

Once my database is populated I can then run a script that overlays each of the economic events on the appropriate chart. This allows for me to graphically view the impact if any on the underlying markets. The screenshot below shows the auto generated chart content on the EUR/USD 1 minute spot chart:

In my next post I will talk about the classic reference book that I often refer to surrounding news releases The Secrets of Economic Indicators: Hidden Clues to Future Economic Trends and Investment Opportunities.

eSignal OnDemand Software

After signing up at eSignal OnDemand you will then be able to download and install the software. After installation the first screen most of you will see is this:

Under Windows 7 it is simply a matter of allowing the eSignal data manger access through the firewall and you will be downloading historical data in no time. I really like the integrated browser within eSignal and the extensive getting started guide. The screenshot below shows the browser running in eSignal:

eSignals extensive documentation makes learning eSignal a less daunting process. I strongly recommend anyone starting out in eSignal to not skip this documentation.

eSignal onDemand Symbol Search

One of the first things you will want to do is find a stock, index, future or option contracts symbol. This is easily achieved using eSignal OnDemand symbol search window. The symbol search tool is very powerful and you will often need to narrow your search criteria. Once again eSignal OnDemand makes this an easy process through the use of drop down lists.  The search feature allows you to quickly add the symbol to the quote board, open up a chart or perform other analysis tasks with the click of a button. Below are some screenshots of eSignal OnDemand symbol search in action.

eSignal OnDemand Quote Window

The quote window allows you to gain a quick snapshot of how a financial instrument is performing. From the quote window you can quickly open charts and analysis tools by right clicking the instrument. You can also take a snapshot of the current quote window and save it as an image file locally or on a ftp server. The image below shows a brief snapshot of my current eSignal OnDemand quote window:

eSignal OnDemand Quote Board

The Quote Board is very similar to the quote window however it provides a little more data on individual financial instruments. You can very quickly visually track how a stock or financial instrument is travelling at a given point in time. The Quote Board is colour coded and shows the open, high, low, close and percent change of a given instrument. An example of my Quote Board is shown below:

eSignal OnDemand Advanced Chart

This is the area that eSignal OnDemand really advances in their charting. The charting features are so extensive it would take two maybe three post just to do them justice. Instead I will go over a quick run down of the features.

Chart Types

1. Bar Chart
2. Candle Stick Chart
3. Line Chart
4. Area Chart
5. PNF Chart
6. PB Chart
7. Renko Chart
8. Kagi Chart

Some of these Chart types shown below (Click to Enlarge):

Chart Drawing tools and Indicators

eSignal OnDemand has an extensive array of drawing tools and built-in chart studies, rather then go through them all the screenshots below show some of the available options.

eSignal OnDemand Page Layout

Using the page layout feature it is very easy to create a specific screen setup for a given workflow and then switch between layouts quickly. This allows for increased productivity and allows you to quickly change perspectives. The layout below is a simple one I created for quickly looking at stocks.

Other Excellent features include:

• The ability to export data to csv or html format.
• The ability to replay bars of a given security.
• The ability to back test trading strategies. (I will cover this in a future post as the features are so extensive).
• Price filtering of bars.
• Portfolio tools.
• Extensive keyboard customisation settings.

Bottom Line

I am very impressed with the range of features and data coverage at such a low monthly cost. I have found the software to be stable and after the initial learning curve fairly easy to use. The charting features and data coverage make this a truly fantastic package for a retail trader who only makes a few trades in a week or month. It is also a good starting point for someone who wishes to get into trading but might be at work during market hours. The bar replay feature allows for you to get a feel for some market dynamics.

In an upcoming post I will detail what eSignal OnDemand has to offer for the quant or algorithmic trader. Overall eSignal OnDemand allows you to start analysing the market at a low cost and when you are ready to move to a real time service you will be able to transfer skills learned. eSignal will also integrate with most brokers so you can make trades directly from eSignal.

A Final Note

eSignal OnDemand will not offer to much to the high frequency trader or day trader. For these practises real time data is essential. eSignal OnDemand does not have free market scanners and some advanced features are sold as an add on service.

The Signup Process

To signup to the Kirk reports member only section click on member information page. After doing this a page similar to the one shown below will appear.

I choose to pay via PayPal and the process was extremely straightforward. After the transaction is complete you are redirected to instruction on how to log on to the members only section. You will also receive an email welcoming you to the Kirk report. Once you have logged on you will see a clean easy to use interface as shown below:

As a member you get access to:

• Kirk’s stock screen machine
• Monthly Q&A sessions
• Premarket/Afterhours posts
• A market timing indicator
• Recommended Readings
• Tools of the trade
• Educational posts
• Retirement/Lazy portfolios
• Model retirement portfolio

Stock Screen Machine

Naturally after signing up this was the first area of the members only section that I wanted to investigate. At the bottom of the page is a tutorial which goes over how to use the tools effectively and gives a bit of background information. There are quite a few screens that will help you find stocks to play. The screens provided include:

Stock Screen Machine Filters

• New & Hot
• Most Popular
• Consistent Performers
• Losing Popularity
• All Screens

Kirk’s Favourite Stock Screens

• Back Up The Truck
• Cheapo Growth
• Cream Of The Crop
• Good Minds Think Alike
• Market Leaders
• Passing The Bar
• Pounding The Table
• Safety First & Then Potential
• Value/Growth/Momentum

Another benefit of Kirk’s stock screens is the ability to views charts of all the stocks listed with a singe click, download an excel file contain the stocks or a text file. I have found this to be very hand as it allows me to use BulkQuotesXL and AnalyzerXL on the list directly. The image below shows a selected stock screen filter:

The monthly Q&A section is a complete archive of all the past Q&A topics and is all easily accessible on one page. I found it really helpful to see the lists of news that Kirk reads and the blogs he reads. These two lists are both very extensive and contain some sites that even the most seasoned professional may not have come across.  Kirk also has a list of recommended readings which is fairly standard but helpful to the beginner. The tools of the trade section of the website lists in great detail Kirks trading setup and I have to say I am somewhat jealous The lazy portfolio section of the website is of a very high standard and there are lots of resources. In total there are 25 different lazy portfolios presented. At the end of each day Kirk sends all his subscribers a concise email with links to posts along with other relevant information. The final section of the members only section that is worth its weight in gold is the members mailbag. This section of the website goes over all the previous questions kirks members have asked him. There is a lot of content and it makes very interesting reading.

Bottom Line

Becoming a member of the Kirk report really is easy and the value most people will derive will far exceed the initial outlay. If you only got access to the screen machines it would be $50 well spent. The mailbag section and the tools of the trade section make for very useful and interesting reading. If you have been a regular reader of the Kirk report but have been sitting on the fence it is time to take the plunge. The only criticism I have is the lack of comments and community interaction. It would be great to see a members only forum or comments to be enabled on posts. Also it would be good if the recommended reading section offered links to the Amazon page of books presented. That being said a Kirk report membership offers extraordinary value for  money.Well I am off to read some more Q&A’s and mailbag questions.

As the name suggests Tim Raw has very little editing, no fancy production techniques and comes on four DVD’s.

Tim Raw DVD Disc One – Tim Lessons -Approx Runtime: 2hrs 30min

All in all this is a solid introduction to trading techniques and methods. You will find a multitude of generalised information and anecdotes throughout the DVD’s. I found the first DVD to be a bit slow and less structured then the remaining DVD’s yet there were some great tips. It is very helpful to take notes, as the first two DVD’s are not divided into any structured chapters. Some topics covered on this first DVD include:

Lesson 1

• Disclaimer
• “I am not responsible for any of your losses. If you do have any gains I would like to take credit for that, as I have taught you”
• A brief Introduction to who Timothy Sykes is
• The GYGT trade Lesson- Business reality vs Stock reality
• Nov 2007 The introduction of TIM (Transparent Investment Management)
• SEC Pattern day trading rule (intro)
• Tim Alerts (intro)
• A little bit of cross selling other DVD Products
• PennyStocking in Bull Markets
• Are all PennyStocks Frauds?
• An in depth look at the CYGT saga
• Sub Penny shares…. Should you play them?
• PennyStocking success stories and Covester
• How do you spend your PennyStocking profits?
• The Simplicity of PennyStocking
• Limit Orders Vs Market Orders
• A more in depth view of the pattern day trading rule
• A brief overview of ShortStocking concepts
• Trading Psychology a brief overview
• Habits of a good Trader
• Getting Over losing streaks

Lesson 2

• Managing other peoples money
• Starting a Hedge Fund – One man shops won’t work
• Licences needed
• Prop Firms
• The Financial media jungle
• CNBC and Noise
• Alternative Investment strategies
• Recommended Brokers
• Analysts
• High price stocks
• Tax Law selling
• Seasonal patterns

Book Reviews

The book review section was extremely average due to the lack of information provided by Tim. Despite the lack of information provided the books that were introduced were good and definitely important reading. You can gain just as much insight by visiting Tim’s Trading library section of his website.

Below is a selection of the books reviewed for a full list visit Tim’s library.

1. Book of Investing Wisdom
2. The Predictors
3. Mobs messiahs and markets
4. Bernard Baruch
5. Rouge Trader
6. The Man Who made Wallstreet
7. The Rich and how they got that way
8. The next great bubble boom
9. Lessons from the greatest stock traders of all times
10. Sell and Sell Short
11. Trading for a living
12. How to make money selling stocks short
13. Full of Bull
14. Your money and your brain
15. A mathematician plays the stock market
16. Practical Speculation
17. Millionaire traders
18. My life as a quant
19. Way of the turtle
20. Trend following
21. The Complete turtle trader
22. Inside the house of money
23. Fooling some of the people all of the time
24. The education of a speculator
25. Hedge Hunters
26. Jesse Livermore worlds greatest stock trader
27. Reminiscences of a stock operator
28. The wall street jungle
29. A random walk down wallstreet
30. Unconventional success
31. The white sharks of wall street
32. The boy wonder of wall street
33. Wall Street a History
34. Scam Dogs and Mo Mo Mama’s
35. Trading with enemy
36. Market Wizards
37. Morgan
38. Encyclopaedia of chart patterns
39. The Go Go years
40. The new market wizards
41. The wolf of Wall Street
42. Confessions of a Wall Street analyst
43. Running money
44. Wall Street Meat
45. Hedge Hogging
46. The book of Daniel Drew
47. Where are the customer’s yachts?
48. Soros the life and times
49. Sold short
50. Hedge Fund Masters
51. The poker face of Wall Street
52. Fooled by Randomness
53. All about options

After the book reviews the following topics are looked at:

• A Word about Stock promoters
• A Little history Tulip Mania

Tim Raw DVD Disc Two – Timothy Sykes Seminar Part One – Approx Runtime: 1hr 48min

The final DVD’s go through a recent seminar Tim gave. I found these DVD’s to be a very interesting insight into the way Tim trades. For anyone who is unable to attend a seminar in person this DVD is a great substitute. There are so many substandard educational products in the trading sphere it is good to actually come across a DVD, which contains an honest and open view of the industry. Some topics covered on this DVD include:

• Introductions
• A brief introduction to candlestick charting
• Use of stop losses and routing of orders
• A look at a level II screen
• ¾ stocks follow the market
• Bitter sellers an Explanation
• Pig Farming in China – A technical look
• A look at multiple timeframes
• The Kramer effect
• A look at covester website
• Stock MSG boars and Jonathan Levit
• Stocks that aren’t moving
• Everyone has an angle
• A look at a spam stock
• Midday volume dry up
• 10% Spreads! Crazy
• Naked Short Selling
• A few Seasonal Trends
• Stock Market Fundamentals Market Cap
• Breakouts
• Support and Resistance

Tim Raw DVD Disc Three – Seminar Part Two -Approx Runtime: 2hrs 9min

Some topics covered include:

• A discussion of the pattern day trading rule.
• Looking for market inefficiencies.
• A technical look at PR run ups.
• Cup and Handle pattern
• Some morning patterns
• Short Squeezes
• Taking into account all available variables
• Wait for good setups
• Buying Frauds
• Tim’s Favourite Breakout
• A Short Q&A
• More chart patterns
• Multiple timeframes
• Supernovas
• The Crow
• The Death Spiral
• Identifying short squeezes on the level II Screen
• Doubling your losses Newsletter – Read the fine print
• Yahoo finances – Understanding key statistics

Tim Raw DVD Disc Four – Seminar Part Three -Approx Runtime: 1hrs 44min

The final disc which I found to be the most interesting looks more closely at how Tim trades. Topics covered include:

• Examples of simple breakouts
• Short selling into strength
• Fake out Breakouts
• Morning panic
• An example of how Tim researches a play
• Breakdowns- looking at multiple timeframes
• Take losses quickly
• Forcing opportunities
• A look at media outlets
• Don’t trust insider buying
• Liquidity issues
• Plan for everything the night before
• Tim’s routine
• The sites Tim uses
• Building watch lists
• Don’t trust just one data source
• How Tim finds his stocks

Final Thoughts

Tim’s Raw DVD is a great introduction to his PennyStocking strategy and some general trading concepts. Tim’s Raw DVD should be watched before moving on to the PennyStocking DVD and PennyStocking Part Deux. It is evident throughout this DVD series that Tim knows his stuff when it comes to the Penny Stock niche. In the fast pace world of finance a new guru pops up every few months and then fades into obscurity. Tim’s profits and trades are well documented and transparent and his blog details the day-to-day happenings and events, which are pertinent to PennyStockers. I was very impressed with this DVD it is packed full of trading wisdom.

Pros

• No assumed knowledge.
• Presented in easy to understand manner.
• A vast amount of topics covered.
• Allows new trader to gain an insight into how a successful trader approaches trading.

Cons

• Dis-Jointed in parts
• DVD chapter selection sparse.
• Book review section not very informative.

Bottom Line

A vast array of topics are presented in an easy to understand manner. This is a perfect DVD for anyone who is considering PennyStocking. The production quality is raw but the content presented more then makes up for this. Tim is really maturing as a trader and educator (Maybe the influence of a good woman??).

A Master of PennyStocks gives us a master insight into the world of PennyStocks. I must say thank you Tim you have opened my eyes to opportunities that exist that I would have never even given a second of thought too. Although I don’t currently trade Penny Stocks the perspective and insight presented is still very relevant.

As you can clearly see the chart above shows my equity at the end of each trading day. It will be interesting to see what happens during tomorrows session. On average my portfolio has gained approximately 7.5%.

Some Interesting Game facts

National

• There are 13937 ranked players nationally (for a player to be ranked the must have purchased at least one listed security).
• The average national portfolio value is $AUD 49,162.12.
• 26.78% of players are in profit.

South Australia

• There are 1297 ranked players in South Australia (for a player to be ranked the must have purchased at least one listed security).
• The average South Australian players portfolio value is $AUD 49, 356.66.
• 30.15% of players are in profit.

What I found surprising was that such a small percentage of the players were actually in profit. There has been quite a bit of market volatility recently, maybe this could account for such poor performance. It is still early days I will keeping posting updates on a bi-monthly basis.

Economic Moats

In an earlier article I discussed the concept of an Economic Moat and constructed a long term portfolio based on the concept of “Economic Moats”. It has been a little over a month and this portfolio has made a small gain of $AUD 142.71 or 1.45% gain. The full performance figures are highlighted in the table below.

The fundamentals of each stock are also provided by Google finance and are shown below:

Portfolio Calculations

In order to determine how much money we can allocate to each share we will have to do a few simple calculations. Firstly we work out each shares maximum share of equity, as we are giving equal weight to each different stock this is simply:

In order to simulate a real portfolio we will subtract the commission from the max share of equity, this will give us an actual max share of equity value. The next step is to get the current price for each of the shares, this will allow us to calculate the maximum number of shares we can buy in each stock.

The FLOOR function in Microsoft Excel is used to round down a given number to a specified level of significance. For example =FLOOR(63.78,1)=63. The table below highlights these calculations.

The next step is to edit your port folio and add the type of transaction, the number of shares bought or sold, price paid and commission. This is highlighted in the diagram below.

Once you have entered your data you should ensure the currency is set correctly. Now that everything is setup we can just log in at the end of the day download the spreadsheet of our performance with no hassle. Google Finance will automatically calculate:

• Market value of each share.

• Gain/loss for each share.

• Percentage gain loss for each share.

• Days gain.

• Overall return.

From time to time I will post performance details of this portfolio and will use it a basis for discussion. As you can see with Google finance and Microsoft Excel it is very easy to simulate portfolio construction. 

In the February 2008 Financial Review Smart Investor magazine George Liondis has written an article “Kings of the Castle”. This article introduces the concept of “Economic Moats” and George nominates six companies that he thinks meet the criteria. As I am not very familiar with Warren Buffett’s investment style I hadn’t been introduced to the term “Economic Moats”.

Economic Moat

An “Economic moat” is a term that Warren Buffett made popular, the term is used in reference to a company or business relative position and how well the company can maintain competitive advantage over it’s competitors. Competitive advantage is a crucial factor to have as it allows a company to keep or increase it’s market share in a given sector. Companies with “Economic Moats” generally protect their profits and have good longer term return prospects.

The Smart Investor Article listed six Australian stocks that had “Economic Moats” and what those moats were. The five factors that provided moats for these companies were:

1. Technological Innovation.
2. Strong demand factors from China.
3. Brand Presence / product differentiation.
4. Market Dominance / economics of scale
5. Monopoly position.

The Stocks

The six stocks highlighted in the article all have large market capitalization and solid dividend yields. I will be creating a simulted portfolio based on a hypothetical $10,000 Australian dollars and track the portfolio over the next year to measure its performance. 

ASX Limited stock code:ASX.AX

The ASX limited is the sole share exchange in Australia and recently merged with the Sydney Futures Exchange. Below is a chart showing the last 3 month performance of ASX.

Woolworths Limited stock code:WOW.AX

Woolworths is a retailer in Australian that was recently ranked 25th in the world amongst retailers. Below is a chart showing the last three months performance of Woolworths.

BHP Billiton Limited stock code:BHP.AX

BHP Billiton  Limited is a global resource company. Below is a chart showing the last three months performance of BHP Billiton.

Cochlear Limited stock code:COH.AX

Cochlear Limited is an Australian based company that produce and sell a Cochlear implant system. Below is a chart showing the last three months performance of Cochlear Limited. 

Billabong International Limited stock quote:BBG.AX

Billabong is an Australian based surf wear company. Below is a chart showing the last three months end of day performance of Billabong. 

RIO.AX was also included in the list however I have choose to not include both BHP and RIO. I think these are very interesting stocks. In my next article I will go through the construction of a hypothetical portfolio based around these stocks. I will then track the performance over the next year. I believe that it is advantages to include longer term investments for a balanced portfolio. Stay tuned for the next article where we setup a simulated portfolio using Google finance to track and monitor our stocks for us.

The ASX much like the CME has an excellent investor education section. The first place to start would be the Getting Started in Shares(PDF) publication, this will give you a very brief introduction to share trading and the ASX. There are also a series of audio visual presentations that can be viewed while you are online. These audio visual presentations include:

• What is the share market?
• What is a stock broker?
• An introduction to trading language.
• An introduction to Listed Managed Investments (LMI’s).
• An introduction to interest rate securities.

In addition to these audio visual presentations there are several free online courses that can be undertaken. In order to sign up for these courses you need to register with MyASX which is also free. The courses are well structured and easy to follow. The layout of the course screen is shown below:

The courses contain interactive content and tests and quizzes to reinforce knowledge. The courses are rated beginner. intermediate or advanced. The courses that relate to share trading are:

• Getting started in shares – Beginner
• Starting in the sharemarket – Beginner
• Tracking your sharemarket investment – Beginner
• Analysing and selecting shares – Intermediate
• Developing an investment portfolio – Intermediate

As well as the sharemarket courses also cover options, warrants, interest rate securities and contracts for difference(CFD’s).

• Getting started in options – Beginner
• Option trading strategies – Intermediate
• Getting started in warrants and instalment warrants – Beginner
• Getting started in interest rate securities – Beginner
• ASX CFD Introduction – Intermediate

These courses form an excellent foundation for understanding the Australian sharemarket. With such a strong growing resource sector I think that the Australian share market is worth investigating for the astute investor.

How did I come first in South Australia in the ASX share market game?

I know you are all wondering how I came to be in first position so without any further ado I will tell you. It was simply a matter of buying shares holding them until they increased in value and then reducing my holdings via pending orders. Due to rules of the game, the pool of shares I could choose from was only 100 companies and could not short sell. As I do with any problem I face I try to break it down into its component form.

Components involved

After initial brainstorming, I came up with some very broad components that would need to be implemented in my strategy. These components are interrelated below is a simplified view of the various components that need to be considered:

Given this information, the best strategy I could use would be to select stocks that were highly correlated and stay out of any stocks that had exposure to the subprime. I did choose one banking sector stock as it had a quality loan book and no US market assets. My portfolio was heavily weighted to the resource sector with exposure to Gold, Zinc, Copper, Aluminium, Bauxite, Uranium and AUD/USD spot prices. Below is a chart showing my performance throughout the trading period. You can also see where I scaled back my resource market holdings.

As you can see in the final two weeks if I did not alter my strategy, my portfolio would be worth $3000 less and I would not have been in first place.

Game Statistics

National Performance summary

Conclusion

Although it was very humbling that I came first in the state and 13th in the country, the strategy that I used was highly risky and in the real world, I would not undertake such risk. In addition, I am reminded of a Ron Chernow quote:

“As a bull market continues, almost anything you buy goes up. It makes you feel that investing in stocks is a very easy and safe and that you’re a financial genius.”

At the end of the day winning the state division doesn’t mean a hell of a lot, my bank account is $1000 dollars better off, I don’t suddenly now consider myself to be an expert trader. I will continue myself education process and I believe entering these simulated trading games has helped my understanding of the markets.

The Trading PeriodThe first day of trading in the Game is Thursday 6 September 2007 and the last day of trading is Wednesday 14 November 2007 (”Game Period”).

Trading hours indeed reflect the true nature of ASX trading hours making the simulation more realistic

An order to buy or sell shares may be placed at any time of the day during the Game period. Orders will only be matched during the trading hours of the ASX market (which is usually 10.00 AM EST and 4.15 PM EST). Orders in the Game are not matched until they have been matched on the ASX market (i.e. if a participant places an ‘at market’ order to buy or sell a parcel of shares, it will not be executed until there is a match on the ASX market). Orders placed ‘at market’ when the ASX market is closed will be processed at the opening trade price on the next trading day. ‘At market’ orders will be processed within the limitations of the stock volumes available for trading in the ASX market. ‘At market’ and ‘at limit’ orders that can be filled will be processed continuously from the time the ASX market is open at 10:00 AM EST to the time the ASX market closes at 4:10 PM EST*.

* PLEASE NOTE – the Game seeks to emulate certain aspects of the ASX market, therefore orders placed from approximately 4:00 PM EST to 4:10 PM EST may still be on-market trades due to the Closing Single Price Auction (CSPA) that takes place at approximately 4.10 – 4.12 PM EST Further, when there is a price sensitive announcement received after 4.00pm and less than 10 minutes before the CSPA, the security is placed into a pre-open state and will not take part in that day’s CSPA. The security will remain in pre-open until the opening auction the following business day.

Buying and selling shares in the Game. Here is where additional rules were added to limit the number of transaction that can be carried out in a day and a diversification rule.

Company list

Only shares in the 100 ASX nominated companies that are part of the ASX nominated list (the ‘Company List’) may be traded. Ordinary shares and bonus shares are the only classes of securities that may be traded in the Game. Other classes of securities such as company options cannot be traded in the Game.

Hypothetical starting cash

Each participant will commence the Game with a theoretical AUD$50,000.00 with which to purchase shares. Surplus funds may be left as ‘cash-on-hand’. The ASX Group reserves the right to amend a participant’s ‘cash-on-hand’ funds if any errors occur. However, the ASX Group accepts no liability or responsibility for any loss or damage from any error or the correction thereof.Minimum marketable parcelIf a participant wishes to purchase shares in a company, shares can be purchased in any dollar amount. There is no restriction on how many shares or what value of shares may be sold.

25% diversification rule

A participant cannot purchase a quantity of shares in one particular company which results in the value of the participant’s total holding in that company comprising 25% or more of the participant’s total portfolio value at the time of purchase.This rule is not breached in the event that the share price of a particular company that is already held by the participant increases such that it subsequently results in the company comprising 25% or more of the participant’s total portfolio value, accordingly, the participant is not required to sell that stock.

Placing an order

At market ordersAn order to buy or sell stock in the Game must be placed via the Trading page. Orders can be placed ‘at market’ or ‘at limit’. If an order is placed ‘at market’, the next price for that stock, after the order is received, will be used to process that order. The quantity of shares requested will be either filled in its entirety or partially filled according to the last volume traded for that stock on the ASX market.

At limit orders

If an order is placed ‘at limit’ the participant must nominate a price at which they are prepared to buy or sell the stock and the order will remain in the ‘Orders pending’ section of the Trading page until the last sale price (in the case of a buy order) or the last buy price (in the case of a sale order) in the ASX market matches the participant’s nominated price. The quantity of shares requested ‘at limit’ will be either filled in its entirety or partially filled according to the last volume traded for that stock on the ASX market.

Brokerage is the final component of the game rules. The brokerage charged roughly reflects the industry average.

Brokerage will be charged against the theoretical trade value on each purchase or sale of stock at the rate of AUD$30.00 for each trade for orders valued up to and including AUD$10,000.00. For each trade over AUD$10,000.00, brokerage at the rate of 0.3% of the trade value will be charged. To simulate ASX market conditions, the brokerage fees include GST.If an order to buy or sell shares is partially filled, brokerage will be charged only on the dollar value of shares that have actually been purchased or sold. The Game will however keep a record of brokerage that a participant was charged when the first partial order to buy or sell shares was executed so that a participant will pay no more brokerage than the standard rate set out above. For example, if a participant wishes to buy 5,000 ABC Company shares at AUD$1 each and only 2,600 are filled the participant will pay AUD$30 brokerage. When the remaining 2,400 shares in ABC Company are subsequently executed the participant will not be required to pay additional brokerage as the total amount of brokerage paid on 5,000 shares worth AUD$1 each (AUD$30) has already been paid. If a participant ordered 25,000 ABC Company shares at AUD$1 each and 10,000 are filled (AUD$30 brokerage paid) and the order for the remaining 15,000 is later filled, the participant will pay brokerage of 0.3% on the outstanding 15,000 ABC Company shares.

Source https://www9.asx.com.au/Smg/CharityRules

I have been a bit slow out of the blocks this year and will make my first trades in the game today. If you are an Australian resident and want to sign up for the next game starting in 2008 you can do so at the ASX web site.