THC:
I do know a couple who make an occupation of trading, but to say steady income is far from reality. The best traders I know do not try to make a steady stream of trades. Instead, they await the "lead pipe cinch" trade and try to make a killing on it. This may mean no trades for months, or even a year or so.
My examples include catching the fundamental turning points in metals price fundamentals. I can, with sufficient success to merit having the Wall Street Journal name me "a prominent analyst" (back in the '70s and '80s), predict the big price moves. Then I play leveraged derivatives, particularly metal stocks with options or warrants, e.g. the old Magma Copper warrants that traded from $0.90 to $18. Sometimes its 2-3 years between big moves in some metal. Hence, I'm not a "regular" trader in between those times.
I figure that zinc and silver could be the next "movers." Breakwater was a nice play as zinc came off the bottom (the stock more than doubled), and zinc appears to be trading in a well defined up-trending range. It touched the bottom band of the range a few days ago, providing a good entry-point for accumulation of whatever vehicle one is playing. Silver, being more erratic, appears to me to be much more risky as to timing.
RH |
