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Strategies & Market Trends : Rande Is . . . HOME -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: herringbone_100 who wrote (19739)	2/1/2000 8:15:00 PM
From: DlphcOracl	Respond to of 57584

herringbone 100: With the extreme market volatility, this past month has been quite educational for me. I have decided that there are two winning plays in this environment and one losing play. The winners are: (1) become a dedicated trader, both day-trading and swing-trading, and make this one's full-time job. This means obtaining state-of-the art technology regarding high-speed internet access, streaming quotes, Q-charts, multiple computer screens, and a dedicated on-line broker (eg., CyberTrader, Datek, Watley, etc.), and making this one's full-time job. The second method is to completely avoid casual trading and short-term trading. Instead, spend greater time doing stock research and due diligence, identify the sectors you wish to own stocks in for the upcoming year, and buy the best one or two in each sector. Then, hold them unless there is a fundamental change in their execution or business model and forget about trying to time the market. The losing play? Half-hearted day-trading and swing-trading, trying to do this during the day while you are at work, intermittently glancing at the computer screen, trading catch-as-catch can. This is a recipe for disaster and heavy losses. You will invariably be one-step behind on both your buys and sells. Alternative investments may be wise and profitable. As much as I abhor mutual funds, there may be some logic in buying a top-tier fund that focuses in technology and telecommunications with an emphasis on the European market. Some suggestions are: Warburg Pincus Global Post-Venture Comm., T. Rowe Price Int'l Discovery, Dresdner RCM Global Small Cap I. In addition to tech, I think biotechnology will continue to be a red-hot sector for the remainder of the year. Finally, judicious bottom-fishing, buying stocks that are victims of Wall St. overreaction, will prove profitable. Recent examples: GBLX and MFNX in Sept. 1999, Tyco International (TYC), Sandisk (SNDK) -- overreaction to Taiwan earthquake, and most recently, Legato Systems (LGTO). Best of luck with your investments.