This week's economic calendar includes several news releases from each region (US, Europe, and Asia), with eight high volatility news releases from the US, seven from Europe, and nine from Asia. Markets from all three regions will most likely continue experiencing high volatility throughout this week, which should result in some significant price movements for many markets (stock indicies, stocks, currencies, etc.).

The US, European, and Asian news releases for this week are as follows (all times are Greenwich Mean Time, which is 1 hour behind Central European Time, and 5 hours ahead of US Eastern Time) :

US

• Monday : PMI Manufacturing, Construction Spending, and ISM Manufacturing Prices at 3:00 PM, FOMC News Conference at 6:15 PM, Central Bank News Conference at 6:45 PM, and Treasury News Conference at 8:00 PM
• Tuesday : Vehicle Sales at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), Treasury News Conference at 4:30 PM, and FOMC News Conference at 5:30 PM
• Wednesday : Job Cuts at 12:30 PM, Non Farm Employment Change at 1:15 PM, Non Farm Productivity, and Unit Labor Costs at 1:30 PM, PMI Non Manufacturing at 3:00 PM, FOMC News Conference at 3:15 PM, Oil Inventories at 3:35 PM, and Beige Book at 7:00 PM
• Thursday : Unemployment Claims at 1:30 PM, FOMC News Conference at 2:15 PM, Factory Orders at 3:00 PM, Natural Gas Storage at 3:35 PM, Central Bank News Conference at 4:15 PM, and FOMC News Conference at 9:30 PM
• Friday : Non Farm Employment Change, Unemployment Rate, and Average Hourly Earnings at 1:30 PM, and Consumer Credit at 8:00 PM

• This week's US news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several US news releases this week, and eight high volatility news releases. The US markets will most likely continue experiencing high volatility this week, which should result in some significant (and profitable) price movements.

Europe

• Monday : Germany Retail Sales at 7:00 AM, Switzerland PMI at 8:30 AM, EU PMI Manufacturing at 9:00 AM, UK PMI Manufacturing, Lending To Individuals, and Mortgage Approvals at 9:30 AM
• Tuesday : Switzerland CPI at 6:45 AM, UK HPI at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), UK PMI Construction at 9:30 AM, and EU PPI at 10:00 AM
• Wednesday : UK Consumer Confidence at 12:01 AM, EU PMI Services at 9:00 AM, UK PMI Services at 9:30 AM, EU Retail Sales at 10:00 AM, UK Shop Price Index at 10:30 AM, and Switzerland Central Bank News Conference at 4:30 PM
• Thursday : Switzerland GDP at 6:45 AM, EU GDP at 10:00 AM, UK MPC Rate at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), UK Bank Rate at 12:00 PM, EU Minimum Bid Rate at 12:45 PM, EU Central Bank News Conference at 1:30 PM, and UK Leading Index at 3:30 PM
• Friday : Germany Factory Orders at 11:00 AM

• This week's European news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several European news releases this week, and seven high volatility news releases. The European markets will most likely continue experiencing high volatility this week, which should result in some significant (and profitable) price movements.

Asia

• Monday : Australia Company Operating Profits at 12:30 AM, Japan Average Cash Earnings at 1:30 AM, Japan Central Bank News Conference at 4:30 AM, Australia Commodity Prices at 5:40 AM, and Japan Monetary Base at 11:50 PM
• Tuesday : Australia Retail Sales Trend, and Current Account at 12:30 AM, Japan Monetary Policy at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), Australia Cash Rate, and Central Bank Rate at 3:30 AM, and Australia Services Index at 10:30 PM
• Wednesday : Australia GDP at 12:30 AM, New Zealand Commodity Prices at 2:00 AM, New Zealand Cash Rate, Central Bank News Conference, Central Bank Rate, and Monetary Policy at 8:00 PM, and Japan Capital Spending at 11:50 PM
• Thursday : Australia Building Approvals, and Trade Balance at 12:30 AM, and Australia Construction Index at 10:30 PM
• Friday : No News Releases

• This week's Asian news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several Asian news releases this week, and nine high volatility news releases. The Asian markets will most likely continue experiencing high volatility this week, which should result in some significant (and profitable) price movement.

Short Term Trading Strategies That Work is the most recent trading book from Larry Connors. I have recently read Short Term Trading Strategies That Work, and I have subsequently written a full review of the book. My review includes an introduction to the book and its author, a description of each section of the book, my likes and dislikes about the book, and my recommendation for which traders should read the book.

There are so many trading books available (many of which are useless), that it is difficult for new traders (and even professional traders) to know which trading books are worth reading. My review of Short Term Trading Strategies That Work is my honest opinion of the book, and it should give you the information that you need to decide if the book is going to be your next trading book.

By the way, if you are frustrated with spending days or weeks reading thick trading books, only to find out that they have nothing to offer you, take heart, because Short Term Trading Strategies That Work can be read in just one evening.

This week's economic calendar includes several news releases from Europe and Asia, but only a few news releases from the US. There are at least five high volatility news releases from each region. The recent market conditions will probably continue this week, so markets from all three regions will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement.

The US, European, and Asian news releases for this week are as follows (all times are Greenwich Mean Time, which is 1 hour behind Central European Time, and 5 hours ahead of US Eastern Time) :

US

• Monday : Existing Home Sales at 3:00 PM, and Presidential News Conference at 5:00 PM
• Tuesday : GDP at 1:30 PM, HPI at 2:00 PM, and Consumer Confidence, HPI, and Manufacturing Index at 3:00 PM
• Wednesday : Durable Goods Orders, Unemployment Claims, Price Index, Personal Spending, and Personal Income at 1:30 PM, PMI at 2:45 PM, Consumer Sentiment, and Inflation Expectations at 2:55 PM, New Home Sales at 3:00 PM, Oil Inventories at 3:35 PM, and Natural Gas Storage at 5:00 PM
• Thursday : No News Releases
• Friday : No News Releases

• This week's US news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are only a few US news releases this week, but there are six high volatility news releases. Regardless of the distribution of the news releases, the US markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Europe

• Monday : Germany Business Climate, and EU Current Account at 9:00 AM, EU Industrial Orders at 10:00 AM, Belgium Business Climate at 2:00 PM, and UK Pre-Budget Release at 3:30 PM
• Tuesday : Germany Consumer Climate, and GDP at 7:00 AM, UK HPI ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), Switzerland Consumption Indicator at 9:00 AM, UK Mortgage Approvals, and Business Investment at 9:30 AM, and UK Treasury Hearings at 9:45 AM
• Wednesday : Germany Import Prices at 7:00 AM, Germany CPI at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), UK GDP, and Index of Services at 9:30 AM
• Thursday : Switzerland Employment Level at 8:15 AM, Germany Unemployment Change at 8:55 AM, EU Money Supply, and Private Loans at 9:00 AM, EU Consumer Confidence at 10:00 AM, EU Central Bank News Conference at 3:30 PM, and Switzerland Central Bank News Conference at 4:00 PM
• Friday : UK Consumer Confidence at 12:01 AM, EU CPI, Italy CPI, and EU Unemployment Rate at 10:00 AM, Switzerland Economic Barometer at 10:30 AM, and UK CBI at 11:00 AM

• This week's European news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several European news releases this week, and seven high volatility news releases. The European markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Asia

• Monday : Australia Leading Index at 11:00 PM, and Japan CSPI at 11:50 PM
• Tuesday : New Zealand Inflation Expectations at 2:00 AM, and Japan Central Bank Monthly Report at 6:00 AM
• Wednesday : Australia Construction Work at 12:30 AM, Japan Central Bank News Conference at 8:00 AM, New Zealand Trade Balance at 9:45 PM, and Japan Monetary Policy Meeting at 11:50 PM
• Thursday : Australia Private Capital Expenditure at 12:30 AM, New Zealand Business Confidence at 2:00 AM, New Zealand Building Consents at 9:45 PM, Japan PMI Manufacturing at 11:15 PM, Japan Household Spending, CPI, and Unemployment Rate at 11:30 PM, and Japan Industrial Production, and Retail Sales at 11:50 PM
• Friday : Australia Private Sector Credit at 12:30 AM, and Japan Housing Starts at 5:00 AM

• This week's Asian news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several Asian news releases this week, and five high volatility news releases. The Asian markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Contract For Difference markets (also known as CFDs) are a relatively new derivatives market that is popular in Europe, becoming popular in Asia, and almost unheard of in the US. CFDs are similar to futures markets in that they are based upon some of the same underlying markets (individual stocks, stock indicies, currencies, etc.), and are traded in a similar fashion, but there are some significant differences that make CFDs a market in their own right.

My article describing Contract For Difference markets explains what CFDs are, how they differ from futures markets, and how they are traded. I should mention that while European and Asian traders are going to find the information provided in the article quite useful, US traders are not going to like the information at all. I will let you read the article to find out why.

This week's economic calendar includes several news releases from each region (US, Europe, and Asia). There are seven high volatility news releases from the US, five high volatility news releases from Asia, but only three high volatility news releases from Europe. Regardless of the distribution of the news releases, the recent market conditions will probably continue this week, so markets from all three regions will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement.

The US, European, and Asian news releases for this week are as follows (all times are Greenwich Mean Time, which is 1 hour behind Central European Time, and 5 hours ahead of US Eastern Time) :

US

• Monday : Manufacturing Index at 1:30 PM, Capacity Utilization Rate, and Industrial Production at 2:15 PM, and Treasury News Conference at 11:30 PM
• Tuesday : PPI at 1:30 PM, Long Term Purchases at 2:00 PM, Central Bank News Conference, and Treasury News Conference at 2:30 PM, and Housing Market Index at 6:00 PM
• Wednesday : Building Permits, CPI, and Housing Starts at 1:30 PM, FOMC News Conference at 2:00 PM, Oil Inventories at 3:35 PM, and FOMC Meeting at 7:00 PM
• Thursday : Unemployment Claims at 1:30 PM, Manufacturing Index, and Leading Index at 3:00 PM, Natural Gas Storage at 3:35 PM, and Treasury News Conference at 7:00 PM
• Friday : FOMC News Conference at 5:15 PM

• This week's US news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several US news releases this week, and seven high volatility news releases. The recent market conditions are likely to continue this week, so the US markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement.

Europe

• Monday : UK HPI at 12:01 AM, and EU Trade Balance at 10:00 AM
• Tuesday : Switzerland Retail Sales at 8:15 AM, Italy Trade Balance at 9:00 AM, UK CPI, and RPI at 9:30 AM, UK MPC News Conference at 3:45 PM, and EU Central Bank News Conference at 6:30 PM
• Wednesday : UK MPC Meeting at 9:30 AM, UK Industrial Order Expectations at 11:00 AM, and UK MPC News Conference at 6:40 PM
• Thursday : Germany PPI at 7:00 AM, Switzerland Trade Balance at 7:15 AM, and UK Retail Sales, Money Supply, and Public Sector Borrowing at 9:30 AM
• Friday : France Consumer Spending at 7:45 AM, France PMI Manufacturing and Services at 8:00 AM, Germany PMI Manufacturing and Services at 8:30 AM, EU PMI Manufacturing and Services, and Italy Retail Sales at 9:00 AM, and EU Central Bank News Conference at 1:00 PM

• This week's European news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several European news releases this week, but only three high volatility news releases. The recent market conditions will probably continue this week, so the European markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement.

Asia

• Monday : Australia Retail Sales at 12:30 AM
• Tuesday : Australia Monetary Policy Meeting at 12:30 AM, New Zealand PPI at 9:45 PM, Australia Leading Index at 11:30 PM, and Japan Industry Activity at 11:50 PM
• Wednesday : Australia Vehicle Sales at 12:30 AM, Australia Central Bank News Conference at 3:50 AM, Australia Central Bank News Conference at 9:30 AM, and Japan Trade Balance at 11:50 PM
• Thursday : Australia Central Bank Monthly Bulletin at 12:30 AM, and New Zealand Visitor Arrivals at 9:45 PM
• Friday : New Zealand Credit Card Spending at 2:00 AM, Japan Monetary Policy, Overnight Call Rate, and Central Bank News Conference at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Times)

• This week's Asian news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several Asian news releases this week, and five high volatility news releases. The recent market conditions are likely to continue this week, so the Asian markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement.

Every so often, I receive an email asking how much my portfolio is worth, and my answer is always "What portfolio?". I am a professional trader, which means that I do not have a portfolio (in the usual sense), and that even if I did, its value would be meaningless. Let me explain.

Portfolio

Buy and hold investors have portfolios, the value of which is based upon the value of the stocks that they are currently holding. This value is unrealized profit and loss, which means that when their stocks move upwards, the value of their portfolios increases, and when their stocks move downwards (yes, stocks do move downwards), the value of their portfolios decreases. Portfolios can range from single stock portfolios, to multiple sector portfolios, to portfolios containing a wide range of financial instruments (stocks, physical commodities, bonds, etc.), but they are all primarily based upon unrealized profit. Financial advisors always suggest having a diversified portfolio so that it will be protected against any adverse price movements in any individual stock (or sector, etc.). However, the problem with this is that it is still a portfolio whose value is based upon the underlying instruments' value, and its value is still therefore affected by any downwards price movements (this year is a perfect example of this).

Trading Account

Professional traders have trading accounts whose value is based upon the amount of cash that is currently available for withdrawal (i.e. how much money could be withdrawn from the account without exiting any positions). This cash based value is realized profit so it is not affected by any price movements of any markets (except perhaps the currency markets). Additionally, professional traders make their living from their trading accounts (as opposed to saving for their retirement), so they usually withdraw a substantial portion of their trading account each month (leaving just enough to cover their trading's margin requirements). For example, if a professional trader needs $50,000 in order to cover the margin requirements for their trading, they will keep their trading account's value at $50,000 (no more and no less), and will withdraw any additional cash at the end of each month. So, asking a professional trader what their portfolio is worth, is an meaningless question.

Realized and Unrealized Profit

Aside from the trading style itself, the main difference between an investor's portfolio and a trader's trading account is the type of profit that is used. Portfolios base almost their entire value upon unrealized profit (anything other than cash), whereas trading accounts base their value upon realized profit (cash, and only cash). Amateur traders often believe that the difference between unrealized and realized profit is insignificant, but professional traders know that it can be the difference between making and losing money. If you have aspirations of being a professional trader (which I assume you do if you are reading this), stop thinking of your account in terms of a portfolio, and start thinking of it as a trading account with a cash value.

Depending upon whom you ask, trading using leverage is either a quick way to lose a lot of money, or it is an efficient use of trading capital. If I tell you that the amateur traders believe the former, and that the professional traders believe the latter, which one do you think is correct?

If you don't know the answer, or if you don't know what leverage is, my trading using leverage article will provide the answer, and explain what leverage is and how it should be used in trading. In fact, unless you have recently made a $100,000 trade using only $5,000 of your trading capital, the article is likely to contain some information that will benefit your trading.

This week's economic calendar includes many news releases from Europe, several news releases from Asia, but only a few news releases from the US. Last week saw the markets react quite strongly to some of the news releases (such as the UK Interest Rates on Thursday), and the markets may continue to react similarly this week. With strong reactions to some news releases, and the continuation of the current market conditions, markets from all three regions will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

The US, European, and Asian news releases for this week are as follows (all times are Greenwich Mean Time, which is 1 hour behind Central European Time, and 5 hours ahead of US Eastern Time) :

US

• Monday : Treasury News Conference at 3:00 PM
• Tuesday : Economic Optimism at 3:00 PM
• Wednesday : FOMC News Conferences at 4:00 PM and 6:00 PM
• Thursday : Trade Balance, and Unemployment Claims at 1:30 PM, Oil Inventories, and FOMC News Conference at 4:00 PM, and FOMC News Conference, and Budget Balance at 7:00 PM
• Friday : Retail Sales, Central Bank News Conference, and Import Prices at 1:30 PM, Consumer Sentiment, and Inflation Expectations at 2:55 PM, Business Inventories at 3:00 PM, and Natural Gas Storage at 3:35 PM

• This week's US news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are only a few US news releases this week, and only four high volatility news releases. However, the current market conditions are likely to continue, so the US markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Europe

• Monday : Switzerland Consumer Climate at 6:45 AM, France Industrial Production at 7:45 AM, Italy Industrial Production at 9:00 AM, EU Investor Confidence, and UK PPI at 9:30 AM, EU Central Bank News Conference at 2:30 PM
• Tuesday : UK Retail Sales Monitor, and House Price Balance at 12:01 AM, Germany WPI at 7:00 AM, UK Trade Balance, and HPI at 9:30 AM, and Germany Economic Sentiment, and EU Economic Sentiment at 10:00 AM
• Wednesday : UK Claimant Count Change, Average Earnings Index, and Unemployment Rate at 9:30 AM, EU Industrial Production at 10:00 AM, UK Central Bank News Conference, and Inflation Report at 10:30 AM, and EU Central Bank News Conference at 6:00 PM
• Thursday : Germany GDP at 7:00 AM, France CPI at 7:45 AM, Switzerland PPI at 8:15 AM, EU Central Bank Bulletin at 9:00 AM, and Switzerland Economic Expectations at 10:00 AM
• Friday : Germany CPI at 7:00 AM, France Non Farm Payrolls at 7:45 AM, France GDP at 7:50 AM, EU Central Bank News Conference at 8:00 AM, Italy GDP at 9:00 AM, EU CPI, and GDP at 10:00 AM, and EU Central Bank News Conference at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time)

• This week's European news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are many European news releases this week, and six high volatility news releases. With the news releases, and the expected continuation of the current market conditions, the European markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Asia

• Monday : Australia Home Loans, and Monetary Policy at 12:30 AM, Japan Machine Tool Orders at 6:00 AM, New Zealand PPI at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), and Japan Bank Lending, Current Account, and Money Stock at 11:50 PM
• Tuesday : Australia Business Confidence at 12:30 AM, Japan Economy Watchers Sentiment at 5:00 AM, New Zealand Financial Stability at 8:00 PM, and Australia Consumer Sentiment at 11:30 PM
• Wednesday : Australia Wage Price Index at 12:30 AM, Japan Household Confidence at 5:00 AM, New Zealand Manufacturing Index at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), New Zealand Retail Sales at 9:45 PM, and Japan CGPI at 11:50 PM
• Thursday : Australia Inflation Expectations at 12:00 AM, and Japan Industrial Production at 4:30 AM
• Friday : No News Releases

• This week's Asian news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several Asian news releases this week, and five high volatility news releases. The current market conditions are likely to continue, so the Asian markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

According to the legend (read as popular belief), there is a single trading system, that is composed of a small group of indicators, with a certain configuration of indicator settings, that can be traded on any market and always makes a profit. Many traders spend years visiting web sites, reading books, and attending seminars and courses, believing that if they can find the holy grail, they will instantly become profitable and be able to make a fantastic living as a trader. If you are one of the traders that is looking for the holy grail, today is your lucky day, because I have revealed exactly what the holy grail of trading is in my holy grail revealed article.

This week's economic calendar includes several news releases, and several high volatility news releases, from all three regions (the US, Europe, and Asia). Partly because of the new releases, but mainly because of the current market conditions, markets from all three regions will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

The US, European, and Asian news releases for this week are as follows (all times are Greenwich Mean Time, which is now only 1 hour behind Central European Time, and now 5 hours ahead of US Eastern Time) :

US

• Monday : PMI ISM Manufacturing, Construction Spending, ISM Manufacturing Prices at 3:00 PM, and Vehicle Sales at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time)
• Tuesday : Factory Orders at 3:00 PM, FOMC News Conference at 3:45 PM, and Presidential Election at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time)
• Wednesday : Job Cuts at 12:30 PM, Non Farm Employment Change at 1:15 PM, PMI ISM Non Manufacturing at 3:00 PM, and Oil Inventories at 3:35 PM
• Thursday : Non Farm Productivity, Unit Labor Costs, and Unemployment Claims at 1:30 PM, and Natural Gas Storage at 3:35 PM
• Friday : FOMC News Conference at 12:00 AM, Non Farm Employment Change, Unemployment Rate, and Average Hourly Earnings at 1:30 PM, Pending Home Sales, and Wholesale Inventories at 3:00 PM, and Consumer Credit at 8:00 PM

• This week's US news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several US news releases this week, and there are a few high volatility news releases. With the current market conditions (market crashes, multi-year lows, etc.), the US markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Europe

• Monday : Switzerland PMI at 8:30 AM, EU PMI Manufacturing at 9:00 AM, UK HPI at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), UK PMI Manufacturing at 9:30 AM, and UK Central Bank News Conference at 4:00 PM
• Tuesday : Switzerland CPI at 6:45 AM, UK PMI Construction at 9:30 AM, EU PPI at 10:00 AM, and EU ECOFIN Meeting at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time)
• Wednesday : UK Consumer Confidence at 12:01 AM, Switzerland News Conference at 8:10 AM, EU PMI Services at 9:00 AM, UK Manufacturing Production, PMI Services, and Industrial Production at 9:30 AM, EU Retail Sales at 10:00 AM, UK Shop Price Index at 10:30 AM, and UK Leading Index at 3:30 PM
• Thursday : UK GDP at 12:01 AM, Germany Factory Orders at 11:00 AM, UK MPC Rates at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time), UK Bank Rate at 12:00 PM, EU Minimum Bid Rate at 12:45 PM, and EU Central Bank News Conference at 1:30 PM
• Friday : Switzerland Unemployment Rate at 6:45 AM, Germany Trade Balance at 7:00 AM, France Budget Balance, and Trade Balance at 7:45 AM, and Germany Industrial Production at 11:00 AM

• This week's European news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several European news releases this week, and several high volatility news releases. With the current market conditions (market crashes, multi-year lows, etc.), the European markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.

Asia

• Monday : Australia Retail Sales, and HPI at 12:30 AM, and Australia Commodity Prices at 5:30 AM
• Tuesday : Japan Average Cash Earnings at 1:30 AM, New Zealand Commodity Prices at 2:00 AM, Australia Cash Rate, and Central Bank Rate at 3:30 AM, Australia Services Index at 10:30 PM, and Japan Monetary Base at 11:50 PM
• Wednesday : Australia Building Approvals, and Trade Balance at 12:30 AM, Japan Central Bank News Conference at 3:30 AM, New Zealand Employment Change, and Unemployment Rate at 9:45 PM, and Japan Monetary Policy Meeting at 11:50 PM
• Thursday : Australia Employment Change, and Unemployment Rate at 12:30 AM, Japan Leading Indicators at 5:00 AM, and Australia Construction Index at 10:30 PM
• Friday : New Zealand Parliamentary Election at ??:?? ?? (Unknown Time)

• This week's Asian news releases that should cause high volatility are shown in bold type. There are several Asian news releases this week, and several high volatility news releases. With the current market conditions (market crashes, multi-year lows, etc.), the Asian markets will probably continue experiencing high volatility and significant price movement this week.