Trading Simply: The Ramblings of a Newbie Spreadbet Trader

Spread betting | The Simple Way to Trade the UK Stock Market

Resources

ResourcesI thought it would be helpful to create a resources page for trading the UK stock market. As The Trading Simply Blog grows, I will add more to this page to ensure it remains good reference point for traders and followers alike.

Disclaimer: Please be aware that some of the links below are affiliate links and I may earn a commission or services at a reduced cost. All of the resources I list below I currently use in my own trading.

Trading

Stock Market News

  • Digital Look – These guys do an excellent job of providing daily news that has affected the stock markets both here in the UK and around the world. Their Sunday newspaper round up, free daily stock market email and commentary by their journalists are very handy in staying ahead of the game.
  • BBC Business news – The Beeb have business news stories that help me to get an overall feel for the ‘big picture’ of the UK and world economy. They also seem to publish stories quite quickly after breaking news events.
  • The Telegraph – I use the markets section of the Telegraph to provide a balanced view of the current economic outlook. It is good practice to get different views and opinions on the same subject matter.
  • Reuters – Great mix of news from all over the world on finance and economics. Reuters do a good job of covering literally everything.

There are other sources of news I use but the main ones I have listed above.

Blogging

  • WordPress – Quite simply, the best blogging outfit in the world. Period.
  • Pagelines – Pagelines is the name of the free theme/template I use for this blog. I think its nice and does not have a cluttered look that so many blogs have.
  • EKM Response – A UK based email marketing and broadcasting provider. I use EKM for my newsletter subscribers. No problems with them at all, great analytics and they do a free service for newbie email marketers.

Recommended Reading

Previously, this list had a dedicated page by itself but as my list of tools grew, it was only right to include it here.

The New Market Wizards: Conversations with America’s Top Traders

Jack Schwager interviews some of the worlds’ most successful stock market traders. For new traders, it offers the opportunity to learn the traits a successful trader needs to develop straight from the horses mouth. Indeed the author himself, as a result of his interviews, lists these traits or ‘observations’ towards the end of the book, an excellent piece of work.

Way of the Turtle: The Secret Methods that Turned Ordinary People into Legendary Traders

This is a cracking read and is based on the true story of an experiment between two well known and very successful traders to teach 25 people from all walks of life to trade. This book is written by arguably the most successful trader, Curtis Faith, who reportedly made $31.5 million in profits from the age of 19. It sets a good example of how new traders should stick to the rules of their own trading plan mercilessly.

Rich Dad, Poor Dad

The only book I recommend that is not focused on stock market trading. It is a brilliant introduction to entrepreneurialism and must read for anyone who wants to break free from the ‘rat race’ but does not know how. It is packed full of examples and has become the number one personal finance book.

Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom

In terms of the practical aspects of trading, this book is a must read for every trader of financial markets. Van Tharp’s ideas about risk and risk management can make the difference between a losing trader and a profitable one. When so many concentrate on set ups and how much they can make, Tharp preaches a philosophy of minimising how much you can lose in order to become a winning trader. If the idea of managing losing trades sounds strange, you really need to read this book.

How I Made $2,000,000 in the Stock Market

An interesting story that tells of how someone with a full time job with no prior experience of the stock market became a legendary trader. Although this book contains a ‘system’, I regard this book as more of a motivational text and an example of the commitment required for successful investing.