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Old 10-09-2007, 11:29 AM
pig4bill pig4bill is offline
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 2,658
Default Re: Advice on first steps into the stock market.?

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Hi.

Any advice for a complete beginner interested in trading short-term stocks and shares? My basic knowledge is next to nothing and I was thinking the FTSE equivalent of Party Poker Playmoney would help me along a little.

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You don't need that if you have a pencil and piece of paper. BTW, paper-trading before you start for real is not optional, it is a MUST.

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How difficult would it really be for a reasonably intelligent individual to turn a small profit after some studying and financial investment (lets say $100 to start with). I was thinking it could hopefully be a new hobby similar to poker.

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Very. I take it you mean to buy only $100 in books and magazines? You cannot even subscribe to thestreet.com for that. There are some trading books that cost over $100 EACH. I would budget at least $1000 for educational materials starting out. You are also going to need a decent-sized stake. More than a few thousand because commissions will eat you up on short-term trades. I don't know if the UK has any brokers like IB that charge a penny a share.
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