Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 72% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Trading Smart series

The articles in this series provide concise guides on some of the key trading concepts and analysis techniques. Some of the topics covered include:

Introduction to the financial markets

In this introduction to the world of global markets, we look at some of the key features of the various markets you can trade and some of the factors you may want to consider when selecting what markets to invest in. Read more about financial markets.

Day trading guide

Day trading is very different from taking longer term positions. With this manual, you will learn some of the key skills necessary to identify new day trade set-ups. Read more about day trading.

Economic announcements

Almost every day there are major economic data releases that could have impacts on your current open positions. These releases typically give insights into a particular country’s economic health and can have wider ramifications if the data is from a major economy. Read more about economic news.

Analysing company fundamentals

A company’s share price represents a balance between the hopes and aspirations for profit of some and the fear of loss from others. For investors, one of the keys to success is being able to understand what factors influence sentiment towards a company. Read more about company fundamentals.

Recognising trading patterns

Pattern recognition is the branch of technical analysis that focuses on finding price patterns that can be isolated using nothing more than a pencil and a ruler. Patterns can help you work out where to enter trades, and where to set stop loss and take profit orders. Read more about trading patterns.

Money and risk management

CFD trading and spread betting can be different to long-term investing in the way you must deal with inevitable losses from time to time. This guide should help you understand and manage your risk more effectively. Read more about risk management.

Support and resistance

The troughs and peaks of trendlines are also known as support and resistance levels, respectively. The identification of these levels represents one of the most important skills in technical analysis. Read more about support and resistance.

Trendlines

Trendlines are used in technical analysis to define an uptrend or downtrend. This article demonstrates how to draw trendlines and it describes some of the common rules that apply to trading using trendlines. Read more about trendlines.

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