tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post6010656941625196306..comments2023-07-08T05:49:38.333-04:00Comments on Larry Davidson's Thoughts on Macro and Other Stuff: Larry Davidson Spouts OffUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-43552153246812870192010-03-09T14:04:24.633-05:002010-03-09T14:04:24.633-05:00I think this high-frequency trading is getting a l...I think this high-frequency trading is getting a little far-afield for my interests but I appreciate your research and especially the salami information.Larry Davidsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10028971586654033347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-11822844234128971982010-03-08T17:58:56.768-05:002010-03-08T17:58:56.768-05:00woops should be 73% not 78% gotta learn to type be...woops should be 73% not 78% gotta learn to type betterUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15701395081467814624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-90602195633196285462010-03-08T17:57:40.881-05:002010-03-08T17:57:40.881-05:00Maybe it is my background as a computer programmer...Maybe it is my background as a computer programmer, computer analysts, system analysts, and project manager; but spending time and energy focusing on minute details is sorta second nature to me. As usual in matters like this wiki is your friend and here is the first link<br /><br />http://advancedtrading.com/algorithms/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=218401501<br /><br />Which has this footnote with a link claiming <br /><br />"high-frequency trading firms, which represent approximately 2% of the 20,000 or so trading firms operating in the U.S. markets today, account for 73% of all U.S. equity trading volume"<br /><br />Here is that link<br /><br />http://advancedtrading.com/algorithms/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=218401501<br /><br />If 78% of the volume is from minute change trading it would seem lots of peeps are spending time and energy on it; or maybe in the case of the link above time and energy stealing others work.<br /><br />Just as an aside here is a salami link that may be of interest to you; as usual wiki is your friend<br /><br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salami_slicingUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15701395081467814624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-84897803137370324922010-03-07T12:46:39.320-05:002010-03-07T12:46:39.320-05:00I think that's true -- and relevant to me beca...I think that's true -- and relevant to me because it suggests that most of us don't have the time, money, or expertise to engage in that sort of thing. And your salami quote makes me hungry. But we stray from Macro (I have a pretty tight definition of Macro!. My point was that most of us spend a little too much time and energy on minute changes (especially in monthly announcements of macro indicators).Larry Davidsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10028971586654033347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-68359067194547778242010-03-06T16:06:29.761-05:002010-03-06T16:06:29.761-05:00My understanding of "high frequency" tra...My understanding of "high frequency" traders is this is the bulk of the current trading volume and is done by computer programs that evaluate minute spreads in prices and are able to buy and sell at speeds humans could never match. It is the old salami slice trick where you make one penny a million times instead of making a million pennies one time.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15701395081467814624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-3960977024709944762010-03-06T15:48:27.054-05:002010-03-06T15:48:27.054-05:00Glad you got verified! Your comment makes some exc...Glad you got verified! Your comment makes some excellent contributions. First, my indigestion was about making too much out of one data point. One data point means just looking at the data for one month in isolation. As you say, there were a lot of other contributing factors that might have helped one conclude in the coming months that something bad was just around the corner. Second, my example was employment and unemployment and not stock prices. You talk about the volatility of stock prices -- some people refer to the stock market as a casino (I won't go that far myself). As a general rule, my point holds even more for stock prices. While day traders and high frequency traders (and other financial pros) can make a lot out of very short term stock price movements, most of us have different goals and would probably be better off doing very little market-timing.Larry Davidsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10028971586654033347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3240565408401956331.post-7027559313949223152010-03-06T15:36:25.170-05:002010-03-06T15:36:25.170-05:00Responding to your facebook post. Taken alone the...Responding to your facebook post. Taken alone the 29 Oct decline might not be enough to make a snap judgment; but along with the 24 Oct decline, the false bravado of the robber barons on 25 Oct, and the decline on 28 Oct lots of peeps thought it was time to get out of the market.<br /><br />The first shots of a trade war fired by congress and the seeming willingness of the prez to go along with it combined with the volatility of the market and the slim margin requirements gave fair warning that there were coming problems; it was just a matter of timing an exit from the market.<br /><br />Course I could be wrong about all of this since I am still on my second cup of coffee and had a big problem getting this blog to verify me.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15701395081467814624noreply@blogger.com