Only a week till the financial year ends

It's only a week till the year ends, although a lot can happen in a week on the markets. In terms of realised profits it looks like I will break even.

Add in some dividends and bank interest and it's an ok year for me, at least when compared to the indices. Otherwise it was a very tough year. The Small Ords is down 20% and the All Ords is down around 14%. Unrealised profits in the portfolio are ok at around 16%, so I am not hanging onto any big losses.

A couple of sells this week. PAN (the old SMY) was exited on Monday for a loss of 20% & WSA realised a little over 50%. Position sizing meant that I bought roughly 30% more of WSA than PAN.




I think that I learnt that consistency and perseverence pay off this year, and it's been a good walk forward experience. The current trading systems I am running have stood up quite well and I am very glad that I have them.

stevo

Another exit - long term loser

I got out of this one today after the sell signal triggered on the close of last week. No other exits signaled for this week.

It's unusual to get a trade that lasts as long as this one (26 weeks) and still manages to lose money.

stevo

May 2008 Portfolio Performance

I have a lot of open trades that are showing promise, as can be seen in the equity curve below.


The ideal situation for me would be for no profitable exit signals to fire at least until next financial year, delaying any tax implications until the following financial year. But exit signals have to be taken when they are triggered.

The above chart shows closed trade profit or loss for each quarter, except for the last quarter. The last quarter is dynamic - it shows trades that have not yet been closed.

The first quarter 2008 was the worst quarter I have experienced since Jan 2003. The second quarter is shaping up ok. There was a bit of a surge in the stocks I hold at the close of the month and I wouldn't be surprised if they fall back a bit next week.

The average trade length from January 2003 until May 2008 was 148 days and the longest trade was 694 days (RCD: opened 5/5/03,closed 29/03/05), so I am not day trading.

stevo