FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Aaron West
InterShow
941-955-0323
aaronwest@intershow.com
TRADERS SPLIT ON WHETHER MARKETS WILL BE BULLISH OR BEARISH FOR REMAINDER OF 2008
The Bulls Poll in at 48% and the Bears at 34%
SARASOTA, FL, February 15, 2008 – MoneyShow.com, the largest multimedia investment education destination for investors, traders, and financial advisors will officially announce the results of the Traders’ Sentiment Indicator at The Traders Expo New York on Saturday, February 16. The survey polled 375 active traders across the country and revealed that 48% of traders are leaning toward a bullish sentiment for the S&P 500 for the remainder of 2008. Most bullish traders seem cautiously optimistic with 30% indicating that the S&P 500 will rise less than 10% for the remainder of the year and 18% stating that the S&P would rise 10% or more.
“Traders tend to be a more optimistic group by nature, and even with uncertainty in the markets from a weak dollar and the sub-prime lending crisis, nearly half of the survey respondents feel the markets will rise in the coming months,” said MoneyShow.com market commentator Tim Bourquin, who is also the co-founder of The Traders Expo and Forex Trading Expo.
In line with the bears, 34% of the traders stated the S&P 500 index would fall for the rest of 2008, while 18% remained neutral and feel the markets will remain in a trading range for the bulk of the year. In contrast to the results from a November 2007 survey, slightly less traders are bearish on the markets now than they were near the end of last year.
The number of traders shorting the market remained nearly equal to the results from the November 2007 survey with 22% stating they won’t be shorting any markets to make profits. However, 60% stated that up to half of their trades would be on the short side of the markets for the remainder of
the year. Traders also predicted that their most profitable trades will be with stocks (29%) and options (27%). Commodities and foreign currency (forex) also had strong showings.
When asked about how they felt the Federal Reserve would act over the coming months, an overwhelming 85% felt the Fed would ease rates at least once or twice during the year. “Given this number, one might think traders would be more bullish on the market prospects. However, it may indicate their lack of faith in the Fed’s ability to move the markets as they have done in the past” said Bourquin.
Finally, when asked what their expectation of the value of the U.S. Dollar in relation to other currencies, traders continue to see a decline, with over 56% of the respondents saying the dollar will fall “moderately to significantly” over the remainder of 2008. Since clearly most traders are not shorting markets consistently, it makes the drop in the number of profitable forex trades they are expecting more understandable.
The MoneyShow.com Traders Sentiment Indicator polled active traders from its member list between February 8 and February 13, 2008. The results will be announced and discussed on Saturday evening, February 16, in the exhibit hall of The Traders Expo New York and made available on the home page of MoneyShow.com. The site also commissions several other indicators throughout the year among high-net-worth individual investors, active traders, and investment experts, which will be announced in conjunction with InterShow’s various trade shows and made available on MoneyShow.com.
About MoneyShow.com
MoneyShow.com is the most comprehensive investing education destination on the Web today. It offers free membership and provides 24-hour access to powerful, profitable, and actionable investment advice directly from Wall Street and trading experts; hundreds of hours of investing education targeting investors, traders, or financial advisors; and customized content by searching topics, experts, and companies specific to investors’ portfolio needs.
About InterShow
InterShow, the world's leading producer of investment trade shows and cruises, is a privately held company headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, USA. Founded in 1978 by Charles and Kim Githler, InterShow's events include The World Money Show®, The Money Show®, The Traders Expo®, The Forex Trading Expo®, The Financial Advisor Symposium®, and luxurious investment cruises, that each year bring approximately 50,000 investors, traders, and financial advisors together with world-class analysts, top-performing mutual fund and separate account portfolio managers, and independent investment and trading advisors, in live and interactive forums designed to educate and empower all participants.
