Are You Better at Spread Betting Than Gordon Gekko?

LONDON, October 28, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Financial spread betting and CFD trading provider City Index (http://www.cityindex.co.uk) is celebrating the release of the new film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps with a fun online game and a fantastic prize draw. Simply visit http://www.cityindexwallstreet.co.uk for details of how you could win an iPad, iPod touch or even GBP200 trading credit in your spread betting account.

Here, in honour of the film's iconic lead, City Index takes a look at four of Gordon Gekko's most famous quotes in order to ascertain how cinema's most legendary investor would have fared in the world of spread betting and CFD trading today.

"Greed, for lack of a better word, is good."

Wrong. In financial spread betting and CFD trading, greed is most definitely not good. Spread bets and CFD trades both carry a high degree of risk and can result in you losing more than your initial deposit. Knowing when to cut your losses and when to let your profits run is essential and relies on the strictest discipline, not emotion or impulse. For this reason, it is advisable to operate - and stick to - a spread betting strategy that outlines your entry, objective and exit from every spread bet or CFD trade that you make. A spread betting demo account ( http://www.cityindex.co.uk/learn-to-trade/demo-account.aspx) represents an ideal place to practice.

"I look at a hundred deals a day. I pick one."

Correct. Financial spread betting and CFD trading are not easy and even the best traders get things wrong from time to time. Remember, standing aside is a position. Only make spread bets and CFD trades that you are 100% comfortable with.

"The most valuable commodity I know of is information."

Correct. It is absolutely vital that the spread bets and CFD trades you make are built on a solid foundation of research and analysis. For example, if you were to start spread betting on British Airways shares, you should have learnt beforehand that a rise in oil prices would typically increase the costs of an airline to fly its passengers all over the world and would therefore put pressures on earnings. In order to react effectively to news activity, you need to know exactly how the market in question moves, what affects those movements, how volatile it can be and which forthcoming announcements may affect it.

"Lunch is for wimps."

Wrong. Spread betting and CFD trading are demanding, draining and should never be a priority. It is imperative that every spread bettor or CFD trader has a life away from the financial markets.

In reality, Gekko would still have had a lot to learn about spread betting and CFD trading - but with the range of free trading seminars (http://www.cityindex.co.uk/learn-to-trade/seminars.aspx) and webinars available at City Index, the achievement of his trading potential would not have been beyond him.

See how you could improve your spread betting and CFD trading skills at http://www.cityindex.co.uk/learn-to-trade/.

Take on City Index's Wall Street Challenge and enter the prize draw at http://www.cityindexwallstreet.co.uk.

Spread betting and CFD trading are leveraged products which can result in losses greater than your initial deposit. Ensure you fully understand the risks.

Spread betting and CFD trading are exempt from UK stamp duty. Spread betting is also exempt from UK Capital Gains Tax. However, tax laws are subject to change and depend on individual circumstances. Please seek independent advice if necessary.

SOURCE City Index