That's it, school's out and it's time for non stop fun with the kids and .. help!! It's time for non stop fun with the kids!!!
I'm off for a while to "sunny" Devon (here's hoping!) - so I thought a good time to chat about shares in the summer.
First off expect lots of volatility - by that I mean expect your shares to go up and down an awful lot quicker than usual.
Offices are only half-full, there is far less liquitity and so small buys and shares can affect a share price much more than is normal.
Also with market-makers away too they don't want so much business so expect wider spreads too - the difference between the buy and sell price.
Any little bits of news can also affect the market really quickly. Another country in trouble expect a massive drop.
Oh, a bailout! Expect a massive rise.
In the main I personally trade a lot less but try and hold onto my good ones, topslice a few that have made a profit, and keep a bit in cash.
Stop losses become more of a problem - with violent swings it's often best if you want to keep hold of something good to set stops further away. Otherwise you could so easily get spiked out.
The summer is often a could time to have some courage and nip in and pick up cheap shares on a bad down day.
Best time to do this is when you are crapping yourself that the market is about to sink without trace taking all your money with it. That is usually an excellent summer buy signal.
August is often a good month to pick up some quiet bargains while everyone is away.
And what do you do when on holiday? Depends where you are going! If you have net access (I usually do) then take a lap top or one of your fancy gizmos with you and check in.
If checking in is a struggle consider trailing stop losses (look I am not going into these here, look them up!0
Then at least some profits could be bagged while you are away and losses taken too.
Consider each share you have before leaving.
How volatile is it? Could you be spiked out? Have a good look at each one and decide the chances.
Obviously what you don't want it to come back from hols and be spiked out of everything.
In general, if you can at least check in once a day even if you have to use an internet cafe. You could then always move stops up or down to keep some protection.
Whatever happens don't expect an easy ride in the summertime.
Cos Summertime and the living is not quite so easy.
Of course you may have made a lot of profit this year, and if you really want a relaxed time there is nothing necessarily wrong with banking profits, clearing out some stuff and come back in September.
One thing to avoid is to leave bets open on the indicies like the FTSE 100, you could get absolutely caned and a stop losss may not help given likely volatility.
Same could be said of volatile trades in say oil or commodities. You may be better clearing these out till the holidays are done.
We're all different. But have a good think about what you're going to do. Have a plan and don't just leave things to fate.
However things go for you, hope the holidays are good and you don't feel those summertime blues looking at your portfolio on your return...