Marc’s book on swing trading is devoted mainly to the use of point & figure charts and swing charts. Marc has introduced a subset of rules which make pioneering alterations to the swing charts proposed by WD Gann. The modifications are intended to improve risk/reward for traders and investors but also to make trend definition more accurate.

In this talk Marc examines how swing charts have stood the test of time since his last talk to the Society in May 2004.

Julian will outline some of the methods he uses to trade and how he applies technical analysis across a range of markets and timeframes. He will illustrate how he identifies the “price acceleration” trades which make the easiest positive returns. He will also discuss the more aggressive approach that comes from managing a leveraged trading portfolio and the emphasis that is placed on money management.

In his talk Adam will look back at the history of development of technical analysis in the UK. He will also highlight the extent to which technology has changed the industry and reflect on his experience of the use of TA in the hedge fund industry.

Jeremy will give a quick refresher on Point and Figure charts and then discuss how they can be used objectively and effectively. He will also discuss how computers have allowed new and sophisticated techniques to be added to Point and Figure analysis.

Financial market cycles need to be seen in the context of the long-term economic cycles of which they are a part. However, the relationships are not deterministic: all markets have their own individual patterns and rhythms, and multi-dimensional feedback processes are involved. So, although the current credit crunch has arrived ‘on time’, it is unlikely to have the results that many now fear. Indeed, the emergent patterns are more consistent with a new wave of secular inflation than with an imminent deflation.

The Elliott Wave theory can be described as an empirically derived, entirely technical, list of rules and guidelines, to interpret, qualify, and project activity in financial markets. The theory, defining a complete bull and bear cycle as five waves up and three waves down, is highly indicative of mass psychology and human progression, and allows therefore exciting insights of what the market might do next. But as the theory can be quite complex and confusing, it requires the engagement of Fibonacci applications and what Thomas calls “plausibility analysis” to make it a powerful and highly effective analysis tool. The insights that Thomas will give will hopefully dissolve most difficulties that people encounter using this technique and will unveil the logical clarity behind it.

Ian and Chris will between them cover the relative prospects of gilt edged and other fixed interest markets, and will explain the main methods of analysis, principally on trends and cycles. With the continuing travails of credit markets, and the spill-over into corporate bonds, this is all too topical, even to those whose focus is elsewhere! Coverage of the wider picture will even include gold.

Living in a fast paced world filled with a myriad of investment opportunities buried beneath a sea of market noise, news, data and other perilous distractions, getting to the pearls can be a real challenge. Relying on your brain to digest and process large amounts of information in a limited amount of time comes at its own perils, owing to cognitive impediments that make us vulnerable to information overload.

Revealing some of the biases exhibited by investors, Rashpal will explain the benefits of simple quantitative techniques in arriving at the answer, and go as far as revealing one simple, backtested system that is born out of the concept of trends.

Most technical analysts and technical traders spend a lot of time observing and trying to recognise chart patterns in order to make market forecasts. But who knows how a pattern is recognised by our minds? The purpose of the presentation is to deal with this recognition process. How do our minds analyse different shapes? The understanding of pattern recognition mechanisms will be based on the main principles of a psychological methodology called “Gestalt Theorie.” Thanks to this we will understand why chart interpretation is definitely subjective and we will discover ways to benefit from this knowledge.

Most members will be familiar with the “Road Map”, his proprietary system for codifying the interaction between the various market and economic cycles. On this occasion, he will focus one aspect of seasonality –which month is, indeed the cruellest. TS Elliot opted for April, but wasn’t known to be a technical analyst. April may prove disappointing, bearing in mind “Sell in May, and go away”, but, arguably, October should take the accolade, with 1929, 1987 and the aftermath of 9/11 being the most obvious examples.

Systematic Trading, devoid of human emotions has become the “holy grail” of trading. Technical trading approaches can now be quantified, tested and validated using a variety of system testing packages. The theories of the old master technicians can now be tested and validated in real-time. The talk will focus upon how to produce and validate a variety of technical trading systems; then moving from theory to the practical application of system trading.

David will present “Examples of Trading Systems – A diverse collection of systematic methods”. Shaun will present “Testing Trading Systems – Finding the systems that really work”. Finally Francesco will round up the evening with, “Using Trading Systems – Putting it all together in practice”.

In his allotted span of some 30 minutes, Glyn aims to cover: An update on key Bollinger Band techniques; an update on trendline and channel definition; finally, what constitutes a reversal. At first sight, these might appear to be disparate topics. Using the analogy of a jigsaw puzzle, however, they do fit together very well, to give the “big picture” of price performance in markets. Aspects of these subjects were covered in his excellent talk of seven years ago, but he has undertaken considerable development work in the intervening period.

Nick will give a brief history of those analysts that have influenced him. His methodology is a combination of Japanese Candlesticks and Point and Figure charts to establish trade direction, on varying time horizons. These are reinforced with momentum studies, (RSI, Relative Strength etc) and his own easy to read proprietary indices. He will outline his use of his chosen trading tools and give examples of successful applications, along with some views on the current market outlook.