There was an excellent piece written on Move the Markets (sourced from Trader Mike ) on the risks of under capitalization and trading. Unfortunately, for many people who have day-to-day jobs (myself included), allocating large sums of money necessary to capitalize a trading account is simply impossible. Even for those individuals with money to fund trading accounts, capital restrictions in special accounts like ROTH/IRAs mean maximizing the benefits of these accounts requires special thought. So how can one work the market with a small sum on money? The following is a quick-and-dirty analysis on a couple of strategies available for low capital accounts. As Move the Markets highlighted, commissions are the biggest killer of small accounts. There are alternatives, such as zero commission brokerage firm Zecco . But the consequence of this could be stripped down services(?)[I can't directly comment about the usability of Zecco]. Other alternatives include the dollar-cost-average serv

A bad week for the indices ending as they started with another big 1-day loss. The weakness drove out the Trade Ideas scan to a point where 8 picks covered a time span of 1 hour . Only 1 pick, Pediatrix Medical ( PDX ), featured over 20 times at 22 appearances. The other picks failed to break double digits = very weak buying all round. Of the 8 picks: Hanover Compressor Holding ( HC ), Rio Narcea Gold ( RNO ), Nuveen Insd. Muni Oppor. Fund ( NIO ), Teck Cominco ( TCK ), Blackrock Global Energy and Resources Trust ( BGR ), and Pediatrix Medical ( PDX ), all pushed bullish crosses of their 50-day MAs by the 20-day MA inside the last 2 months. Long term charts of some of the picks show prospects: [1] Hanover Compressor Holding ( HC ) sits on the verge of a break of $20; stops on loss of 50-day MA; projected target of $27. [2] Nuveen Insd Muni Oppor Fund ( NIO ) still has August highs to break but is set to complete a 4-month handle; projected target of $16.50; stops also on a loss of the

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The duel between bulls and bears ended up net neutral as neither took the days honors. The Trade Ideas scan was reasonably bullish; 8 picks covered a time span of 9 minutes . Top of the pile in frequency at 38 appearances was Kellwood Co ( KWD ). Of the remaining picks, none climbed over 12 appearances : Nuveen Global Government Enhanced Income Fund ( JGG ), GATX Corp ( GMT ) and Calamos Corp ( CHY ) all managed this feat. Only one pick edged a bullish cross of the 50-day MA by the 20-day MA: Rite Aid Corp ( RAD ) - but this could be a whipsaw signal. The 1-year charts are mixed. Rite Aid ( RAD ) is shaping a scrappy bullish ascending triangle; buy break of $4.85, stops on loss of $4.40, look for move to $5.80. Trend traders can follow the action in Calamos Co. ( CHY ) and Blackrock Global Opportunities ( BOE ). While Harrah's ( HET ) continues to develop a cup-and-handle pattern. If you would like to try a full version of the Trade-Ideas software, follow this link for a free 7

The last position in the Collective2 portfolio was exited into the close of Wednesday's trading to leave the account all cash. I have no immediate plans to add major new positions until tech market internals improve. This is in line with my bearish outlook for the market. Hawaiian Airlines ( HA ) was exited on its raised stop price from November 27th. The 3,000 share lot closed for a +$2,520 profit. Collective2

Another loaned paid off bringing the total of loans paid to 4 . The new loan can be found below: The current loan portfolio can be found here . KIVA

It was a day to get over the shock of yesterday. There was some increase in the volume buying over yesterday's selling, tech averages gaining most in this regard. The Trade Ideas scan bumped up its hit rate with 8 picks covering a more reasonable time span of 22 minutes . Only two of the picks: Amerigroup ( AGP ) and iShares MCSI Emergimg Markets ( EEM ) managed bullish crosses of their 20-day and 50-day MAs inside the last 2 months. General Dynamics ( GD ) was the only pick to manage a bearish cross of these averages. However, General Dynamics ( GD ) was the only pick to make over 20 appearances on the scan, coming in at 29 appearances for the day. Of the 1 year chart, Harrahs ( HET ) looks best positioned to gain following a huge breakout gap in October (which held as support on the subsequent retracement) which led to the development of a handle in a 7-month base. Projected target is $100-105 with a stop on a loss of $75. If you would like to try a full version of the Trade-I