This is a template that I use to keep track of the market. I normally do not follow the news about the market, because I watch what the market actually did for the day. When I do, the experts on the news watch these same items and are useful when gauging their opinions.
This normally takes me 15 minutes each day as a quick review. Focusing on these items allows me to know what is going on in the market without relying on anyone else. Speculating in stocks is a decision you make when entering a position and relying on our own opinion is critical. If you rely on someone else you never know when they buy/sell or even if they are lying. The idea is to form your own opinion about the market and develop your own history.
I've consolidated resources that provide the information quickly at my Resource Links
I either write this out or have a printed sheet. I keep these in a black binder as a log and a reference point. Over time you will see patterns and opportunities to take advantage of. Here is a PDF of this DailySheet.
My Daily Links Below is the breakdown of the DailySheet
Money Rates
Treasury Rates:
The Treasury Bill (TBill) is the 13wk short term note from the US Government.
The Treasury Bond (TBond) is the long term 30yr US bond. The direction and spread of these two tells a lot about the health of the US economy.
The reason for the spread is the time difference. If you are going to lend out money you will want a higher rate for a longer commitment
If interest rates are rising then the spread will narrow, because why lend out a long time if tomorrow you can get a better rate. When this rises the Yield Curve will become inverted and signal a slow down or recession in the economy. A current chart of this is provided by the US Treasury Dept. Yield Curve Chart
Monetary Policy
Federal Reserve Requirements (ResReq).
The US economy has a fractional banking system. When you give money to the bank the bank lends your money out to other people and charges interest. Then that money goes to another bank and is lent out again. By law banks need to have a cash reserve for accounts that the bank is carrying.
This is the biggest hammer that the Fed can use to impact the economy. The current rate is 10% if this is raised banks have hold more cash and they will not be able to issue more loans. If this is reduced more cash gets dumped into the economy.
This normally doesn't change much now, but earlier the Fed changed this and caused big boom/bust swings in the economy.
Target Federal Funds Rate (FedFund).
If a bank doesn't have the cash on hand to meet the Reserve Requirements, The bank can borrow money from the federal government as a short term loan. A bank doesn't normally take this lower rate, because it can raise the attention of regulators for possible insolvency. This is now the most common tool the Fed uses to impact the economy. By changing this requirement it forces a change in the Discount Rate
Discount Rate (DiscR).
This is the open market price for a short term loan for a bank to meet the Reserve Requirements. This is typically 0.5% above the Federal Funds Rate.
Prime Rate
This is a key rate that is used for a lot of commercial lending is tied to. Some examples are credit card rates and auto loans. This is also impacted by a change in monetary policy with the Federal Funds Rate.
I watch 3 main indexes: DJIA, S&P 500, and NASDAQ. The DJIA is for tracking large cap stocks. The S&P 500 is for tracking a broader marked and this makes up much of the volume for the day. There are may mutual funds and EFTs that mirror this. The NASDAQ is for tracking smaller cap stocks. The idea is to monitor the major tread and about half of a stock's movement can be tied to the overall market.
I follow the spot prices for Gold, Silver, and Oil. I do not trade in futures contracts, because of the speed of the market and the leverage cuts both ways.
Knowing the spot price of gold can be a tip off in market direction. Silver is much more volatile.
I track oil, because of it's global economic impact. When the price of oil is high this takes disposable income out of the economy. When this is low more money is available and auto sales increase.
Economic Calendar
I use this for the bottom half of the page to track the current data released. There are several of these available. Yahoo has one:
Over time you will understand the impact of these reports on the market. The most important is the 1st Friday of each month. The Bureau of Labor produces the Employment Report and this sets the tone for the month.
MyWildGamble Economic Data
Yahoo's Economic Calendar
Portfolios.
I setup 2 portfolios: US Market and Watch List. These are the ticker symbols for:
US Market
^IRX - 13 WEEK TREASURY BILL
^TYX - Treasury Yield 30 Years
^DJI - Dow Jones Industrial Average
^TV.N - NYSE Volume
^SPC - S&P 500
^IXIC - NASDAQ Composite
^TV.O - NASDAQ Volume
Stock Watch List
I use this for current holdings and a couple that I am interested in. I track only a few stocks at time. This allows me a familiarity with how the each of the stocks normally trade.
I track the close, point change, and volume. Then I record the high and low for the day for the breadth of the days trading range. The last item is the 10 average volume. By tracking the volume you can see accumulation/distribution of the stock
Commodities: Gold, Silver, and Oil
I do not trade futures and have no plans start. The futures markets are heavily leveraged and it cuts both ways. I do like to track them for their impact on the global economy.
Gold. I track gold, because well... it's gold.
There is something about it that there is always a demand for it. There is industrial uses and personal demand.
Silver. This is more volatile than gold and is more common.
Oil. The price of oil acts as a tax on the economy. When the price is high more money is pull out of the global economy. When it's low there is more disposable income available.