2 comments about Investing in Futures and Options Markets.

1. Dr. Catlett's book covers futures and options with real life situations. Real life situations include hedging against losses from various situations. I had the opportunity to have Dr. Catlett for a Professor, teaching financial futures markets class at New Mexico State University.

   The book covers how to hedge and how not to hedge. He walks you through all of these topics to fully understand the process. There are tables and charts that to help understand the process. After completing the book you will have a great understand of futures and options markets.

   The book is a great reference for futures & options trading!




2. This is a good book. I had the privelege of recently attending a seminar by Lowell Catlett. He is pragmatic and thorough and yet, at times, witty. This book is written much the same way.

   The book is very thorough. It takes you through the history of markets, how they evolved and how they are used today. It provides insights and some "Dos" and "Don'ts". He really makes you think.

   It uses a lot of examples that are clear and very helpful. This makes it an excellent reference book for future trades.

   The only negative I found in the book is one of its virtues, it is too thorough. I think some of the discussions, such as grains and livestock, are similar. The book could have been shortened by about 10 - 20 percent by combining similar options , commenting on the differences and providing an example.

   Overall, I rate this an excellent book! I recently got an MBA from a top school and I learned a ton. This book is a must for the serious options trader who wants to build a good understanding of the investment methods.

5 comments about The Eurodollar Futures and Options Handbook (McGraw-Hill Library of Investment and Finance).

1. This book stands alone as the go-to volume for anyone interested in understanding what Eurodollar futures are, how they came to be, and what they are used for. This should come as no surprise, given that the author had a major hand in the invention of the Eurodollar contract. More abstract issues for professional traders, including convexity, strip valuation, and TED spread arbitrage are also covered, in easy-to-read yet authoritative theoretical terms.
   
   Considering the move made by the market from the pits to the screens, the time for another revised edition may be drawing near. Systematic arbitrage of the Eurodollar complex (spreads, packs, bundles, etc.) has never been more available to the sophisticated amateur. If there is any aspect of the market that Mr. Burghardt neglects, it is a thorough treatment of Eurodollar calendar spread arbitrage.



2. Great book with very detailed examples on the relationship between different fixed income instruments. My only complaint (and it is a very minor one) is lack of problems at the end of each chapter to help solidify the concepts. Otherwise, an excellent book.



3. This is a very practical book with detailed examples to help reader with the basic concept and Eurodollar Futures and Options. Very useful for beginners in this field. The last half of the book is dealing with more advanced topic more suitable for fix incoming researchers.



4. Clearly the best book on Eurodollar futures and options. The book is a must for anyone involved in fixed income securities.



5. Having just finished reading the author's treatment of bond futures in the 'Treasury Bond Basis,' I was happy to see that Burghardt was updating some of his material from the early 1990s on Eurodollar futures. The 'Bond Basis' was an excellent and thorough analysis, and 'The Eurodollar Futures and Options Handbook' follows the same trend.

   He provides an excellent overview of the institutional details of Eurodollars and their uses. The book is at its strongest when dealing with issues of the convexity bias and also scores high by not neglecting important issues like the stub period. Perhaps my favorite chapter was on callable bonds and the extension/compression risk, which, while a little misplaced in a book on Eurodlllars, still provided a very lucid explanation of the relevant issues.

   With regard to options, the author touches upon some of the interest strategic combinations using serial and mid-curve options, but I feel that he could've delved a bit deeper in this part of the book. It's the only area in which I felt the book was somewhat lacking.

   Having said all that, if you're looking to learn about Eurodollar futures, I can't imagine there's a better book out there. This is an excellent compilation of a number of Burghardt's research from the 1990s together with more recent updates. Even if Eurodollars are not your main area of expertise, this book will still help you to gain a more solid understanding of many of the pertinent topics in fixed income.

1 comments about The Professional Risk Managers' Guide to the Energy Market (PRMIA Risk Management Series).

1. This book contains whole information about energy market. All of subject related to energy market has been written detailly. And it contains Corbon Emission. If you are fresh man or not about energy market, it is a benefial source for you.

5 comments about An Introduction to Derivatives and Risk Management (with Stock-Trak Coupon).

1. Saved a whole lot of money by buying this book online as opposed to the university store. no complaints at all



2. I dislike Don Chance both as a person and as a writer. I find him arrogant and intolerable and that bleeds through into his writing. So, yes, I am biased.
   I highly recommend instead that you seek out John Hull, a much better author, he has two books; one for undergrad and another for grad (which is the 'bible' on this subject).



3. Dr. Chance did a excellent job in carefully introducing the concept and outline of derivatives markets to students with basic business school training. I used the 4th edition in my undergraduate course couple years ago, and built up a solid conceptual understanding in this field. The newest version still keep its pleasant style and contain some thing more about risk management.
   This book offers the best introduction to undergraduate business school students or MBA student who need not to work with financial derivatives much.
   But for those non-business students wants get into mathematical finance industry, to buy a book only for concept intro may not a economy choice. Refer this book if you find the first half in Hull's "Option, futures and other derivatives" not clear enough.



4. If you are a student just taken up a course in derivatives or risk management you should have this book. if you find john hull more technical, you have Don Chance who covers options and other derivatives in a greater detail and in more words. everything you want to know about how banks etc have risk mangaement systems in place and market risk instruments is here.

   in case you want a greater coverage of options and pricing options, you should definatly take a look at Black Scholes and Beyond by Neil Chriss, a work of art.




5. This is an excellent book for non finance majors who would like to grasp the physical concepts behind different derivatives products traded in the OTC markets. The book is ideal for a preperation read for all aspiring to take Financial Engineering / Derivatives as majors in graduate programs.

2 comments about CBOT Handbook of Futures and Options.

1. This book has helped me understand a lot of difficult concepts and jargons. Definitely recommend this book if you're new to the trading industry.



2. Very useful, full of information regarding futures trading and its history. Great for beginning traders and somewhat experienced traders as well.

5 comments about Structured Equity Derivatives: The Definitive Guide to Exotic Options and Structured Notes.

1. This is a qualitative book on structuring equity derivatives, which does a great job of covering pricing from a hedging perspective. While written on equities the concepts can easily translate to other asset classes, since there are not many books on the actual design of derivatives contracts this book fills a major gap for practitioners. The book introduces an approach and a philosophy to the process of structuring derivatives. The book takes a non-mathematical but a very lucid approach that is extremely natural from start to finish. I really enjoyed the discussions on improving hedging efficiency, risk management of options, and reducing the cost of buying options. There is also a chapter that covers structures marketed to retail clients.



2. If you have ever taken a class on Derivatives, it is very likely you used the book "Option, Futures, and other Derivatives" by John Hull. Although Hull's book is a great introduction into the field of Derivatives, it is missing some crucial "real world" elements. For example, Hull's chapter on Exotics is pitiful. This book really talks about how to structure exotic derivatives so that it satisfies the hedger's need and giving him nothing more(thus reducing the cost). By learning how to structure these derivatives, you really learn what derivatives really are. This book starts from the ground up, and makes no assumptions to your derivatives knowledge. Like another reviewer has said, this book may not be useful to you if you have been structuring or pricing derivatives at a major i-bank for 10+ years, BUT it is a GREAT introduction to the subject at an advanced undergrad or an early graduate school level. Furthermore, it explains Derivatives from the consumer side, those who may wants a position hedged.
   
   In short, This is probably the single best introductory book to exotic equity derivatives I've ever seen. Another good title for this book could have been "Applied Derivatives: A real world guide to structuring derivatives from ground up"



3. This is the best book on structured equity products so far. I contrast to other books Kat takes the perspective of a structurer (i.e. discusses the various payout modifivations in terms of their ability to make a structure cheaper). Harry is a great guy and his book is fun to read but never trivial. I always recommend this book to new members of my group.



4. This is still a great introduction to the subject. Being familiar with the majority of current financial 'engineering' texts, I can honestly say this is still a very good book. It does what it claims to do - and sticks to the intended audience.



5. This is definitely a very useful book for students taking financial engineering courses or complete newcomers in the aera of structuring. The book's written in a very clear and approachable manner and the author doesn't bother you with obscur mathematics. However, being myself a structurer of derivative products, I must unfortunately say that this book didn't really improve my knowledge in the field of structuring. But since I believe that Dr. Kat's main objective was to primarily target newcomers in the area of structured products, and not any professionals working in the business, I still think that the book is a respectable achievement.

5 comments about The Complete Idiot's Guide to Daytrading Like a Pro, 2nd Edition.

1. Recently I decided to try short-term trading. Soon I realise that I need to learn more. What is going on behind bid/ask postings, how to read and interpret Level II quotes, what is Naqdaq TotalView, what advance platforms are available today, etc? So I went to local bookstore and browsed through the section. Didn't find anything satisfactory so bought this book as a temporary solution. After an hour of reading I decided to write my first book review on Amazon.com. This is simply the best book I could hope to find on the subject: precise, structured, brief yet informative, state-of-the-art information. Excellent book overall. I highly recommend this book for beginners and may be even more experienced traders that didn't keep up with the latest advances. My only complain is that the indexing is not detail enough.



2. New edition just out. More sensible approach, and updated. Definitely worth the money, especially for new traders.



3. This particular book is fine as a general reference on the stock market, but frankly beginners will need more concrete and to the point strategies to make it as online stock traders.
   
   The reality is that the stock market doesn't care if you are a beginner. It will gladly take your money away if you don't know what your doing. So the bottom line is, you better be PREPARED before you even think about making your first trade.
   
   Stock trading is a very competitive field and in order to succeed you need to FOCUS on a set of simple strategies that you can implement without hesitation.
   
   This game is all about buying and selling according to your set ups. So the clearer your set ups are, the easier for you can be to make a profitable decision.
   
   Hopefully some sites on the web do offer more relevant and updated stock trading information. One of those sites is Sharp Trades ( SharpTrades com )
   
   They focus mainly on short term momentum stock trading strategies, that in my opinion are easier to implement than many other technical systems outhere.
   
   Stock trading doesn't have to be complicated as many people perceive. But you do need to follow a well organized set of rules and tactics, that once you master them, you can aspire to replicate profitable trades with consistency.



4. If your stock market experience is limited, this book will serve as a good introduction. The material is basic and presented in an easily understood format.



5. First of all, the title of this book is PRICELESS. If I was a complete idiot (and I'm not far from it), I would want to start day trading and as a matter of fact, I did just that.

   About half the information in this book describes the workings of the stock market. The other half goes into some information abou the ins and outs of day trading. I'm sorry, if you're going to start to day trade, shouldn't you already know about how the NASDAQ and NYSE work? Why spend half the book talking about it?

   Anyway, I read the book and entered one of those mock stock market games. They gave me $500,000 and a margin account so that I can trade up to $1,000,000. The game was not really geared toward day trading, there were different limitations and they couldn't offer Level II quotes (for a free game) so I had to "Swing Trade". I kept some positions overnight but I used the techniques mentioned in this book. So, the result (drum roll please): I started with a half million, I ended with $365,000 (a $135,000 loss). I came in 3,700th place (ouch!).

   Ah well, To All Idiot's Out There: Don't try this at home! :-)

1 comments about The SABR/LIBOR Market Model: Pricing, Calibration and Hedging for Complex Interest-Rate Derivatives.

1. Having to deal with Exotic Interest Rates product professionally, I had to get the latest Rebonato's opum. I've found in the past that there is much to be annoyed with this author (he gets fairly deep into the details but not necessarily at the level where you can re-implement things yourself), but also very frequently insights you would not get anywhere else: in the case of this book, the couple of pages where he explains what makes a good model should be mandatory reading for any aspiring "quant" thinking about applying the tools of his trade to the dirty world of finance. This is much better stuff than the more common-place fare he served in his "plight of the fortune tellers". Recommended as such. If you're buying this for the specific model that Rebonato advocates, unless you're very deeply involved in Rates structured products, I don't think you're getting a bargain.

4 comments about Options Demystified.

1. ..then this is the book you should be reading first.
   I bought two books to help me understand what options were about, "Options Made Easy" by Guy Cohen and this one. Guy Cohen's book has so many incomprehensible charts and diagrams on practically every page that it left me with nothing learned. His book is definitely not for the beginner such as myself. I stopped reading it about a third of the way through, thinking I'm never going to "get options".
   
   Then I took up reading "Options Demystified" and it was like a breath of fresh air. I went through the whole book in 3 days, highlighting the essentials that I wanted to return to and will shortly start on re-reading it again before actually purchasing any Puts and Calls.
   "Options Demystified" definitely adheres to the KISS philosophy ("keep it simple, stupid") and for the beginner to get an overview of the mechanics of option trading, this is exactly what we need.
   
   I will agree on one point with the previous negative reviewer on his suggestion to go to the CBOE website (Chicago Board Options Exchange) and go into their Learning center. They also keep it simple so we newbies can "get it".



2. This is just awful as it fails to give graphic examples of stock options. The author just blabs and blabs without any coherance. I bought this book to shed light on this confusing subject---it confused me even further! Go to the CBOE to get crystal clear answers to most of your options questions. There must be better options out there!!!



3. This was a quick enjoyable read which provides an overview of options. This is a good first book to read to see if you want to invest more time studying.



4. "Options Demystified" is a worthy addition to McGraw-Hill's "Demystified" series, easily living up to its claim of being a self-teaching guide. Hundreds of books have been written on the subject of puts and calls, but this large-format paperback is by far the best I've come across for the aspiring option trader. It is comprehensive, well organized, generously illustrated and easy to understand. The book also includes many quizzes and a "final exam" to help the reader master the material.
   
   The author, Thomas McCafferty, has been around commodities, stocks and options for many years and written numerous books on those subjects. This one not only lays out the basics of the options game, it also condenses much of the author's impressive horse-sense into a very readable and relatively short work (251 pages, plus an excellent index). "Options Demystified" should be on every trader's shelf. Even pros will find some pearls here, including a chapter on "trading philosophy" that's perfectly attuned to today's frothy markets. I recommend this book wholeheartedly to anyone looking for an options primer that is both comprehensive and easy to imbibe.

3 comments about Money Management Strategies for Futures Traders (Wiley Finance).

1. This book was released in 1992 -- and is still as essential today to traders as it was 16 years ago. It seems like it is a secret gem of a book since there are only 2 Amazon.com reviews posted (both of which are five and four stars) in all these years.
   
   Maybe it's time for this classic to be re-discovered by a new generation of traders and investors. Surprising to me that the book "The Trading Game - Playing by the Numbers to Make Millions" sells so many books. The gimmick title "...Make Millions..." should make you wonder if it is authentic -- get Professor Balsara's book instead and learn the true principles of managing and understanding your risk.
   
   There is a reason Balsara's book is cited by 34 other books (most of which are written by the master traders of our time) and it is because this is the textbook that the master traders refer to in creating their money management strategies. This book has the formulas and the theory you need to manage your risk and avoid the risk-of-ruin.
   
   I found out about Balsara's book from Bennett McDowell, he recommends Balsara's book in his book "A Trader's Money Management System":
   
   A Trader's Money Management System: How to Ensure Profit and Avoid the Risk of Ruin (Wiley Trading)
   
   McDowell encourages his students to use Balsara's risk-of-ruin tables when designing their own personal money management system. It improves your bottom line when you calculate your current payoff ratio and win ratio and accurately determine the risk you should be taking on each trade by referring to the risk-of-ruin tables. Balsara also covers Optimal F in detail, which is another way to determine the amount to risk on any one trade based on your current payoff ratio and win ratio.
   
   Of course, another great author on this topic is Ralph Vince and his latest book is probably the most thorough account of using Optimal F effectivly:
   
   The Handbook of Portfolio Mathematics: Formulas for Optimal Allocation & Leverage (Wiley Trading)
   
   For some traders they should risk 2% of their trading capital on each trade. For other more experienced traders they can benefit by risking 10%. The key is to do the calculations and know where you stand at any given moment.
   
   Do yourself a favor, buy Balsara's book, Vince's book and/or McDowell's book instead of "The Trading Game".



2. While a large percentage of individuals do not achieve financial success in the futures markets, traders who do succeed possess a solid understanding of risk and exercise a disciplined program of loss containment and money management. Nazer J. Balsara's Money Management Strategies For Futures Traders provides a wealth of materials for futures and stocks traders alike. The book is a must-read and a relatively easy-read for those who wish to enhance their risk management sophistication with complex tools and who believe that the best way to survive and prosper in the markets it to contain your losses, play defensively and let profits ride.

   All trading opportunities are not created equally and part of a trader's job is ferreting out the best markets to trade. The chapter on commodity selection presents four approaches to market selection, based largely on the work of J. Welles Wilder, the father of ADX (Average Directional Index Indicator) and RSI (Relative Strength Index). Here, the book is a good review of Wilder's ADX but focuses on the less-known aspect of his work: the commodity selection index. Wilder's approach uses ADX to identify futures yielding the greatest dollar-value price-moves for a given margin investment, in short, getting you in on the most appealing trades. Balsara also shows the utility of Wilder's price movement index when it is it is not possible to determine or estimate reward, thereby enhancing the analysis and return in mechanical trading systems. Sharpe ratios are also considered as a way of measuring risk-adjusted returns.

   The text gives useful approaches to managing risk through stop-loss orders by laying out the usage of time stops, dollar-value stops and volatility stops. There is also a presentation on how to survive locked-limit markets by creating synthetic options positions, spreads or offsetting positions in the cash markets.

   A studied read of this finance professor's work will help traders develop both the skill and the art of disciplined risk-taking.




3. I only wish I had utilized the statistical tools the author provides earlier in my trading career. However, I did find the book in time. Don't let the reference to statistics scare you. The author uses basic alegebra to aid you in trade selection and risk control.

   This book may not guarantee you success in trading, but I do believe that if one does not apply the basic money management principles presented by Prof. Balsara, sooner or later, failure in the futures market is almost certain.

   If you can't name the 5 basic steps of money management, I suggest you stop trading immediately, get this book with a couple of ticks worth of money you'll not be losing while your not trading. Read it a few times, set up your money management spreadsheet and may you trade with clarity previously unknown in your endeavors in the futures market.