i was out, page-27

Rager

You are right ... and you are wrong.

You are right in that 95% of the "chartists" and chart followers on Hotcopper use charts wrongly. Many use charts incorrectly to try "predict" or "prophecy" what will take place in the future, often weeks & months ahead. However, as Starman said, chart are merely indicators of the "NOW"

IMO it is far better to get a rounded view on T/A (Technical Analysis), and use that in conjunction with F/A (Fundamental Analysis)

T/A is the visual collation of trading data that is currently occurring, or has already occurred. Its interesting that even those who bag "charting" per se, actually use "T/A" all the time without realising it. Whether they are looking at market depth, volume traded, oversold, or overbought stocks, etc. Many investors buy or sell based on these facts, but without realising that this is in fact using charting & TA without the charts! Because all a chart is doing is putting that same information in a visual format.

So, very importantly, TA & charts DO NOT predict the future, they only visualise current information, and give short-term indications that ASSIST in buy & sell decisions.

Some charting methods, such as candle-stick charting can get a little interesting, in that many decades of analysis have shown that certain candle patterns reflect very reliable indicators of market psychology. A good example is the DOJI, either occurring as a bearish Doji at a peak, or a bullish one after a low. These are very rarely incorrect. You might just see a "cross", but an experienced t/analyst sees much more: He sees the open price, the intra-day trading range, the low of they day, the high of the day, and depending on the color of the bar, the over-riding sentiment that governed the trading and will probably prevail when it opens the next day.

He sees that in seconds, and with good charting software, can search out potential targets intra day that match that criterea ... either as a sell or a buy.

Now that is just ONE of hundreds of pattern indicators. Getting some experience in this, along with some decent software, puts you miles ahead of the pack!!

While you might wish to laugh off TA ... I can guarantee who is actually having the last laugh!

;)

PS ... As for BMN, I agree with you in that it is a buy based on fundamentals, technically it has been headed down since June 15. I have been bearish on the whole market, and find it hard to recommend any stocks until this "correction is over. Once it is, I am expecting a massive run in U stocks. Until then its "bunker down" time.