Watching market trends -- your methods

[Lsbcal]

This is one nice way to view the US market: Morningstar has a "market barometer", not just daily but over periods up to 3 years. By moving your cursor over the little style box images, the scales change to the appropriate values, e.g. for 3 months the scales change to the appropriate one for 3 month returns of +-8%. Here is a little picture of what you see at Morningstar Stock, Mutual Fund, Bond, ETF Investment Research :

For 1 year we see that the market is pretty uniformily up although the midcaps and small caps are up more then the large caps. It would be nice to see this sort of picture for internationals. Maybe even for bonds.

Anybody have other sources (hopefully visual/graphical) that they like for this sort of thing?

 

[bUU]

I'm not convinced that seeing trailing market trends provides data I can use, given my objectives, since it doesn't indicate anything about leading market trends. How would one use such a tool constructively?

 

[HFWR]

I tend to watch the market through beer goggles...

 

[Lsbcal]

I'm not convinced that seeing trailing market trends provides data I can use, given my objectives, since it doesn't indicate anything about leading market trends. How would one use such a tool constructively?

When one of the quadrants goes from Red to Green, you buy it. Opposite for Green->Red.

Just kidding. I'm only talking lightly about watching the markets and understanding trends. That was the intention of this thread. Not into crystal balling.

 

[bUU]

Not into crystal balling.

Darnit

 

[shasta]

I just log into Google Finance once a day to see how various portfolios are doing.

 

[W2R]

I am not nearly as interested in the details of market trends as you are. Other than following my portfolio value, I just keep an eye on the DJIA, not even the S&P much less a finer breakdown like the one from Morningstar.

 

[Lsbcal]

I am not nearly as interested in the details of market trends as you are. Other than following my portfolio value, I just keep an eye on the DJIA, not even the S&P much less a finer breakdown like the one from Morningstar.

Well W2R, you obviously don't have testosterone poisoning.

You are entirely too level headed.

 

[Animorph]

The trends become clear when I look at what rebalancing needs to be done to get back to the target AA levels for my multiple equity allocations. I don't really care about it otherwise.

 

[Lsbcal]

Here is a kind of cool way at looking at the market by industries, it's called map of the market:

MarketWatch.com

 

[bUU]

I don't see the choice for "Next 26 weeks".

 

[Lsbcal]

I don't see the choice for "Next 26 weeks".

Did you try the "nxt" key? It's located near the page down key on most keyboards.

 

[target2019]

Anybody have other sources (hopefully visual/graphical) that they like for this sort of thing?

For trends I find it useful to view a graph such as this.
Once on that page you can tweak to your heart's content.
On a single web page of my own making, I've included charts like that for 18 funds we are invested in. They are mostly broad indices.
Of what use is this? 200 and 50 day moving average tell me where short and long momentum currently is. But is that actionable? I can't say for sure. Then why do it? Charts are more informative! Okay, a circular argument for sure.
I haven't looked at these charts for more than 3 months. Now that I do, I see that I should have exited all bond funds May 1. Oh wait, I'm buy and hold, so never mind.