Technical analysis explained: the successful investor's guide to spotting investment trends and turning points

Preface ix
Part I: Trend-Determining Techniques
1. The Definition and Interaction of Trends 3
2. Financial Markets and the Business Cycle 17
3. Dow Theory 29
4. Typical Parameters for Intermediate Trends 41
5. How to Identify Support and Resistance Zones 55
6. Trendlines 70
7. Basic Characteristics of Volume 97
8. Classic Price Patterns 115
9. Smaller Price Patterns and Gaps 166
10. One- and Two-Bar Price Patterns 186
11. Moving Averages 209
12. Envelopes and Bollinger Bands 233
13. Momentum I: Basic Principles 246
14. Momentum II: Individual Indicators 279
15. Momentum III: Individual Indicators 311
16. Candlestick Charting 340
17. Point and Figure Charting 373
18. Miscellaneous Techniques for Determining Trends 383
19. The Concept of Relative Strength 401
20. Putting the Indicators Together: The DJ Transports 1990–2001 423
Part II: Market Structure
21. Price: The Major Averages 431
22. Price: Sector Rotation 455
23. Time: Analyzing Secular Trends for Stocks, Bonds, and Commodities 471
24. Time: Cycles and Seasonal Patterns 499
25. Practical Identification of Cycles 525
26. Volume II: Volume Indicators 531
27. Market Breadth 560
Part III: Other Aspects of Market Analysis
28. Indicators and Relationships That Measure Confidence 593
29. The Importance of Sentiment 610
30. Integrating Contrary Opinion and Technical Analysis 635
31. Why Interest Rates Affect the Stock Market 653
32. Using Technical Analysis to Select Individual Stocks 673
33. Technical Analysis of International Stock Markets 694
34. Automated Trading Systems 713
35. Checkpoints for Identifying Primary Stock Market Peaks and Troughs 739
Epilogue 753
Appendix: The Elliott Wave 755
Glossary 761
Bibliography 767
Index 773

The guide technicians turn to for answers--tuned up to provide an advantage in today's global economy
The face of investing has significantly changed in the 30 years since this book's first publication, but one essential component of the markets has not--human behavior. Whether you're trading cornerstone commodities or innovative investment products, observing how investors responded to past events through technical analysis is your key to forecasting when to buy and sell in the future. This fully updated fifth edition shows you how to maximize your profits in today's complex markets by tailoring your application of this powerful tool.

Tens of thousands of individual and professional investors have used the guidance in this book to grow their wealth by understanding, interpreting, and forecasting significant moves in both individual stocks and entire markets. This new edition streamlines its time-honored, profit-driven approach, while updating every chapter with new examples, tables, charts, and comments that reflect the real-world situations you encounter in everyday trading. Required reading among many professionals, this authoritative resource now features:

Brand-new chapters that analyze and explain secular trends with unique technical indicators that measure investor confidence, as well as an introduction to Pring's new Special K indicator
Expanded coverage on the profit-making opportunities ETFs create in international markets, sectors, and commodities
Practical advice for avoiding false, contratrend signals that may arise in short-term time spans
Additional material on price patterns, candlestick charts, relative strength, momentum, sentiment indicators, and global stock markets
Properly reading and balancing the variety of indicators used in technical analysis is an art, and no other book better illustrates the repeatable steps you need to take to master it.

When used with patience and discipline, Technical Analysis Explained, Fifth Edition, will make you a better decision maker and increase your chances of greater profits.