A thorough guide to correlation risk and its growing importance in global financial markets Ideal for anyone studying for CFA, PRMIA, CAIA, or other certifications, Correlation Risk Modeling and Management is the first rigorous guide to the topic of correlation risk. A relatively overlooked type of risk until it caused major unexpected losses during the financial crisis of 2007 through 2009, correlation risk has become a major focus of the risk management departments in major financial institutions, particularly since Basel III specifically addressed correlation risk with new regulations. This offers a rigorous explanation of the topic, revealing new and updated approaches to modelling and risk managing correlation risk. Offers comprehensive coverage of a topic of increasing importance in the financial world Includes the Basel III correlation framework Features interactive models in Excel/VBA, an accompanying website with further materials, and problems and questions at the end of each chapter
Important insights into effective option strategies In The Complete Guide to Option Strategies, top-performing commodity trading advisor Michael Mullaney explains how to successfully employ a variety of option strategies, from the most risky–selling naked puts and calls–to more conservative strategies using covered positions. The author covers everything from options on stocks, exchange-traded funds, stock indexes, and stock index futures to essential information on risk management, option «Greeks,» and order placement. The book provides numerous tables and graphs to benefit beginning and experienced traders. Written by a CTA who has successfully employed various options strategies to generate market-beating returns, The Complete Guide to Option Strategies will be an important addition to any trader's library. Michael D. Mullaney (Jacksonville, FL) is a high-ranking commodity trading advisor who specializes in option selling strategies.
Please contact the authors at [email protected] for details of how to access the trial version of Crystal Ball, as well as the Excel and other files which are *not* part of the e-book version download. «This is a book no deal team should be without. It is a must for those involved in upstream oil and gas transactions, planning, budgeting, investment appraisal and portfolio management. Its step–by–step approach cuts through complexity, making it comprehensive and understandable by a wide range of users with a wide range of abilities. It can be used as a textbook, an introductory primer or as a handbook that you can dip in and out of or read cover to cover.» —Michael Lynch–Bell, Senior Advisor, Oil & Gas, Ernst & Young LLP; ex-officio Chairman, UN Expert Group on Resource Classification In the upstream petroleum industry, it is the value of post–tax cashflows which matters most to companies, governments, investors, lenders, analysts, and advisors. Calculating these cashflows and understanding their “behavior,” however, is challenging, as the industry’s specialized fiscal systems can be complex, jargon–laden, and sometimes seem to be a “world of their own”. Upstream Petroleum Fiscal and Valuation Modeling in Excel: A Worked Examples Approach demystifies fiscal analysis which, unlike disciplines such as Earth sciences and engineering, can be learned from a book. Written in plain English for laymen and for experienced practitioners alike, it is a reader–friendly, clear, practical, step–by–step hands–on guide for both reference and self–paced study. The book does not catalogue the 100+ different petroleum fiscal regimes in use at the time of writing. Rather, drawing on the authors’ combined 48 years’ experience, it takes a more timeless, generic treatment, by covering the most common variants of royalties, taxation, production sharing arrangements, bonuses and abandonment funding , through a dual approach: first, showing how to model them in Excel , and then providing interactive exercises to prompt (and answer) questions that analyze impacts on cashflows. In addition to the main text, the book consists of over 120 Excel files (ranging from modular examples to full models) in Excel 2007 and 2003 formats; over 400 pages of supplementary PDF files; VBA features to enhance model functionality; and an introduction to risk modeling with exercises for the included trial version of Oracle’s Crystal Ball software. It offers both a wealth of content and models equal to or surpassing what is available from fiscal modeling courses costing several times more; and greater insights into underlying calculations than commercially available “black box” fiscal software. New US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules planned for 2013 will force petroleum companies to disclose more fiscal information on an individual country basis. This will make it more important than ever for analysts to understand how to model oil and gas terms and the potential impacts of the disclosed government payments on future oil and gas company profitability. Due to the heavy use of graphics and cross references used in this particular text, some readers might find that the printed book offers a more optimal reading experience than certain e-formats particularly with the Kindle eMobi format.
Let's face it, economics can be boring…but we all need a decent understanding of the basics if we want to survive in these difficult and uncertain times. Let's make it more interesting. Easy Economics isn't packed with reams of text or stacks of numbers, this book is visual and engaging. The book aims to bring you up to speed, in a way that entertains while it informs, through a collection of many of the most frequently asked questions–plus some you probably haven't thought of–on the subject of economics. The topics range from: The difference between Debt and Deficit Causes and cures of recessions The Financial Crisis of 2007-2009 explained Is globalization good or bad? How fiscal and monetary policies differ Bubbles and Busts Unlike so many other books on the subject, it explains through a Q & A format with entertaining and informative illustration, providing material that many people ordinarily find uninviting and even intimidating in an easy-to-digest, appealing way.
A visual guide to market trading using intermarket analysis and exchange-traded funds With global markets and asset classes growing even more interconnected, intermarket analysis—the analysis of related asset classes or financial markets to determine their strengths and weaknesses—has become an essential part of any trader's due diligence. In Trading with Intermarket Analysis, John J. Murphy, former technical analyst for CNBC, lays out the technical and intermarket tools needed to understand global markets and illustrates how they help traders profit in volatile climates using exchange-traded funds. Armed with a knowledge of how economic forces impact various markets and financial sectors, investors and traders can profit by exploiting opportunities in markets about to rise and avoiding those poised to fall. Trading with Intermarket Analysis provides advice on trend following, chart patterns, moving averages, oscillators, spotting tops and bottoms, using exchange-traded funds, tracking market sectors, and the new world of intermarket relationships, all presented in a highly visual way. Gives readers a visually rich introduction to the world of intermarket analysis, the ultimate tool for beating the markets Provides practical advice on trend following, chart patterns, moving averages, oscillators, spotting tops and bottoms, using exchange-traded funds, tracking market sectors, and intermarket relationships Includes appendices on Japanese candlesticks and point-and-figure charting Comprehensive and easy-to-use, Trading with Intermarket Analysis presents the most important concepts related to using exchange-traded funds to beat the markets in a visually accessible format.
World-class guidance on using information to achieve better performance Examining the characteristics of information and the latest findings in cognitive science, this book shows how the mind works, how it can be used to think optimally about your business, and how to improve business performance with better information management practices. Provides the process and tools necessary to identify this information and how to remember it, and how to better use the people around you to obtain the best information Reveals how to handle all of the hundreds of pieces of information received daily Provides case studies as well as checklists that show managers how to implement the methodology presented in the book Innovative and ahead of its time, this book helps you take control of all the information that enters your life, get better informed, and have more time for the important issues you face within your business.
An in-depth look at why a commercial real estate collapse is inevitable, and how to survive it The Commercial Real Estate Tsunami is the first book to address the phenomenon of the pending wave of commercial debt maturities coming due in the next five years, and the impact those maturities will have on the commercial real estate markets when combined with the historic economic crisis the world is experiencing at this time. Drawing on the knowledge of recognized experts in the commercial real estate industry and financial markets, as well as lessons learned from the commercial real estate downturns of the 1980s and 1990s, author Tony Wood fills a void in our understanding of the causes of the crisis and what to expect in the future. Sends a warning to the commercial real estate industry, and offers concrete solutions to mitigate the risks and hazards that lie ahead Contains the insights of a group of experts from various sectors of the commercial real estate industry Helps market participants, including investors, developers, lenders, and brokers, gain a vitally needed perspective on where we might be going next and how we will get there Heeding the advice and guidance of the contributors in this book will benefit anyone navigating these turbulent waters and help lead them to higher ground.
A groundbreaking study of the investment portfolios of takaful companies, their general investment patterns, and their future investments The Islamic finance industry has witnessed remarkable growth over the last decade, and one of the most successful segments—poised for even greater expansion—is the Islamic insurance (takaful) industry. In Takaful Investment Portfolios, distinguished takaful scholar Abdulrahman Khalil Tolefat explores the investment portfolios of takaful companies in both the GCC countries and Malaysia, the tip of Islamic finance industry. Investigating the trends and patterns of investment of takaful companies, the book looks at shareholders as well as general and family funds to determine where these companies are investing today, and where they are likely to invest in the future. Presenting new and novel research on the investment patterns of takaful companies, Takaful Investment Portfolios covers the history of the industry and takaful models and how they work, and presents in-depth studies of both their real-world and desired portfolio investments. Presents unique new research into the investment portfolios of takaful companies in the GCC and Malaysia Examines the gap between desired and actual investment portfolios of takaful companies Explores expected areas for future investment Groundbreaking in its depth, Takaful Investment Portfolios is an unprecedented study of the investments of takaful companies.
Make trades on vertical options spreads with the precision of a laser beam Vertical Options Spreads is a combination of a bona-fide academic research-based study and a complete method to trade credit and debit spreads, along with other complex option combination trades such as iron condors and butterflies. Here, the author has accumulated five years of daily data on the ETF, SPY and provided historical evidence of actual win rates at specific multiples of entry points, both in time and price level. For example, traders will be able to use the weekly options, pick a level of risk and return desired, learn how to place the trade, and then discover the actual percent return that the trade would have yielded. This must-have resource includes the basics of option trading and contains references to many excellent works by other authors that explore more about the intricacies of option mechanics and trading. It is far more than an analysis of one specific asset, SPY, featuring a study of probability theory and how it has applied to trading over the past five years, including the highly volatile 2007 to 2009 time frame and the more «normal» 2010 to 2012 time period. The book offer a thorough understanding of how price movement, actual volatility, and implied volatility all provide a complex but workable web in which the informed trader can generate excellent returns. However, the trader must have the discipline to act within the confines of probability and the «law» of large numbers refusing to place trades based on gut feelings or hunches. Offers high-probability based trading that uses the new weekly options Contains handy interactive worksheets that allow traders to select their own risk/return with precision Includes a website with daily and weekly information on the estimate of the actual standard deviation points on the price spectrum Vertical Options Spreads offers traders a research-based guide for trading Standard & Poors 500 ETF, SPY using historic and estimated probabilities and returns that will give them an edge in the marketplace.
Change the way you think about work (and life) by focusing on results—and only results Why Managing Sucks and How to Fix It shows how the Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE) mindset can make you or your organization more entrepreneurial, more connected with the broader trends in your industry, and more willing to take smart risks. It explains how to set clear expectations and focus on the endpoint as opposed to managing the process that gets you there. With eyes set on getting rid of distractions, long meetings, and unnecessary updates, this book offers quick, everyday strategies to experience huge increases in productivity (without adding resources) and dramatic drops in turnover. Authors Ressler and Thompson began their work together at Best Buy where they are credited with revolutionizing the workplace Reframes thinking away from counting on general availability (Where's Bob?) to creating clear expectations (Does Bob know exactly what's expected of him?) Explains how to reduce the number of meetings while increasing their quality Shows how to eliminate scheduled events in order to increase critical thinking and improve communication ROWE is a bold, cultural transformation that permeates the attitudes and operating style of an entire workplace, leveling the playing field and giving people complete autonomy—to manage their measurable results using adult common sense.