MIDAS Technical Analysis A VWAP Approach to Trading and Investing in Today's Markets

by Coles, Andrew; Hawkins, David

• ISBN13: 9781576603727
• ISBN10: 1576603725
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-09-25
• Publisher: Bloomberg Press

Summary

MIDAS Technical Analysis offers an opportunity to introduce a new twist on an obscure technical analysis tool that can be used much more effectively today. Paul Levine a theoretical physicist and part-time technical analyst--created the MIDAS (Market Interpretation/Data Analysis System) system in 1990s based on VWAP (Volume Weighted Average Price). VWAP is not a technical analysis tool; it is a pricing method used by brokers and institutional investors to ensure efficient pricing and trading.Coles and Hawkins have taken Levine's work and greatly expanded on it, creating a truly useful tool for trading. They explain the basics of MIDAS and then go beyond it, showing how it can be used today. They demonstrate how it can be used in different time frames (different timeframes require different concepts and procedures) and how it can be used with other, more conventional indicators (e.g., DeMark or moving averages). They also introduce new indicators that they have created based on the MIDAS system (e.g., "Percent Displacement Bands"). They also show how to use MIDAS as a trading system: recognizing set ups, where to enter, where to place stops, identifying price targets, etc. Finally, the authors supply new computer code that goes beyond anything Levine supplied.

Author Biography

Andrew Coles, PhD, is an active trader running a private investment fund. He has a diploma in technical analysis from STA–UK and from the International Federation of Technical Analysts (IFTA). He is also a Certified Financial Technician (CFTe). He holds a master's and a doctorate and was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the British Academy.During his graduate and postdoctoral years, he worked at a number of institutions, including King's College (KQC) London, the Institute of Classical Studies, and Oxford University. He is the author of a previous book on the history and philosophy of science.

David G. Hawkins is a successful full-time trader. He holds an MS in physics from Brown University, has taught physics at Roger Williams University, and has designed optical and ultrasound components for graphics, medical, and telecom systems. He presents on MIDAS and other technical analysis topics at AAII conferences.

Table of Contents

Introduction (Andrew Coles).

Biographical Sketch, Paul H. Levine (David G. Hawkins).

Acknowledgments.

PART I: STANDARD MIDAS SUPPORT AND RESISTANCE CURVES.

CHAPTER 1 MIDAS and Its Core Constituents: The Volume Weighted Average Price (VWAP) and Fractal Market Analysis (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 2 Applying Standard MIDAS Curves to the Investor Timeframes (David G. Hawkins).

CHAPTER 3 MIDAS Support and Resistance (S/R) Curves and Day Trading (Andrew Coles).

PART II: THE MIDAS TOPFINDER/BOTTOMFINDER.

CHAPTER 4 The MIDAS Topfinder/Bottomfinder on Intraday Charts (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 5 Applying the Topfinder/Bottomfinder to the Investor Timeframes (David G. Hawkins).

PART III: THE LONGER-TERM HORIZON, OTHER VOLUME INDICATORS, AND BROADER PERSPECTIVES.

CHAPTER 6 Applying MIDAS to Market Averages, ETFs, and Very Long-Term Timeframes (David G. Hawkins).

CHAPTER 7 EquiVolume, MIDAS and Float Analysis (David G. Hawkins).

CHAPTER 8 Putting It All Together (David G. Hawkins).

PART IV: NEW DEPARTURES.

CHAPTER 9 Standard and Calibrated Curves (David G. Hawkins).

CHAPTER 10 Applying the MIDAS Method to Price Charts without Volume: A Study in the Cash Foreign Exchange Markets (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 11 Four Relationships between Price and Volume and Their Impact on the Plotting of MIDAS Curves (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 12 MIDAS and the CFTC Commitments of Traders Report: Using MIDAS with Open Interest Data (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 13 Price Porosity and Price Suspension: The Causes of these Phenomena and Several Partial Solutions (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 14  A MIDAS Displacement Channel for Congested Markets (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 15 MIDAS and Standard Deviation Bands (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 16 Nominal–On Balance Volume Curves (N-OBVs) and Volume–On Balance Curves (V-OBVs) (Andrew Coles).

CHAPTER 17 Extensions, Insights, and New Departures in MIDAS Studies (Andrew Coles).

APPENDIX A Programming the TB-F (David G. Hawkins).

APPENDIX B MetaStock Code for the Standard MIDAS S/R Curves (Andrew Coles).

APPENDIX C TradeStation Code for the MIDAS Topfinder/Bottomfinder Curves (Bob English).

Notes.

About the Authors.

Index.