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I believe most of us have read or learned about
the United States of
America. I have and that is one of the
main reasons I made USA
my first choice to settle myself when I left my home country in 1979.
When I first came here, I was amazed by the
opportunities given to locals and immigrants alike. We all have a chance
to go to school regardless of our age, education level and financial
situation. Young or old, good or bad, rich or poor, we all have a chance
to go to school if we choose to do so. Thanks to welfare benefits and
financial aids, I was able to position myself for a better education
during my early years in this country. I was able to have a financially
peaceful mind during my 4 years at UCLA
for my degree. It was a great learning period for me in term of academic
and real life experience. I learned and interacted with friends, co-workers
and professors from different parts of the world. UCLA campus was not
only my school; it was also a small society for me.
When I first traded the stock market, I thought
the trading environment should be the same world wide. However, I later
learn that is not always the case. I have a friend trading part time in Toronto, Canada. He told me if he
trades stock listed in New
York Stock Exchange but not listed in Toronto Stock Exchange, he has to
pay more commission per trade. I also found out in Australia, 1 option contract controls
1,000 stock shares whereas here in the USA, 1 option contract
controls 100 stock shares. In other word, if I trade option in Australia,
I will need 10 times the capital, assuming the currency exchange rate
between the two countries is similar. One more advantage for option
traders in the USA
is the volume. Since the volume of option trading in the US
market is one of the heaviest in the world, the gap between ask and bid
price for most option is only $0.05 which makes it a lot easier to trade.
The increment between strike prices is typically $5 or in some cases,
$2.50 increment. However, with heavily traded popular Exchange Traded Funds
(ETFs) such as QQQQ, DIA, SPY, to name a few, the difference between
strike prices is shrunk to $1 which is too good to be true for option
trader like me. To make it even more fantastic, the gap between bid and
ask price for the option of those popular ETFs is only $0.01 for most of
the time with the exception on the option expiration day when almost
anything can happen. All of the features I mention above can only happen
in a market with extremely heavy trading volume like the US
market. Being here in the USA,
I have the advantage over my friend in Canada for paying less
commission per trade. I also have the advantage over my friend in Australia for having 10 times less capital
to trade option, not to mention the small gap between ask and bid option
prices thanks to heavy volume in the US market.
I left my home country to come here in order to
be different. I learn how to trade the stock market, I manage my risk, I
do my actual trading, I change my trading style & investment
philosophy and I plan to be the best option trader I can be with all the
opportunities presented in this arguably the best country on the planet.
Thank you America
for giving me this wonderful opportunity to be here and to be the best I
can be.
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