| ATAA Blast! Newsletter #178 – April 2025
| Dear ~~first_name~~
Welcome to the latest edition of the ATAA Blast! Newsletter, with lots of informative news. Also, we believe that the ATAA will be turning 35 years old this year, so stay tuned for news on how we might celebrate this fabulous milestone.
| In this Blast! edition you can see the following, with links for an easy and speedy go-to to the relevant section below, including the announcement of our inaugural (online) National Speaker Series presentation on the afternoon of Saturday 12 April, and a segment on the latest industry news:
- ATAA National President's Update for this month.
- Relevant finance industry news.
- The latest ATAA Website Resource Library updates for the latest month - With an update on the immensely useful and growing ATAA Resource Library, including the now hundreds of video session recordings from the SIGs and network groups and chapter meetings.
- Online Discussion Forums - This resource is now growing in popularity in the ATAA website (for ATAA members only - login is required).
- ATAA National Board Update - News from the national board of directors. This includes advance notification of a Technical Indicator Innovation Competition - read more below.
- List of all of the ATAA Chapters, SIGs and Network Groups - More opportunities for the ATAA members for networking and learning.
- The latest on the National Speaker Series of online presentations - first one is 12 April with Brent Penfold.
- The ATAA 2025 In-Person Conference update - An update on the upcoming 2025 in-person ATAA Conference in Melbourne in October.
- Updates from the ATAA Chapters and SIGs: The next Forex Network online meeting is happening tonight - Thursday 9 April. Included below are updates for some chapters: Canberra, Melbourne - those that have submitted content. Thank you to: Mark (Canberra) for your ongoing contributions.
- IFTA information update: Latest information from IFTA - the free IFTA Update Newsletter is available.
- TECHNICAL ANALYSIS article - In the article this month we consider the latest market ructions, resulting from Donald J Trump's tariff policy, and we ask the question: "Could we have seen the market carnage coming in the charts?" Read the great thoughts on this below..
- Detailed benefits for ATAA members.
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As the national Marketing Director, I am still including key marketing phrases in this Blast!:- the ATAA Tag line in blue below, and the ATAA Elevator Pitch also in blue at the bottom of this email. Feel free to use these in your own correspondence to help encourage new members, and of course to remind existing members of why they are ATAA members.
I do hope you find this Blast! newsletter useful and interesting reading; but do feel free to tell us what you really think, and how we can improve it.
NOTES about this newsletter: The appearance of this email newsletter can be a little different depending on how you view it. In Google's Gmail the Gmail Inbox might show just a portion of this edition. At this stage I am not sure of the best way to work around this issue.
ps: Apologies continue for any odd formatting that you might find which I cannot resolve - font size or line spacing etc - as these seem to be oddities in our CE email editor tool (there are probably odd HTML codes hidden behind the text, which we have not found yet).
Robert B Brain
Blast! Newsletter Editor
ATAA Marketing Director
(and ATAA Life Member)
| The ATAA is the knowledge network
for successful financial market
trading and investing
|
National President's Update – April 2025
The ATAA National Conference and National Speaker Working Groups have been busy preparing for their events this year. The first event in the National Speaker series is coming up this Saturday, the 12th of April. The event is being widely marketed to raise the profile of the ATAA, including at other IFTA member societies. It has generated considerable interest in the investing and trading communities, and we have a record number of registrations. This augurs well for the National Conference in October, for which planning is in its advanced stages.
We had a resignation from one of our existing board members, Gina Morgan, as she is heading on a career path that is demanding and does not allow her much time for outside interests. I wish to thank Gina for her work on the board for the past one and a half years and wish her all the best in her future endeavours.
There are several vacancies on the ATAA board, and I would encourage any member who feels they can contribute to the work of the ATAA to put their hand up and nominate for a board position. The ATAA board is composed of members like you who volunteer their time and effort to advance the interests of our member organisation.
Jim Haralambidis
ATAA National President
| Relevant Finance Industry News
Following is some finance industry news which we hope you will find interesting and/or useful.
The Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities magazine has awarded Norgate Data, an Australian company, their 2025 Readers' Choice Award winner in the End of Day Data Category. This is the first time an Australian company has achieved this international award. The ATAA is proud to have Richard Dale, the Chief Data Officer of Norgate Data, on the national board of the ATAA. Well done! For more information about Norgate Data's services visit norgatedata.com and you can see the full magazine at: Traders.com.
Kraken, the US-based cryptocurrency exchange platform, has announced its intention to acquire NinjaTrader, which will give it the ability to offer cryptocurrency futures in addition to spot trading.
CME Group continues to expand its Micro futures contracts, which now cover Agricultural products (Corn, Soybean, Soybean Meal, Soybean Oil, Wheat), Interest Rates (2-Year and 10 Year), Indices (DJIA, Nasdaq-100, S&P 500, Russell 2000), Crypto (Bitcoin, Ether), Metals (Gold, Silver, Copper) and Energy (Natural Gas, Crude Oil). Since these Micro contracts are small, they are accessible to smaller account sizes. | ATAA Website Latest Resource Library Updates - recordings from March 2025
Our ATAA Resource Library now has many presentations and recordings going back to 2008. You can drill down on these using the website menu: Resources > Presentations by Date. An alternative way to find something specific on a particular topic is to search the library using the menu option: Resources > Search Resource Library.
The materials recently added to the Resource Library include:
- Thursday 13 March - Melbourne Chapter Hybrid meeting:
- Alan Clement - Global Markets Quarterly Technical Outlook.
- Kalvert Clark - Cycles and Forecasts.
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Tuesday 18 March - Technical Analysis New Zealand Online meeting:
- Andrew Mitchem - The safe way to get Prop Firm funded in the 6 months (and keep the thousands in regular commissions flowing for life).
- Thursday 20 March - Perth Chapter meeting:
- Mike Smith - From AI to EA – how the door has opened for retail traders to join the automated revolution.
All of these items can be found from the ATAA website menu: Resources > Presentations by Date. Make sure to browse the earlier recordings in the Resource Library, because you might never know what you've been missing. And you can also search the Resource Library by keyword.
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ATAA Website Resource Library - Invaluable JOURNALS from 1990 to 2007
One of the invaluable resources that that ATAA has been holding for many years is a digital (electronic) copy of the official ATAA Journals that were published on a quarterly basis from 1990 to 2007. There are 720 articles in more than 100 Journal documents.
The screenshot below shows how to find the Journals. Firstly, login to the website using your username and password, then use the menu item: Resources > Resource Library Folders, to see the hierarchical folder structure. Then expand the folders: Member Resource Library > ATAA Publications > Journals 1990 to 2007.
Once you've done that you will see the list of available documents, including an MS Excel list of the 720 subjects/articles, and also three PDF versions of the subject index, the index by classification, and the index by author. You can download any of the items by clicking on the small green-backed downward triangle located to the right of each entry. |  | | SIG and Network presentations in the Document Library - There is a growing collection of session recordings and other materials in a section of the ATAA website Resource Library. The latest one (from the Forex Network) can be found by following the menu (as shown in the screenshot below): Resources > Resource Library Folders, then expand the tree hierarchy under the Document Library heading: Member Resource Library > Presentations by Group. | | Presentations by Group - Session recordings for some of these ATAA groups can be found on the website:
- Bigalow Network
- Forex Network
- MEL Quant Traders SIG
- FX SIG
- Holy Grail Trader SIG
- MetaStock User Group SIG
- Technical Analysis Chat SIG.
| | | WEBSITE UPDATE:- More information about our Chapters and SIGs?
We recently realised that the ATAA has been slowly going through some key changes in recent years, and our website has not been able to keep up.
About 10 years ago we had 9 Chapters meeting in-person around the country, and only one Special Interest Group (SIG) which met in-person. Today we have several SIG groups, some of which meet on-line and some in-person. And some of our long-running chapters continue to meet in-person, but also online. This makes it a little complicated for any website visitor who is looking for a "group" in which to participate.
To address this we are looking at some structural changes to the ATAA website menu so that people can easily find an in-person meeting close to them, or an online meeting on a subject that is of interest to them. It's just taking us a little while to figure out the best way to structure this within the capability of the website system.
The other issue that we will address is that the information on the website about chapters and SIGs will always stay there from month to month. At present, an upcoming chapter or SIG event has details on the website, but they disappear once the event has passed. We will be including general information about the frequency of meetings, as well as some information about the general activities of each group. Stay tuned for an update.
Robert Brain
(Marketing Director) | ATAA Online Discussion Forums
Important Note:- Many of our SIG groups and Network Groups, as well as the chapters, have discussion topics in the Online Discussion Forum. Please note that if you post into a Chapter or SIG forum, then only some people will be able to "Reply to" or "Like" your post - other members of your own Chapter or SIG. if you are going to post, and you want any ATAA member to be able to "Like" or "Reply to" your post, then you should post into a forum that is not a Chapter or SIG forum.
The most active forums currently include: Bigalow Network SIG (34 discussion threads with 44 posts), MEL Quant Trader SIG (28 threads with 81 posts). Other active forums include: RealTest Coders Workshop (13 threads with 43 posts), Adelaide Chapter (15 threads), Trading Strategies and Systems (13 threads and 60 posts), "Indicators and Charting" (8 threads), Brisbane Chapter (6 threads), , "Trading Software and Tools" (5 threads) - just to name a few.
Check out the growing list of online discussion forums on the ATAA website on a range of T.A. and trading topics. And feel free to start a new discussion topic. The link to access the forum (in the website menu) is enabled after you login to the ATAA website.
You can sign-up to receive update emails on specific topics as they are posted. Login and visit the ATAA Forum to see more details.
Robert Brain
(Marketing Director) | |
ATAA National Board updates
| | | Advance notification for ATAA members and Blast! News subscribers
ATAA Technical Indicator Innovation Competition
Bored using the same old indicators?
Concerned that indicators and TA strategies developed in the 1970s
are not producing good enough results?
Wondering whether your strategies are competing with Institutions and
automated traders well enough
Do you enjoy an intellectual trading and research challenge?
Then enter the ATAA Technical Indicator Innovation Competition!
The ATAA Board invites entries for our Competition in three categories:
- Enhancement of Existing Technical Indicators
- Development of a New Technical Indicator
- Integration of Technical Indicators with Emerging Technologies
Submission Requirements and Judging Criteria for each category will be published on the ATAA website very soon.
Prizes - Final prizes to be confirmed and will likely include:
-
A 12-month data subscription
-
A cash prize or software subscription
-
A whole 12 months ATAA membership
Judging - A panel of three judges will decide winners in each category.
Winners to be announced at the ATAA Annual Conference in Melbourne on October 18-19, 2025.
STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFORMATION SOON, AND IN THE NEXT EDITION OF THE ATAA BLAST! NEWS | ATAA Marketing Working Group Update
| | The official ATAA email signature block. Are you using this email signature block yet? if not, why not? It's easy to download it and set it up as the footer in each of your new email messages, and in your replies to emails. This jpeg file (shown herewith) is available for ATAA members to download from the "Resource Library", and then include it in your own email signature block at the bottom of your emails. To find this file and download it, login to the ATAA website and use the menu option: Resources > Resource Library Folders > Association Documents > Marketing. | | |
2025 In-Person and Hybrid Conference - October 18 and 19
“The Future of Trading – Blending Classic Tactics with Smart Technology”
We’re thrilled to announce this year’s highly anticipated conference, where trading meets innovation! Whether you’re an experienced trader or just looking to sharpen your edge, this event is your opportunity to stay ahead of the curve in a rapidly evolving industry.
Why You Can’t Miss This:
- Expert Sessions: Gain invaluable insights from industry-leading trading specialists from both Australia and overseas over two packed days of learning.
- Actionable Strategies: Discover practical trading ideas, risk management tips, and how to leverage cutting-edge AI tools to boost your performance and profits.
- Unparalleled Networking: Connect with like-minded independent traders and industry professionals to expand your network and open new doors.
- Market Mastery: Learn strategies to navigate all market phases, especially during these uncertain times.
- Exclusive Gala Dinner: Socialise with speakers and fellow attendees in a relaxed, elegant setting.
- Premier Venue: Enjoy Melbourne’s vibrant central location, with discounted room rates available exclusively through conference registration.
Key Details:
- Dates: October 18–19, 2025
- Location: Central Melbourne
Mark your calendar now, and keep an eye on your inbox for registration details coming soon!
Do you have a speaker in mind you’d love to see at this event? Or maybe a sponsor you think should be involved? We’d love to hear from you!
Email your suggestions to conference-wg-2024@ataa.asn.au.
We can’t wait to welcome you in October for two incredible days of learning, networking, and inspiration. Let’s shape the future of trading together!
Alan Clement
ATAA (Conference) Director
| ATAA’s National Speaker Series! - Unlock Your Trading Potential!
Saturday 12th April at Midday AEST (Sydney / Melbourne / Brisbane time)
Don’t miss this launch event. Places are filling fast!
The ATAA is excited to introduce the National Speaker Series — an exclusive initiative designed to elevate your trading and investing journey. This groundbreaking series brings you world-class speakers from the trading and investing industry, delivering cutting-edge insights, actionable strategies, and inspiration — all from the comfort of your home via Zoom.
The best part? Our inaugural event is completely free and open to both members and non-members of the ATAA. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain insider knowledge and join a dynamic, nationwide conversation that could transform your trading approach.
Meet Our First Speaker: Brent Penfold
Kicking off the series is Brent Penfold, a 40-year veteran futures trader who began his career in 1983 as an institutional trader with Bank America. Brent is known for his disciplined, systematic approach to trading across a diverse portfolio of futures markets. This is your chance to learn directly from one of the most respected names in the industry.
Why You Should Attend: "Analysis is Good, Making Money is Better!"
Most traders start their journey immersed in analysis—especially technical analysis. It’s an exciting world of charts, patterns, and endless possibilities. But here’s the hard truth: while analysis can be fascinating, it doesn’t always lead to consistent profits.
What’s holding you back?
- Are you overwhelmed by technical analysis?
- Stuck in a cycle of learning without earning?
- Unsure how to turn knowledge into actionable strategies?
You’re not alone. Many traders face the same challenges: information overload, uncertainty, and the struggle to prioritize profitability.
But there’s a solution.
In this exclusive session, Brent Penfold will help you cut through the noise and focus on what really matters: building a robust systematic trading strategy that drives consistent profits.
What You’ll Learn in this 2 Hour Session:
- How to break free from the trap of endless analysis.
- The proven process for creating a strategy that works in the real world.
- Practical steps to transition from theory to profitability.
You've got nothing to lose! | CHAPTER and Special Interest Group (SIG) news and updates
| ATAA Chapters, SIGs and Network groups
For the benefit of ATAA members everywhere, the ATAA has a number of: Chapters, and Special Interest Groups, and Network Groups. Current financial members are free and welcome to participate in any of these. We are hopeful that all of these groups will submit some information for publication in the Blast! News from time to time, to help our hundreds of readers understand more about the opportunities and benefits for ATAA members.
For the latest meeting information, check the ATAA website for details, and also scroll down the website home page to see the latest announcements, presentations and updates to the resource library.
| | ATAA Chapters (alpha order) meeting monthly
- Adelaide
- Brisbane
- Canberra
- Melbourne
- Newcastle
- Perth
- Sydney
| | SIGs and Networks (and contact names)
- Melbourne Quant SIG (Jim Haralambidis)
- RealTest Coders (online) Workshop (Chris Meakin, Robert Grigg)
- Bigalow Network (Romy Baker)
- Forex Network - FN (Romy Baker)
- MetaStock Users SIG (Jerry Bongard)
- FX SIG (Mike Smith)
- TA Practice SIG
See the ATAA website for latest information.
| | | A screenshot from the ATAA website Document Library showing where presentations are accessible
| The Canberra Chapter enjoyed our second meeting of 2025 in the Board Room of Eastlake Football Club.
Gabriel showed details of progress in the portfolio competition with some entrants showing volatility can be navigated successfully to portfolio profitability.
Bruce completed the ASX review further demonstrating ASX dependence on International commodity and geopolitical changes occurring currently. Dave Roberts gave a presentation on how to navigate Betashares fee-free EFT investing website.
Two videos were shown as stimuli to discuss why the majority of traders lose money in the market. The first video was an interview with a prominent former hedge fund manager that explained how he could manipulate the market with both trading, media communication and networking. The second video was a presentation to Traders by Tom Hougaard outlining several reasons why most traders lose on the market.
Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 15 in the Boardroom at Eastlake FC in Griffith at 6.00pm. In addition to our regular ASX review and portfolio competition, Chris Meakin will continue his series on Rules Based Trading and Bruce Taylor will present on Elliot Wave and its usefulness in these volatile times.
Remember to bring your portfolio selection to our next meeting. If you would like to enter the portfolio competition and cannot make it to the meeting, send your selection by email to gabriel.spacca@ataa.asn.au.
Good trading and good health.
Mark Gleeson
ATAA Canberra Chapter President
[The Canberra Chapter generally meets on the third Tuesday each month.]
| The Brisbane chapter continues to meet monthly - usually the second Saturday of the month (from 9:30 to 3pm). We are planning to run a series of presentations on Artificial Intelligence and the Technical Analysis of Stock Prices. If any member has information to share on this topic, please send an email to me at - ataa.brisbane@gmail.com.
The Saturday meetings try to be structured along the lines of theory in the morning and application in the afternoon. The one hour lunch break makes for great member networking.
There is only a small pool of visiting speakers in Brisbane proficient in technical analysis so encouraging members to present is important to us and this will be our focus during 2025.
The chapter meeting address is 49 Gladstone Road, Highgate Hill, (corner Morris Street). Highgate Hill is within walking distance from the Southbank train station. Car parking is available at the back of the building and in Morris Street. The 196 bus runs from Adelaide Street (CBD) or the Cultural Centre Busway station and stops at the address.
Tim Young
ATAA Brisbane Chapter President | | RealTest Coders online Workshop
| | | The RealTest (RT) Coders monthly workshop (operating under the Melbourne Quant SIG) continues to draw regular numbers of participants from as far afield as the US and Italy. (The half price overseas membership has been reinvigorated to encourage these participants to join the ATAA).
In the sessions the users present their own code to everyone for evaluation, getting real-time feedback and improvement, with everybody learning in the process and solving any coding issues they may have.
The meetings are aimed at competent users of RealTest, but new users and intending users are more than welcome to join. A number of participants have also formed small ‘coding buddy’ groups (2-4 users) to develop and code up strategies collaboratively.
I have found the meetings very informative, and they have advanced my knowledge of and expertise in RealTest, coding and trading.
| LATEST NEWS: The April Melbourne chapter meeting (Thursday 10 April) will feature a book review, followed by Alan Hull presenting in-person in the Arcadia Hotel function room. In the book review, Keith Mundy will talk about Stan Weinstein's all-time best selling book "How to Profit in Bull and Bear Markets".
The Melbourne Chapter continues to host monthly hybrid meetings and we are still broadcasting the 2-hour segment of 6pm to 8pm by Zoom, and the recordings go into the ATAA website Resource Library - use the website menu: Resources > Presentations by Date. For those of you who are not able to be in the meeting room, you are missing: the invaluable networking (or "common gossip") from 5.15pm to 6pm (including free finger food), the interactions in the room during the broadcast session 6-8pm, and then further networking and guest speaker mingling over dinner after 8pm.
The one thing about networking at an in-person ATAA meeting is that you can "talk shop". That is, you can have an intelligent discussion with fellow ATAA members about the financial markets - and that's something that most of our members can't do at home, or in their regular circle of friends, because most of those people are simply not interested, or don't understand the nuances of the markets and of technical analysis.
All ATAA members who attend our meetings are given a "Door Prize" raffle ticket, with the winning tickets drawn during the mid-session break (when we change-over the speakers). You see, we still have a truck-load of pre-loved trading and technical analysis books to give away at our meetings with more coming, and these are used as the Door Prizes in the Member give-away. And some of these books are absolute gems - for free!
Don’t forget that public transport (tram) runs past the hotel front door, and there is ample car parking around the corner.
Robert Brain
ATAA Melb Chapter President and interim Secretary
(for the Council team: Paul Ash, Jim Haralambidis, Keith Mundy, Tony Hambling, Tony Leonard, Robert Grigg). | Bigalow Network and
Forex Network (FN)
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Looking forward to hearing from you.
Romy Baker
0414 554 967 | Don't forget, we have a total of seven chapters around Australia, including: Brisbane, Perth and Newcastle as well as several Special Interest Groups (SIGs) in which members can participate. You can see a list of the seven chapters and their office-bearers on the website - use the menu option: ATAA Overview > Current Office-Bearers > Chapter Councillors > Subcommittees. See the ATAA website for latest meeting and event details.
- Adelaide Chapter generally meets in-person on the third Wednesday of the month.
- Perth Chapter generally meets on the third Thursday of the month.
- Brisbane Chapter generally meets... second Saturday of the month.
- MetaStock Users SIG - Contact Jerry Bongard, jerry.bongard@ataa.asn.au
- RealTest Coders Workshop (sub-group of the Quant SIG) - Meets online, generally on the second Monday of each month at 8:00 pm. EST (to give members in western states a better chance of attending). SIG Coordinators: Chris Meakin and Robert Grigg.
| About IFTA (International Federation of Technical Analysis) - It is the umbrella organisation for Technical Analyst societies around the world.
IFTA webinars: See the latest information about up-coming and past webinars on the IFTA website. | IFTA Update (Newsletter)
The March 2025 IFTA Update (newsletter) Issue is now available for download. In this issue:
- President's Report to Colleagues
- Member News
- IFTA 2025 Conference - Frankfurt, Germany
- Bronwen Wood 2024 Award
- Lifetime Achievement 2024 Award
- IFTA Call for Submissions
- Education Lounge: How High is the High
- Congratulations New CFTes!
- Calendar-at-a-Glance
- and more
The next submission deadline for the June 2025 issue is as follows:
All content: 15 May submissions by email to admin@ifta.org | IFTA and ATAA members - ATAA members are automatically affiliate members of the International Federation of Technical Analysts. ATAA membership gives you access to IFTA resources including: certification programs, educational events and networking opportunities, including participation in the IFTA Conferences. The information below is the latest update from IFTA.
IFTA Update (quarterly newsletter) - The IFTA Update is a quarterly newsletter that is available to members of the ATAA.
| Join the ATAA to improve your understanding of how to
invest or trade successfully in the financial markets
focusing on the correct use and application of Technical Analysis
| |
TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
and Trading Tips
| | | Trump Liberation Day - could we see this coming? | In late March and into April 2025 we saw Donald Trump apply more and more tariff "penalties" onto many countries who export into the US. And then his so-called Liberation Day on Wed 2 April (US time), which has triggered very heavy equity market selling, with market corrections and even bear markets now becoming apparent around the world on many stocks, securities (ETFs, etc.) and market indexes.
QUESTION: In our Technical Analysis toolbox, does anyone have any good tools that gave us a reasonable heads-up warning that this catastrophe was pending? And perhaps forecast the market lows before a turn-around?
We might have to rely on cycle analysis? or Gann? or Elliott Wave?
| We have posted a new Forum Discussion Thread on this topic in the ATAA Online Forum which all ATAA members have access to - once you log in to the website (the Forums menu item will then appear toward the right hand end of the website menu). Feel free to view the posts and pick up some useful tips, and join in the conversation.
Happy, and safe, investing / trading
Robert Brain | ATAA Member Perks and Benefits
| If you're not an ATAA member, and you are considering joining, you might be interested to know there are many good reasons to sign-up, including:
- Learn how to protect your hard-earned capital - using wise stock selection, and money and risk management ideas;
- Invaluable education opportunities (with discounts for members);
- Huge and extensive Resource Library (access for members);
- Networking opportunities - meet with like-minded peers for trading and investing discussions;
- Special Interest Groups (SIGs) (only for members) - there are several;
- News and information;
- Online Forums;
- Annual ATAA Conference (discounted for members).
| In Closing
As I said at the top, my apologies continue for any odd formatting that you might find herein - font size or line spacing, etc - but these seem to be oddities in our CE email editor which are very elusive.
I do hope you have found this edition of the Blast! Monthly News both interesting and useful. Feel free to send my any feedback - good or bad.
Robert B. Brain
Blast! Newsletter Editor
| |