TOKYO, PLANTATION, Fla. and HONG KONG, Dec. 22, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TradeStation Securities, Inc. ("TradeStation"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Monex Group, Inc. (TSE:8698), which also includes Monex, Inc. ("Monex") and Monex Boom Securities (H.K.) Ltd. ("BOOM"), announced today results of its "Monex Global Retail Investor Survey, Vol. 3." TradeStation clients reveal in the survey that they do not believe the resignation of leaders in Italy and Greece – along with proposed measures by Euro zone officials – will halt the European debt crisis. In fact, 63 percent of U.S. respondents say that turmoil over Europe's sovereign debt will continue for at least another year. TradeStation's most experienced traders, those who have been trading for over 10 years, take an even dimmer view, with 68 percent saying that resolution is at least a year away.
Monex has been conducting its monthly retail investor survey with its Japanese clients since October 2009. The "Monex Global Retail Investor Survey" covering retail clients from Japan, Hong Kong and the U.S. started in June 2011 and is conducted on a quarterly basis.
Despite pessimistic expectations for resolution of the European debt crisis, TradeStation customers are showing optimism about certain industry sectors. A majority of customers expect energy, technology, utilities and basic materials to be attractive over the next three months. Their expectations are lowest for real estate, autos, conglomerates and financial services. U.S. stocks, say a majority of TradeStation's customers, will outperform stocks in Europe/U.K., Asia (excluding Japan) and Japan. Nearly half of all US respondents said the U.S. dollar would outperform the Euro and Japanese yen over the next three months.
"Our clients have a wide range of opinions about global and regional equity markets, individual sector performance and the relative performance of currencies," said Salomon Sredni, President and CEO, TradeStation Group, Inc. and COO of Monex Group, Inc. "At TradeStation, we provide our clients with powerful award-winning analysis and trading tools to make the most of their opinions in all of these markets."
The report uses the Diffusion Index (*DI) to assess investor sentiment.
(*DI = percentage of positive responses – percentage of negative responses)
Other findings from the survey are summarized below. Please refer to the full report for complete results.
Japanese investor expectations of Japanese, U.S. and Hong Kong stocks have improved over the last month. Their expectations for China, while improved, are still negative.
- Expectations for Japanese stocks improved by 24 points from a DI of 0 points to 24 points.
- Expectations for U.S. stocks improved by 30 points from -2 points to 28 points.
- Chinese stock expectations improved, but from -29 points to -20 points, a gain of 9 points.
When asked about their expectations for global equity markets over the next three months, investors in all three markets showed improved but still negative outlooks.
Investors in all three markets exhibited a "home market" bias with respect to their opinions about both equity and currency markets.
- When asked which equity market would perform best over the next three months, 70 percent of U.S. investors said the U.S., while only 30 percent of Japanese investors and 26 percent of Hong Kong investors answered the U.S.
- In each market, investors in that market had higher expectations for their home equity market than investors in other markets surveyed.
- Results were similar for currencies. Forty-nine percent of U.S. investors said the dollar would strengthen the most over the next three months compared to only 17 percent of Japanese investors and 28 percent of Hong Kong investors favoring the dollar.
- As with their equity markets, each market's investors expected their home currency to perform better than respondents in other markets.
More than half of the investors assume it will take more than a year for the European debt crisis to be resolved.
- When asked how long it would take to resolve the European debt crisis, more than 60 percent of investors in the U.S. (63 percent) and Hong Kong (62 percent) answered more than one year.
- Japanese investors were only slightly more optimistic, with 52 percent saying more than one year.
When asked about their perception of the effectiveness of actions taken to date to resolve the European debt crisis, responses were similar, and again Japanese investors were slightly more optimistic.
- Sixty-four percent of U.S. investors and 51 percent of Hong Kong investors said that actions taken to date have had no effect.
- Japanese investors were again slightly more upbeat, with 42 percent saying actions have had no effect and 33 percent saying actions had been effective.
The Monex Global Retail Investor Survey measures customer sentiment based upon answers to specific questions received from a random sampling of customers of Monex, Inc., TradeStation Securities, Inc., TradeStation Forex, Inc., and Monex Boom Securities (H.K.) Ltd. Details of the methodology used to conduct the survey are available upon request. Accuracy and completeness of the data derived from the survey is not guaranteed.
The information contained herein should not be construed as investment research or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities, securities derivatives, futures or off-exchange foreign currency products or services. Investor sentiment derived from the survey responses is no guarantee of future performance or success.
Active trading regardless of asset class (equities, futures, foreign exchange) carries a high level of risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Relevant risk disclosures are available at www.tradestation.com
About Monex Group, Inc. and Monex, Inc.
Monex Group, Inc. (Tokyo Stock Exchange 1st section: 8698; Chairman and CEO: Oki Matsumoto) provides online investment and trading services for retail and institutional customers around the world through its subsidiaries including Monex in Japan, TradeStation in the US & Europe, Monex Boom in Hong Kong and IBFX for Forex business. Monex Group is pursuing its "Global Vision" strategy to establish a truly global online financial institution that creates positive synergies for all stakeholders.
Its main subsidiary, Monex Inc., one of the largest online securities brokerages in Japan, provides advanced and unique financial services to its nearly 1 million individual investors. Monex Group's services also cover M&A advisory, debt & equity underwriting, asset management focusing on alternative investments, investment education, and other investment banking functions in Japan.
About TradeStation Group, Inc.
TradeStation Group, Inc. through its principal operating subsidiaries, TradeStation Securities, Inc. and TradeStation Forex, Inc. offers the TradeStation analysis and trading platform to the active trader and certain institutional trader markets. The TradeStation platform offers state-of-the-art electronic order execution and enables clients to design, test, optimize, monitor and automate their own custom Equities, Options, Futures and Forex trading strategies.
TradeStation Securities, Inc. (Member NYSE, FINRA, SIPC, NSCC, DTC, OCC & NFA) is a licensed securities broker-dealer and a registered futures commission merchant, and also a member of the Boston Options Exchange, Chicago Board Options Exchange, Chicago Stock Exchange, International Securities Exchange and NASDAQ OMX. Its TradeStation Prime Services division, based in New York, seeks to provide prime brokerage services, including securities lending, to small and mid-sized hedge funds and other firms. TradeStation Forex, Inc. (Member NFA) is a Retail Foreign Exchange Dealer (RFED) that exclusively provides the company's forex brokerage offering. The company's technology subsidiary, TradeStation Technologies, Inc., develops and offers strategy trading software tools and subscription services. Its London-based subsidiary, TradeStation Europe Limited, an FSA-authorized brokerage firm, introduces UK and other European accounts to TradeStation Securities, Inc. and TradeStation Forex, Inc. In November 2011 TradeStation Group acquired IBFX Holdings LLC, an innovative provider of forex trading services worldwide.
About Monex Boom Securities (H.K.) Limited
Monex Boom Securities (H.K.) Limited ("BOOM") offers multi-market and multi-currency online securities trading services to investors all around the world. With BOOM's proprietary web-based trading platform, investors can trade equities in all major exchanges and manage different major currencies via one single account. Currently, it offers access to securities listed on over 17 stock markets in 12 countries. In addition, BOOM also develops trading solutions for other financial institutions. Being the first company to launch Internet stock trading in Asia/Pacific, BOOM introduced a new pattern of self-directed cross-border investment by applying new technology to traditional equities trading and financial services. BOOM aims to provide retail investors with PRIVATE, EASE, SPEEDINESS and INEXPENSIVE international stock trading services.
BOOM is a fully licensed Broker / Dealer regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong, founded in 1997 and headquartered in Hong Kong.