Anyone move to Australia from the US?

Discussion in 'Hook Up' started by nravo, Oct 20, 2006.

  1. nravo

    nravo

    This is a possibility for me. Just wondering what the job/trading possibilities and community were like in Sydney. Would be going as a corporate spouse. Wondering if there was a Wall Street there. Chances for a U.S. to get work papers, even in financial journalism or publishing, if not trading. And of course, is it a cool town. In South Florida, now, which means the weather will be about the same. But what about the intangibles?
     
  2. I'm in Australia as we speak. I've been to Sydney (Why one would want to go to THAT crime ridden town is beyond me!) but Melbourne is the Financial capital of Australia.
    Of course there is a "Wall St" type of strip in Sydney! There is one in Melbourne as well which is bigger and better.
    The Australian Stock Exchange has been in existance for well over a hundred years and is one of the biggest regional exchanges.
    One word of advice, be careful of the expat Americans in this country. They are usually 'shonks' and 'snake oil salesmen'. They take advantage of the relatively lazy corporate regulator. Job opportunities here are plentiful. This doesn't stop an underclass of people who just will not work developing, however.
    All in all its a good country. Currently our Prime Minister is bending over backwards trying to be a puppet of the Neo-cons you have there in Washington. He seems to get re-elected by taking advantage of the relatively ill-informed populace.
    Generally it's pretty good here.

    Come on down!
     
  3. The last poster suggesting speed use is a fruitcake IMHO! There is much to be said for sobriety and you will be a better trader.
    It is untrue that if you want to trade US equities stay home.
    90% of my trades are US Equities!
    There are lots of broker/dealers who offer 'International Equities' here.
    (Try living in Sydney if you want but don't say you weren't warned!)
    SFE is THE futures exchange here. Not true about the Kospi.
    Stay OFF the speed here and you will be ok.
     
  4. What the f?

    Not Ice; speed. The answer is its great (throughout metropolitan Australia but probably best from Sydney because most of the cable hubs seem to depart from Sydney so everyone else pays 20-30ms rt to link to sydney).

    Best trading futures markets for those who wish to work normal hours are:

    SGXNK, JP NK, HSI, KOSPI, STW and SPI

    Spoilt for choice and the European markets offer good evening opportunities. The US equities are fine as long as you want to be awake while everyone else is sleeping. The asian timeframes fit best and unless you have a strategy which requires sub 200ms round trip delays then Aus is a nice place to trade from (I'm on the Gold Coast).
     
  5. nravo

    nravo

    Thanks much for the reponses; if anything else coms to mind trading or lifestyle, free free to post. I'll let you know if we make the move. Btw, I have been trading US futures and options, except for a recent disastrous foray in the NZ dollar, so I guess I'll have to learn Asia.
     
  6. Yep, Kiwi's (New Zealanders) are rather fond of amphetamine abuse. They have a reputation for it indeed! This is why you should stay away from Sydney where they essentially congregate. Now you should stay away from the Gold Coast as well, apparently!
    The Gold Coast has had a seriously tarnished reputation in the past for businessmen in white shoes who steal money from public companies (Christopher Skase et al)
    Come to Melbourne it's the Boston of Australia. Anywhere else up the East Coast and you will probably run into a drug addled "Kiwi" who plays the Kospi futures...or who knows?...
     
  7. nravo

    nravo

    Will take all of this underadvisement, but Sydney it will be, if it happens -- out of my hands, the locale, I am afraid.
     
  8. Most high end deriviative jobs are in sydney. MOst stock jobs are in melbourne.

    Kospi is shit IMO, nikkei has more of everything compared to the little whinger that is the kospi.

    Most large broking firms all have offices in syd/melb MAN, Brokerone etc and will give you superquick access to asia pacific markets. Trading US securities is best left automated as time zone differences will mean that ull be up in the middle of the night or early morning.

    Aus also has a very well developed CFD market allowing you ot trade everything from commodities to indexes using CFDs. IG markets is teh premier provider although new vendors are opening all the time GREENCFD etc. Most will require only a small minimum deposit to start off with and will operate synthetic markets. Bid/ask spread is poor on indexes and commodities but teh lack of a commision charge makes up for it somewhat.

    Moving to higher end derivatives:
    Local SPI has been the most faithful bitch of a market ive ever come across. Been trading it for 6yrs now and my strategy has worked year in year out, month in month out, week in week out. Out of all the markets ive ever traded SPI has yielded teh best profits by far esp in the past few years as volatility has increased. :p hey i gotta plug my local market right? lol but seriously SPI's a nice market to trade.

    There are also some fairly liquid markets in Commonwealth Bonds (3 and 10yr) and Interest rate securities. However if your trading bonds the Japanese bonds will probably be teh most deep and liquid markets in this region. Time zones are not too far apart. Wool and Electricity markets are also available but liquidity is extremely poor so they are best steered clear of.

    Australian Equities are not that great for trading. Large stocks with good liquidity include most of the large banks and mining companies (BHP, RIO, CBA, NAB etc). If your looking to profit from speculative trading on stocks, your better off with using CFDs. Australian equities are however an excellent investment with P/E ratios in overall at low levels, and the dividend imputation system means that stocks can provide you with tax effective income.

    Hope this provides you with a good overview of the trading opportunities in australia
     
  9. nravo

    nravo

    Thanks for the overview. Sydney is where I would be based. Mainly, here in the states, I have been trading SP, ES futures and options and some equity options mainly selling/credit strategies. I guess I'll have to bone up on Japan stocks and the Nikkei (or maybe Forex?) I wonder if there are any restrictions on options trading for US citizens in those markets, as I believe there are in Hong Kong. Also, anyone know the likelihood of getting a trading job, as opposed to creating my own, in Sydney, again keeping in mind the US citizenship. It's not known whether or not I can get a work visa on my own.
     
  10. #10     Oct 24, 2006