Thank you all for the replys. I'm not a scalper or daytrader. I hold my positions for days, sometimes weeks. Are you saying that the ES is more volatile than the Tech stocks I've been trading? Any other advice will be greatly appreciated.
The beta of the ES and the SPY is 1.0 = exactly that of the index itself. By definition beta is referenced off the S&P in the first place. It's like saying what's the specific gravity of water - 1.0 - the reference point. Personally, I get greater thrills trading KLAC QLGC CCMP MXIM etc, all higher-beta stocks and with less fanfare. The advantage the futures have over stocks, other than taxes, is the ease of shorting. No downtick, no broker availability etc.
Thanks Tech, That was my belief when I decided to open a futures account. I figure that if I can survive trading Techs, I should be able to survive trading ES or SP. And if I can generate the same results as before, I will be ahead with the favorable tax treatment. I guess I'm a little nervous because of the non-stop trading, potential of limit up or down and just the overall negative spin the press and the street put on futures trading that has been implanted in my mind since I started investing over 20 years ago. Any other position trader or trend follower out there who can chime in with suggestions will be appreciated.
South - I'm using the same trading plan on es/nq as I do on the techs/bios/internet/etc, just with 2-minute bars instead of 5. Reason is I just don't want to wait 5 minutes for an entry or exit if the es starts moving fast. Other than that, trading the es/nq is not as bad as many will lead you to believe. I think many of the same people who say you can't trade them can't trade simple stocks either. If you have a sound trading plan you'll succeed.
southpaw, I think you are misunderstanding. globex is just the electronic version of the cme. All eminis trade on globex, day or night, same exchange. Now, the big S&Ps trade in the pit during the day and on globex at night. but emini only trades electronically on the CME globex exchange. from 3:45 pm to 3:15 pm, makes no difference if regular market is open or not.