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Rating: 
Summary: A Waste Of Money
Review: ... Firstthe title of this book is VERY misleading. It is a book about investing in foreign stocks, not really trading 24 hours, 7 days a week. It would be much better titled, "Investing In Foreign Stocks"Secondly, the author recently appeared on CNBC. Even she admitted during the interview that the information in the book will be out of date in 6 months. Thirdly, the author infrequently uses slang to express a thought. She really should have had someone proofread the material more closely. I grew tired of really phrases such as "Keep an eye peeled" and "May you live in interesting times" (an overworked phrase used by Sue Herera in the Foreward). CNBC is heavily promoting this book. It is not worth its price. You better love reading about foreign stocks, crooked companies, etc. or you will be bored to death. After I finished reading it I realized there was no way at all I would risk on my money on foreign stocks. If you think buying US stocks is a gamble, you won't believe how much of a dice roll these foreign shares can be. Keep your money at home.
Rating: 
Summary: Fair warning
Review: A recent amazon.com reviewer states incorrectly that Barbara Rockefeller's 24/7 Trading fails to note that the increasingly wired world raises volatility and affects the correlations among global stocks because this is one of the main points in the book. To wit: "...the developed world is so wired together these days that a drop in the Dow and the Nasdaq is often followed by an equivalent drop in the Nikkei (225 (Japan), DAX (Germany), CAC (France), DTSE 100 (UK) and other major indices." (p.187) She continues, saying that the benefits of international diversification may be exaggerated because a bear market in the United States contaminates other markets, at least in developed countries. Note please some additional points on this topic. One is that the author advises that many portfolio diversification exercises use only classes of securities, rather than the securities themselves, which she describes as a sub-optimal practice because the same class of securities can contain a highly volatile security as well as a `placid' security. The second point is that the author could have gone a lot farther in criticizing financial planners who create "optimal" portfolios for customers that are nothing of the sort. She perhaps should have warned much more strongly about paying an advisor to create an optimal portfolio. You will not always get what you think you paid for. Finally, Rockefeller says clearly that no website today will give you the correlation of any two securities easily. You have to do it yourself, if you can get the data. Data on foreign stocks is hard to get, and, often, is not free; and, useful websites come and go, all of which the author acknowledges. Why should US investors care are about non-US stocks? Because the new US administration is western states-oriented, investors should be prepared for future US dollar weakness that will presumably favor western states' exporters of commodities - grain, oil, beef and timber. With US dollar weakness, non-US stock will presumably appreciate in price versus US stocks. This means that savvy investors should be taking far closer looks at non-US stocks in the next four years than they have been taking in the last four. For serious investors, 24/7 Trading could not have come at a better time. Reading it is fair warning for the future. Desmond MacRae New York City
Rating: 
Summary: Thrill-o-minute romp it isn't...
Review: Barbara's book is a much needed addition to the trader's library. As currency, bonds, and stock index futures are now traded around the clock, the need for more information on how to deal with this fast-paced environment is much needed. Barbara's real expertise is in the currency sector and the information in the currency chapter alone is well worth the price of the book. As a CTA and investment advisor, I find Barbara's information highly useful and would highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: A Useful Tool
Review: Barbara's book is a much needed addition to the trader's library. As currency, bonds, and stock index futures are now traded around the clock, the need for more information on how to deal with this fast-paced environment is much needed. Barbara's real expertise is in the currency sector and the information in the currency chapter alone is well worth the price of the book. As a CTA and investment advisor, I find Barbara's information highly useful and would highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: CNBC is the new authority
Review: Everywhere I look there is CNBC. Those guys really have their finger on the pulse. In this new book, they're giving you all the inside information and tools you need to be a global investor. There are markets discussed here that I didn't even know were options for me or existed. I was pleased to see the do-it-yourself risk assessment advice. This is the kind of analysis I never thought I could do myself--this book is the only one that tells you what you can and can't do yourself as an individual investor. A great gift, too.
Rating:
Summary: An EXCELLENT RESOURCE for do-it-yourself investors
Review: I found this book to be very informative, providing helpful hints on how to manage your portfolio and bringing together information which would otherwise take a lot of time to research. This book greatly reinforced my belief that you do not have to pay "professionals" to invest your money for you. Finally, unlike other books on investing which tend to be confusing if not boring, Ms. Rockefeller's writing style allows for an easy read.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent explanation with lots of research leads
Review: This book is an excellent addition to a collection of a small investor who wants to learn about the benefits of international investing. However, it is also a great reading for somebody who is just starting in the field of Finance. It explains basic concepts very carefully, so that a good base is established for further explanations. Yes, to a certain point it concentrates more on non-U.S. markets, but I believe this is only because U.S. market information is readily available to us every day. The book is very well written and deserves a full five-star rating.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent explanation with lots of research leads
Review: This book is an excellent addition to a collection of a small investor who wants to learn about the benefits of international investing. However, it is also a great reading for somebody who is just starting in the field of Finance. It explains basic concepts very carefully, so that a good base is established for further explanations. Yes, to a certain point it concentrates more on non-U.S. markets, but I believe this is only because U.S. market information is readily available to us every day. The book is very well written and deserves a full five-star rating.
Rating: 
Summary: Misleading
Review: Whereas this book definitely has its good points, the title is quite misleading. As a matter of fact its focus is quite limited mostly to foriegn markets and evaluating these investments combined with trends within the many international markets. On a general level this is discussed fairly well but the details are explained in a matter where it is assumed that you have taken a good number of economics classes. In addition, the different chapters seem to touch back to the same point that when investing overseas you have to look at not only the stock market but the state of affairs within the country both ethically and economically. You must be a good follower of the currency markets as well. This is not easy for most investors to understand on an in depth basis which is needed to trade overseas. What is also annoying besides the constant redundancy of this book, is the matter in which the author sites references and website addresses for more information. The author must have included at least fifty if not a hundred sites that support each single example. What would have helped the overall presentation of this book, if the author included a list of helpful web sites to locate key information at the end of the book rather than interspersed within his blah blah blah commentary. There is some useful information in this book and one who likes to explore new web sites might find more value here. However CNBC could have made this book reach a wider audience by organizing this book in a more easy to read manner. Therefore a 2 1/2 star rating fits the bill.
Rating:
Summary: Misleading
Review: Whereas this book definitely has its good points, the title is quite misleading. As a matter of fact its focus is quite limited mostly to foriegn markets and evaluating these investments combined with trends within the many international markets. On a general level this is discussed fairly well but the details are explained in a matter where it is assumed that you have taken a good number of economics classes. In addition, the different chapters seem to touch back to the same point that when investing overseas you have to look at not only the stock market but the state of affairs within the country both ethically and economically. You must be a good follower of the currency markets as well. This is not easy for most investors to understand on an in depth basis which is needed to trade overseas. What is also annoying besides the constant redundancy of this book, is the matter in which the author sites references and website addresses for more information. The author must have included at least fifty if not a hundred sites that support each single example. What would have helped the overall presentation of this book, if the author included a list of helpful web sites to locate key information at the end of the book rather than interspersed within his blah blah blah commentary. There is some useful information in this book and one who likes to explore new web sites might find more value here. However CNBC could have made this book reach a wider audience by organizing this book in a more easy to read manner. Therefore a 2 1/2 star rating fits the bill.
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