Traditionally, Central Bankers control the fate of an economy by manipulating the money supply. When they lower short term interest rate targets, markets rise as liquidity floods the system, and when they raise short term interest rate targets, markets fall as liquidity tightens. Thus goes the typical monetary policy and economic cycle.

In 2008, the Fed lowered interest rates to near 0% in a desperate attempt to stave off another Great Depression and total economic collapse. When a Central Bank lowers rates that low, it essentially backs itself into a corner. If the economy does not respond to near 0% rates, what else can it do to stimulate economic growth and create demand? Enter Quantitative Easing.

One of the things that you want to watch as a trader or investor is the money supply. If you are a commodities trader or a money market trader, this will be especially important. It is a great indicator of inflation if you know how to read it correctly. It’s one of those macroeconomic things that most traders and investors don’t care to look too closely at. They just figure the financial press will make a big deal out of it if it’s enough to move the markets. If you think this way, you really shouldn’t. It’s an important concept to know in any kind of investment strategy you are developing.

If you are looking for the best investments for 2011, you should look at the stock market. It’s always been the place to get the best return on investments for most investors over time. Now you can get in while it’s still cheap.

There are a lot of bargains out there still. Many experts are recommending investments that track broad market indices. That is because they believe that with the overall economy, the stock market as a whole will rise in value.

Examples of these types of investments would be the SPDR S&P 500, which is an ETF that tracks the S&P 500 composite index. This way, you are essentially investing in the market’s 500 most influential companies.

You can also invest in the Vanguard Total Stock Market Fund, which you can also find in the form of an ETF. This index fund would include small and mid cap stocks, making it a little more broad than the SPDR S&P 500 ETF.

You’ll also want to look at large cap stocks that have a lot of their revenues coming from emerging markets. The reason is simple. These economies will grow faster than the developed world, creating tons of revenue generating opportunities for large multinational corporations that have the resources to leverage them.

There is a growing business environment and a growing middle class. Both are great for any company that can step in a provide the new goods and services these new developing economies need.

Companies that do a lot of business in emerging economies are already seeing better than expected earnings for the first quarter of 2011. Stocks like IBM, Intel and 3M, all of which attribute these developing economies as a big portion of their earnings growth, have beat market expectations so far this year.

The best stock tips are those that most people don’t know about. That is why it is risky to get stock market tips from other people. This is especially true if you get them from major news outlets, stock analysts, and top finance newsletters. Again, the good stocks to invest in will go under the radar of most investors. That being said, here are some things to consider when you hear or read about hot stock tips.

Day trading for a living is a very attractive lifestyle. You get to work from home, run your own business and run your own life. In most cases, it looks like sitting in a home office for only 6-7 hours a day, with multiple computer screens up, working away on your day trading software.

Day trading has always been a bit of a mystery. That is because most successful day traders work behind the curtain from a black box of stock market day trading strategies and systems. Here is a quick glimpse into the life of a day trader.