A book on Stock Market for online investors No Way To Lose Money In The Stock Market by Monzur Sadek Khosnobish shows a ray of hope to those who suffered great losses out of ignorance about the stock market. When many families are still trying to forget the trauma they underwent by investing in the stock market during the 1996 market crash, Khosnobish has come up with an idea on how to penetrate successfully into an area of such a speculative trade.

Trading in the stock market went online in Bangladesh nearly a decade before. Khosnobish, who also has bitter experience of dealing with stock market and its pros and cons, has tried to highlight online trading. Sour experiences prompted him to write the book, which is, in fact, a technical guidebook for online individual investors. It will help them to develop an insight into the fundamentals of the stock market.

The author does not have any specialisation with higher degree. But he took brave initiative in writing this book taking it as a challenge. Every Bangladeshi reader -- either at home or aboard -- may feel greeting Manzur Sadek for his contribution because his work would introduce not only him but also the country (Bangladesh) to the global online investors. It is a happy information to us that this book is going to American individual investors and also worldwide.

Under the accord of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) there has been a stiff competition arising out of market-oriented economy. Such an economic order has brought the world together to compete on an evenly spread out turf. Successful investment is now, therefore, a common global concern.

Beximco Pharmaceuticals of Bangladesh has made recently its debut in the London Stock Exchange. It has been reported in the press that the new listing has already cut a good figure there. Monzur Sadek has the global vision and he has rightly focused on the points to ponder before making any investment in the stock market either at home or abroad.

What happened in Bangladesh Stock Market in 1996 was really painful. When the market was artificially manipulated and share prices skyrocketed, people having no knowledge in the area just flocked to the stock exchanges. They became desperate and nobody could bar them from making wholesale investment. Share prices of those companies, which even did not go into production, also leaped to incredible proportions. People having no idea whatsoever in stocks put their hard-earned money into such scrips believing the widespread rumours that their prices would increase even further. The result of such half-baked investment decisions was catastrophic. People in their thousands saw their money go down the drains never to be recovered again. Those who were a bit farsighted, could left the bandwagon of the rumour-mongers with windfall profits. But thousands of small investors still lament the loss in the turbulent market.

Such downturn in stock markets, however, is not exclusive to Bangladesh. What Nick Leeson of the Barings Bank did and what happened to BCCI Bank are still vivid in the minds of people. Even at the Dow Jones, the situation turned from bad to worse and the US government had to intervene into the market to make it stable in the last decade. Monzur has tried to shed light on the global aspects of share market and give the prospective investors some tips so that they do not lose their hard-earned money. Whether laymen or experts, it is now a common idea to all that capital market is a high-risk area where speculation reigns supreme.

Someone may call it a gambling. Still there are some fundamentals and points to ponder. Return from investment in stock market is not an isolated issue. There are many non-economic factors that also determine the prospects and problems. There was a crash in Japanese share market after a devastating earthquake razed Kobe city to the earth. Other than these hazards, there are some basics and mathematics that need to be taken into account ahead of making investments.

Monzur Sadek has tried to address these factors through computer graphics and describing 10 steps for the prospective investors. They step one starts with how to find company symbol sector-wise. And the step-10 ends with discussion on finally arriving at a dream come true situation.

In the introduction of the book, the writer says market always goes in two ways -- north and south. When it heads northwards, moneymaking becomes kid's stuff. But one needs to know how to make money when market goes southwards. How can one find that?

In his writing, Monzur Sadek has been concerned with the southward movement. He says one has to watch market for at least a few weeks and only then one can get some basic idea. Stock markets have lots of characters. For example, markets open up for hundred days but suddenly goes down in half an hour. So, people interested in financial affairs and those willing to invest in stocks will find the book an interesting reading.

It is sure that the book will help the investors to a certain extent to go into the market well informed and well guided.

B H Miah is a journalist.