When free is your idea of value for money, chances are… you`re either `dead broke` and too proud to admit it… or you`re an exceptionally resourceful type who hates their day job and could well be suited to a career in online stock trading.

For starters, you DON`T have to be in the Fortune 500 list in order to become wealthy from online stock trading. In fact, apart from your starting capital - which can be as little as `a few hundred dollars` - it`s entirely possible to build a sizeable stock portfolio on shoe-string budget.

In today`s `Internet driven` world, you`re able to access vast quantities of data relating to every conceivable aspect of online stock trading… and a great deal of it`s FREE!

You`ll find discount commission brokerages, charting resources, technical trading tools, free market news sources and free analysis packages available. You can also register for free data feeds offering `up to the minute` pricing information about almost any given stock in the world - as long as it`s currently listed and currently trading.

You`ll note that I didn`t include trading forums or message boards amongst the range of resources available. Believe me...there`s a very good reason for this.

Over the past six to seven years, online stock trading fraudsters have infiltrated the forums and used them to post either false or misleading information about hundreds of stocks. This has led to unjustifiable price surges (often enabling the fraudsters to `sell out` and bag their ill-gotten gains before the prices falter and then plummet back to their previous levels). Not surprisingly, tens of thousands of shareholders have been financially burnt as a consequence.

In short... stay away from online stock trading forums and message boards. I liken them to a `toxic dumping ground for emotionally crippled small-time traders and shareholders who`ve little or no concept of what really determines price.`

Now, on a brighter note...it`s worth mentioning that major investment banks tend to house big stock research teams that cover stocks and their economic performances in great detail. In fact, investment banks are often your best choice when it comes to acquiring accurate and current online stock trading data.

If you`re interested, you`ve got nothing to lose by contacting (by email or phone) a representative from one of these investment banks and asking to be included in their mailing or newsletters lists. Not all such reports and newsletters are available for open online access.