Anyone know a good way to learn Matlab, mainly the financial toolbox and focusing on asset allocation and monte Carlo goodness?:D
Do you need an in depth math background?
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I have 0 clue. Sorry bro
best way is to make yourself work through datasets. Like a job kind of thing. It takes discipline and stackoverflow
Well since you didn't mention the main reason you want to learn MATLAB, assuming its for recreational purposes theres many texts you can refer to specifically finance related. Start off with basic programs before trying to get into Monte Carlo Simulation and Portfolio Optimization Analysis etc.
And in regards to having an in-depth math background, I would say no but that also depends on your reason for use and what you're actually trying to do. MATLAB is just a calculator on steroids so its not too difficult too learn; you just need to understand what you're trying to get out of each script.
You can also consider Python; which is the easiest coding language to start with and you can perform the same things you would in MATLAB, just that in Python you may need to make some adjustments (importing modules) so it can be the same speed as MATLAB.
So you can get an idea on how you can use Python:
https://www.kevinsheppard.com/images/0/09/Python_introduction.pdf
http://pythonprogramming.net/monte-carlo-simulator-python/
Hope that helps.
Lol its mainly because I've seen it pop up often in job postings for asset allocation strategist type roles so that's where my true interest lies
Should use Crystal Ball and @Risk for monte carlo. Matlab is overkill.
Agree with above poster on Matlab being slight overkill. There's a couple free alternatives out there if you want to go that route http://dspguru.com/dsp/links/matlab-clones.
People are missing the point. While it is overkill, it's in job applications. Hence why it's being asked about.
I'd reach out to some universities and see how they teach it in their classes. Maybe talk with someone in the industry and hear how they use it also. You probably only need to know a fraction of metlabs capabilites.
I'd probably also play with crystal ball also. It's not complex for what you use it for in finance. Would be good to add to your resume as well.
MIT 6.189 has a winter-term accelerated MatLab learning materials on their OpenCourseware.
But in reality, it only helps you learn when you build a program - you miss something, you go to Google or StackOverflow. and a logical mindset thinking about scenarios, loops, if statement flows, etc
Hi it was my favorite programming tool because of the pre-defined librairies and toolbox you don't need to start writing all over again i have some old matlab scripts when i used to code i can send them to you but not finance stuff, mainly random signal analysis, speech analysis and machine learning stuff
Matlab (Originally Posted: 11/07/2010)
Hi All,
I'm trying to find good resources on how to learn to use matlab to create trading algorithms. I'd really appreciate any advice, especially on how to create neural networks in matlab.
Thanks guys!
The best resource are the help files within MATLAB. I taught myself everything I needed with them. Alternately, you can try browsing around matlab-algo-trading Dot com
I'm a MFE student and I find myself using this book quite a bit:
http://www.amazon.com/Numerical-Methods-Finance-Economics-MATLAB-Based/…
If you're still in school, check your school library. I ended up just buying my own copy since I found it so useful.
Thanks for the tips!
I am undergrad... I've got a great network but a low gpa, so I'm focusing on applied skills to get myself in.
At the same time, if I can't get a decent finance job, I'll start using my algo on a personal account and hopefully be able to capitalize myself for some real trading over some time... One can dream right? haha.
I didn't really read your first post carefully so that book probably isn't what you would be looking for. Do a search for it on Google Books and you can check out some of the content.
Second the help files within MATLAB
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