How to short sell stocks in Australia?

[GFD]

Can't deny the popularity of CFDs in the Aussie market.

Am surprised only Macquarie and IB offer short sales of actual shares on the ASX. Does anyone use these services or similar?

Regarding CFDs my main concerns are:
1) Dealing with a market maker not the market itself, which presents additional liquidity risk
2) The prices quoted are not necessarily the same as the market, which presents an additional spread cost with no transparency
3) Data for the CFD transactions and their price movements are not published, so technical analysis cannot be applied directly

While I am still researching CFDs, my gut feel thus far suggests it is more like gambling where the house always wins...

This article just rings alarm bells for me:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/bus...g/news-story/11477764f1f5d74f49c9d89d604dfb5e

Have these issues been dealt with, or is the continued growth of CFDs popularity some wider acceptance of the additional risks in this low growth environment?

 

[skyQuake]

Can't deny the popularity of CFDs in the Aussie market.

Am surprised only Macquarie and IB offer short sales of actual shares on the ASX. Does anyone use these services or similar?

Regarding CFDs my main concerns are:
1) Dealing with a market maker not the market itself, which presents additional liquidity risk
2) The prices quoted are not necessarily the same as the market, which presents an additional spread cost with no transparency
3) Data for the CFD transactions and their price movements are not published, so technical analysis cannot be applied directly

While I am still researching CFDs, my gut feel thus far suggests it is more like gambling where the house always wins...

This article just rings alarm bells for me:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/bus...g/news-story/11477764f1f5d74f49c9d89d604dfb5e

Have these issues been dealt with, or is the continued growth of CFDs popularity some wider acceptance of the additional risks in this low growth environment?

OTC CFDs still have those problems. But everyone offers DMA cfds which is in line with the regular market. When you buy/sell you will see your order hit the real market.

Only real problem now is segregation of client accounts. I think a MF Global can still happen, though far less likely.
I do keep a price alert on IGG LN (parent company of IG Markets of which I am a client) so if that starts crashing then its time to liquidate and withdraw!

 

[skc]

Real short selling for retail punters is really not accessible in Australia. DMA CFDs are good enough alternatives.

Otherwise, join a prop shop or find a broker willing to let you trade a house account or something.