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Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1. Global stocks drop

The chair of the Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen, reportedly said Wednesday that valuations in the stock market were "quite high." Yellen was speaking at a public question-and-answer session in Washington.

Investors responded by hitting the "sell button."

Nearly all European markets are pushing lower in early trading, with many markets sinking by more than 1%.

The FTSE 100 in London is also declining along with the crowd. The U.K. general election is being held Thursday and polling stations are now open. (For more on the election, see below.)

Asian markets ended with significant losses. All of the main indexes in China are off by 1% to 3%.

Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures are in the red, but the move is relatively small.

On Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 86 points, the S&P 500 dipped 0.5% and the Nasdaq slid 0.4%.

2. Stock market movers -- Keurig, Whole Foods, Tesla

Shares in Keurig Green Mountain (GMCR) were declining by about 12% in extended trading after the company reported that sales of its brewing machines and accessories tumbled 23% in the first quarter, compared to the year before.

Shares in Whole Foods (WFM) are also off by 12% premarket after the high-end grocery chain reported quarterly results that missed market expectations.

On the flip side, Tesla (TSLA) stock is edging higher after the firm reported a smaller-than-expected loss in the first quarter. CEO Elon Musk also said Wednesday he's seeing strong orders for the company's new home batteries.

3. Earnings and economics

A number of large companies are reporting earnings this morning. Alibaba (BABA, Tech30), SeaWorld Entertainment (SEAS), Kate Spade (KATE) and Molson Coors (TAP) are among the firms reporting ahead of the open.

CBS (CBS) and Crocs (CROX) will report after the close.

On the economic side, the U.S. government will report weekly jobless claims at 8:30 a.m. ET.

4. Pound getting pummeled?

Brits are casting their votes today in the most closely fought election for a very long time.

The pound is dropping versus all other major currencies. Market watchers say the currency could be hurt further if the result of the vote is inconclusive.

"For the markets, it is the very fact that the result is so uncertain that investors are yet to make their mind up as to how to position themselves," said Angus Campbell, a senior analyst at FxPro. "As ... the picture becomes clearer there's plenty of potential for volatility to pick up."

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One of the most important concepts in technical analysis is that of trend. The meaning in finance isn't all that different from the general definition of the term - a trend is really nothing more than the general direction in which a security or market is headed. Take a look at the chart below:

Figure 1

It isn't hard to see that the trend in Figure 1 is up. However, it's not always this easy to see a trend:

Figure 2

There are lots of ups and downs in this chart, but there isn't a clear indication of which direction this security is headed.

A More Formal Definition

​Unfortunately, trends are not always easy to see. In other words, defining a trend goes well beyond the obvious. In any given chart, you will probably notice that prices do not tend to move in a straight line in any direction, but rather in a series of highs and lows. In technical analysis, it is the movement of the highs and lows that constitutes a trend. For example, an uptrend is classified as a series of higher highs and higher lows, while a downtrend is one of lower lows and lower highs.

Types of Trend

​There are two types of trend:

• Uptrends
• Downtrends

Sideways/Horizontal Trends As the names imply, when each successive peak and trough is higher, it's referred to as an upward trend. If the peaks and troughs are getting lower, it's a downtrend. When there is little movement up or down in the peaks and troughs, it's a sideways or horizontal trend. If you want to get really technical, you might even say that a sideways trend is actually not a trend on its own, but a lack of a well-defined trend in either direction. In any case, the market can really only trend in these three ways: up, down or nowhere.

Trend Lengths

​Along with these three trend directions, there are three trend classifications. A trend of any direction can be classified as a long-term trend, intermediate trend or a short-term trend. In terms of the stock market, a major trend is generally categorized as one lasting longer than a year. An intermediate trend is considered to last between one and three months and a near-term trend is anything less than a month. A long-term trend is composed of several intermediate trends, which often move against the direction of the major trend. If the major trend is upward and there is a downward correction in price movement followed by a continuation of the uptrend, the correction is considered to be an intermediate trend. The short-term trends are components of both major and intermediate trends. Take a look a Figure 3 to get a sense of how these three trend lengths might look.

Figure 3

When analyzing trends, it is important that the chart is constructed to best reflect the type of trend being analyzed. To help identify long-term trends, weekly charts or daily charts spanning a five-year period are used by chartists to get a better idea of the long-term trend. Daily data charts are best used when analyzing both intermediate and short-term trends. It is also important to remember that the longer the trend, the more important it is; for example, a one-month trend is not as significant as a five-year trend.

Trendlines

A trendline is a simple charting technique that adds a line to a chart to represent the trend in the market or a stock. Drawing a trendline is as simple as drawing a straight line that follows a general trend. These lines are used to clearly show the trend and are also used in the identification of trend reversals. As you can see in Figure 4, an upward trendline is drawn at the lows of an upward trend. This line represents the support the stock has every time it moves from a high to a low. Notice how the price is propped up by this support. This type of trendline helps traders to anticipate the point at which a stock's price will begin moving upwards again. Similarly, a downward trendline is drawn at the highs of the downward trend. This line represents the resistance level that a stock faces every time the price moves from a low to a high.

Figure 4

Channels

A channel, or channel lines, is the addition of two parallel trendlines that act as strong areas of support and resistance. The upper trendline connects a series of highs, while the lower trendline connects a series of lows. A channel can slope upward, downward or sideways but, regardless of the direction, the interpretation remains the same. Traders will expect a given security to trade between the two levels of support and resistance until it breaks beyond one of the levels, in which case traders can expect a sharp move in the direction of the break. Along with clearly displaying the trend, channels are mainly used to illustrate important areas of support and resistance.

Figure 5

Figure 5 illustrates a descending channel on a stock chart; the upper trendline has been placed on the highs and the lower trendline is on the lows. The price has bounced off of these lines several times, and has remained range-bound for several months. As long as the price does not fall below the lower line or move beyond the upper resistance, the range-bound downtrend is expected to continue.

The Importance of Trend

​It is important to be able to understand and identify trends so that you can trade with rather than against them. Two important sayings in technical analysis are "the trend is your friend" and "don't buck the trend," illustrating how important trend analysis is for technical traders.

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Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1. Crude creeping up

Oil prices continue to push higher Wednesday. Crude futures are currently rising by about 2% to trade around $61.80 per barrel.

The price of a barrel topped $60 on Tuesday, hitting its highest level so far this year.

We could also see brisk trading later this morning when crude inventory data from the U.S. is released at 10:30 a.m ET.

2. Earnings

Anheuser-Busch InBev (AHBIF), SodaStream (SODA) and Wendy's (WEN) are reporting ahead of the open.

After the close, markets will hear from 21st Century Fox (FOX), Tesla (TSLA), Whole Foods (WFM), Transocean (RIG) and Keurig Green Mountain (GMCR).

Shares in BMW (BAMXY) are steady in Europe after the automaker reported its latest quarterly results.

Shares in British grocery chain J Sainsbury (JSAIY) are declining by about 1.5% after the firm reported worse-than-expected results and cut its dividend by 24%. The company, along with rival Tesco (TSCDY), has been suffering from a fierce price war and the cost of writing down its real estate portfolio.

3. Stock market overview

U.S. stock futures are all looking solid ahead of the open.

European markets are mostly rising in early trading. They seem unfazed by Greece's continuing negotiations with international creditors over its debts and economic reforms. The European Central Bank will discuss funding for Greek banks later Wednesday.

All major Asian markets ended with losses. Australia's key index dropped by just over 2%.

Looking back at Tuesday's trading action, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 142 points,the S&P 500 dropped 1.2% and the Nasdaq closed with a 1.6% loss.

4. Economics

The key report to watch this morning is the ADP employment report for April. It comes out at 8:15 a.m. ET.

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Charts vs. Financial Statements

At the most basic level, a technical analyst approaches a security from the charts, while a fundamental analyst starts with the financial statements.

By looking at the balance sheet, cash flow statement and income statement, a fundamental analyst tries to determine a company's value. In financial terms, an analyst attempts to measure a company's intrinsic value. In this approach, investment decisions are fairly easy to make - if the price of a stock trades below its intrinsic value, it's a good investment. Although this is an oversimplification (fundamental analysis goes beyond just the financial statements) for the purposes of this tutorial, this simple tenet holds true.

Technical traders, on the other hand, believe there is no reason to analyze a company's fundamentals because these are all accounted for in the stock's price. Technicians believe that all the information they need about a stock can be found in its charts.

Time Horizon

Fundamental analysis takes a relatively long-term approach to analyzing the market compared to technical analysis. While technical analysis can be used on a timeframe of weeks, days or even minutes, fundamental analysis often looks at data over a number of years.

Trading Versus Investing

Not only is technical analysis more short term in nature than fundamental analysis, but the goals of a purchase (or sale) of a stock are usually different for each approach. In general, technical analysis is used for a trade, whereas fundamental analysis is used to make an investment. Investors buy assets they believe can increase in value, while traders buy assets they believe they can sell to somebody else at a greater price. The line between a trade and an investment can be blurry, but it does characterize a difference between the two schools.

Can They Co-Exist?

Although technical analysis and fundamental analysis are seen by many as polar opposites - the oil and water of investing - many market participants have experienced great success by combining the two. For example, some fundamental analysts use technical analysis techniques to figure out the best time to enter into an undervalued security. Oftentimes, this situation occurs when the security is severely oversold. By timing entry into a security, the gains on the investment can be greatly improved. 

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Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1. Earnings

Earnings season continues with Disney (DIS), DirecTV (DTV) and Kellogg (K) due to report ahead of the open. Papa John's (PZZA) and Fossil (FOSL) release results after the close.

2. Economics

On the economic front, U.S. March trade figures are due out at 8.30 ET.

3. International markets

European markets are moving higher in early trading, supported by strong earnings reports. Germany's DAX is leading the pack with a gain of about one percent. London's FTSE added 0.8% as trading resumed after a holiday and investors look ahead to the U.K. general election on Thursday.

Shares in UBS (UBS) were on the rise, jumping 5% after the Swiss bank impressed with its first quarter earnings. Sportswear maker Adidas (ADDYY) put on nearly 3% in German trading after reporting a rise in first-quarter profit.

Asian markets mostly retreated and Japan's Nikkei index was closed for a holiday. Australian shares closed flat after the central bank cut rates to a record low of 2% in an effort to spur growth.

4. Monday market recap

It was a firm finish across major U.S. indexes. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 46 points, while the S&P 500 rose 0.3% and the Nasdaq climbed 0.2%.

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Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1. Potential market movers -- McDonald's and Apple

Shares in McDonald's (MCD) could be on the move Monday as the fast food giant prepares to unveil a turnaround plan.

Shares in Apple (AAPL, Tech30) look poised to inch higher at the open. This comes after influential activist investor Carl Icahn continued to act as a cheerleader for the company during a weekend television interview on "Wall Street Week". Icahn praised the company and said the firm's shares looked undervalued compared to the rest of the market.

2. Earnings

Comcast (CCV) is reporting first-quarter earnings ahead of the open. This comes after the collapse of its $45 billion takeover bid for Time Warner Cable (TWC).

MGM Resorts (MGM) is also reporting earnings before the bell, along with Tyson Foods (TSN).

Denny's (DENN) will report after the close.

3. Stock market overview

U.S. stock futures are looking solid ahead of the open.

European markets are mostly moving higher in early trading. However, the FTSE 100 in London is closed for a long weekend holiday.

Meanwhile, most Asian markets ended with gains.

Looking back at Friday, U.S. stocks made some healthy gains. The Dow Jones industrial average rose by 184 points, the S&P 500 shot up by 1.1% and the Nasdaq closed with a 1.3% gain.

4. Economics

The U.S. government will report monthly factory orders at 10 a.m. ET.

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