Efficient Computation of Optimal Trading Strategies

Given the return series for a set of instruments, a \emph{trading strategy} is a switching function that transfers wealth from one instrument to another at specified times. We present efficient algorithms for constructing (ex-post) trading strategies that are optimal with respect to the total return, the Sterling ratio and the Sharpe ratio. Such ex-post optimal strategies are useful analysis tools. They can be used to analyze the "profitability of a market" in terms of optimal trading; to develop benchmarks against which real trading can be compared; and, within an inductive framework, the optimal trades can be used to to teach learning systems (predictors) which are then used to identify future trading opportunities.