Sunday, August 30, 2009
Forex Trading Techniques
Position Trading is trading based on your overall exposure to a currency pair. Your position is your average price for a currency pair. For Example, you might make a short trade on EUR/USD at 1.40. If the pair is ultimately trending lower, but happens to retrace up, and you take another short at say 1.42, your average position would be 1.41. Once the EUR/USD drops back below 1.41, you will be back in overall profit.
Scalping is making a very short term trade for a few pips usually using high leverage. Scalping typically is best done in conjunction with a news release and supportive technical conditions. The trade can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few hours. Many beginning forex traders start with scalping, but it doesn’t take long to figure out how much you can lose if you don’t have any idea what you are doing. In general, scalping is a risky strategy that does not pay well in comparison it's risk. If you are going to make scalping trades, it is best to do them in conjunction with your overall trading position, not as a primary method of trading.
Advanced forex trading is about seeing all your options when you make a trade. Aside from using masterful risk management and extreme caution, advanced trading can be an alternate way to make profits and control losses. Advanced trading techniques are just about using the markets behavior to your advantage. Learning to use advanced techniques properly is what will give you the edge that will make you stand apart from the average trader.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Requirements by Stock Exchange
Bombay Stock Exchange: Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has requirements for a minimum market capitalization of Rs.250 Million and minimum public float equivalent to Rs.100 Million.London Stock Exchange: The main market of the London Stock Exchange has requirements for a minimum market capitalization (£700,000), three years of audited financial statements, minimum public float (25 per cent) and sufficient working capital for at least 12 months from the date of listing.
NASDAQ Stock Exchange: To be listed on the NASDAQ a company must have issued at least 1.25 million shares of stock worth at least $70 million and must have earned more than $11 million over the last three years.
New York Stock Exchange: To be listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) a company must have issued at least a million shares of stock worth $100 million and must have earned more than $10 million over the last three years.
Brokers of Forex
PayPal Forex Brokers — a list of Forex brokers accepting PayPal on-line payment system as a way to deposit/withdraw money to/from customers' accounts.
WebMoney Forex Brokers — a list of Forex brokers that accept WebMoney e-currency system as the fast deposit/witdhrawal method, offering high security combined with the fast transfers.
Oil Trading Forex Brokers — those Forex brokers that allow trading commodities, and more specifically, oil, are listed in this category.
Gold Trading Forex Brokers — if you wish to find a Forex broker that offers precious metals trading then this list will help you.
Muslim Friendly Forex Brokers — a list of Forex brokers that try to be friendly to Muslim Forex traders offering "no-interest" margin accounts.
Forex Brokers with Web Based Platform — a list of Forex brokers that fully support Forex trading without installing any trading software.
Moneybookers Forex Brokers — a list of Forex brokers that accept Moneybookers electronic payment system as for trading funds transfers.
Forex Brokers with CFD Trading — a list of Forex broker companies that allow their traders to trade not only Forex, but also CFDs (Contracts for Difference).
Forex Brokers with Advanced Trading Platform — a list of Forex brokers with unique and powerful Forex trading software.
Institutional Forex Brokers — a list of on-line Forex brokers that are backed by strong and respected off-line financial companies.
ECN Forex Brokers — a list of on-line Forex brokers that act as ECNs (Electronic Communication Network) offering Forex traders highly competitive spreads.
Liberty Reserve Forex Brokers — a list of Forex brokers that accept Liberty Reserve payment system as the method of depositing/withdrawing funds to/from the trading accounts.
FUNDAMENTALS OF FOREX
Forex Fundamental Analysis
Forex Technical Analysis
Money Management
Forex Trading Psychology
Forex Brokerage
Understanding and mastering these sides of trading are crucial to organize your Forex trading experience.
Forex Fundamental Analysis
Fundamental analysis is the process of market analysis which is done regarding only "real" events and macroeconomic data which is related to the traded currencies. Fundamental analysis is used not only in Forex but can be a part of any financial planning or forecasting. Concepts that are part of Forex fundamental analysis: overnight interest rates, central banks meetings and decisions, any macroeconomic news, global industrial, economical, political and weather news. Fundamental analysis is the most natural way of making Forex market forecasts. In theory, it alone should work perfectly, but in practice it is often used in pair with technical analysis. Recommended e-books on Forex fundamental analysis:
Reminiscences of a Stock Operator
What Moves the Currency Market?
Forex Technical Analysis
Technical analysis is the process of market analysis that relies only on market data numbers - quotes, charts, simple and complex indicators, volume of supply and demand, past market data, etc. The main idea behind Forex technical analysis is the postulate of functional dependence of the future market technical data on the past market technical data. As well as with fundamental analysis, technical analysis is believed to be self-sufficient and you can use only it to successfully trade Forex. In practice, both analysis methods are used. Recommended e-books on Forex fundamental analysis are:
The Law Of Charts
Candlesticks For Support And Resistance
Trend Determination
Money Management in Forex
Even if you master every possible method of market analysis and will make very accurate predictions for future Forex market behavior, you won't make any money without a proper money management strategy. Money management in Forex (as well as in other financial markets) is a complex set of rules which you develop to fit your own trading style and amount of money you have for trading. Money management play very important role in getting profits out of Forex; do not underestimate it. To get more information on money management you can read these books:
Risk Control and Money Management
Money Management (A chapter from The Mathematics of Gambling)
Forex Trading Psychology
While learning a lot about market analysis and money management is an obvious and necessary step to be a successful Forex traders, you also need to master your emotions to keep your trading performance under strict control of mind and intuition. Controlling your emotions in Forex trading is often a balancing between greed and cautiousness. Almost any known psychology practices and techniques can work for Forex traders to help them keep to their trading strategies rather to their spontaneous emotions. Problems you'll have to deal while being a professional Forex trader:
Your greed
Overtrading
Lack of discipline
Lack of confidence
Blind following others' forecasts
These are very professional books on psychology written specially for financial traders:
Calming The Mind So That Body Can Perform
The Miracle of Discipline
Forex Brokerage
Every Forex trader like any other professional needs tools to trade. One of these tools, which is vital to be in market, is a Forex broker and specifically for Internet - on-line Forex broker - a company which will provide real-time market information to trader and bring his orders to Forex market. While choosing a right Forex broker things to look for are the following:
Being a professional company you can trust
Provide you with real-time quotes
Execute your orders fast and accurately
Don't take a lot of commissions
Support the withdraw/deposit methods that you can use
For beginning Forex traders I recommend these four brokerage companies that are probably the best Forex brokers to start with:
FXOpen — one of the most popular and progressive brokers with MetaTrader platform and comfortable trading conditions for all kind of traders.
InstaForex — a reputable MetaTrader 4 brokers, allows Islamic Forex trading accounts, while you can deposit and withdraw money via WebMoney.
FXcast — good because you can start trading Forex with as little as 10$, use MetaTrader 4 platform and the dozoen of various deposit and withdraw methods, including WebMoney, e-Bullion and wire transfer.
LiteForex — broker that supports MetaTrader 4 Forex trading platform and doesn't require a lot of money to start with.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
What is Stock Exchange?
A stock exchange, (formerly a securities exchange) is a corporation or mutual organization which provides "trading" facilities for stock brokers and traders, to trade stocks and other securities. Stock exchanges also provide facilities for the issue and redemption of securities as well as other financial instruments and capital events including the payment of income and dividends. The securities traded on a stock exchange include: shares issued by companies, unit trusts, derivatives, pooled investment products and bonds. To be able to trade a security on a certain stock exchange, it has to be listed there. Usually there is a central location at least for recordkeeping, but trade is less and less linked to such a physical place, as modern markets are electronic networks, which gives them advantages of speed and cost of transactions. Trade on an exchange is by members only. The initial offering of stocks and bonds to investors is by definition done in the primary market and subsequent trading is done in the secondary market. A stock exchange is often the most important component of a stock market. Supply and demand in stock markets is driven by various factors which, as in all free markets, affect the price of stocks (see stock valuation).
There is usually no compulsion to issue stock via the stock exchange itself, nor must stock be subsequently traded on the exchange. Such trading is said to be off exchange or over-the-counter. This is the usual way that derivatives and bonds are traded. Increasingly, stock exchanges are part of a global market for securities.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Basics of Forex Trading
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Forex members based upon the credit arrangements and conditions agreed upon before the transaction - yep, that's it! This probably sounds very scary for most investors but this arrangement actually works exceedingly well - but how? Self-regulation works in currency trading because FX traders all compete and cooperate with one another regularly - basically, improper business practices are discouraged because it is in everyone's best interest to play fair. However, the market does appear to be moving in the direction of a grand governing body because a growing number of FX dealers in the United States are opting to join the NFA (National Futures Association). When they join the NFA, dealers agree to abide by any necessary arbitration arising from disputed trades. So if an investor is new to FX, then it is a good idea to seek out only dealers that have opted to become members of the NFA. However, without true oversight, some really interesting transactions occur in the FX market. For one thing, position size is unlimited (unlike futures) so it is possible to buy as much currency as one can given the amount of capital available. There also is no up-tick rule in place to prevent momentum from continuing downward when currencies really begin to lose value (as the result of a national emergency, for instance). And perhaps most surprising of all - insider trading is not a crime in the world of FX! Well, one thing that all investors familiar with the world of securities would be happy to hear is the fact that there are no commissions in FX trading! This is possible because there are no brokers - only FX dealers. So how do the traders make their money? The dealer pockets the difference between the bid/ask spread. There is a difference between the highest price that an investor is willing to pay when buying and the lowest price another investor is willing to sell for - that difference is the bid/ask spread. However, the fluid nature of the FX market tends to keep the bid/ask spread exceptionally low because of the sheer volume of the market itself. In fact, the average bid/ask spread for the entire FX market is less than 1%. For the individual investor, the absence of commissions is usually incentive enough to enter the FX market. One of the biggest and most fundamental ideas for FX traders to understand is that nothing actually is being exchanged in any given trade. The entire currencies market is nothing more than pure speculation on price movement. No
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actual trading of currencies takes place and the speculators never have possession of them. The dealers record profits and losses in their database and monies are distributed at the conclusion of the transaction or rolled over into new ones. So, the average investor may be wondering why exactly it is necessary to exchange two trillion dollars every day. Although multi-national corporations may have a legitimate need for buying materials and paying salaries in foreign markets, the vast majority of currency trades are purely investment opportunities for various investors - it is estimated that 75% or more fits into this category. Many newcomers to the FX world find themselves wondering just how such currency transactions occur. It is important to remember that all currency trades involve two currencies - or the currency pair. Taking the USD/CAN currency pair as an example, the USD would be the base currency and the CAN the counter or "terms" currency. The base currency is used to set up the account, so for a USD/CAN currency exchange, the account would be set up using USD. In this transaction, a trader would be buying Canadian dollars with US dollars. As the exchange rate favors the USD, the investor would wind up with more Canadian currency than they had initially in U.S. currency. But how does an investor make any money? If recent economic indicators pointed to a stronger U.S. economy but a weaker Canadian economy as a result of the same information, investors would likely believe that the USD will increase in value relative to the CAN. In other words, investors would be able to buy even more CAN dollars with the same initial investment of USD. Assume that an investor had $10,000 USD and wanted to buy Canadian dollars and the exchange rate at the beginning of the week was 1.2000CAN (1 USD will buy 1.2000 CAN at this rate). Therefore, with the exchange rate of 1.2000, an investor could buy 12,000 Canadian dollars with 10,000 U.S. dollars. Now in order for the exchange rate to change (and the potential for profit or loss to exist), some factor must change that favors one currency over the other. Let's assume that a major mishap occurs at an oil refinery in the Middle East - essentially, oil prices will rise. A savvy FX investor knows that Canada is a net exporter of oil while the U.S. receives half of its supply from foreign producers. Rising oil prices would benefit Canada while hurting the U.S. In the USD/CAN currency exchange, that means that 10,000 U.S. dollars would buy fewer Canadian dollars. Therefore, the savvy FX trader would realize that the short
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position would be best because he/she would be betting on the USD losing ground to the CAN in the exchange rate. If the investor believed that the USD would gain ground and increase in value relative to the CAN, he would choose the long position instead. Novice FX investors are sometimes confused by the conversion rates themselves. FX trades involve currency rates carried out to .0001, or the fourth decimal point. This .0001 is the equivalent of 1 pip, or the smallest amount a currency can move in value. Pips are sometimes referred to as points. All major currencies are tracked down to the .0001 point with the exception of the yen from Japan. In USD/JPY transactions, the exchange rate is only reported to the .01 decimal place. Just as options are written in 100-share blocks, currency trades have standard lot sizes and they equal 100,000 units. Thus, for a standard lot size transaction involving a USD/CAN currency trade, the base currency is the USD and will be used to set up the position with 100,000 USD being used to purchase however many CAN the current exchange rate permits - with an exchange rate of 1.2000CAN that would be 120,000 Canadian dollars. FX trades can also be conducted using mini-lots of 10,000 units and micro lots of 1,000 units. Some newcomers to FX trading might be intimidated by lot sizes of 100,000 units but a 1% margin is all that is required by most dealers to create a position. However, investors must be careful about drawdown and have predetermined stop points that will limit risk because currencies can move rapidly and quickly eliminate any equity the investor has in their trading account. Once that equity is gone, the investor will be responsible for any remaining loss after the position has been liquidated.
FOREX FAQs
zSB(3,3)
What is an Expert Advisor?What is an Expert Advisor
See more links below...
Sponsored Links
Forex TradingNew to Forex? Start Here. $50,000 Practice Account. GFT www.GFTuk.com
dbFX - Forex TradingTrade forex directly from charts Try our trading platform - Free www.dbfx.com
Forex TradingTrade with zero commissions, Free charts and Practice Account. www.gcitrading.com
What is MetaTraderWhat is MetaTrader?
What is a take profit order?A description of take profit orders
What is a stop loss?
A description of stop loss orders
What is a mini lot?
What does the term mini lot mean?
What does it mean to "go long"?
What does the term "go long" mean?
What does it mean to go short?
What does the term "go short" mean?
What is a forex spread?
What is a forex spread?
What is scalping?
What is scalping and why do you do it?
What is backtesting?
What is backtesting and why should you do it?
What is the US Dollar Index
The US Dollar index was created to measure the value of the United States Dollar against a basket of foreign currencies.
What does buy the rumor sell the news mean?
Buy the rumor, sell the news is something that happens in most markets, particularly financial. Sometimes traders trade based on what they believe will happen in a given economic report, or event. Once the event passes or the report is released, they dump their positions and the market moves.
What is market noise?
Market noise is the seemingly mindless back and forth movement on the smaller timeframes. A trader’s definition of market noise is usually relative to the time frames that they are trading. A trader that trades a 1 hour time frame might think that the 15 min chart contains market noise while a trader that trades 15 minute charts might think that a 5 minute chart contains market noise.
5 Things to Look for in a Forex Broker
Looking for a forex broker can be time consuming and confusing. Here is a list of 5 things to look for when trying to choose a forex broker.
When does the forex market open?
The forex market is open almost all of the time! It opens on Sunday night around 21:00 GMT and closes on Friday afternoon around 21:00 GMT. Forex traders can initiate trades at anytime between Sunday and Friday.
What are the best forex trading hours?
The best time to trade the forex markets is between 8:00 GMT and 16:00 GMT. These are basically the hours of the London market with the last 5 hours being in overlap with the US market.
What is a Margin Call?
A margin call happens when a trading account no longer has enough money to support the open trades. This happens when there are too many floating losses.
What is an interest rate differential?What is an interest rate differential?
zSB(3,3)
What is an Expert Advisor?What is an Expert Advisor
See more links below...
Sponsored Links
Forex TradingNew to Forex? Start Here. $50,000 Practice Account. GFT www.GFTuk.com
dbFX - Forex TradingTrade forex directly from charts Try our trading platform - Free www.dbfx.com
Forex TradingTrade with zero commissions, Free charts and Practice Account. www.gcitrading.com
What is MetaTraderWhat is MetaTrader?
What is a take profit order?A description of take profit orders
What is a stop loss?A description of stop loss orders
What is a mini lot?What does the term mini lot mean?
What does it mean to "go long"?What does the term "go long" mean?
What does it mean to go short?What does the term "go short" mean?
What is a forex spread?What is a forex spread?
What is scalping?What is scalping and why do you do it?
What is backtesting?What is backtesting and why should you do it?
What is the US Dollar IndexThe US Dollar index was created to measure the value of the United States Dollar against a basket of foreign currencies.
What does buy the rumor sell the news mean?Buy the rumor, sell the news is something that happens in most markets, particularly financial. Sometimes traders trade based on what they believe will happen in a given economic report, or event. Once the event passes or the report is released, they dump their positions and the market moves.
What is market noise?Market noise is the seemingly mindless back and forth movement on the smaller timeframes. A trader’s definition of market noise is usually relative to the time frames that they are trading. A trader that trades a 1 hour time frame might think that the 15 min chart contains market noise while a trader that trades 15 minute charts might think that a 5 minute chart contains market noise.
5 Things to Look for in a Forex BrokerLooking for a forex broker can be time consuming and confusing. Here is a list of 5 things to look for when trying to choose a forex broker.
When does the forex market open?The forex market is open almost all of the time! It opens on Sunday night around 21:00 GMT and closes on Friday afternoon around 21:00 GMT. Forex traders can initiate trades at anytime between Sunday and Friday.
What are the best forex trading hours?The best time to trade the forex markets is between 8:00 GMT and 16:00 GMT. These are basically the hours of the London market with the last 5 hours being in overlap with the US market.
What is a Margin Call?A margin call happens when a trading account no longer has enough money to support the open trades. This happens when there are too many floating losses.
What is a Pip?PIP stands for Percentage In Point. It is equal to 1/100 of 1%. In forex, currency prices are typically quoted to the fourth decimal.
How much money do I need to get started?The amount of money that you will need to open an account depends on the broker. Brokers such as Oanda will allow you to open an account with as little as $1 while brokers like FXCM require at least $300. If you aren’t ready to commit real money yet, you can always start with a demo account.
Mistakes That Forex Traders MakeWhen beginning in forex trading, there are common mistakes to be avoided. This is a list of common forex trading mistakes.
Why Do Brokers Give You So Much Leverage?Brokers make their money on the spread. They are happy to provide leverage to forex traders because the bigger the trade, the more the pips in the spread are worth.
Do I need good credit to trade on margin?Brokers are more than happy to give you margin to trade on because it is part of how they make their money. Brokers make their money by collecting the spread and the larger your trade is on the market, the more the spread is worth.
Is forex trading risky?Forex trading can be very risky if you don't use proper risk management. Forex is considered to be one of the most risky forms of investing because of the availability of leverage.
What is the Interbank?The Interbank is not really a center exchange where everything is traded. Interbank actually means "between one or more banks".
What is Carry Trading?Carry trading is when you take advantage of the interest rate differential between two currencies. For example, if the interest rate on the British Pound(GBP) is 5.75% and the interest rate on the US Dollar(USD) is 4.25% and you place a buy trade on GBP/USD, you will collect the difference between the two interest rates or 1.50% As long as you hold that trade open, you will be paid that interest differential every day.
PIP stands for Percentage In Point. It is equal to 1/100 of 1%. In forex, currency prices are typically quoted to the fourth decimal.
How much money do I need to get started?
The amount of money that you will need to open an account depends on the broker. Brokers such as Oanda will allow you to open an account with as little as $1 while brokers like FXCM require at least $300. If you aren’t ready to commit real money yet, you can always start with a demo account.
Mistakes That Forex Traders Make...
When beginning in forex trading, there are common mistakes to be avoided. This is a list of common forex trading mistakes.
Why Do Brokers Give You So Much Leverage?Brokers make their money on the spread. They are happy to provide leverage to forex traders because the bigger the trade, the more the pips in the spread are worth.
Do I need good credit to trade on margin?
Brokers are more than happy to give you margin to trade on because it is part of how they make their money. Brokers make their money by collecting the spread and the larger your trade is on the market, the more the spread is worth.
Is forex trading risky?Forex trading can be very risky if you don't use proper risk management. Forex is considered to be one of the most risky forms of investing because of the availability of leverage.
What is the Interbank?
The Interbank is not really a center exchange where everything is traded. Interbank actually means "between one or more banks".
What is Carry Trading?
Carry trading is when you take advantage of the interest rate differential between two currencies. For example, if the interest rate on the British Pound(GBP) is 5.75% and the interest rate on the US Dollar(USD) is 4.25% and you place a buy trade on GBP/USD, you will collect the difference between the two interest rates or 1.50% As long as you hold that trade open, you will be paid that interest differential every day.
Forex Market
Overview: GFX2
Through a partnership with one of the largest U.S. providers in the foreign exchange market, BankServ has added a real-time foreign exchange feature to its current GFX wire payment system. International payments can now be carried out from start to finish with the same program that our domestic wire clients have been using for years.
GFX2 offers a streamlined exchange process and wholesale rates for all major foreign currencies. Since the service is an extension of BankServ's existing GFX wire transfer application, users keep all the same advantages, including:
Automatic OFAC screening
Instant notification
State-of-the-art security
Automated accounting interfaces
Online transaction history archiving
If you're struggling with the manual processes and operational issues of working through a stand-alone correspondent bank's system, think about GFX2 as the solution to your international payments integration needs.
Kinds of Forex Trading System
And the first lesson in forex day trading basics lies in knowing the different kinds of trading systems in this industry.
Day Trading Basics Lesson 1: Currency Spot Trading
Currency spot trading means exactly what its name implies: trading currencies on the spot. This occurs when one investor agrees with another investor to trade currencies during the course of trading hours. These investors should be able to complete their trade within 48 hours, given the volatile nature of currency exchange rates.
The only exception to this rule is when Canadian dollar is involved, in which case, the trade must be completed within a day's time.
Day Trading Basics Lesson 2: Forward Currency Trading
Forward currency trading is the perfect setup for investors who want to take the speculative game a little further, by investing on currencies now and reaping its benefits later on.]
For the purpose of studying day trading basics, please take note that currencies traded in this kind of system depend on the value of the currencies at the time they change hands. If they will depend on the value of the currency at the time the deal was made, then it won't be a forward trading setup, rather, it will fall under the system we will be discussing next.
Day Trading Basics Lesson 3: Future Currency Trading
Future currency trading is somewhat similar to forward currency trading. The only difference? Whereas in forward currency trading, the parties have to exchange currencies based on their values at the time the trade is consummated, in future currency trading, the trade will depend on the value of the currencies at the time the agreement is made.
Day Trading Basics Lesson 4: Options Currency Trading
In options currency trading, the buyer buys the "option" to trade a particular currency for a particular price at a particular period he will name. The seller will be obliged to deliver the particular currency in accordance with the terms provided by the buyer.
What is Forex Trading?
For example, in Europe the currency in circulation is called the Euro (EUR) and in the United States the currency in circulation is called the US Dollar (USD). An example of a forex trade is to buy the Euro while simultaneously selling US Dollar. This is called going long on the EUR/USD.
How Does Forex Trading Work?
Forex trading is typically done through a broker or market maker. As a forex trader you can choose a currency pair that you feel is going to change in value and place a trade accordingly. For example, if you had purchased 1,000 Euros in January of 2005, it would have cost you around $1,200 USD. Throughout 2005 the Euro’s value vs. the U.S. Dollar’s value increased. At the end of the year 1,000 Euros was worth $1,300 U.S. Dollars. If you had chosen to close your trade at that point, you would have made $100.
Forex trades can be placed through a broker or market maker. Orders can be placed with just a few clicks and the broker then passes the order along to a partner in the Interbank Market to fill your position. When you close your trade, the broker closes the position on the Interbank Market and credits your account with the loss or gain. This can all happen literally within a few seconds.