When investing in the Forex market, making a Forex investment can be the best decision and can definitely earn you the best profits. Because there is very little in the way of barring entrance to the Forex market making a Forex investment is an excellent opportunity. Especially for those individuals who have low investments to start with, this can allow them to gain a large return regardless. Of course it also depends on how well they understand the Forex market in order for them to truly benefit from a Forex investment.

In the past Forex investment was limited to only banks and financial institutions due to large transactions and strict financial requirements. Of course now with online trading widely available making a Forex investment is more readily accessible to individuals as well. This means just about anyone can invest in Forex and actually make money from it.

When making a Forex investment you are allowed to do so either directly or through a Forex broker. Banks and financial institutions now are forced to acknowledge that small and individual investors are involved in the Forex market and therefore have been providing online trading packages to them. A lot of these have high leverage available to clients, which when it involves a Forex investment can lend itself to an environment where high gains are made with comparatively small amounts.

This means that someone who chooses to open a mini account in the Forex market has a great leverage ratio of one hundred to one. This means that a one thousand dollar investment can buy or sell a ‘lot’ of one hundred thousand dollars in foreign currencies. Most mini accounts can be opened with two hundred and fifty dollars as a minimum Forex investment.

Because of this a huge increase has occurred in the amount of trades currently in the Forex market. This also causes a high liquidity with a daily turnover that has been known to reach two trillion dollars. Yet this has also mad Forex trading a bit more transparent. Making a Forex investment can be done in multiple currencies in multiple markets in real time without any barriers or physical boundaries.

What is very important in making a Forex investment is realizing that the there is an instant nature to the trade and huge amounts being traded every single day. This means that each investor must be very familiar with the way the Forex market works. They also need to have a clear understanding of trading strategy in order to gain the best profits. Those who don’t understand this can feel that the Forex market is too risky. So when making a Forex investment, make sure you have someone who thoroughly understands the inner workings and who can handle the risky nature of the Forex market, and you will have a better chance of gaining the best profits.

In the world of Forex trade, the concept of automating foreign exchange trading is becoming a new trend that a lot of people are looking into. Exchange-traded futures are the first group to seriously consider automated transactions. Also the Interbank spot FX market has decided to use the automated method as well. Why exactly are these groups looking to it? Let’s take a closer look at automatic forex and see if we can figure out why.

1) Real-time Transactions: One of the reasons it has begun to become successful is because transactions can be conducted in real time. With manual systems it is very difficult to achieve this advantage that is offered by automated Forex systems. A lot of trades happen within milliseconds and this can be a huge push for auto transactions versus manual. A few other problems that can be greatly helped or avoided with auto Forex trading include when a trader is away from their desk or if they have had several losses in a row that hinders them from making new trades for a while. Both of these can be greatly helped by using auto trade as opposed to manual.

2) Greater Diversification: Having better options in regards to diversification can be an advantage when it comes to automatic transactions. This means that a single trader can trade in different markets in different time zones at once. This also allows them the option of multiple exchange models. Another great advantage when it comes to this advanced trading system is having models to analyze short-term data. An option that is not available in any other way. This therefore can help give those using this system a bigger advantage over other traders. This means they can then predict in as short a period of times as fifteen minutes to half an hour. This once again helps you out in trading in different markets at different times.

3) Greater Liquidity: Auto foreign exchange can also give traders more liquidity. This was discovered when futures exchanges had a huge rise in trades after they started using the programmed system. With all the advantages to this modern system, are there are any problems we need to look at? In fact there are.
One of these problem areas is that some people are worried that the orders will increase too much if everyone adopts this automatic system. This can cause problems with lack of bandwidth or engine capacity trying to process all these trades in real time, though there are already people looking into how to avoid this problem before it happens.

4) Risk management: Another problem area for the auto system is risk management. There is always the consideration of checks having to be made when trades are being made. These checks need to happen in an environment where everything is properly synchronized. This is a technical problem and can be resolved when technology improves. Besides these two problems, there seems to be a lot more advantages, than disadvantages. This makes auto transactions the best option for most if not all Forex traders.

Besides traditional methods of learning about the Forex market, there are scores of Foreign exchange books that can assist in learning as well. Professionals and experts write not only by Forex traders but these Forex books also as well. Forex books also are known for the great amount of information they provide on market behavior, trading strategies and trading tools.

Technical analysis is a very important aspect of the Forex market and Forex books on this subject are invaluable. These Forex books have all kinds of information from macroeconomic indicators and how to chart. Sometimes these books will analyze things for you and help you with insights and patterns. These kinds of foreign exchange references will help beginners immensely because they will then be able to better spot patterns in the future.

Factors that can affect currency and its rates are something else that can be found in some materials on forex. The kind of information that can be found regarding this is political turmoil, environmental crises or natural calamities and wars. All of these can affect currencies and economies as well. Someone who uses this type of book will better be able to take into consideration this kind of thing in the future.

There has been an influx of information on forex software lately as well. These are more popular now because the development of software has greatly and significantly increased. Reading these can help with information on the latest regarding computer technology and those who are attracted to the technical aspects will be the most interested.

Books can also be extremely beneficial to hedge managers as well. This is because they tend to diversify their portfolios. By diversifying and using these books to gain information on foreign trade they can greatly increase their profits.

One disadvantage to using these forex information sources is trying to get through it all and find what you need. This requires a lot of patience on your part. Sometimes when professionals and experts tend to write these books they will use mathematical formulas that may be extremely complicated and hard to understand to the average person. Being able to have enough patience to get through all this will be worth it though.

But if you are able to overcome this disadvantage there are several advantages as well. One of these includes case studies that are often provided in forex references. They are known to be easier to follow because they are gleaned from real life. They are usually combined from marketing information as well as academic research.

Of course the best forex books and one that have the most advantage are those written by already successful Forex traders or brokers. A lot of these can give you an insight into their personal strategies for success. Since they have already had success there is a lot to be gained from these.

There are many different ways to go about learning about the Forex market. Among these are online courses or classroom classes. Another way is through Forex references. Which one you choose depends on what aspect you wish to learn about and how much you want to learn about that aspect. In the end foreign exchange books provide some excellent benefits if used properly.

Being involved in the Forex market you may have heard the term Forex broker many times before. But do you really know what this individual does or what it means? A Forex broker is one who assists not only traders and firms, but also individuals involved in the Forex market. The Forex broker’s assistance can be in providing information or may be actually trading for the person or company they are representing. A Forex broker does charge a fee for any services they provide, depending on which one it is.

A list of services that a Forex broker can provide can range from general advice to real time quotes to news feeds. There are different ways that these brokers can give advice. Some Forex brokers use their own personal experience and understanding. While others rely on software to provide the information their service provides.

There have been some advantages and new benefits allowed for Forex brokers and the Forex market since the Internet has evolved. Because of this the individual Forex broker can better provide accessibility to the Forex market, impossibility in previous years. This meant that only banks or large financial institutions would have any access to the Forex market.

There has been a huge growth since then of Forex brokers, which can make it hard to choose, especially for beginning or new traders to the market. The best advice when looking for your Forex broker is to get as many referrals and recommendations as you can. This can better help you decide in finding a reputable and competent Forex broker.

In the instance where you cannot get a referral or recommendation, it is up to you to do your own thorough and careful research. You should find out the amount of trades they are conducting and with how many clients. Of course you should also find out the Forex broker’s amount of experience. The most important thing to look for in your own research is a Forex broker who has learned by experience over several years and has the right amount of instinct to give the right advice. Of course you should also examine what kind of services and what variety they provide, such as mini accounts, market intelligence, market analysis, news feeds and real time quotes.

When deciding if you would like to use a broker or not, you need to take all advantages as well as disadvantages into consideration. This is a personal decision, one in which referrals and recommendations are highly recommended when looking, or at the very least extensive research on your part. Choosing the right Forex broker, in the end, can make the difference between success and failure in the Forex market.

If you’ve been checking out ways to get started in investing, chances are you’ve heard about the foreign exchange market, or FOREX trading. If you’re unfamiliar with this type of trading, it can all seem a bit too hard, but in fact the hardest part is getting started. Keep reading to find out the basics of FOREX trading and what you need to do to get involved.

In the past, foreign exchange was the territory of large players, such as multi-national corporations and national banks. However in the 1980s the rules were changed, giving smaller investors the change to participate using margin accounts. The popularity of FOREX trading has increased mainly because of these margin accounts, as people can participate with much smaller amounts of money. Basically, having a 100:1 margin account means that you can control $100,000 using only $1,000 of your own money.

Having said that, FOREX trading isn’t always simple, and it’s very important to make sure you educate yourself in order to make good investment decisions. Once you start, the trading process itself is simple, but there are risks involved. Learning about FOREX will help you to be profitable and is a good place for any beginner to start.

You will need to open a brokerage account. Generally, brokers are associated with a large financial institution such as a bank, and so can be considered reputable. They have to be registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM), which is administered by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to help protect the consumer from abusive trade practices and fraud.

Once you’ve filled out the necessary forms and provided ID, you can open your FOREX account. Part of the form will be a margin agreement. What this does is give the broker the right to interfere with any trade it feels has become too risky. This is reasonable, as most of the money used for trading will actually belong to the broker, and they need to be able to protect their interests.

Now you have your account, it’s time to put some funds in there and begin trading. The size of your account is your choice – some brokers will allow you to have a mini account of $250, while others prefer a minimum of between $1000 and $2500. The broker will also determine how much leverage you’re entitled to. So one client may be able to control $100,000 with his $1000, while another may only be able to control $80,000. The higher your level of leverage, the more money you have available for trading.

It’s never a good idea to start out by putting all your money into the market in your first trade. It’s vital to get some practice first, usually by paper trading. This involves working out transactions and pretending to trade them, without actually putting the money into the market. Paper trading is a great way to learn how the market works, and become familiar with the software tools your FOREX broker will provide to you. Most online brokers will allow you free paper trades for a period of time, so look for the ability to trade a demo account if you’re choosing an online broker. If you find that your paper trading results in losses, you may want to learn some more before trading with real money.

Your FOREX broker will have their own software for you to use, but there are some tools that are common to all brokers. These include real time quotes, technical analysis and charges, news feeds and profit and loss analysis, just to name a few. You will want to access this sort of information, so make sure you can get it from your broker’s site, or else consider using another broker. From your end, you will need a fairly modern computer, a good, fast Internet connection, and an up to date operating system. You should be able to access your broker account from any computer, which can be handy if you’re traveling. Check that the broker can also be contacted by phone for trades, just in case you’re without internet access at any stage.

One of the advantages of FOREX Trading is that trades don’t incur brokerage fees, which is different to trading stocks. Brokers make their money based on the spread, which is the difference between bid and ask prices.

Recently Forex trading has become one of the most looked after occupations that will allow you to earn a living from home or anywhere else. If you are really considering entering the forex trading world you must, by all means, learn and understand a number of indicators that will lend you a big hand on predicting with a high probability the directions forex markets may take as you analyze the price charts for any currency pair you are trading at the moment. Two of these great indicators are: “Bollinger Bands” and “Fibonacci Retracements”.

“Fibonacci retracement levels” are based on a sequence of numbers discovered by the noted mathematician Leonardo da Pisa in Italy. These numbers describe cycles found throughout nature and when applied to technical analysis can be used to find pullbacks in the currency market.

“Fibonacci retracement levels” are a quite effective way “to see the future” (at least in the world of forex markets), with this I mean that it involves anticipating changes in trends as prices near the levels indicated by the Fibonacci ratios. After a significant price move (either up or down), prices will often retrace a significant portion of the original move. As prices retrace, support and resistance levels often occur at or near the “Fibonacci Retracement levels” (See my other articles on “Fibonacci trading” for more details about this).

The interpretation given to “Bollinger Bands” is that prices tend to stay within the space formed by the tracings of the upper and lower bands. The distinctive characteristic of “Bollinger Bands” is that the spacing between the bands varies based on the volatility of the prices. During periods of high volatility, the bands widen to become more forgiving. During periods of low volatility, the bands narrow to contain currency prices. The common use is that the bands are plotted two standard deviations above and below a simple moving average. They indicate a “sell” when prices are above the moving average and a “buy” when prices are below it. The bands are used by some forex traders in conjunction with other analyses, including RSI, MACD, CCI, and Rate of Change.

If you want to find an appreciable number of profitable trades when trading Forex you need to enter the forex market at the best period of time. This means you should enter when the activity, the volume of transactions, is the highest. All experienced traders focus on the hours when the currency markets tend to make their biggest moves, i.e., during the big market overlaps, which therefore, are usually the best times to trade.

Forex markets are open worldwide with the following schedule:

* New York Market trade times: 8am-4pm EST

* London Market trade times: 2am-12Noon EST

* Great Britain Market trade times: 3am-11am EST

* Tokyo Market trade times: 8pm-4am EST

* Australia Market trade times: 7pm-3am EST

Forex markets have also these timing chraceristics:

* Forex Trading begins in New Zealand, followed by Australia, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and America

* The US & UK account for more than 50% of the market transactions

* Forex Major markets: London, New York, Tokyo

* Nearly two-thirds of NY activity occurs in the morning hours while European markets are open.

From this timing facts, it is evident that at any given time, somebody somewhere in the world is buying and selling currencies. As one market closes a different market opens. Business hours overlap, and the exchange continues as day becomes night and night becomes day.

The great liquidity of Forex, combined with the fact that’s traded 5.5 days a week around the world, offers every trader an exceptional independence and choices to trade Forex when you want to and not when the market wants you to do it. It’s a facts that trades always develop with relatively the same frequency, regardless of time. As long as the Forex market is open, there is about the same probability that you will find a trade, whenever your look for it.

Forex market volume of transactions remains high during the whole day, but peaks highest when the Asian market(including Australia & New Zealand), the European market and the U.S. market are open simultaneously. And these are the best trading hours you must target in order to find the highest possible amount of profitable trades.

During each trading day, the total Forex “volume” is determined by the number of markets that are open and the times each of these markets overlap one another.

Forex trading is a great option for those who want a great income from home or anywhere else. But in order to be a successful forex trader you need to learn the basics of the currency markets and familiarize yourself with the world of trading. One of the first things you will notice as you start analyzing forex charts is that the currency markets often display’s some very familiar patterns of price movements. Once a clear pattern is established, it becomes the most probable course of future price action until the market
changes.

Considering this, it’s important that you identify and understand that there exist two types of markets; these are: trending and trend-less markets. Each market type has pretty clear and specific patterns which you will alsonotice over time.

Trending Markets are characterized by steady and elongated price movements with less than a 45 degree angel with occasional pauses, profit taking, or resting periods.

But even in trending markets you can notice the existence of other two important patterns. These are:

- Uptrends – A pattern of higher highs and higher lows.

- Downtrends – A pattern of lower lows and lower highs.

In the case of Trend-less markets, the main characteristic is the erratic price movements which are often steep ( greater than 45 -degree angle ) and that cannot be sustained therefore they must reverse in a short period of time. Although the movements can move many points in a short period of time, they often result in very little net price movement over time.

In Trend-less markets you can also distinguish tow main patterns:

- Choppy – An erratic pattern of higher highs and lower lows.

- Sideways – A narrow pattern of lower highs and higher lows.

While markets with an up-trend and down-trend behavior can offer generally excellent trading results, choppy markets often create stop outs, while sideways markets produce for little in either direction making them hard to trade, hence making it hard to make any significative profit during these trend-less periods.

Although FOREX traders are generally aware of the importance of daily economic calendars, in order to be profitable, they must go further and understand the difference between surprise and expected.

In order to grasp these concepts, you have to know that this is a game between the financial authorities and the community of analysts, trying to predict the numbers.

While natural disasters, accidents and political moves cannot be expected and therefore they are always considered as surprise news, the economic calendar is well known by the investment community.

In a highly speculative investment environment like the FOREX market, the most important volatility creator is the economic calendar.

Indicators like GDP (Gross Domestic Product), CPI (Consumer Price Index), PPI (Producer Price Index), Unemployment Rate, Interest Rate, Retail Sales and Trade Balance are widely followed and evaluated.

Prior to each report, estimates are published and traders try to position themselves according to what the numbers are expected to be.

These estimates will set the tone and drive the market prior to the publication of each report.

Here comes a rule you have to integrate into your trading, the market discounts every piece of information. Simply stated, the price is the result of all that is known and expected by the investment community.

Even if the report indicates a good economic result, if this has been anticipated through the estimates, the market will not move much, as it already discounted this information early in the process.

However, if the economic announcement does not come in line with the expectations, then we have the so-called surprise reports. The investment community quickly tries to digest and adapt to the new expectations and in doing so, it drives the market in the direction of the surprise news.

Professional FOREX operators avoid having opened positions prior to key economic reports. They prepare trading plans for both, the expected as well as the surprise scenarios and act upon what is published, consequently limiting their risk exposure.

Always remember, only surprise news will move the market. Even if the report shows a strong economic sector, if the actual numbers are in line with the analysts’ expectations, the market has already absorbed and discounted the numbers, therefore it will not move much.

Bogdan Vasile

www.forex-arena.com

The Spot FX market or “Forex” used to be limited to banks and long term investors, plus those who had masses of capital money. Trading would take place via a guy shouting what what going on on the trading floors or a “voice broker” which has gradually been replaced by automated computerised systems.

It is now actually possible for the retail investor or “home office based trader” to trade real time with the banks through the environment of a broker using computerised trading platforms which may have live desk traders placing trades either in the brokers books (95% of traders lose money so it’s in their interests not to trade for real), or for real – for the winners.

A forex trading strategy must usually comprise of two main components – technical analysis and fundamental analysis. The technical side is looking at the charts and using mathematics to reflect the movement of the market and the fundamental side requires knowing about important market-influencing economic news and announcements.

So let’s talk about fundamental analysis in your forex trading strategy. Every day, figures are released which are designed to reflect certain economic circumstances of a country. Some of these announcements for example “Non-Farm Payrolls” will almost certainly have an unpredictable affect on the market depending on previous data and implications of the figures released. A hard, fast rule for beginners trading (and veterans) is to stay out of the market during important announcements. You can find out where to get these by taking one of our courses.

Technical analysis will involve the use of indicators on charts to bring out areas of support and resistance areas where the price may either “get stuck” or “stop and reverse” in the opposite direction. One of the most popular (and accurate) methods of calculating support and resistance levels is the use of “Fibonacci”. The sequence of numbers discovered by Fibonacci 750 years ago is a proportion found in nature (for example pineapply rind or sunflower seeds) and is commonly learned in high school math. Did you ever get a question “What is the next number in this sequence….1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,X?” That is the fibonacci sequence.

When we put the fibonacci numbers against each other we get a percentage ratio which can be plotted on out chart (you don’t need to be a math whiz – most forex charting software does this for you). This will bring out key areas of potential support and resistance for each move on your charts. Using Fibonacci in combination with indicators showing momentum or strength of the current market can give you a strategy to be profitable on a consistent basis because a mathematical rule in forex is “what has happened before will happen again – history repeats itself”.

Profit is made in forex trading much like in traditional business – in fact call to mind a haberdashery! You make a profit by buying at a lower price and selling at a higher price. The difference in forex is that it is also just as common sometimes to be able to sell at a higher price and then buy at a lower price. The profit can be made in both direction.

The process is simple. A trade is placed (either a buy or sell or the base currency) which automatically (sells or buys) the opposite currency in the pair. The price will change live every fraction of a second and for example if you bought the GBP/USD you have bought the pound and sold the US dollar. You want the value of the pound to rise and then you will sell your pounds (in other words “close your position”) and make a profit on the difference in value. This can be done in seconds, minutes or hours.
The broker takes his cut and you’re left with a little less than the actual “distance” the price has moved.

Due to brokers allowing you a leverage of up to 200:1 on your capital, you can control a lot more money than you actually have. Since you are buying one currency and selling the other, not all of your capital is at stake really. Only the proportion which will be lost or gained considering the change in value of the currency pair you are trading together.

For example, you have a forex trading strategy that tells you to buy the Euro against the dollar. The exchange rate is 1.2866 which means 1 EUR = 1.2866 USD

EUR/USD 1.2866

Due to your broker having a “spread” you are offered to buy at 1.2868 or to sell at 1.2864 (in other words the price must change by 2 [analagous] pips or points (significant figures or 4th decimal place) in order to break even. This is usually equivalent to paying a commission and you will not pay a commission depending on your broker.

Your forex trading strategy or system is accurate and you have timed the trade well and continue to watch the exchange rate rise 22 points over the next 15-20 minutes.

You see that the price is now 1.2888 and close your position.

You have made 20 points profit. This was a successful trade.

What do the 20 points mean though in terms of your portfolio?

Good question. With a 100:1 leverage, you have required at least $1000 to place your money in your account will have risen by $200 bcause each “pip or point” has been worth $10 to you. (I have deducted a 2 pip brokers spread or $20).

So, with a capital of about $2000 (you need a $1000 deposit to trade and some surplus equity in case the price goes in the opposite direction to what you wanted at first) you can traded 1 lot at 100:1 for each pip to be worth $10 profit. Since the market moves rapidly – sometimes 30 pips or more in a few minutes during very volatile times, you can make money fast placing accurate trades. The risk associated is that you can also lose money fast. We therefore need risk management plan to complete our forx trading strategy. This at it’s most basic level means placing a “stop loss” to have your trade closed automatically if you misplace a trade. You can also have a “take profit” level or a “trailing stop” which you can move to break even or more as your trade becomes more profitable. That way, you have a guaranteed profit even if you “let the trade run”.

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Trading the FOREX market is considered one of the riskiest forms of investment. As volatility is the name of the game, and because margins are huge (up to 200x), the only way to protect your trading capital is to employ a coherent Risk Management strategy.

While the trading desks of hedge funds and investment banks have to take into account several portfolio optimization procedures, as an individual operator, trading just one currency pair is often the best approach.

Thanks to strong correlation between different currency pairs, be it positive or negative, it only makes sense to focus both attention and resources on just one pair. Among other important advantages, the trader can become familiar with certain habits of a currency pair, as daily range, best time of day to trade it, or main actors.

As the primary objective of a professional FOREX operator is the protection of his or her trading capital, and not the profit, each trading decision must be accompanied by a comprehensive plan to protect this capital.

You have to deal with this term, protection, from a trader’s perspective, as opposed to the general understanding. In trading terms, by protecting your capital means offering you as many chances as possible to stay in the game, to live to fight another day, without being forced to close down the business. This means that you are going to lose money, as cost of business, but you have to do it in a way to continue it as long as possible.

The following example is eloquent.

We will consider an initial trading capital of 10,000 USD. As each trade has an intrinsic risk, we will use two levels here, the first at 50% and the second at 1% out of the total trading capital of 10,000 USD. This means that in the first case the operator risks to lose 5,000 USD, while in the second case, his or her risk is limited to 100 USD.

Simply put, you will never lose more than a certain percentage of your trading capital in just one trade. Be aware that even if you trade heavily margined, the percentage must refer to your trading capital and not to the position. If you open a 100,000 USD (10x) with a 10,000 USD capital, then the percentage must be applied to your 10,000 USD.

By using obvious extremes, it is quite easy to comprehend the advantages of a percentage risk management. If you lose half of the capital in just one trade and you keep this way of trading, just one more mistake will put you out of business.

On the other hand, a 1% loss is by no means dangerous for your trading capital. In addition, this gives you time to err, time to learn from your mistakes while you progress on your way of becoming proficient in this business.

The percentage varies from trader to trader, according to their “risk tolerance”. Some trade with 2%, others prefer a more aggressive 5%, but the overwhelming majority NEVER risks more than 10% in just one trade.

Along with a trading plan with specific entry and exit levels, both for profit as well as loss and maximum time in a trade, this percentage rule is a powerful tool for protecting your trading capital.

Bogdan VASILE

Professional FOREX trader and owner of FOREX education website Forex-Arena.com

www.forex-arena.com

headoffice@forex-arena.com

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It should be noted that millionaire traders, Elder, Williams and some others are in fact professional psychiatrists. And it is not accidental that not the economists are the leaders and most successful traders, but professional psychiatrists and psychotherapists. Think about it. You will become a successful trader when you understand why it happens with Forex. You will understand what your Forex mistakes are, and why you are making them. And when you correct these mistakes you will become a trader who has no psychological barriers and obstacles on his way to better earnings in the Forex market.

So, why do the psychiatrists make better traders than economists who, as one would think, have the Forex market at their finger tips?

The economists are confused by:

- the fact that exchange rates are not always related directly to the economic circumstances in the countries. Well, do you know any economist who would be bidding for low fx rates when the economic situation is getting better and better? Or the one who admits that technical analysis of currency pairs is more important for Forex trading than the fundamental one? Any economist is confident that this can never happen because he knows all the economic dogmas. But it happens in the Forex. After all, how can a trader lose with the currencies moving up and down by the economic rules? The currency will surely react to the economic changes in the country, but who knows when and how? Here is a tip: there is the Elliott fifth way to teach a lesson to the ones who believe that fundamental knowledge is enough (before the trend turns, the currency spurts absurdly by the old trend), to confuse and draw the newbies into the game, while the experts wait for the trend to turn back.

- the lack of psychological knowledge that helps to understand the behavior of the crowd. And that is self-evident.

Are there any methods to overcome this fear?

It seems that every Forex book, every article offers efficient solutions for psychological difficulties experienced by the traders.

IN FACT NEITHER OF THESE BOOKS CONTAINS METHODS TO OVERCOME THE FEAR EXPERIENCED BY A FOREX TRADER!

But what do these books offer instead?

Almost every book of this kind consists of two unequal parts:

- the bigger part of the book narrates about traders’ problem that interfere with their Forex work and make it unsuccessful (nervousness, doubts, worries, fear, sleep deprivation, etc.). As if the traders do not know their own problems.

- the considerably lesser part contains conclusions and recommendations to the traders who are to solve their problems and overcome their fears to become successful.

The conclusions are disappointing:

Many psychiatrists realize that the new field opens before their eyes – now they may treat traders whose number amounts to millions all over the world and is growing with every day. And since most traders have a dream to become as successful as George Soros and other famous traders, this new field promises to be rather lucrative.

One thing is bad though: the overwhelming majority of these new-sprung trader brain specialists do not even know what the Forex is all about.

There are a mind boggling number of forex brokers available to choose from. Choosing the right broker is the most important decision you can make for your forex venture. Here is a checklist of what you need to be looking for.

1. Regulation. Just because a broker is available does not mean they are regulated. You may want to check first what country your broker is registered in. Some countries have lax laws regarding forex brokers. In the US, brokers are regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission or the National Futures Association. If a broker is regulated, then they must regularly submit financial reports to these organizations. If these reports are not submitted, then they can be fined, or shut down. Any person can view these financial reports (similar to publicly traded companies). This regulation also give the investors avenues to pursue if there are any issues with the broker.

2. Company customer service. Check and see if there are any complaints about the forex broker with the Better Business Bureau. If there were complaints, see how the company resolved these complaints. Call or email the broker with any questions. You should not feel uncomfortable doing this, as they will be holding your money. The broker should be courteous and respond quickly to any and all questions. Does this particular broker have a lot of discrepancies between the price the trade was requested at and the actual value? This is called ‘slippage’ and can lead to the loss of funds if it is rampant. Some brokers will compensate you for the slippage, others do not.

3. Trading options. Not all forex brokers offer the same types of platforms, spreads or leverage. You need to decide which options are the most important to you. Some things to think about regarding options are: Commissions – does the broker take a commission and a spread? Make sure the spread is small enough to compensate for the commission. Spread – what spread is offered? Does the spread vary depending on the time of day, or is it always constant? Margin – is there a maximum amount of leverage allowed by the broker? Scalping – what is the broker’s policy on scalping? Some brokers will put your account on manual execution if you scalp. This means that all your transactions have to go through a live person to be executed, which will slow down your trades and possibly keep you from getting some trades. Platform – what type of platform does the broker offer. Is it easy to use and understand? Does the platform perform quickly enough to execute trades instantly?

4. Demo account. Does the broker offer a demo account to practice with? And does the demo platform perform exactly like the live version? A demo account is a great way to test the platforms and see if you like the features the platform offers before actually sending them any funds.

Running a checklist on all the brokers you want to check out should narrow down your options and help you choose the best broker for you!

Like many people I am sure you are interested to know more about Forex trading. To put it bluntly Forex trading can be either one the best ways to make or lose LOTS of money. Only those who take the Forex market seriously will be able to make money with it in the long term.

The Forex trading market is beyond a doubt the world’s largest market where all exchanges happen instantaneously. Thus, trades are a key challenge for even the most knowledgeable Forex bankers and traders. They have to learn and consider many factors before performing even a single trade.

At first when currencies began to be traded openly, only large banks were allowed to perform trades. These days, due to the advent of internet trading and margin accounts almost anybody can begin Forex trading. This in turn, has added to the liquidity of the Forex market, and has resulted in a huge increase in the number of individuals who are now active in the market.

So, does this mean it is easy to earn money through Forex trading? To answer this we must consider a few things.

Some data by Forex brokers seems to suggest that 90 percent of traders end up of losing their capital, 5 percent of traders have been able to break even and only 5 percent of them attain steady beneficial results. Thus, it seems that trading successfully is no simple task.

However, if you can learn to be among the 5 percent who make consistent money you can do extremely well by using Forex trading. To help you in this end I have listed five key ways to improve your odds dramatically of making money in the Forex market.

1. Education

Successful traders are knowledgeable about the Forex market. They have chosen to educate themselves about every single vital detail of Forex trading. The best traders know that every trade that they perform is an opportunity to learn something new.

2. Forex Trading System

All of the profitable traders have a Forex trading system or strategy. Furthermore, they have the will power to stick strictly to that system, because the best traders know that by sticking with their system they stand a far greater chance of earning money.

3. Price Behavior

Knowledgeable and successful traders also include price behavior in their systems. They have learned that prices can change quickly and suddenly but are prepared to deal with those situations when they arrive.

4. Trading Psychology

First-rate traders are aware of psychological issues that affect the choices of other traders make when Forex trading. They know that people do not always act rationally, and as a result this can alter the expected outcome of a trade. This can help them both when deciding to enter into a trade or when to exit.

5. Money Management

This is far and away the most important factor that will determine whether or not you become a successful trader. Averting the hazard of financial ruin is the main concern of all top traders. This means both adequately funding your trading account (only with money you can afford to live without of course) and never entering into trades that can potentially wipe out all of your assets. Better to start trading small and always use stop-loss orders to guarantee that your first trades are not also your last.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of everything you need to know but it outlines some of the areas you need to consider before making even that first trade. Now you know that it is not easy to earn money in the Forex market, however it is achievable.

However, success does not happen overnight and anyone promising you that it can is trying to sell you snake oil. It is an ongoing processes not something you pick up in a weekend. Trading success depends on the trader, and how hard you are willing to work to achieve your Forex trading goals.

Also, remember to try to have some fun. The clearest sign that Forex trading is not for you is if you find the prospect of learning about how the Forex market works boring or dull. If this is the case you won’t stick with it long enough to make money and you will be among the 90 percent who fail. Just remember these three important things: be disciplined in your trading habits, manager your money wisely and enjoy the experience of Forex trading.

When you view the statistics of successful forex trading, it can be pretty depressing. Stats show that only 95% of forex traders are making any money. With so many trading forex, why is this? Here is a look at common mistakes newer (and some seasoned) forex traders make that cause them to lose money.

1. Get Rich Quick mentality. You have probably seen the late night infomercials about how easy and profitable it is to trade forex. Well, it is easy to actually trade, but difficult to trade well. Opening an funding an account can take as little as 24 hours and you can be up and trading. People will open up a broker account, fund it and start trading without knowing what they are doing. A good course of study on the currency pairs and how they tend to work with each other is a must before you start any live trading. You must be educated in forex to trade profitably. You can’t just go on gut feeling. Forex trading should be done for the long haul. You are going to have those months where you are not in the positive, but a good trader will have more positive months than negative ones

2. Trading for the wrong reasons. Yes, there is a high associated with making a huge profit from one trade. However, do not treat forex trading like a day at the race track. You should not trade for the excitement of trading. Not to mention that there is a lot of time to be spent just waiting for the correct trade to come along. Also, don’t start forex trading because you think it only requires a few minutes a day to make money. Even if you are scalping the market (making small quick trades), it takes time for those trades to develop and some days are just bad days to be sitting there waiting.

3. Not using a stop loss. This is where emotion comes into play. You should have a clear exit strategy when you enter a trade. Decide how many pips you are looking for and what your loss limit will be. If it is 50 pips, set your stop loss so that you are automatically triggered out of the trade when that many pips are lost. It is too easy for a novice trader to say “Well, it has to start coming back soon, I’ll just wait a few more pips” and then end up getting a margin call because they are now down 250 pips waiting for the trade to turn around. Be disciplined and set those stop loss targets. There are always going to be new trades happening.

4. Jumping from strategy to strategy. Strategies take time to develop and time to personalize to your own trading style. That is why a demo account is important to practice. Once you have learned your strategy and how to adapt it to changing conditions – stick with it! New traders will sometimes bounce from one person’s strategy to another, without giving any of them a chance to develop. One bad trade does not a bad strategy make.

5. Emotional involvement in your trades. Turning off your emotions is a critical tool in trading forex successfully. Not just the down emotions, but the up emotions as well. Have a strategy to get in and out of trades. Resist the impulse to trade, feeling like you are on a wave of good luck. And conversely – don’t keep trading if you are down out of desperation.

Following these tips will help you be part of the 5% of successful traders out there, rather than the majority that do not succeed.

There is one important thing you will need to do before you start your Forex trading career. This is, you will need to set up an account with what is known in the trading world as a Forex Broker. Once you start your search for the perfect broker, you may feel there are too many of them who offer their services online. Deciding on a broker requires a little bit of research on your part. Experience and reputation are two good starting places for the selection process. do as much research as possible and ask in online forums for anyone who may have a first hand knowledge of the company.

A forex broker is an individual or a company that buys and sells the orders placed by the trader according to his decisions. The way brokers earn money is by charging a commission or a fee for their services.

You must consider that a serious forex broker will need to be associated with a large financial institution such as a bank in order to provide the amount of funds necessary for what is known as margin trading. In the United States a broker must be registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) and also with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). These credentials will ensure you have peace of mind, knowing that you have protection against any case of fraud and abusive trade practices.

What you’ll always want will be to find a broker who executes orders quickly and with minimum slippage. All reputable online forex brokers will offer automatic execution once you place your orders and will let you know their policies regarding slippage. A good broker should be able to tell you how much slippage can be expected in both normal and volatile markets.

You should always be skeptical when looking for a good forex broker. Always examine any suspicious claims made about high returns and low margins, especially if the broker company is vague about the risk involved in the transactions and are unwilling or unable to disclose financial information on the strength of their company. Low margins may sound competitive, but in reality this is because the broker is speculating against you and relying on the low margin to stop out your gains.

You’re new to forex, or perhaps you’re not new. You’re just not making any money. I know it’s not comforting, but you’re not alone. As I’m sure you’ve heard, an estimated 90% of traders lose money.

So, what are you to do about it? Hope and pray that you’re trading turns around? Buy any and every new trading product that comes on the market? Just give up? Bury yourself in heavy books about the physiology of trading?

There is a better way. Listed below are the eight steps that will (guaranteed) take you from loser to winner if you just work at following them exactly.

1. Get the idea of trading with real money out of your head. You are not making money, so why would you continue? If a vending machine took your money and didn’t give you any product, would you keep feeding it money?

Obviously not. The same rule applies with trading. Don’t throw good money after bad. Stop trading.

2. Buy a ready-made system that is proven to do well. Beware! I did not say to just go buy any system, or to buy an expensive system. There is a place and a time for expensive (proven) systems. However, you do not need one as you learn to trade profitably.

They are readily available. Don’t let catchy sales copy sway you into buying something worthless.

3. Study everything you can on the internet and in books about money management. You are now in school. Learn the system you purchased. Study everything you can on trade size and risk. Realize that picking winning trades is easy compared to the self-control of proper money management.

4. Demo trade the system applying sound money management. Only now do you begin to trade again and only with pretend money.

5. After six month (longer if you’re not profitable yet), start trading with real money. You want to trade as small of an account as you can.

Do not get impatient! I know six months sounds like forever. I have just one question for you? Do you want to lose money?

6.If you are not trading profitably with real money, then start looking for a proven signal provider.

Evaluate your trading after several months of real money. How are you doing? If you are profitable, skip to step eight. Otherwise, continue.

7. Trade with the signal provider while you continue to turn your trading profitable. Do not rush to pick a signal provider. There are a lot of snakes in the grass. Ask questions in forums. Talk to people. Pick someone with whom you are comfortable and who is proven.

8. Their will come a time when you’re trading will become profitable because you don’t have the burden of having to be profitable (the signal provider is profitable for you). So you will then find your own trading making you money as well.

You have made it. Congratulations! You are now in the elite (and small) class of traders who consistently take money from the market.

Many articles have been written on the subject of FOREX trading. The vast majority of them have detailed analysis advice as well as investing tips. What just few of them found interesting enough is the subject of selecting the right real-time data provider. Simply stated, this is the software platform used to deliver quotes and charts, together with various technical indicators for each currency pair.

While real time FOREX quotes are available free of charge from many sources, as Bloomberg and Reuters, and various FOREX brokerage houses, the real need is for a comprehensive charting package.

As FOREX trading is essentially an intensive short-term speculation, the Technical Analysis approach is what a professional operator needs. This must be delivered through a stable and reliable real-time charting platform.

Even if the advertisements may be appealing for most of them, some key characteristics must be checked, in order to make sure you get the best price/content ratio.
Ranging from free to several hundred dollars a month, they offer various levels of proficiency, regarding the number of currencies pairs, frequency of their updates, number of contributors and technical analysis capabilities.

There is a huge difference between a provider that offers updates from just one stream every minute and another one feeding your platform 10 times a second from 50 interbank players.

With the first one, you will obtain a valid quote but you will not feel market’s rhythms, which are of utmost importance in gauging various games people play when speculating. This is particularly important immediately following news announcements, as key players implement their trading strategies.

While simple platforms will exhibit a “jump” in the price from one minute to the next, the professional ones will clearly show the tension and “fight” for each PIP in the arena.

Usually, brokerage houses offer some basic packages free of charge and use their own data feed to update the programs, but you will have just limited understanding on what is really going on.

Thanks to more than 10 years in the market, I believe you will be better off with a subscription to an independent real-time data provider. Even if the cost is higher, the performance is far superior.

As this is their primary business, they tend to allocate important resources to you as a customer and of course, they update and improve their platform on a regular basis.

Because I will avoid advertising any company names on this article, I will just invite you to consider asking the following questions before deciding.

Web-based or desktop-based platform. While the first one is more mobile, the second one tends to have more features.

Number of regularly updated currencies pairs. The key is to have at least the majors regularly updated (EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, USD/CHF), but of course, the more pairs the better.

Number of real-time data contributors. The bigger the better, as this will offer larger exposure to the trading community.

Number of updates per minute. The bigger the better (strongly influenced by your internet connection), as this will help you “feel” the market.

Number of technical indicators and analysis instruments (trend lines, time intervals, Fibonacci Levels, printing, colours, etc…). The bigger the better, as your analysis potential is increased.

Technical support available at least during market hours. It is of paramount importance to make sure you have a comprehensive technical support, in case something goes wrong during your trading activity. Also, ask if the service is free of charge or fee based.

While there can be more to look for, if you follow the above rules, chances are you will end up with a better, more reliable and finally highly competitive real-time FOREX data provider.

Bogdan Vasile

Further FOREX education available at www.forex-arena.com

Forex rates (currency prices) are a reflection of the supply and demand for currencies. The two main factors of forex rates are the strength of the economy and interest rates. Economic factors such as trade balance, GDP and foreign investment reflect the general state of a economy and are repsonsible for the changes in supply and demand for that currency. Economic data is released on a regular basis by countries which in turn affects the overall strength or weakness of their particular forex rates. The main data that should be looked at closely is – international trade and interest rates.

International Trade affects a countries trade balance and forex rates dependant on the net difference between a countries imports and exports. If the country imports more than it exports, their trade balance will show a deficit. If the deficit is more than the markets expect, then this data will trigger a negative price movement in the value of that countries currency prices. If the deficit is less than expected then there will generally be a strengthening or positive price movement in that countries forex rates.

Interest rates can directly affect forex rates. Generally, if a country raises its interest rates, that countries respective forex rates will strengthen in relation to other nations as global investors move funds to that country to gather a larger return on their investment. Lowering of interest rates will generally have the opposite effect on a countries forex rates.

Indicators that have the greatest impact on a countries interest rates and in turn, forex rates are the Producer Price Index (PPI), Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data that is released by countries central banks.

Being new to FOREX trading? Don’t worry, getting started in FOREX trading is easy and you can always test your skills first in a demo account before you go ‘live’ with real money. To get started in FOREX trading, we have to get to know what FOREX is. For the inexperienced, FOREX trading involves buying and selling the different currencies of the world. A FOREX deal is made when one buys one currency and sells another at the same time. It is always traded in pairs, Euro/USD, CHF/USD, USD/JPY…you get ‘short’ in a currency every time to buy another and the profit is made when you buy-low and sell-high.

Facts on FOREX market

FOREX market is the largest trading market in the world. It yields an average turnover of $1.9 trillion daily and the figure is nearly 30 times larger than the total volume of equity trades in United States. FOREX trading is very unique as the trades are done between two counterparts via electronic network or telephone connections. There is no centralized location as stocks or futures markets and trades are done around the clock. Everyday FOREX trade begins when the financial centers in Sydney start their day, and moves around the globe to Tokyo, London, and then New York. Traders can always response to the market regardless of the local time.

Although FOREX trading involves such a big volume of trades nowadays, it is not made available for the publics until year 1998. In the past, the FOREX market was not offered to small speculators or individual traders due to the large minimum business sizes and extremely strict financial requirements. At that time, only banks, big multi-national cooperation and major currency dealers were able to take advantage of the currency exchange market’s extraordinary liquidity and strong trending nature of world’s main currency exchange rates. Only until the late 90s, FOREX brokers are allowed to break huge sized inter-bank units into smaller units and offer these units to individual traders like you and me. Nowadays with the rapid growth of Internet and communications technology, FOREX trading has become one of the hottest make-money-at-home-businesses for those who wish to avoid conventional 9-5 day job.

As a fact in FOREX trading, FOREX is mainly traded in large international bank. According to Wall Street Journal Europe, 73% of the trade volume is covered by the major ten. Deutsche Bank, topping the table, had covered 17% of the total currency trades; followed by UBS in the second and Citi Group in third; taking 12.5% and 7.5% of the market. Other large financial cooperation in the list is HSBC, Barclays, Merril Lynch, J. P. Morgan Chase, Coldman Sachs, ABN Amro, and Morgan Stanley. For market participants segment, approximately half of the transactions done were strictly between dealers (i.e. Bank, or large currency dealer); others are mainly between dealer and non financial institutions.

Why FOREX is popular?

There are several reasons why FOREX had became such a popular investment among world wide speculators.

In FOREX trading, you can always use technology for your own advantage. The FOREX market has made an amazing transformation since the advent of the internet. Technology has now made it possible for smaller investors to play on the same level as larger corporations and banks. Anyone with a computer and a will to succeed can start trading currencies from the privacy of their home or office. Online FOREX trading has changed the way that investors do business. With access to your portfolio 24-hours a day, it is really very simple to get started. You can choose whether to hire a professional to handle your transactions, or you could choose to do them yourself.

Also, FOREX trading provides relative large leverage rates to individual traders. FOREX traders can do business with up to 200 to 1 leverage rates. With this advantage, ROI is escalated dramatically and traders can always start up small with capital as little as $1,000.

Getting started in FOREX trading

You don’t need much to get started with FOREX trading. A computer with Internet access, a funded FOREX account with foreign currency exchange broker, and a trading system should be sufficient to get things started.

To reduce the risks of losing money, some basic charting knowledge is as well recommended before you start trading FOREX. FOREX charts assist the investor by providing a visual representation of exchange rate fluctuations. Many variables affect currency exchange rates, such as interest rates, bank policies, geopolitics, and even the time of day may affect exchange rates. As stated by expert FOREX trader Peter Bain, charting is an essential tool in FOREX trading. In his newsletter, he reveals that daily charts, hourly charts, and 15-minute charts are used while trading in FOREX. As quoted from his informative newsletter — “Daily chart will help you define the overall trend from a position trading point-of-view, and the hourly (one hour) chart will give you a feel for the intraday trend. The 15-minute chart is used for entry and exit – with assistance from the five-minute chart, where price is moving quickly, and you need to be closer to the action.”

Being one of the technical method, FOREX charting is based on the principal ‘history repeats itself’. FOREX traders who study charts predict the market future by evaluating past market performance. The time frame used for charting might differs for different traders, some analyze the past one week, some prefer six months analysis, and there are also traders who analyze the market for the past five to ten years before getting involved in a FOREX trade. A huge variety of FOREX charts are available in the market. Some charting methods are very simple, using a few FOREX indicators to show trading direction; other charts may include up to forty indicators and those are mainly for advance traders that are more skillful. MACD Divergence, RSI, RSI range, and price are some of the well known indicators in charting.

Choosing the right FX dealer is a way to avoid unnecessary risks. FOREX dealers are not all regulated the same way. Although FOREX dealers must be regulated by law, firms and individuals can solicit retail accounts for FOREX dealers and manage those accounts without being regulated. As a trader you should take up the responsibility of finding out if your FOREX dealers are regulated. If they are not, you may be exposed to additional risks.
Also, beware of dealers with investment schemes that sounds too good to be true. Pay extra cautions to dealers that you first knew and always look into the investment offers. If you are from United States, you can always refer to CFTF (at http://www.cftc.gov) or NFA (at http://www.nfa.org) for further information.

Conclusions

You come to this article probably because of you are new to FOREX and were looking for some readings on the Internet. To be frank, FOREX can be very profitable but the risk lie beneath is equally great. Remember to always trade with proper investment plan and strategy. Read books, attend courses, watch video seminars, read papers, or even practice first with a dealer’s demo account to get yourself ready. Trade smartly, and gain the maximum out of FOREX – good luck!