Record Successful Guide for Forex Trade

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.
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.
To start trading on FOREX, one must first learn how to read FOREX quotes. Foreign exchange quotes are always listed in pairs (e.g. USD/JPY 109.2): the first listed currency is known as the base currency with a constant value of 1 unit; while the currency listed in the second is known as counter. In our given example, USD/JPY 109.2 means a dollar of United States Dollar is equal to 109.2 Japanese Yen. In other words, the quote shows the relative value of one currency compare to the other. It means the value USD had been increased when USD/JPY quote goes up
However, a two-sided quote (e.g. EUR/USD 1.2435/1.2440) consisting of a 'bid' and 'ask' is often seen. The 'bid' price is the price at which you can sell the base currency; while the 'ask' price is where you can buy the base currency. The different of 'bid & ask' price is commonly known as 'spread'. In the example of EUR/USD 1.2435/1.2440, this means you can buy 1 Euro Dollar with 1.2440 USD or sell 1 Euro 1.2435. Currency brokers make their profit through these differences of 'bid & ask' price and this is how they manage to provide their services to individual investors without charging them commission fees.
You don't need much tools to trade in FOREX market. 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.
As the article is meant for FOREX rookies, you are probably one of those who are looking forward to get involved in the FOREX market. However, there is no shortcut to be success in FOREX trading. Trading in FOREX is not as simple as it seen from outside. Especially there's margin involved in FOREX trading, you might lose a lot of money in the beginning and learn your lessons in a hard way. Take all the time you need to learn this new trading skill well -- practice everything you learn with a demo account before you consider going 'live' with your own money. Seminars, eBooks, Internet, papers, as well as video courses are all your needs to get involved. I wish you good luck and good profit making in your FOREX trades.

Forex Investment, Strategies and Trade - Free Forex Bytes

What is FOREX (Foreign Exchange)?

Forex (Foreign Exchange) simply means the buying of one currency and selling another at the same time. In other words, the currency of one country is exchanged for those of another. The currencies of the world are on a floating exchange rate, and are always traded in pairs Euro/Dollar, Dollar/Yen, etc. In excess of 85 percent of all daily transactions involve trading of the major currencies.

Four major currency pairs are usually used for investment purposes. They are: Euro against US dollar, US dollar against Japanese yen, British pound against US dollar, and US dollar against Swiss franc. The following notation is used for these currency pairs: EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD, and USD/CHF. You may consider them as "blue chips" of the FOREX market. No dividends are paid on currencies. The investment profits come from well known "buy low - sell high".

If you think one currency will appreciate against another, you may exchange that second currency for the first one and stay in it. In case everything goes as planned, some time later you may make the opposite deal - exchange this first currency back for that other - and collect profits.

Transactions on the FOREX market are fulfilled by dealers at major banks or FOREX brokerage companies. FOREX is the world wide market, so when you are sleeping in the North America some dealers in Europe are trading currencies with their Japanese counterparties. Therefore the FOREX market is active 24 hours a day and dealers at major institutions are working in three shifts. Clients may place take-profit and stop-loss orders with brokers for overnight execution.

Price movements on the FOREX market are very smooth and without gaps that you face almost every morning on the stock market. The daily turnover on the FOREX market is about $1.2 trillion, so investor can enter and exit position without problems. The fact is that the FOREX market never stops, even on the day of September-11, 2001 you could obtain two-side quotes on currencies.

The currency foreign exchange ([http://www.123forex.blogspot.com]) market is the largest and oldest financial market in the world. It is also called the foreign exchange market, or "FOREX" or "FX" market for short. It is the biggest and most liquid market in the world, and it is traded mainly through the 24 hour-a-day inter-bank currency market - the primary market for currencies. The forex market is a cash (or "spot") inter-bank market. By comparison, the currency futures market is only one per cent as big.

Unlike the futures and stock markets, trading of currencies is not centralized on an exchange. Forex literally follows the sun around the world. Trading moves from major banking centers of the U.S. to Australia and New Zealand, to the Far East, to Europe and finally back to the U.S.

In the past, the forex inter-bank market was not available to small speculators due to the large minimum transaction sizes and often-stringent financial requirements. Banks, major currency dealers and the occasional huge speculator used to be the principal dealers. Only they were able to take advantage of the currency market's fantastic liquidity and strong trending nature of many of the world's primary currency exchange rates.

Today, foreign exchange market maker brokers such as FX Solutions are able to break down the larger sized inter-bank units, and offer small traders the opportunity to buy or sell any number of these smaller units (lots).

These brokers give virtually any size trader, including individual speculators or smaller companies, the option to trade the same rates and price movements as the large players who once dominated the market. Market makers quote buying and selling rates for currencies, and they profit on the difference between their buying and selling rates

Why Trading FOREX?

The cash/spot FOREX markets possess certain unique attributes that offer unmatched potential for profitable trading in any market condition or any stage of the business cycle:

A 24-hour market: A trader may take advantage of all profitable market conditions at any time; no waiting for the 'opening bell'.

Highest liquidity: The FOREX market with an average trading volume of over $1.5 trillion per day is the most liquid market in the world. That means that a trader can enter or exit the market at will in almost any market condition minimal execution barriers or risk and no daily trading limit.

High leverage: A leverage ratio of up to 400 is typical compared to a leverage ratio of 2 (50% margin requirement) in equity markets. Of course, this makes trading in the cash/spot forex market a double-edged sword the high leverage makes the risk of the down side loss much greater in the same way that it makes the profit potential on the upside much more attractive.

Low transaction cost: The retail transaction cost (the bid/ask spread) is typically less than 0.1% (10 pips or points) under normal market conditions. At larger dealers, the spread could be less than 5 pips, and may widen considerably in fast moving markets.

Always a bull market: A trade in the FOREX market involves selling or buying one currency against another. Thus, a bull market or a bear market for a currency is defined in terms of the outlook for its relative value against other currencies. If the outlook is positive, we have a bull market in which a trader profits by buying the currency against other currencies. Conversely, if the outlook is pessimistic, we have a bull market for other currencies and a trader profits by selling the currency against other currencies. In either case, there is always a bull market trading opportunity for a trader.

Inter-bank market: The backbone of the FOREX market consists of a global network of dealers (mainly major commercial banks) that communicate and trade with one another and with their clients through electronic networks and telephones. There are no organized exchanges to serve as a central location to facilitate transactions the way the New York Stock Exchange serves the equity markets. The FOREX market operates in a manner similar to the way the NASDAQ market in the United States operates, and thus it is also referred to as an 'over the counter' or OTC market.

No one can corner the market: The FOREX market is so vast and has so many participants that no single entity, even a central bank, can control the market price for an extended period of time. Even interventions by mighty central banks are becoming increasingly ineffectual and short-lived, and thus central banks are becoming less and less inclined to intervene to manipulate market prices.

Unregulated: The FOREX market is generally regarded as an unregulated market although the operations of major dealers, such as commercial banks in money centers, are regulated under the banking laws. The conduct and operation of retail FOREX brokerages are not regulated under any laws or regulations specific to the FOREX market, and in fact many of such establishments in the United States do not even report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The currency futures and options that are traded on exchanges such as Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) are regulated in the way other exchange-traded derivatives are regulated.

Learn Forex Trading Tools For Consistent Profits

Learn Forex Trading Tools Before Jump !

There are several Forex Trading Tools available to a trader. Yet with the multitude of such tools, the number of traders that make it to consistent profits are still so few. So the question that begs to be asked is:
If it's not the forex trading tools that make a successful trader, then what does?
Some of the tools required to trade the forex currencies are obvious and basic. At the same time, there are quite a few others that aren't. Yet it is these less obvious tools, while not having a direct impact on your trading results, influence your forex trading success in very subtle and important ways.
One of the reasons why forex traders find it so difficult to find success is not having the ability to see how everything works together in the forex markets. This ability to see the bigger picture is crucial to find success as a trader, because it influences the way you would use your trading tools to pull profits out of the markets.
The difference between novice traders and season traders is this:
Most novice traders only think about the minimum things required to start trading, while the experienced, seasoned traders often strive to utilize the maximum of the tools available to them.
In the game of forex trading, retail traders are usually the least informed and hold the weakest power to determine how the forex currencies. On the other hand, while the banks and large financial institutions have access to sophisticated forex trading tools, it doesn't mean as a retail trader, you require all these tools for forex trading success. But you DO need to have all the trading tools required for forex trading success.
So what do you need to start your forex trading career?

The Basic Forex Trading Tools to Start Trading

These are the basic forex trading tools that you obviously need in order to trade the forex currencies, but these aren't the only tools required for forex trading success:

1. Your Forex Trading Account
2. Platform
3. System
4. Risk Capital

In most cases, novice forex traders tend to think that this is all they need to become hugely profitable in the forex markets. It's so simple and easy, right? It's true, this is all you need to start trading. But what is not so obvious is that while this is what you need to START trading, it's not necessarily what's needed to be trading profitably!
Forex Trading Success is a journey where you, as a trader, are on a path of learning and growth. It's a journey from point A to point B, where point B is consistent forex trading profits.
To think that a novice trader can become wildly successful with just these four trading tools alone is thinking a towering 100 story building can be constructed with only a pencil, a piece of paper, and 4 bricks. Other elements and tools are used to build your forex trading business but because they are in the background of what's going on, they can be easily missed or dismissed in terms of their importance.
If these four tools are what is required for trading success, then we would have a lot more traders being profitable and rich, wouldn't we?

Developing Your Skill To Use The Basic Forex Trading Tools
Developing your skill as a forex trader is necessary to become successful. The quality of the product is due to the quality of the craftsman. The more highly skilled you are, the more you are able to understand and utilize the nuances of forex trading tools.
On the surface, it may seem the skills required to use these forex trading tools would be the technical knowledge. Knowledge of how your trading platform works, how technical indicators are constructed, what they mean, and what would be the best ways of putting them together to create a forex trading system.
However, forex trading success isn't a two dimensional thing consisting only of your trading account and a trading system. In reality, it's a multi-dimensional thing that encompasses you not just as a trader but as a complete person. You have to learn a forex trading system suitable to you, the appropriate type of risk and money management strategies, developing a daily forex trading routine that matches what you want to accomplish in congruence with your actual life, maintaining your records and other supporting skills.
And these skills as a trader can't be bought with money. It takes time, effort and discipline to develop your trading skills. Not only that, it does require actual trading experience to understand what emotions you go through and how to manage them in your forex trading business.
While it may seem to be a lot of work and study, it's definitely possible to become a successful forex trader. Just don't expect it to happen overnight, or you will be sorely disappointed. Even the best of traders are constantly learning new things about the markets, the subtleties of trading and of themselves as traders and persons. Although with the right forex trading education and mentorship you can reduce the time taken, in most cases you'll still have to go through the experience of learning what it takes to be a successful forex trader.
Keep working on your trading skills in totality and soon you will find yourself having Consistent Forex Trading Profits.

Related Forex Options Brokers

Forex Options Brokers

Forex option brokers can generally be divided into two separate categories: forex brokers who offer online forex option trading platforms and forex brokers who only broker forex option trading via telephone trades placed through a dealing/brokerage desk. A few forex option brokers offer both online forex option trading as well a dealing/brokerage desk for investors who prefer to place orders through a live forex option broker.
The trading account minimums required by different forex option brokers vary from a few thousand dollars to over fifty thousand dollars. Also, forex option brokers may require investors to trade forex options contracts having minimum notional values (contract sizes) up to $500,000. Last, but not least, certain types of forex option contracts can be entered into and exited at any time while other types of forex option contracts lock you in until expiration or settlement. Depending on the type of forex option contract you enter into, you might get stuck the wrong way with an option contract that you can not trade out of. Before trading, investors should inquire with their forex option brokers about initial trading account minimums, required contract size minimums and contract liquidity.
There are a number of different forex option trading products offered to investors by forex option brokers. We believe it is extremely important for investors to understand the distinctly different risk characteristics of each of the forex option trading products mentioned below that are offered by firms that broker forex options.
Plain Vanilla Forex Options Broker - Plain vanilla options generally refer to standard put and call option contracts traded through an exchange (however, in the case of forex option trading, plain vanilla options would refer to the standard, generic option contracts that are traded through an over-the-counter (OTC) forex dealer or clearinghouse). In simplest terms, vanilla forex options would be defined as the buying or selling of a standard forex call option contract or forex put option contract.
There are only a few forex option broker/dealers who offer plain vanilla forex options online with real-time streaming quotes 24 hours a day. Most forex option brokers and banks only broker forex options via telephone. Vanilla forex options for major currencies have good liquidity and you can easily enter the market long or short, or exit the market any time day or night.
Vanilla forex option contracts can be used in combination with each other and/or with spot forex contracts to form a basic strategy such as writing a covered call, or much more complex forex trading strategies such as butterflies, strangles, ratio spreads, synthetics, etc. Also, plain vanilla options are often the basis of forex option trading strategies known as exotic options.
Exotic Forex Options Broker - First, it is important to note that there a couple of different forex definitions for "exotic" and we don't want anyone getting confused. The first definition of a forex "exotic" refers to any individual currency that is less broadly traded than the major currencies. The second forex definition for "exotic" is the one we refer to on this website - a forex option contract (trading strategy) that is a derivative of a standard vanilla forex option contract.
To understand what makes an exotic forex option "exotic," you must first understand what makes a forex option "non-vanilla." Plain vanilla forex options have a definitive expiration structure, payout structure and payout amount. Exotic forex option contracts may have a change in one or all of the above features of a vanilla forex option. It is important to note that exotic options, since they are often tailored to a specific's investor's needs by an exotic forex options broker, are generally not very liquid, if at all.
Exotic forex options are generally traded by commercial and institutional investors rather than retail forex traders, so we won't spend too much time covering exotic forex options brokers. Examples of exotic forex options would include Asian options (average price options or "APO's"), barrier options (payout depends on whether or not the underlying reaches a certain price level or not), baskets (payout depends on more than one currency or a "basket" of currencies), binary options (the payout is cash-or-nothing if underlying does not reach strike price), lookback options (payout is based on maximum or minimum price reached during life of the contract), compound options (options on options with multiple strikes and exercise dates), spread options, chooser options, packages and so on. Exotic options can be tailored to a specific trader's needs, therefore, exotic options contract types change and evolve over time to suit those ever-changing needs.
Since exotic forex options contracts are usually specifically tailored to an individual investor, most of the exotic options business in transacted over the telephone through forex option brokers. There are, however, a handful of forex option brokers who offer "if touched" forex options or "single payment" forex options contracts online whereby an investor can specify an amount he or she is willing to risk in exchange for a specified payout amount if the underlying price reaches a certain strike price (price level). These transactions offered by legitimate online forex brokers can be considered a type of "exotic" option. However, we have noticed that the premiums charged for these types of contracts can be higher than plain vanilla option contracts with similar strike prices and you can not sell out of the option position once you have purchased this type of option - you can only attempt to offset the position with a separate risk management strategy. As a trade-off for getting to choose the dollar amount you want to risk and the payout you wish to receive, you pay a premium and sacrifice liquidity. We would encourage investors to compare premiums before investing in these kinds of options and also make sure the brokerage firm is reputable.
Again, it is fairly easy and liquid to enter into an exotic forex option contract but it is important to note that depending on the type of exotic option contract, there may be little to no liquidity at all if you wanted to exit the position.
Firms Offering Forex Option "Betting" - A number of new firms have popped up over the last year offering forex "betting." Though some may be legitimate, a number of these firms are either off-shore entities or located in some other remote location. We generally do not consider these to be forex brokerage firms. Many do not appear to be regulated by any government agency and we strongly suggest investors perform due diligence before investing with any forex betting firms. Invest at your own risk with these firms.

Your Forex Options and Forex Options Broker

Forex option brokers can generally be divided into two separate categories; forex brokers who offer online forex option trading platforms and forex brokers who only broker forex option trading via telephone trades placed through a dealing/brokerage desk. A few forex option brokers offer both online forex option trading as well a dealing/brokerage desk for investors who prefer to place orders through a live forex option broker.

The trading account minimums required by different forex option brokers vary from a few thousand dollars to over fifty thousand dollars. Also, forex option brokers may require investors to trade forex options contracts having minimum notional values [contract sizes] up to $500,000. Last, but not least, certain types of forex option contracts can be entered into and exited at any time while other types of forex option contracts lock you in until expiration or settlement. Depending on the type of forex option contract you enter into, you might get stuck the wrong way with an option contract that you can not trade out of. Before trading, investors should inquire with their forex option brokers about initial trading account minimums, required contract size minimums and contract liquidity.

There are a number of different forex option trading products offered to investors by forex option brokers. We believe it is extremely important for investors to understand the distinctly different risk characteristics of each of the forex option trading products mentioned below that are offered by firms that broker forex options.

Plain Vanilla Forex Options Broker - Plain vanilla options generally refer to standard put and call option contracts traded through an exchange (however, in the case of forex option trading, plain vanilla options would refer to the standard, generic option contracts that are traded through an over-the-counter {OTC} forex dealer or clearinghouse). In simplest terms, vanilla forex options would be defined as the buying or selling of a standard forex call option contract or forex put option contract.

There are only a few forex option broker/dealers who offer plain vanilla forex options online with real-time streaming quotes 24 hours a day. Most forex option brokers and banks only broker forex options via telephone. Vanilla forex options for major currencies have good liquidity and you can easily enter the market long or short, or exit the market any time day or night.

Vanilla forex option contracts can be used in combination with each other and/or with spot forex contracts to form a basic strategy such as writing a covered call, or much more complex forex trading strategies such as butterflies, strangles, ratio spreads, synthetics, etc. Also, plain vanilla options are often the basis of forex option trading strategies known as exotic options.

Exotic Forex Options Broker - First, it is important to note that there a couple of different forex definitions for "exotic" and we don't want anyone getting confused. The first definition of a forex exotic refers to any individual currency that is less broadly traded than the major currencies. The second forex definition for ''exotic'' is the one we refer to on this website - a forex option contract [trading strategy] that is a derivative of a standard vanilla forex option contract.

To understand what makes an exotic forex option "exotic," you must first understand what makes a forex option 'non-vanilla'. Plain vanilla forex options have a definitive expiration structure, payout structure and payout amount. Exotic forex option contracts may have a change in one or all of the above features of a vanilla forex option. It is important to note that exotic options, since they are often tailored to a specific's investor's needs by an exotic forex options broker, are generally not very liquid, if at all.

Exotic forex options are generally traded by commercial and institutional investors rather than retail forex traders, so we won't spend too much time covering exotic forex options brokers. Examples of exotic forex options would include Asian options {average price options or ''APO's''}, barrier options (payout depends on whether or not the underlying reaches a certain price level or not), baskets (payout depends on more than one currency or a "basket" of currencies), binary options (the payout is cash-or-nothing if underlying does not reach strike price), look-back options (payout is based on maximum or minimum price reached during life of the contract), compound options (options on options with multiple strikes and exercise dates), spread options, chooser options, packages and so on. Exotic options can be tailored to a specific trader's needs, therefore, exotic options contract types change and evolve over time to suit those ever-changing needs.

Since exotic forex options contracts are usually specifically tailored to an individual investor, most of the exotic options business in transacted over the telephone through forex option brokers. There are, however, a handful of forex option brokers who offer "if touched" forex options or "single payment" forex options contracts online whereby an investor can specify an amount he or she is willing to risk in exchange for a specified payout amount if the underlying price reaches a certain strike price (price level). These transactions offered by legitimate online forex brokers can be considered a type of "exotic" option. However, we have noticed that the premiums charged for these types of contracts can be higher than plain vanilla option contracts with similar strike prices and you can not sell out of the option position once you have purchased this type of option - you can only attempt to offset the position with a separate risk management strategy. As a trade-off for getting to choose the dollar amount you want to risk and the payout you wish to receive, you pay a premium and sacrifice liquidity. We would encourage investors to compare premiums before investing in these kinds of options and also make sure the brokerage firm is reputable.

Again, it is fairly easy and liquid to enter into an exotic forex option contract but it is important to note that depending on the type of exotic option contract, there may be little to no liquidity at all if you wanted to exit the position.

Firms Offering Forex Option "Betting" - A number of new firms have popped up over the last year offering forex 'betting'. Though some may be legitimate, a number of these firms are either off-shore entities or located in some other remote location. We generally do not consider these to be forex brokerage firms. Many do not appear to be regulated by any government agency and we strongly suggest investors perform due diligence before investing with any forex betting firms. Invest at your own risk with these firms.