Learn Fx Forex Trading for Profit
While most of the world has been focusing on the negative news of global economic crisis and growing unemployment, a few people have been quietly harvesting more and more profit from the Forex or Foreign Exchange currency market
Duration : 3 min 56 sec
The currency market includes the Foreign Currency Market and the Euro-currency Market. The Foreign Currency Market is virtual. There is no one central physical location that is the foreign currency market. It exists in the dealing rooms of various central banks, large international banks, and some large corporations. The dealing rooms are connected via telephone, computer, and fax. Some countries co-locate their dealing rooms in one center. The Euro-currency Market is where borrowing and lending of currency takes place. Interest rates for the various currencies are set in this market.
Trading on the Foreign Exchange Market establishes rates of exchange for currency. Exchange rates are constantly fluctuating on the forex market. As demand rises and falls for particular currencies, their exchange rates adjust accordingly. Instantaneous rate quotes are available from a service provided by Reuters. A rate of exchange for currencies is the ratio at which one currency is exchanged for another.
The foreign exchange market has no regulation, no restrictions or overseeing board. Should there be a world monetary crisis in this market; there is no mechanism to stop trading. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York publishes guidelines for Foreign Exchange trading. In their “Guidelines for Foreign Exchange Trading”, they outline 50 best practices for trading on the forex market.
Spot Exchange
The spot exchange is the simplest contract. A spot exchange contract identifies two parties, the currency they are buying or selling and the currency they expect to receive in exchange. The currencies are exchanged at the prevailing spot rate at the time of the contract. The spot rate is constantly fluctuating. When a spot exchange is agreed upon, the contract is defined to be executed immediately. In reality, a series of confirmations occurs between the two parties. Documentation is sent and received from both parties detailing the exchange rate agreed upon and the amounts of currency involved. The funds actually move between banks two days after the spot transaction is agreed upon.
Forward Exchange
The forward exchange contract is similar to the spot exchange. However, the time period of the contract is significantly longer. These contracts use a forward exchange rate that differs from the spot rate. The difference between the forward rate and the spot rate reflects the difference in interest rates between the two currencies. This prevents an opportunity for arbitrage. If the rates did not differ, there would be a profit difference in the currencies. That is, investing in one currency for a year and then selling it should be the same profit or loss as setting up a forward contract at the forward rate one year in the future. Investing in one currency would be more profitable than investing in the other. Thus there would exist an opportunity for arbitrage. Forward exchange contracts are settled at a specified date in the future. The parties exchange funds at this date. Forward contracts are typically custom written between the party needing currency and the bank, or between banks.
Currency Futures and Swap Transactions
Currency futures are standardized forward contracts. The amounts of currency, time to expiry, and exchange rates are standardized. The standardized expiry times are specific dates in March, June, September, and December. These futures are traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). Futures give the buyer an option of setting up a contract to exchange currency in the future. This contract can be purchased on an exchange, rather than custom negotiated with a bank like a forward contract.
A currency swap is an agreement to two exchanges in currency, one a spot and one a forward. An immediate spot exchange is executed, followed later by a reverse exchange. The two exchanges occur at different exchange rates. It is the difference in the two exchange rates that determines the swap price. There is also something called a currency swap. This is a method to exchange an income stream of one currency for another.
Currency Options
A currency option gives the holder the right, but not the obligation, either to buy (call) from the option writer, or to sell (put) to the option writer, a stated quantity of one currency in exchange for another at a fixed rate of exchange, called the strike price. The options can be American, which allows an option to be exercised until a fixed day, called the day of expiry, or European, which allows exercise only on the day of expiry, not before. The option holder pays a premium to the option writer for the option.
The option differs from other currency contracts in that the holder has a choice, or option, of whether they will exercise it or not. If exchange rates are more favorable than the rate guaranteed by the option when the holder needs to exchange currency, they can choose to exchange the currency on the spot exchange rather than use the option. They lose only the option premium. Options allow holders to limit their risk of exposure to adverse changes in the exchange rates.
Hedging
It is also common for currency options to be used to hedge cash positions. Companies are not typically in the business of gambling with their profits on deals. It is in the company’s best interest to lock in an exchange rate they can count on. They are motivated to insure that their profits are as expected. Two ways they might do this are to enter forward contracts or to buy options.
They would select an exchange rate that would be acceptable but not too expensive. They might choose to buy a slightly out-of-the-money call option to cover them if the currency exchange rate falls. If it stays the same or rises, they will exchange at the spot exchange rate at the time the payment is due.
The Canadian dollar is heavily influenced by the price of crude oil. Watch for a break in the CAD in the coming weeks, either higher or lower depending on the direction of crude.
Duration : 53 sec
Is forex as risky as everyone thinks? One way to measure risk is to compare a financial product’s risk relative to its return. If you take the time to compare an investment in forex to common investments such as equities and fixed income, you will find that from a risk/reward standpoint, forex investments provide respectable returns and should be considered viable portfolio diversification tools.
The spot forex market is unique to any other market in the world, as trading is available 24-hours a day. Somewhere around the world, a financial center is open for business, and banks and other institutions exchange currencies, every hour of the day and night with generally only minor gaps on the weekend. Essentially foreign exchange markets follow the sun around the world, giving traders the flexibility of determining their trading day.
Although forex trading can lead to very profitable results, there are risks involved. When it comes to trading forex, you’ll need to worry about exchange rate risks, interest rate risks, credit risks, and country risks – things you may not consider when trading stocks.
The foreign exchange market is unique in that central banks intervene from time to time to affect the price movements of their respective currencies. On the surface, this may disturb those who use fundamentals to make investment decisions, trusting that the “invisible hand” guiding free-market behavior is not being manipulated. However, it has been proven time and again that central banks can only influence currency values for short periods; over time, the markets adjust to the changes. This leads to the formation of trends, which your trend-following strategies will help you trade.
Since most currency trading is short-term in nature, speculators can cause erratic fluctuations in the exchange rates. So, when considering trading currencies, you cannot ignore fundamental factors. These include relative interest rates, economic stability, political stability, and relative trade deficit/surplus.
These fundamentals or market forces should be strong enough to initiate the formation of discernible trends in order for you to apply profitable technical trading strategies. Further, the length of the trends needs to be sufficient for you to recognize them and be able to take advantage of market swings.
Of the more than one trillion dollars a day transacted in the foreign exchange markets, an estimated 95% comes from speculative trading. While large international banks are responsible for the majority of this volume, there are retail investors all over the globe trading forex on a daily basis.
Without a doubt, investors in the US are behind the curve with regard to learning about and participating in this market. Active equity and futures traders who appreciate liquidity, strong technical indicators, and a multitude of short-term trading opportunities will find the forex market especially appealing.
But at the very least, trading the foreign exchange market deserves serious consideration as a diversification strategy in anyone’s portfolio.
Forex, as you very well know, is the largest financial market in the world. Unlike many other markets, the international forex market is open 24 hours a day. Its daily turnover is well over US$ 1.2 trillion. This turnover is more than the combined turnover of the world’s major stock markets on any given day. Hence, the international forex market is a very liquid, and thus, a desirable market for trading. As with any other market, technology has also contributed immensely towards its expansion. Now trades are executed increasingly through the internet. It has allowed even smaller investors the access to the market.
In this market you may buy or sell currencies. The objective is to earn a profit from your position. Placing a trade in the foreign exchange market is simple: the mechanics of a trade are virtually identical to those found in other markets, so the transition for many traders is often seamless.
Here are an example of how forex trading works. Say, a trader purchases 10,000 euros in the beginning of 2004 at the EUR/USD rate was .9600. In May of 2006 the trader exchanges his 10,000 euro back into US dollar at the market rate of 1.1800. In this example, the trader earned a gross profit of $2,200.
Currencies are quoted in pairs, such as EUR/USD or USD/JPY. The first listed currency is known as the base currency, while the second is called the counter or quote currency. The base currency is the “basis” for the buy or the sell. For example, if you BUY EUR/USD you have bought euros (simultaneously sold dollars). You would do so in expectation that the euro will appreciate (go up) relative to the US dollar.
Buying/Selling
First, the trader should determine whether they want to buy or sell. If they want to enter a short order – whereby they will profit if the exchange rate falls – they simply need to click on the SELL rate. The opposite holds true for traders who enter buy orders: they can simply click on the BUY rate, and thus will profit if the exchange rate goes up.
Just like in all markets, there are two prices for every currency pair. The difference between these two prices is the spread, or the cost of the trade.
Margin
The margin deposit is not a down payment on a purchase of equity, as many perceive margins to be in the stock markets. Rather, the margin is a performance bond, or good faith deposit, to ensure against trading losses. The margin requirement allows traders to hold a position much larger than the account value.
In the event that funds in the account fall below margin requirements, the forex broker will close some or all open positions. This prevents clients’ accounts from falling into a negative balance, even in a highly volatile, fast moving market.
Example of How Margin Works
Since the trader opened 1 lot of the EUR/USD, his margin requirement or Used Margin is $1000. Usable Margin is the funds available to open new positions or sustain trading losses. If the equity (the value of his account) falls below his Used Margin due to trading losses, his position will automatically be closed. As a result, the trader can never lose more than he/she deposits.
Rollover
For positions open at 5pm EST, there is a daily rollover interest rate that a trader either pays or earns, depending on your established margin and position in the market. If you do not want to earn or pay interest on your positions, simply make sure it is closed at 5pm EST, the established end of the market day.
Since every currency trade involves borrowing one currency to buy another, interest rollover charges are an inherent part of forex trading. Interest is paid on the currency that is borrowed, and earned on the one that is purchased. If a client is buying a currency with a higher interest rate than the one he/she is borrowing, the net differential will be positive – and the client will earn funds as a result. Please note that clients must be on 2% margin in order to earn funds.
I am international student and would like to get a scholarship to study. I am poor and cannot afford university fees, i cant even get any US dollars even if I could pay for it because the government here has in place huge restrictions on forex trading.
are you talking about undergrad or graduate studies? for graduate study, most US universities will give you either teaching or research assistant positions. that way you can pay for tuition as well as living in the US. you can also look for faculty who can sponsor you — you can be a "target" student and work for them. as for undergrads… i'm actually not sure.
at any rate, good luck!
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