futures trading platforms

Forex Trading System

2009-07-09T05:34:00.000-07:00

There are basically two types of Forex trading systems, mechanical and discretionary systems. The trading signals that come out of mechanical systems are mainly based off technical analysis applied in a systematic way. On the other hand, discretionary systems use experience, intuition or judgment on entries and exits. But which one produces better results? Or more importantly, which one fits better your trading style? These are the answers we will try to answer on this article.

We will first analyze the pros and cons about each system approach.
Mechanical systems

Advantages

This kind of system can be automated and backtested efficiently.
It has very rigid rules. Either, there is a trade or there isn’t.
Mechanical traders are less susceptible to emotions than discretionary traders.

Disadvantages

Most traders backtest Forex trading systems incorrectly. In order to produce accurate results you need tick data.

The Forex market is always changing. The Forex market (and all markets) has a random component. The market conditions may look similar, but they are never the same.

A system that worked successfully the past year doesn’t necessary mean it will work this year.
Discretionary systems

Advantages

Discretionary systems are easily adaptable to new market conditions.
Trading decisions are based on experience.

Traders learn to see which trading signals have higher probability of success.

Disadvantages

They cannot be backtested or automated, since there is always a thought decision to be made.

It takes time to develop the experience required to trade successfully and track trades in a discretionary way.

At early stages this can be dangerous.

Now, which approach is better for Forex traders? The one that fits better your personality. For instance, if you are a trader that finds it hard to follow your trading signals, then you are better off using a mechanical system, where your judgment won’t play an important role in your system. You only take the trades that your system signals.

If the psychological barriers that affect every trader (fear, greed, anger, etc.) puts you in unwanted scenarios, you are also better off trading mechanical systems, because you only need to follow what your system is telling you, go short, go long, close a trade. No other decision has to be made.

On the other hand, if you are a disciplined trader, then you are better off using a discretionary system, because discretionary systems adapt to the market conditions and you are able to change your trading conditions as the market changes. For instance, you have a target of 60 pips on a long trade. But the market suddenly starts trending up pretty strongly, then you could move your target to say 100 pips.

Does it mean that trading a discretionary system has no rules? This is absolutely incorrect. Trading discretionary systems means that once a trader finds his/her setup, the trader then decides what to do. But every trader still needs certain rules that need to be followed, such as the size of the position, conditions that have to be met before thinking to get in the market, and so on.

I am a discretionary trader. The main reason I chose a discretionary system is that my trades are based on price behavior, and as you already know, the price behaves similar to the past, but it is never identical, therefore the outcome of every trade is unknown. However, I do have rigid rules on my system, certain conditions have to be met before I even think in getting in a trade. This keeps me out of trouble, once my setup is present and in accordance with the rules I have set, then I closely watch the price behavior and finally decide whether it is a good opportunity or not.

Whether you choose to be a discretionary or a mechanical trader there are some important points you should take in consideration:

1. You need to make sure the Forex trading system you are using totally fits your personality. Otherwise you will find yourself outguessing your system.
2. You also need to have some rules and most importantly have the discipline to follow them.
3. Take your time to build the perfect system for you. It’s not easy and requires time and hard work, but at the end, if done correctly, it will give you consistent profitable results.
4. Before going live, try it on a demo account or even on a small account (I will go for the second option, since psychological barriers will be present).

FOREX

2009-07-09T05:30:00.000-07:00

Million Dollar Traders was on BBC2 last night. What a great introduction to city traders and how unpredictable the Stock market can be! So thats why I trade the Forex and not the Stock Market then!

Some of the trainees have aspirations to trade full time including a retired man who was interviewed stating that he wanted to use his savings to trade from home after the series had finished. With the availability of great trading from home facilities avaialble to anyone, anywhere in the world and anytime day or night - trading from home, especially within the Forex market is a real possibility.

Well I guess it was pretty bad timing as the program was filmed last year when Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae announced financial meltdown in the US so the newbies couldn't be trading at a worse time! However the familiar 'frozen finger' inability to place a trade was prevalent so too was emotional attachment and emotional reactions, loss of confidence etc to trading which most newbies go through - including myself.......oh yes some good 'ol roller-coaster days but have managed to keep it together long enough to have learnt and come through the other side.

Having said that I haven't been able to do it trading the UK Stock market - Forex is where its at as far as I'm concerned so hats off to the guys in the program for trading the UK Stock market through one of the most difficult periods in a generation.

Trading psychology and risk management as emphaised in the program are essential key factors to get right when trading any market. Building this into your strategy, giving yourself targets such as the '3 srikes and your out' rule will make this easier to deal with. Don't allow yourself more than 3 trades to go against you in one trading period. If that happens finish for the day there.

Trading any market has the ability to wipe out your money, savings and future. As the Million Dollar Trader program is showing, trading without strategies is like playing with fire. Formulate a good solid trading strategy before you open any position - it will also make you more confident as knowing you have done your homework is good for your trading mindse

Forex Code

2009-07-09T05:24:00.000-07:00

Did anyone see the Da Vinci code this weekend?? I did! No, I have not read the book, but every time I got on an airplane the past 2 years there was always someone reading this book!

Did you notice the references to Fibonacci all over the movie? I did, and was counting the sequence right along with John Langdon (aka Tom Hanks)! That got me thinking a little more about one of my favorite trading tools and what it all means. So I went hunting for some facts and this is what I found.

Leonardo Fibonacci was the Italian mathematician who was born around the year 1170 AD. His real name was Leonardo Pisano, but was better known by his nickname Fibonacci (“son of Bonnacci”). Fibonacci’s father was a diplomat and his son traveled with him during his formidable years studying mathematics and accounting.

In 1202, Fibonacci wrote Libre Abaci, a book about the mathematics he had learned on the road with his father. That book led to his famous number sequencing when measuring the ratios for which rabbits reproduce.

His sequence 0,1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55,… is that each number is the sum of the two preceding numbers. The interesting thing is that each of the successive numbers is equal to 1.168 of the prior number.

Check this out!

When looking at this geometrically you find that when you measure a triangle by 1.00 as the hypotenuse the opposing side ratios are .786 and .618. Hey, I have seen those ratios before!

When we make .786 the hypotenuse than the opposing side ratios are .618 and .486. No way!!

If we make .618 the hypotenuse then the opposing side ratios are .486 and .382. Right on!!

The Fibonacci ratios that I always focus on in my trading are:

Retracements:
38.2%
50.0%
61.8%
78.6%

Extensions and Expansion:
61.8%
100%
127% (note that INDU turned almost on this extension last week!!)
162%

Want some more or have you had enough? I thought you would want one more example of FIBOs in nature!

Look at your own hand:
You have...
2 hands each of which has ...
5 fingers, each of which has ...
3 parts separated by ...
2 knuckles

All Fibonacci numbers! How about this, the bones in your finger are all in Fibonacci ratios to each other too! Is this just a coincidence or not??

OK, OK I think I just gave everyone a headache. You are all probably thinking that I need to get away from my trade station more often! Bottom line is that you don’t really need to know the details of Fibonacci’s life or all the examples in nature.

The bottom line is that we all know how important these ratios are to our trading and it will pay huge dividends to learn how to apply these principals to our trading!!

How to Trade the Forex Market - Take Off the Training Wheels

2009-07-07T12:07:00.000-07:00

we know that when you are first start to learn about how to trade the forex market, people tend to really go "indicator crazy". This means they will put any kind of indicator on their charts. It doesn't matter if they don't have a clue about how to use it or even understand what's the purpose of it.

we just suppose using these indicators provides some kind of reassurance to the trader. I can safely say that when I first started to trade I was suffering from the indicator fever. I used to be the kind of trader that would spend all day on forex forums trying to get my hands on new proprietary indicators.

But something eventually dawned on me. While all these indicators looked really pretty on my chart, I didn't have the first clue about how to actually trade the forex market. After all, I was just blindly following these indicators as the sole reason to enter and exit a trade.

This is what I like to call the training phase of a trader. It's somewhat akin to when you first learn how to ride a bike. Nobody knows how to ride a bike the first time they get on one, so they put training wheels. In this metaphor, the training wheels are the indicators.

But just like when you are riding a bike that is on training wheels, it may seem like you are really riding the bike. But in the back of your mind, you KNOW that you aren't really riding a bike unless you are unassisted.

It's the same exact thing in trading.n the real term too.

You can't call yourself a trader unless you can say with great certainty, you understand what is going in the market, and I hate to say it, but you can't really do that with indicators. The reason is, because you are using the indicators to tell you what is going on in the market, instead of you understanding it for yourself.

2009-07-07T11:47:00.001-07:00

If you have been following my blog you know that I am a big proponent of setting up a compounding account as a wealth building strategy for those of you new to the Forex market. This compounding account is not to be touched until you can meet your financial need with only withdrawing 50% of your profit without changing your risk profile. You can have your “Mad Money” account to satisfy some of your more exotic Forex desires, but having a compounding account where you are depositing a consistent number pips is critical to your long term viability as a individual currency trader.

So why is this so critical? Now that you are a trained trader you have probably realized that your Forex Journey has only just begun. You have discovered that there are numerous strategies and approaches to trading this market. You have also noticed that in the end most of the strategies are viable and that the most volatile factor in any trade is the human interaction in the marketplace itself. I am sure, like me, you have discovered you are your own worst enemy! Having a compounding account ensures that you are trading from a centered base. Your pip goal is reserved and very attainable and your entry and exit strategies will reflect this conservative approach. Trading this account will also build discipline and allow you to avoid those huge draw downs. In this account you are not the gambler, but the casino. When was the last time you heard of a casino losing money on their gaming operations? You rely on a strategy to meet your daily pip goal (at least 3:1) and through money management you are keeping the long term odds in your favor like a casino operator. Your actions will then dictate your profitable results!

Do the math! See what your results would be if you started with a $3,000 mini account, risk no more that 5% on any given trade and made just 15 pips per day. How much will your balance be at the end of a year of trading? The results will astound you!!

Entires and Exits in frorex

2009-07-07T11:33:00.000-07:00

Well, I just returned from some well earned rest & relaxation! It is always a good time to escape the heat of the desert during the summer months. One of the things I like to do during my down time is to catch up on my reading. One of the key points on the Roadmap to Forex Success is continuous education and one of my favorite ways is to read.

I just finished "Entries & Exits: Visits to Sixteen Trading Rooms" by Dr. Alexander Elder. I have added this book to the "must read" category for anyone who trades. It really does not matter what instrument you trade, this is a gotta have to any success library!

The long and short of it is the Dr. Elder visit 16 traders that he has met and mentored throughout his career. The traders explain, in short story format, how and why they trade the way they do. This is followed my Dr. Elder's commentary on their trades. The "gem" of this book is to follow the commentary of each trader. In theirs words you will gain great insight and knowledge and determine they are no different than us, so similar and so unique. These trader have cracked the code and the nuggets provided will help you do the same. It is a very easy read, a kin to 16 short stories. I encourage you to read each story and reflect on what lessons you can bring into your own trading room.
I don't care if you get this book from me (http://www.squidoo.com/forexjourney), your local library or borrow from a friend ... just get and read this book! It is worth the 10 pips price of admission!!

If you have not noticed my posts have been a little less frequent over the past several weeks. I take time in the summer to vacation and renew. I also enjoy going to trainings and seminars. Not all of these events tie directly back into trading currencies, but then again I also have other interest and passions.

I was at one such seminar last week in Los Angeles. I was networking after the event with a bunch of other entrepreneurs. We spoke about all kinds of topics (I was the only trader in the group … surrounded by mostly real estate investors!), but the topic that seemed dominate is the on around making the jump from W4 employee to being out on your own.

I know there are Forex traders out there that enjoy trading, but have never considered taking the leap to trading fulltime. But, if you are one of those that want to trade fulltime then I have some tips for you that would make that transition easier and they do not involve trading!
Be in Control

It goes without saying that you must have supreme confidence in your trading acumen to cross over. Always have a check and balance in place, because there is a fine line between supreme confidence and arrogance. The latter will end your stint faster that a bucket of ice on my hot summer patio in Phoenix. Recognize that you still have one last unexplored psychological hurdle to cross. You won’t have that paycheck to fall back on anymore! This brings another level of pressure that did not exist before.
Build a Business Plan

Like any other professional venue you will have to trade as a business. You should structure you trading within a legal business entity and develop a business plan which will guide your approach to trading.

Understand Wealth Building Principals

Before making the leap you should have the wealth building principals done pat! They are:

Make a constant investment to your account and watch it grow. I have written previously that you should have a separate Forex compounding account where you deploy conservative strategies and just let it grow! You can only withdraw funds from this account to feed other wealth builsing entities such as real estate or business investment. This account will be your golden goose!

Give your investments time for growth. Getting rich slow in some of your accounts is quite OK!

Know your yield. Your financial education will determine your yield. Remember an investment in you will always offer the greatest return. Become a life long student!

Follow these principals will lead to tremendous wealth!

Network!!

Build a network of entrepreneurs and traders. Seek out their knowledge and expertise on items such as health insurance. Take every advantage your corporation will allow.

One final point to consider, think about developing another source of revenue outside of your trading account. At this stage you have developed an expertise that people are willing to pay to access. Finding a way to leverage this could provide an additional stream of income, adding financial flexibility.

These are a few points to consider. It is way more than just pure trading, but necessary steps to ensure your success!

2009-07-07T11:10:00.001-07:00

Being the main force driving the global economic market, currency is no doubt an essential element for a country. However, in order for all the countries with different currencies to trade with one another, a system of exchange rate between their currencies is needed; this system, is formally known as foreign exchange or currency exchange.
In the early days, the system of currency exchange is supported solely by the gold amount held in the vault of a country. However, this system is no longer appropriate now due to inflation and hence, the value of one’s currency nowadays is determined through the market forces alone. In order to determine the value of a currency’s exchange rate, two main types of system is used which is floating currency and pegged currency.
For floating exchange rate, its value is determined by the supply and demand of the global market where the supply and demand is bound by all these factors such as foreign investment, inflation and ratios of import and export. Normally, this system is adopted by most of the advance countries like for example UK, US and Canada. All of these countries have a similarity where their market is well developed and stable in economic terms. These countries choose to practice this system due to the reason where floating exchange rate is proven to be much more efficient compared to the pegged exchange rate. The reason behind this is because for floating exchange rate, the market itself will re-adjust the exchange rate real-time in order to portray the actual inflation and other economic forces. However, every system has its own flaw and so does the floating exchange rate system. For instance, if a country suffers from economic instability due to various reasons such as political issues, a floating exchange rate system will certainly discourage investment due to the high risk of suffering from inflationary disaster or sudden slump in exchange rate.
Another form of exchange rate is known as pegged exchange rate. This is a system where the value of the exchange rate is fixed by the government of a country and not the supply and demand of the market. This system is called pegged exchange rate because the value of a country’s currency is fixed to another country’s currency. As a result, the value of the pegged currency will not fluctuate unlike the floating currency. The working principle behind this system is slightly complicated where the government of a country will fixed the exchange rate of their currency and when there is a demand for a certain currency resulting a rise in the exchange rate, the government will have to release enough of that currency into the market in order to meet that demand. However, there is a fatal flaw in this system where if the pegged exchange rate is not controlled properly, panics may arise within the country and as a result of that, people will be rushing to exchange their money into a more stable currency. When that happens, the sudden overflow of that country’s currency into the market will decrease the value of their exchange rate and in the end, their currency will be worthless. Due to this reason, only those under-developed or developing countries will practice this method as a form to control the inflation rate.
However, the truth is, most of the countries do not fully practice the floating exchange rate or the pegged exchange rate method in reality. Instead, they use a hybrid system known as floating peg. Floating peg is the combination of the two main systems where one country will normally fixed their exchange rate to the US Dollars and after that, they will constantly review their peg rate in order to stay in line with the actual market value. The Foreign exchange market, or commonly known as FOREX, is the largest and most prolific financial market because each day, more than 1 trillion worth of currency exchange takes place between investors, speculators and countries. From this, we can deduce that the actual mechanism behind the world of foreign exchange is far more complicated than what we may already know, and that, the information mentioned earlier is just the tip of an iceberg...

2009-07-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

what is forex

2009-07-07T10:47:00.000-07:00

Mark Gallant: Chairman and founder, GAIN Capital Group. Brian Dolan: Chief currency strategist, FOREX.com
Omar Bassal, Head of Asset Management, NBK Capital
Jared Marinez, FXCHIEF and founder of The Market Traders Institute, Inc.
Barbara Rockefeller, International economist and trader

My advice? Never, ever, fail to look for the ideas of experts. Even if you don't agree with everything they say, which is appropriate, they should be able to increase your understanding and improve your own thinking.

I've had some days with a NAV appreciation of 10%, 20% or more. I'd like to have a lot more days like that... and I don't think that online sources created for the purpose of flogging affiliate commissions will do that for me

FOREX is the foreign exchange market or currency market or Forex is the market where one currency is traded for another. It is one of the largest markets in the world.

Some of the participants in this market are simply seeking to exchange a foreign currency for their own, like multinational corporations which must pay wages and other expenses in different nations than they sell products in. However, a large part of the market is made up of currency traders, who speculate on movements in exchange rates, much like others would speculate on movements of stock prices. Currency traders try to take advantage of even small fluctuations in exchange rates.

In the foreign exchange market there is little or no 'inside information'. Exchange rate fluctuations are usually caused by actual monetary flows as well as anticipations on global macroeconomic conditions. Significant news is released publicly so, at least in theory, everyone in the world receives the same news at the same time.

Currencies are traded against one another. Each pair of currencies thus constitutes an individual product and is traditionally noted XXX/YYY, where YYY is the ISO 4217 international three-letter code of the currency into which the price of one unit of XXX currency is expressed. For instance, EUR/USD is the price of the euro expressed in US dollars, as in 1 euro = 1.2045 dollar.

Unlike stocks and futures exchange, foreign exchange is indeed an interbank, over-the-counter (OTC) market which means there is no single universal exchange for specific currency pair. The foreign exchange market operates 24 hours per day throughout the week between individuals with forex brokers, brokers with banks, and banks with banks. If the European session is ended the Asian session or US session will start, so all world currencies can be continually in trade. Traders can react to news when it breaks, rather than waiting for the market to open, as is the case with most other markets.

Average daily international foreign exchange trading volume was $1.9 trillion in April 2004 according to the BIS study.

Forex is the largest and most happening financial market of the world

2009-07-06T06:38:00.000-07:00

forex is the largest and most happening financial market of the world. It is the venue where one currency is traded for the other. The market place is distinguished from the rest because of its high trading volume and geographical dispersion. A trader with sound knowledge of currency trading can earn substantial profit in forex market. Along with the knowledge of trading, he should have access to a few tools of forex trading. These tools are made to strengthen the confidence of a trader and can prove out to be a great help for a winning currency trading in forex. Being an awakened trader of forex market, you should remain aware about every latest happening of currency trading. Therefore, it’s important for you to have access to daily forex trading summary for important currencies and currency pairs. Add to this, a weekly forex trading summary is also beneficial as it will encompass detailed analysis of your sought subject. Tools that help you to access and monitor the interest rates, financial calendar, glossary database are also worthwhile. Apart from the above, there are several other tools of currency trading available around you. Several software containing detailed analysis and information about currency trading are also available at your disposal. All these tools and software packs are important for a successful forex trading. With access to such tools, a trader can easily execute his trading. Now, how to get these tools easily and satisfactorily? Well, it’s easy. With the availability of internet, you need not to get out of your home to access these tools and software packs. Just a single click and you can access valuable information and tools regarding currency trading in forex. Several online forex firms have been established only to offer you tools and software packs for forex trading. Some of them may charge money from you to download or access the software packs and tools. If you are not at all interested to cut your pocket, go for those forex firms, who offer free download facility. Online forex firms are beneficial in many ways. They not only offer you currency trading tools and software but also keen to give you an insight into the latest incidents of forex market. They also publish economic reports and influential topics on their websites with an aim to update a trader about what matter in currency trading. You can also access live charts of the forex market and trading secrets from such online firms. These forex firms are usually run by experienced professional, who own years of experience in currency trading. So, you can trust them. Thus trading in forex market has become easy with the availability of tools and software packs. And the advent of internet has made it easier. Today any one from any corner of the world can access forex trading tools for simplifying his currency trading.

How To Get Started In Forex Trading

2009-07-04T11:16:00.000-07:00

You may have been hearing about the foreign exchange market (Forex) and the investment advantages it offers. You would like to try it out, but don't know where to start. This short guide will give you the basics in Forex and tell you what you need to participate in this fast growing field.

Foreign exchange used to be limited to large players such as national banks and multi-national corporations. In the 1980's the rules were revised to allow smaller investors to participate using margin accounts. Margin accounts are the reason why Forex trading has become so popular. With a 100:1 margin account, you can control $100,000 with a $1,000 investment.

Forex is not simple, however, and education is needed to make wise investment decisions. Although it is relatively easy to start trading on the Forex, there are risks involved, so finding out as much as possible about the market is a good move for any beginner.

Forex traders usually require a broker to handle transactions. Most brokers are reputable and are associated with large financial institutions such as banks. A reputable broker will be registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as protection against fraud and abusive trade practices.

Opening a Forex account is as simple as filling out a form and providing the necessary ID. The form will include a margin agreement that states that the broker can interfere with any trade it deems to be too risky. This is to protect the interests of the broker — most trades, after all, are done using the broker's money. Once your account has been established, you can fund it and begin trading.

Many brokers have different types of accounts to suit the needs of individual investors. Mini accounts allow you to get involved in Forex trading for as little as $250, while standard accounts may have a minimum deposit of $1000 to $2500 depending on the broker. The amount of leverage — using borrowed money — varies with accounts. High leverage gives you more money to trade for a given investment.

HOWEVER — beginner traders are advised get accustomed to Forex by doing paper trades for a period of time. Paper trades are practice transactions that don't involve real capital. They allow you to see how the system works while learning how to use the various software tools that are at provided by most Forex brokers.

Most online brokers have demo accounts that allow you to make free paper trades for up to 30 days. Every new Forex investor is strongly advised to use these demo accounts at least until they are showing consistently steady profits.

Each broker has their own set of software tools to aid in making transactions, but there are a few tools that are common to all Forex brokers. Real time quotes, news feeds, technical analyses and charts, and profit and loss analyses are some of the features you should expect to see on most online brokers' web sites.

Almost every broker operates on the Internet. To access their online services you should have a reasonably modern computer, a fast Internet connection, and an up-to-date operating system such as Windows XP. Once your account is set up, you can access it from any computer — just enter your account name and password. If for some reason you are not able get access to a computer, most brokers will allow you to make trades over the phone.

Trades are commission free, meaning that you can make many trades in one day without worrying about incurring high brokerage fees. Brokers make their money on the 'spread' — the difference between bid and ask prices.

Forex Enterprise — A Full Review

2009-07-04T11:09:00.000-07:00

A new marketing course to hit the internet by Nick Marks that advertises earnings of $1000 a day and $30,000 a month respectively. This turnkey system generating multiple streams of income is relatively new and so it is my pleasure to review it for you.

After purchasing you are given a login page where you are introduced to the system which is in website format. Everything is easy to access and well organized.

After Nick gives you a little pep talk about positive thinking and goal setting, you will be introduced to his first recommendation: join Coastal Vacations. While not a part of his main Forex system this is a recommendation I could've done without.

In the pay per click section you are given a large list of keywords that Nick found convert really well with his system. Some of the keywords in the list have bid prices already attached to them so you can get front page exposure.

The course also has $50 in free adwords credit that unfortunately only works with new accounts so I was out of luck. If you don't already have an account this is worth the price of the course alone.
The forex course shows you some inexpensive traffic methods and provides links to these sources. He also covers stuff like pop-over ads, e-mail lists and autoresponders. Not bad information by any means, and is an alternative to pay per click advertising if you have a smaller budget.

He has an ebook package that seemed like it was going to be really cool as there were dozens of bonus ebooks and software programs covering everything from creating ebooks and website templates, to getting top positions in the major search engines.

As I took a closer look at this package I realized there were some bargain bin informational products included. However, there were also alot of goodies in there as well that I found rather useful. You get so many ebooks and software in here that it really is worth far more than the price of the course.

There is a section on becoming an Ebay power seller in 90 days that goes into a fair amount of detail and wasn't bad. However, Ebay isn't something I have ever been particularly interested in doing. There is also a section on baccarat strategies that I had no interest in.

One of the last sections of his course introduces you to e-currency exchanging using the DXINONE system. It is a great way to acquaint yourself with this increasingly popular opportunity without having to buy standalone e-currency courses which can cost a couple hundred dollars.

The author has combined several effective ways to earn money online and rolled them all into one course. While I didn't jump up and down about all of his strategies, the free ebooks, software, and adwords credit make Forex Enterprise worth the money.

Forex Made Easy for Everyone

2009-07-04T11:03:00.000-07:00

Forex made easy is as simple as you would want it to be. The foreign exchange market is a worldwide market and according to some estimates is almost as big as thirty times the turnover of the US Equity markets. That is some figure to chew on. Forex is the commonly used term for foreign exchange. As a person who wants to invest in the forex market, one should understand the basics of how this currency market operates. Forex can be made easier for beginners to understand it and here's how.

Foreign exchange is the buying and the selling of foreign exchange in pairs of currencies. For example you buy US dollars and sell UK Sterling pounds or you sell German Marks and buy Japanese Yen. Why are currencies bought or sold? The answer is simple; Governments and Companies need foreign exchange for their purchase and payments for various commodities and services. This trade constitutes about 5% of all currency transactions, however the other 95% currency transactions are done for speculation and trade. In fact many companies will buy foreign currency when it is being traded at a lower rate to protect their financial investments. Another thing about foreign exchange market is that the rates are varying continuously and on daily basis. Therefore investors and financial managers track the forex rates and the forex market it on a daily basis.

Those who are involved in the forex trade know that almost 85% of the trading is done in only US Dollar, Japanese Yen, Euro, British Pound, Swiss Franc, Canadian Dollar and Australian Dollar. This is because they are the most liquid of foreign currencies (can be easily bought and sold. In fact the US Dollar is most recognizable foreign currency even in countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam etc).

Being a truly 24/7 market, the currency trading markets opens in the financial centers of Sydney, Tokyo, London and New York in that sequence. Investors and speculators alike respond to the ever-changing situations and can buy and sell simultaneously the currencies. In fact many operate in two or more currency market using arbitrage to gain profits (buying in one market and selling in another market or vice versa to take advantage of the prices and book profits).

While dealing in forex, one should have a margin account. Quite simply put if you have US$ 1,000 and have a forex margin account which leverages 100:1 then you can buy US$ 100,000 since you only need 1% of the US$100,000 or US$1,000. Therefore it means that with margin account you have US$ 100,000 worth of real purchasing power in your hand.

Since the foreign currency market is fluctuating on a continuous basis, one should be able to understand the factors that affect this currency market. This is done through Technical Analysis and Fundamental Analysis. These two tools of trade are used in a variety of other markets such as equity markets, stock markets, mutual funds markets etc. Technical Analysis refers to reading, summarizing and analyzing data based on the data that is generated by the market.

While fundamental Analysis refers to the factors, which influence the market economy, and in turn how it would affect the currency trading. Of course there are other economic and non economic factors which can suddenly affect the trading of the forex markets such as the 9/11 tragedy etc. One needs to have a shrewd acumen and a few number crunching abilities to strike gold in the forex market.

Forex Made Easy for Everyone

2009-07-04T10:56:00.000-07:00

Transaction Costs and Market Makers

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Market makers are compensated for allowing clients to enter the market. They take part or all of the spread in all currency pairs traded. In a common example, EUR/USD, the spread is typically 3 pips (percentage in point) or 3/100 of a cent in this example. Thus prices are quoted with both bid and offer prices (e.g., Buy EUR/USD 1.4900, Sell EUR/USD 1.4903).[citation needed]
That difference of 3 pips is the spread and can amount to a significant amount of money. Because the typical standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency, those 3 pips on EUR/USD translate to $30 paid by the client to the market maker. However, a pip is not always $10. A pip is 1/100th of a cent (or whatever), and the currency pairs are always purchased by buying 100,000 of the base currency.
For the pair EUR/USD, the quote currency is USD; thus, 1/100th of a cent on a pair with USD as the quote currency will always have a pip of $10. If, on the other hand, your currency pair has Swiss francs (CHF) as a quote instead of USD, then 1/100th of a cent is now worth around $9, because you are buying 100,000 of whatever in Swiss francs.

Financial Instruments..
There are several types of financial instruments commonly used.
Forwards One way to deal with the Forex risk is to engage in a forward transaction. In this transaction, money does not actually change hands until some agreed upon future date. A buyer and seller agree on an exchange rate for any date in the future, and the transaction occurs on that date, regardless of what the market rates are then. The duration of the trade can be a few days, months or years. Futures Foreign currency futures are forward transactions with standard contract sizes and maturity dates — for example, 500,000 British pounds for next November at an agreed rate. Futures are standardized and are usually traded on an exchange created for this purpose. The average contract length is roughly 3 months. Futures contracts are usually inclusive of any interest amounts. Swaps The most common type of forward transaction is the currency swap. In a swap, two parties exchange currencies for a certain length of time and agree to reverse the transaction at a later date. These are not contracts and are not traded through an exchange. Spot A spot transaction is a two-day delivery transaction for most currency pairs (but one-day for USD/CAD and some others), as opposed to the futures contracts, which are usually three months. This trade represents a "direct exchange" between two currencies, has the shortest time frame, involves cash rather than a contract; and interest is not included in the agreed-upon transaction. The data for this study come from the Spot market.

High Leverage

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The idea of margin (leverage) and floating loss is another important trading concept and is perhaps best understood using an example. Most retail Forex market makers permit 100:1 leverage, but also, crucially, require you to have a certain amount of money in your account to protect against a critical loss point. For example, if a $100,000 position is held in EUR/USD on 100:1 leverage, the trader has to put up $1,000 to control the position. However, in the event of a declining value of your positions, Forex market makers, mindful of the fast nature of forex price swings and the amplifying effect of leverage, typically do not allow their traders to go negative and make up the difference at a later date. In order to make sure the trader does not lose more money than is held in the account, forex market makers typically employ automatic systems to close out positions when clients run out of margin (the amount of money in their account not tied to a position). If the trader has $2,000 in his account, and he is buying a $100,000 lot of EUR/USD, he has $1,000 of his $2,000 tied up in margin, with $1,000 left to allow his position to fluctuate downward without being closed out.
Typically a trader's retail forex platform will show him three important numbers associated with his account: his balance, his equity, and his margin remaining. If trader X has two positions: $100,000 long (buy) in EUR/USD, and $100,000 short (sell) in GBP/USD, and he has $10,000 in his account, his positions would look as follows: Because of the 100:1 leverage, it took him $1,000 to control each position. This means that he has used up $2,000 in his margin, out of a $10,000 account, and thus he has $8,000 of margin still available. With this margin, he can either take more positions or keep the margin relatively high to allow his current positions to be maintained in the event of downturns. If the client chooses to open a new position of $100,000, this will again take another $1,000 of his margin, leaving $7,000. He will have used up $3,000 inmargin among the three positions. The other way margin will decrease is if the positions he currently has open lose money. If one of his 3 positions of $100,000 decrease by $5,000 in value (which is fairly common), he now has, of his original $7,000 in margin, only $2,000 left.[original research?]
If you have a $10,000 account and only open one $100,000 position, this has committed only $1,000 of your money plus you must maintain $1,000 in margin. While this leaves $9,000 free in your account, it is possible to lose almost all of it if the speculation loses

Retail forex

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In financial markets, the retail forex (retail off-exchange currency trading or retail FX) market is a subset of the larger foreign exchange market. This "market has long been plagued by swindlers preying on the gullible," according to The New York TimesHYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retail_forex" \l "cite_note-NYTimes1-0"[1]. Whilst there may be a number of fully regulated, reputable international companies that provide a highly transparent and honest service, it's commonly thought that about 90% of all retail FX traders lose money. [2] [3]
It is now possible to trade cash FX, or forex (short for Foreign Exchange (FX)) or currencies around the clock with hundreds of foreign exchange brokers through trading platforms. The reason that the business is so profitable is because in many cases brokers are taking the opposite side of the trade, and therefore turning client capital directly into broker profit as the average account loses money. Some brokers provide a matching service, charging a commission instead of taking the opposite site of the trade and "netting the spread", as it is referred to within the forex "industry."
Recently forex brokers have become increasingly regulated. Minimum capital requirements of US$20m now apply in the US, as well as stringent requirements now in Germany and the United Kingdom. Switzlerand now requires forex brokers to become a bank before conducting fx brokerage business from Switzerland.[citation needed]
Algorythmic or machine based formula trading has become increasingly popular in the FX market,with a number of popular packages allowing the customer to program his own studies.
The most traded of the "major" currencies is the pair known as the EUR/USD, due to its size, median volatility and relatively low "spread", referring to the difference between the bid and the ask price. This is usually measured in "pips", normally 1/100 of a full point.[citation needed]
According to the October 2008 issue of e-Forex Magazine, the retail FX market is seeing continued explosive growth despite, and perhaps because of, losses in other markets like global equities in 2008.

Forex Home Business

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The more you understand about any subject, the more interesting it becomes. As you read this article you’ll find that the subject of forex home business is certainly no exception.
When running a forex home business, a person quickly gains knowledge of how the business world works. Whether it be selling crafts, doing a home delivery business, or selling real-estate, after investing a lot of time and effort into a home or small business, a person quickly becomes aware of the few basic business truths that govern business.
One of those truths is that you have to have time and money to start a small business or any business for that matter. More often than not, the people that have the time dont have the money to invest in a home-based business and the people that have the money dont have the time. With Forex home business, it is quite possible to generate an income with a small time investment per day, after studying FOREX for a few months, and a very small investment as little as $50 in some cases.
The second truth, and these are probably quite obvious to most people, is that in order to make money a business has to have some sort of product to sell or perform some type of service. In the FOREX world, nothing is being sold and no service is being performed, but rather money is being exchanged. You are making a profit based on the actual exchange value of one currency against another currency. This eliminates the need for employees, such as customer service personnel and human resource people if your company were to become that big.
Is everything making sense so far? If not, I’m sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.
Also, because of the huge size of the FOREX market, trading nearly $1.5 trillion dollars a day, such things as social events, bad publicity, and changes in political climate will have no effect on your business. In fact, after studying FOREX, you will be able to see how these things will actually benefit your FOREX home business.
The third and last classical business truth is that most people are prevented from starting a home-based business because they dont feel good enough about themselves. They dont feel like theyre educated enough. I read stories all of the time about people that feel passionate about something or they just pick something that they are relatively good at or have done before and start a business. They just take a chance. If you want to do it, step out. Take that first step. Dont drop any huge sums of money, of course, but do a little research, make a small investment and start your adventure down to the road to FOREX trading.
You dont need a doctorite degree to get involved with FOREX trading, but after a couple of months of good study, its quite possible to generate a significant source of cash from FOREX trading. Forex traders study the political and economic trends in the economically important countries, including USA, Japan, England or the European Union, and make an assessment of the present or future purchase values of these currencies in comparison with each other. Again, the process of sale and purchase is like any other market activity, except that the time period varies. Blindly trade. Forex home business is not about gambling. Consider a situation where you think that the price of a given commodity, say, silver, gold, or wheat, will increase in the near future.
You can’t predict when knowing something extra about forex home business will come in handy. If you learned anything new about forex home business in this article, you should file the article where you can find it again.

Difference Between Forex and Stock

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1. A Forex trader could trade more transaction compared to the futures market (the trading volume could be a times larger), and the risk will be strictly under control. The trading volume of the Forex market is 46 times larger compared to the futures market, moreover Forex traders could make more profit from the Forex market due to the larger trading volume (the transaction volume is a few times larger), the REFCO Switzerland rich transaction platform allowed transaction between 1-100 times to be carry on, moreover a Forex trader could decide his or her own transaction amount, for example: Your account has $30,000, the basic transaction unit is each $1,000 (which transaction amount in $1.00, million), namely, so the proportion of the margin of each transaction unit is 100:1.
2. The risk of the Forex trader is under control, such margin call will not happen compared to futures, through the Forex trading system, your risk will receive the strict limit, even if your margin if lower then the deposit required, the Forex trading system will automatically settle your position, this means even if a Forex trader suffered losses, moreover if the market is suffering from a disaster fluctuation, your loss could not surpass your account amount. In order to understand the advantages, please apply for the demo account to carry on the complete zero risk.
3. A Forex trader will receive a large limitation of liquidation and a relatively fair market because the trading volume of the Forex market is large and it is also the largest liquidation market in the world. At present the trading volume in the Forex market is 140 billion Dollars, such big market will completely digest your transaction cash.
4. A Forex trader may do 24 hours transactions and other markets are different, the Forex market is a 24 hour linkages market, it starts from every Sunday before dawn Australian Sydney market, substandard collect the transaction center Singapore, Tokyo, London, Frankfurt to New York continuously to open, such linkage market enable you to do 24 hours transactions, also provide flexibility for Forex trader to do transaction.

2009-06-24T21:19:00.000-07:00

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Introduction to Trading Forex

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Foreign Exchange

This short introduction explains the basics of trading Forex online, a brief explanation of the markets and the major benefits of trading Forex online. There are also two scenarios describing the implications of trading in a bear as well as a bull market to better acquaint you with some of the risks and opportunities of the largest and most liquid market in the world.

As an additional aid for those who are new to Forex, there is also a glossary at the bottom of this text which explains some of the terms used in connection with currency trading.

Overview

Foreign exchange, Forex or just FX are all terms used to describe the trading of the world's many currencies. The Forex market is the largest market in the world, with trades amounting to more than USD 3 trillion every day. Most Forex trading is speculative, with only a low percentage of market activity representing governments' and companies' fundamental currency conversion needs.

Unlike trading on the stock market, the Forex market is not conducted by a central exchange, but on the “interbank” market, which is thought of as an OTC (over the counter) market. Trading takes place directly between the two counterparts necessary to make a trade, whether over the telephone or on electronic networks all over the world. The main centres for trading are Sydney, Tokyo, London, Frankfurt and New York. This worldwide distribution of trading centres means that the Forex market is a 24-hour market.

Trading Forex

A currency trade is the simultaneous buying of one currency and selling of another one. The currency combination used in the trade is called a cross (for example, the euro/US dollar, or the GB pound/Japanese yen.). The most commonly traded currencies are the so-called “majors” – EURUSD, USDJPY, USDCHF and GBPUSD.

The most important Forex market is the spot market as it has the largest volume. The market is called the spot market because trades are settled immediately, or “on the spot”. In practice this means two banking days.

Forward Outrights

For forward outrights, settlement on the value date selected in the trade means that even though the trade itself is carried out immediately, there is a small interest rate calculation left. The interest rate differential doesn't usually affect trade considerations unless you plan on holding a position with a large differential for a long period of time. The interest rate differential varies according to the cross you are trading. On the USDCHF, for example, the interest rate differential is quite small, whereas the differential on NOKJPY is large. This is because if you trade e.g. NOKJPY, you get almost 7% (annual) interest in Norway and close to 0% in Japan. So, if you borrow money in Japan, to finance the trade and buying NOK, you have a positive interest rate differential. This differential has to be calculated and added to your account. You can have both a positive and a negative interest rate differential, so it may work for or against you when you make a trade.

Trading on Margin

Trading on margin means that you can buy and sell assets that represent more value than the capital in your account. Forex trading is usually conducted with relatively small margin deposits. This is useful since it permits investors to exploit currency exchange rate fluctuations which tend to be very small. A margin of 1.0% means you can trade up to USD 1,000,000 even though you only have USD 10,000 in your account. A margin of 1% corresponds to a 100:1 leverage (or “gearing”). (Because USD 10,000 is 1% of USD 1,000,000.) Using this much leverage enables you to make profits very quickly, but there is also a greater risk of incurring large losses and even being completely wiped out. Therefore, it is inadvisable to maximise your leveraging as the risks can be very high. For more information on the trading conditions of Saxo Bank, go to the Account Summary on your SaxoTrader and open the section entitled “Trading Conditions” found in the top right-hand corner of the Account Summary.

Why Trade Forex?

24 hour trading
One of the major advantages of trading Forex is the opportunity to trade 24 hours a day from Sunday evening (20:00 GMT) to Friday evening (22:00 GMT). This gives you a unique opportunity to react instantly to breaking news that is affecting the markets.
Superior liquidity
The Forex market is so liquid that there are always buyers and sellers to trade with. The liquidity of this market, especially that of the major currencies, helps ensure price stability and narrow spreads. The liquidity comes mainly from banks that provide liquidity to investors, companies, institutions and other currency market players.
No commissions
The fact that Forex is often traded without commissions makes it very attractive as an investment opportunity for investors who want to deal on a frequent basis.
Trading the “majors” is also cheaper than trading other cross because of the high level of liquidity. For more information on the trading conditions of Saxo Bank, go to the Account Summary on your SaxoTrader and open the section entitled “Trading Conditions” found in the top right-hand corner of the Account Summary.
100:1 Leverage
Leverage (gearing) enables you to hold a position worth up to 100 times more than your margin deposit. For example, a USD 10,000 deposit can command positions of up to USD 1,000,000 through leverage. You can leverage the first USD 25,000 of your investment up to 100 times and additional collateral up to 50 times.
Profit potential in falling markets
Since the market is constantly moving, there are always trading opportunities, whether a currency is strengthening or weakening in relation to another currency. When you trade currencies, they literally work against each other. If the EURUSD declines, for example, it is because the US dollar gets stronger against the euro and vice versa. So, if you think the EURUSD will decline (that is, that the euro will weaken versus the dollar), you would sell EUR now and then later you buy euro back at a lower price. In case that the EURUSD indeed declines, then you can take your profit. The opposite trading scenario would occur if the EURUSD appreciates.

Important Forex Trading Terms

Spread
The spread is the difference between the price that you can sell currency at (Bid) and the price you can buy currency at (Ask). The spread on majors is usually 3 pips under normal market conditions. For more information on the trading conditions at Saxo Bank, go to the Account Summary on your Client Station and open the section entitled “Trading Conditions” found in the top right-hand corner of the Account Summary.
Pips
A pip is the smallest unit by which a cross price quote changes. When trading Forex you will often hear that there is a 3-pip spread when you trade the majors. This spread is revealed when you compare the bid and the ask price, for example EURUSD is quoted at a bid price of 0.9875 and an ask price of 0.9878. The difference is USD 0.0003, which is equal to 3 “pips”.

On a contract or position, the value of a pip can easily be calculated. You know that the EURUSD is quoted with four decimals, so all you have to do is cancel out the four zeros on the amount you trade and you will have the value of one pip. Thus, on a EURUSD 100,000 contract, one pip is USD 10. On a USDJPY 100,000 contract, one pip is equal to 1000 yen, because USDJPY is quoted with only two decimals.

Trading Scenario – Trading Rising Prices

If you believe that the euro will strengthen against the dollar you'll want to buy euro now and sell it back later at a higher price.

• You buy euro

We quote EURUSD at Bid 0.9875 and Ask 0.9878, which means that you can sell 1 euro for 0.9875 USD or buy 1 euro for 0.9878 USD.

In this example you buy euro 100,000, at the quote price of 0.9878 (ask price) per euro.

• The market moves in your favor

Later the market turns in favour of the euro and the EURUSD is now quoted at Bid 0.9894 and Ask 0.9896.

• Now you sell your euro and get the profit

You sell euro at a Bid price of 0.9894.

• The profit is calculated as follows

Sell price-buy price x size of trade
(0.9894 minus 0.9878) multiplied by 100.000 = USD 140 Profit
(Note that the profit or loss is always expressed in the secondary currency)

Trading Scenario – Trading Falling Prices

If, on the other hand, you believe that the euro will weaken against the dollar, you'll want to sell EURUSD.

• You sell euro

We quote EURUSD at a Bid price of 0.9875 and Ask price of 0.9880 and you decide to sell euro 100,000 at a Bid price of 0.9875.

• The market moves in your favour

The euro weakens against the dollar and the EURUSD is now quoted at bid 0.9744 and ask 0.9749.

• Now you buy back your euro

You buy EUR at an ask price of 0.9749.

• Your profit/loss is then

Sell price-buy price x size of trade
(0.9875 minus 0.9749) multiplied by 100.000 = USD 1260 Profit

Remember that trading EUR 100,000 as we have done in our examples, does not mean that you have to put up euro 100,000 yourself. On a 2% margin means that you have to deposit 2.0% of euro 100,000, which is euro 2,000 on margin as a guarantee for the future performance of your position.

Glossary

• Appreciation

An increase in the value of a currency.

• Ask

The price requested by the trader. This usually indicates the lowest price a seller will accept.

• Base currency

The currency that the investor buys or sells (i.e. EUR in EURUSD).

• Bear

Someone who believes prices are heading down. A bear market is one in which there has been a sustained fall in prices and which does not look like it will recover quickly.

• Bid

The price offered by the trader. This usually indicates the highest price a purchaser will pay.

• Bid/Ask

The Bid rate is the rate at which you can sell. The Ask (or offer) rate is the rate at which you can buy.

• Bull

Someone who is optimistic about the market. A bull market is characterised by enthusiastic and sustained buying.

• cross

When trading with currencies, the investor buys one currency with another. These two currencies form the cross: for example, EURUSD.

• Cross rate

An exchange rate that is calculated from two other exchange rates.

• Depreciation/decline

A fall in the value

History

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Brief history of Forex trading

Initially, the value of goods was expressed in terms of other goods, i.e. an economy based on barter between individual market participants. The obvious limitations of such a system encouraged establishing more generally accepted means of exchange at a fairly early stage in history, to set a common benchmark of value. In different economies, everything from teeth to feathers to pretty stones has served this purpose, but soon metals, in particular gold and silver, established themselves as an accepted means of payment as well as a reliable storage of value.

Originally, coins were simply minted from the preferred metal, but in stable political regimes the introduction of a paper form of governmental IOUs (I owe you) gained acceptance during the Middle Ages. Such IOUs, often introduced more successfully through force than persuasion were the basis of modern currencies.

Before World War I, most central banks supported their currencies with convertibility to gold. Although paper money could always be exchanged for gold, in reality this did not occur often, fostering the sometimes disastrous notion that there was not necessarily a need for full cover in the central reserves of the government.

At times, the ballooning supply of paper money without gold cover led to devastating inflation and resulting political instability. To protect local national interests, foreign exchange controls were increasingly introduced to prevent market forces from punishing monetary irresponsibility.

In the latter stages of World War II, the Bretton Woods agreement was reached on the initiative of the USA in July 1944. The Bretton Woods Conference rejected John Maynard Keynes suggestion for a new world reserve currency in favour of a system built on the US dollar. Other international institutions such as the IMF, the World Bank and GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) were created in the same period as the emerging victors of WW2 searched for a way to avoid the destabilising monetary crises which led to the war. The Bretton Woods agreement resulted in a system of fixed exchange rates that partly reinstated the gold standard, fixing the US dollar at USD35/oz and fixing the other main currencies to the dollar - and was intended to be permanent.

The Bretton Woods system came under increasing pressure as national economies moved in different directions during the sixties. A number of realignments kept the system alive for a long time, but eventually Bretton Woods collapsed in the early seventies following president Nixon's suspension of the gold convertibility in August 1971. The dollar was no longer suitable as the sole international currency at a time when it was under severe pressure from increasing US budget and trade deficits.

The following decades have seen foreign exchange trading develop into the largest global market by far. Restrictions on capital flows have been removed in most countries, leaving the market forces free to adjust foreign exchange rates according to their perceived values.

But the idea of fixed exchange rates has by no means died. The EEC (European Economic Community) introduced a new system of fixed exchange rates in 1979, the European Monetary System. This attempt to fix exchange rates met with near extinction in 1992-93, when pent-up economic pressures forced devaluations of a number of weak European currencies. Nevertheless, the quest for currency stability has continued in Europe with the renewed attempt to not only fix currencies but actually replace many of them with the Euro in 2001.

The lack of sustainability in fixed foreign exchange rates gained new relevance with the events in South East Asia in the latter part of 1997, where currency after currency was devalued against the US dollar, leaving other fixed exchange rates, in particular in South America, looking very vulnerable.

But while commercial companies have had to face a much more volatile currency environment in recent years, investors and financial institutions have found a new playground. The size of foreign exchange markets now dwarfs any other investment market by a large factor. It is estimated that more than USD 3,000 billion is traded every day, far more than the world's stock and bond markets combined.

Working with statistics

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Trade Balance

The trade balance is a measure of the difference between imports and exports of tangible goods and services. The level of the trade balance and changes in exports and imports are widely followed by foreign exchange markets.

The trade balance is a major indicator of foreign exchange trends. Seen in isolation, measures of imports and exports are important indicators of overall economic activity in the economy.

It is often of interest to examine the trend growth rates for exports and imports separately. Trends in export activities reflect the competitive position of the country in question, but also the strength of economic activity abroad. Trends in import activity reflect the strength of domestic economic activity.

Typically, a nation that runs a substantial trade balance deficit has a weak currency due to the continued commercial selling of the currency. This can, however, be offset by financial investment flows for extended periods of time.

Gross Domestic Product

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the broadest measure of aggregate economic activity available. Reported quarterly, GDP growth is widely followed as the primary indicator of the strength of economic activity.

GDP represents the total value of a country's production during the period and consists of the purchases of domestically produced goods and services by individuals, businesses, foreigners and the government.

As GDP reports are often subject to substantial quarter-to-quarter volatility and revisions, it is preferable to follow the indicator on a year-to-year basis. It can be valuable to follow the trend rate of growth in each of the major categories of GDP to determine the strengths and weaknesses in the economy.

A high GDP figure is often associated with the expectations of higher interest rates, which is frequently positive, at least in the short term, for the currency involved, unless expectations of increased inflation pressure is concurrently undermining confidence in the currency.

Consumer Price Index

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average level of prices of a fixed basket of goods and services purchased by consumers. The monthly reported changes in CPI are widely followed as an inflation indicator.

The CPI is a primary inflation indicator because consumer spending accounts for nearly two-thirds of economic activity. Often, the CPI is followed but excludes the price of food and energy as these items are generally much more volatile than the rest of the CPI and can obscure the more important underlying trend.

Rising consumer price inflation is normally associated with the expectation of higher short term interest rates and may therefore be supportive for a currency in the short term. Nevertheless, a longer term inflation problem will eventually undermine confidence in the currency and weakness will follow.

Producer Price Index

The Producer Price Index (PPI) is a measure of the average level of prices of a fixed basket of goods received in primary markets by producers. The monthly PPI reports are widely followed as an indication of commodity inflation.

The PPI is considered important because it accounts for price changes throughout the manufacturing sector.

The PPI is often followed but excludes the food and energy components as these items are normally much more volatile than the rest of the PPI and can therefore obscure the more important underlying trend.

Studying the PPI allows consideration of inflationary pressures that may be accumulating or receding, but have not yet filtered through to the finished goods prices.

A rising PPI is normally expected to lead to higher consumer price inflation and thereby to potentially higher short-term interest rates. Higher rates will often have a short term positive impact on a currency, although significant inflationary pressure will often lead to an undermining of the confidence in the currency involved.

Payroll Employment

Payroll employment is a measure of the number of people being paid as employees by non-farm business establishments and units of government. Monthly changes in payroll employment reflect the net number of new jobs created or lost during the month and changes are widely followed as an important indicator of economic activity.

Payroll employment is one of the primary monthly indicators of aggregate economic activity because it encompasses every major sector of the economy. It is also useful to examine trends in job creation in several industry categories because the aggregate data can mask significant deviations in underlying industry trends.

Large increases in payroll employment are seen as signs of strong economic activity that could eventually lead to higher interest rates that are supportive of the currency at least in the short term. If, however, inflationary pressures are seen as building, this may undermine the longer term confidence in the currency.

Durable Goods Orders

Durable Goods Orders are a measure of the new orders placed with domestic manufacturers for immediate and future delivery of factory hard goods. Monthly percent changes reflect the rate of change of such orders.

Levels of, and changes in, durable goods order are widely followed as an indicator of factory sector momentum.

Durable Goods Orders are a major indicator of manufacturing sector trends because most industrial production is done to order. Often, the indicator is followed but excludes Defence and Transportation orders because these are generally much more volatile than the rest of the orders and can obscure the more important underlying trend.

Durable Goods Orders are measured in nominal terms and therefore include the effects of inflation. Therefore the Durable Goods Orders should be compared to the trend growth rate in PPI to arrive at the real, inflation-adjusted Durable Goods Orders.

Rising Durable Goods Orders are normally associated with stronger economic activity and can therefore lead to higher short-term interest rates that are often supportive to a currency at least in the short term.

Retail Sales

Retail Sales are a measure of the total receipts of retail stores. Monthly percentage changes reflect the rate of change of such sales and are widely followed as an indicator of consumer spending.

Retails Sales are a major indicator of consumer spending because they account for nearly one-half of total consumer spending and approximately one-third of aggregate economic activity.

Often, Retail Sales are followed less auto sales because these are generally much more volatile than the rest of the Retail Sales and can therefore obscure the more important underlying trend.

Retail Sales are measured in nominal terms and therefore include the effects of inflation. Rising Retail Sales are often associated with a strong economy and therefore an expectation of higher short-term interest rates that are often supportive to a currency at least in the short term.

Housing Starts

Housing Starts are a measure of the number of residential units on which construction is begun each month and the level of housing starts is widely followed as an indicator of residential construction activity.

The indicator is followed to assess the commitment of builders to new construction activity. High construction activity is usually associated with increased economic activity and confidence, and is therefore considered a harbinger of higher short-term interest rates that can be supportive of the involved currency at least in the short term.

Trade Forex

2009-06-24T20:51:00.000-07:00

How to Trade Forex

Trading foreign exchange is exciting and potentially very profitable, but there are also significant risk factors. It is crucially important that you fully understand the implications of margin trading and the particular pitfalls and opportunities that foreign exchange trading offers. On these pages, we offer you a brief introduction to the Forex markets as well as their participants and some strategies that you can apply. However, if you are ever in doubt about any aspect of a trade, you can always discuss the matter in-depth with one of our dealers. They are available 24 hours a day on the Saxo Bank online trading system, SaxoTrader.

The benchmark of its service is efficient execution, concise analysis and expertise – all achieved whilst maintaining an attractive and competitive cost structure. Today, Saxo Bank offers one of Europe's premier all-round services for trading in derivative products and foreign exchange. We count amongst our employees numerous dealers and analysts, each of whom has many years experience and a wide and varied knowledge of the markets – gained both in our home countries and in international financial centres. When trading foreign exchange, futures and other derivative products, we offer 24-hour service, extensive daily analysis, individual access to our Research & Analysis department for specific queries, and immediate execution of trades through our international network of banks and brokers. All at a price considerably lower than that which most companies and private investors normally have access to.

The combination of our strong emphasis on customer service, our strategy and trading recommendations, our strategic and individual hedging programmes, along with the availability to our clients of the latest news and information builds a strong case for trading an individual account through Saxo Bank.

Terms of trading are agreed individually depending on the volume of your transactions, but are generally much lower in cost when compared to banks and brokers. Your margin deposit can be cash or government securities, bank guarantees etc. Large corporate or institutional clients may be offered trading facilities on the strength of their balance sheet. The minimum deposit accepted for an individual trading account depends on the account type. Trade confirmations and real-time account overview are built into SaxoTrader, while further account information can be produced in accordance with your specific requirements

FUTURES TRADING PLATFORMS

2009-06-23T02:38:00.000-07:00

With the correct combination of tools, service, and discount futures trading commissions, Expo Futures is raising the standard. View real-time account balance, profit/loss, working orders, trade confirmations, trade history, news, and research. Place all applicable order types with our extremely user friendly interfaces.

We provide two proprietary trading platforms which are fully integrated with one another. In addition to our trading platforms, we offer a FREE 24-hr order and support desk. For those on the go without access to the internet, our live operators are standing by to help you place orders or even give you an update on the markets. Satisfaction Guaranteed. We empower our clients with the ability to choose how they want to trade: web-based, software-based, or over the phone; all at no extra cost.

solution for system development

2009-06-23T02:31:00.000-07:00

SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
· Key Highlights

· End to end platform
· Powerful development environment
· TradeStation & eSignal integration
· High performance backtesting

· Futures, forex and equities
· Reliable automation
· Many brokerage options

As a systems trader, the tools you select will have a dramatic impact on your ability to efficiently create, test and deploy automated strategies. Whether you trade futures, forex or equities, you can significantly enhance your productivity through NinjaTrader’s modern array of strategy development tools and proven order execution capabilities. NinjaTrader provides an end to end platform for strategy creation, testing and automation through over 100 brokerages worldwide.

A True End to End Strategy Development Platform

A true end to end strategy development platform means that is must be able to handle every step of the development and automation process…this is where most current platforms fall short. In general, they only handle the strategy development process and leave you with a strategy that can’t be tested in real-time simulation nor executed live at your broker. Another significant limitation is that most use interpreted proprietary scripting languages which run slow and force you to learn a language that has no re-use value.

Strategies run compiled code in C# for the highest possible performance
Modern development environment
Event driven model
Battle tested live order execution capabilities
Portability to execute at over 100 brokerages world wide

Powerful yet User-friendly Strategy Development & Testing

NinjaTrader is unique in that it makes strategy construction accessible for non-programmers and programmers alike. By utilizing a GUI driven point and click approach, traders without programming experience can start to assemble strategies quickly and easily. Programmers at all levels will find that our C# based approach, modern text editor with inline syntax checking and Intellisense gives them ultimate power, flexibility and extensibility.

Trading System Development & Backtesting
Trade Performance Analysis

Reliable Automation of Native and External Strategies

Whether you run external strategies in TradeStation or want the added performance of running native NinjaScript^® strategies, you can rest assured that NinjaTrader is a reliable, battle-tested, and industry proven execution platform to automate any strategy in both live and simulated real-time market environments.

Automated Trading
TradeStation, eSignal and external strategy integration

Get started for free and have choice on where you trade

NinjaTrader understands that it takes time to develop a profitable trading strategy so we provide our trading platform for free supporting both real-time and historical data feeds. There is only a charge if you decide to execute live trades and when you make that decision you can select from over 100 brokers world wide because we also believe you should have choice on where you can trade.

Difference Between Stock And Forex Trading

2009-06-22T19:04:00.000-07:00

Fundamental indicators are the announcements which traders follow to show the strength of a particular currency with respect to others.

Equal Potential

No matter whether there is a bull or bear market, in forex there are always opportunities. Unlike the stock market, whether the market is going up or down there is always equal opportunity for profit and loss. Also, there are no limitations on short selling. Forex involves the trading of currency pairs which can gain profit or loss whether the market is rising or falling. It does not matter whether the trader is short or long risk of loss and potential for profit will always exist.

Consummate liquidity

There is no time restriction for forex trading. No matter what time of day it is the trading continues to go on making forex the most liquid market in the world. Forex market trades in one day what Wall Street trades in approximately one month.

More leverage

The most attractive feature of the forex market is leverage. Although it should be noted that trading using leverage can increase the potential risk of loss as well as profit. The maximum leverage for stocks, for example, is 2:1 (i.e. if you invest 1,000 dollars you can buy up to 2,000 dollars of shares). Whereas while trading with us you can get up to leverage of 200:1 which means that if a trader invests 1,000 dollars he can buy up to 400,000 dollars in currency.

Direct trading

Forex trading enables clients to deal directly with the currency market without any worry or hassle. Also spot currency trading helps to remove the middleman which often can make costs higher due to expensive commission and management fees.

No commission

There are no brokerage, exchange, software or clearing fees at Ideal World Forex. We do not charge any commission as we are compensated through Bid and Ask prices (or spread) of a particular currency pair. Although be aware that the bank you are dealing with may have charges or fees for deposit or withdrawal. We are not responsible for this. There may be a fee for fund withdrawals. Please inquire with a Ideal World Forex customer representative for further information.

Technical trading

Forex trading tends to develop strong trends and patterns which a trader may identify for new potential movements, breakouts and chances to enter and exit positions.

Rate fluctuation

The major factors that affect the supply and demand of currencies are the strength of the country’s economy and interest rate policy. As currency rates show the supply and demand of currencies, indicators such as the PPI, foreign investment, CPI, the trade balance and GDP reflect the health of the economy and modify the supply and demand for a currency. Data on interest rates and expert observations on international trade and economic policy are also released on a regular basis.

24/7 trading

When you are using a forex trading platform you are seeing a miniature display of the world economy. A trader can access forex markets from 5 pm EST when trade begins in Sydney and Singapore on Sunday and continue trading till 5 pm EST on Friday.

Less trading options

In forex there are about 8 major currencies and 34 second level currencies to choose from, whereas trading in stocks involves about 8,000 different publicly traded companies. Such a huge range of choices tends to be confusing and complicated.

Best Software

Since the beginning, our team of expert forex professionals has invested long hours improving our software and services to guarantee a basic, wide-ranging system that enables users to decide sensibly. In addition, services include over 100 tools and technical indicators as well as the latest from Reuters News service to cover all important updates that impact the forex market. Our advanced chart-based trading system contains custom alerts, price quotes, as well as the ability to create an automated trading system so you can pre-program your method to buy or sell at specified market events. Users are able to connect directly with the help of MetaTrader 4 with the live currency market on a secure platform.

why trade the forex?

2009-06-22T19:00:00.000-07:00

My purpose for writing this article is to demonstrate to you the advantages of trading on the Forex market. However, there is one myth that I want to dispel before I go further. The myth is that there is a difference between trading and investing. To dispel that myth I quote from Al Thomas, President of Williamsburg Investment Company, who wrote "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It". He said "Everyone who invests is a trader, only the time period is different." It is a lesson that I took seriously after taking a beating in the stock market in 2000.

So now, let's compare features of currency trading to those of stock and commodity trading.

Liquidity — The Forex market is the most liquid financial market in the world around 1.9 trillion dollars traded everyday. The commodities market trades around 440 billion dollars a day, and the US stock market trades around 200 billion dollars a day. This ensures better trade execution and prevents market manipulation. It also ensures easily executable trading.

Trading Times — The Forex market is open 24 hours a day (except weekends) which means that in the US it opens at 3:00 pm Sunday (EST) and closes Friday at 5:00 (EST), allowing active traders to choose the times they want to trade. Commodities trading hours are all over the board depending on which commodity you are trading. Including extended trading times US stocks can be traded from 8:30 am to 6:30 pm (ET) on weekdays.

Leverage — Depending on your Forex account size, your leverage may be 100:1, although there are Forex brokers that offer leverage of up to 400:1 (not that I would ever recommend that kind of leverage). Leverage in the stock market can be as high as 4:1, and in the commodities market, leverage varies with the commodity traded but it can be quite high. Because the commodity markets are not as liquid as the Forex market, its leverage is inherently riskier. Although I was never shut out of a commodity trade by the day limit, the fear was always in the back of my mind.

Trading costs — Transaction costs in the Forex market is the difference between the buy and sell price of each currency pair. There are no brokerage fees. For both the stock and the commodity markets, there are transaction costs and brokerage fees. Even when you use discount brokers, those fees add up.

Minimum investment — You can open a Forex trading account for as little as $300.00. It took $5,000 for me to open my futures trading account.

Focus — 85% of all trading transactions are made on 7 major currencies. In the US stock market alone there are 40,000 stocks. There are just over 200 commodity markets, although quite a few are so illiquid that they are not traded except by hedgers. As you can see, the fewer number of instruments allows us to study each one more closely.

Trade execution — In the Forex market, trade execution is almost instantaneous. In both the equity and commodity markets, you count on a broker to execute your trades and their results are sometimes inconsistent.

While all of these features make trading the Forex market very attractive, it still requires a lot of education, discipline, commitment and patience. All trading can be risky.

fortune forex seminar

2009-06-22T18:55:00.001-07:00

A Crash Course on How to Trade Forex with as little as $300. A 4-hour Lecture & Demo session that introduces you to the world of Online Forex Trading.

Online Forex Trading is about buying or selling of currency pairs such as Euro versus the US Dollar, the Dollar vs. the Japanese Yen (and a lot more) without having to physically change your money. If you invest in company stocks, you invest in a corporation, think about Forex trading as investing in a currency versus another currency. In essence, Online Forex Trading is about using your money to invest in money.

Unknown to most people, the Forex Market is the Biggest Financial Market in the world with an average of approximately 1.9 Trillion US Dollars changing hands on any given day. It is where Banks, Investors, and Speculators exchange one Country’s currency with another. Although modern forex trading has been around since the early 20th century it was not easily accessible to individuals due to the high capital requirement and cumbersome technology. It was only well after the 1990s when the computer and internet revolution made it possible and more convenient for small investors like you and me to invest in Forex.

How Much Money Can You Make on Forex | SigmaForex

One of the optimal way to earn more money on the Forex market is by getting a proper Forex trading education. This can be done by attending seminars or taking a home course. One of the best courses, if not the best, is Bill Poulos's Forex Profit Accelerater course.

Offered in limited numbers, this course is a comprehensive analysis of the Foreign exchange market and what you need to do in order to be successful in it. Forex Profit Accelerater comes in the form of a manual and video tutorials that teach you 4 major trading strategies which fit different market conditions and allow you to exploit both short term and long term opportunities. But what's special about this course is that it also teaches risk management and money management. This ensures that you modify the strategies to your own personal needs and condition, financial and otherwise.

forex learning

2009-06-22T18:46:00.004-07:00

1) Forex trading is about being a professional at what you do.

2) Successful traders develop their own system and constantly tweak them for today's market conditions.

3) No automated system can do that. "YOU" are the best system.

It still amazes me every time I search "forex trading" or "forex training" to see all the new forex trading "experts" out there. Another day, another expert, all vying to reach the top of the heap and using BS testimonials. Each expert got ANOTHER easy money-making forex trading system. They're all crap and and never live up to their claims.

TRUST Your Own Skills

Our teachings will reveal simple, step- by-step, easy-to-use and astonishingly effective techniques that help you make winning trades in the forex market.

No trading experience required. No matter what your background is, you'll be able to use this learned techniques to make a profit...because the system is so straightforward and easy to use.

Create Your Own Trading Signals. Low Risk with High Return up to Thousands a day. Don't waste money for companies that promise to deliver you trading signals but end up giving you crap. Trust yourself.

You can, if you chose, participate in our Private Forex Investment Club with minimal contributions and participate in the returns.

Learn step-by-step instructions on how to trade.

Learn Forex in 4 key areas:

Money Management - Economic Data Releases

Certain Market Times - - Technical Indicators

we make it easy to understand...

Learn 5 easy techniques to profitable trading

Candlesticks - EMA's - Channel Lines

Time Frames - Fibonacci Lines

it's not as hard as you may think....

There will be online Webinars and in depth Videos explaining how to develop the skills to trade profitably.


		Money Management	This is conceivably the most overlooked blunder of most traders. We will demonstrate how to develop a first-class trading structure which will aid you in limiting your losses and increasing your profits. We will provide the basic template for money management and help you individualize your plan to your personality.

		Technical Indicators	Candlesticks. We will examine the best and most accurate candlesticks patterns that can lead to profitable trades.
			Time Frames. Learn how to use different time frames to confirm your trade using the 5min,15min,30min,1hr, 4hr, daily and weekly charts.

			EMA's. (Exponential Moving Averages) Another confirmation of which way a movement is about to happen whether you go long (buy) or short (sell)

			Fibonacci Lines can help you in determining how far a move will continue to before a reversal. We will explain them in depth

forex usa

2009-06-22T18:43:00.000-07:00

Macro economic indicators (2006)

GDP at current prices	$13,225 billion
Inhabitants	299.7 million
GDP per head	$44,071
Economic growth rate	+3.3%
Consumer confidence indicator	99.6
Unemployment rate	4.7%
Consumer Price Index	4.0%
Banking Importance	20.8%
Number of branches	92,000
Number of ATMs	420,000
Households savings ratio	0.5%
Inflation rate	+3.2%
Interest rate, consumer credit	13.21%
Interest rate, residential	6.22%
Number of credit cards	1,46 billion

Type and size of players

Total Banking Income and Cost/Income Ratio
(Operating Expenses/Total Banking Income)

Products

U.S. retail banking market is highly fragmented. This is illustrated by the fact that the top 10 U.S. Banks held only about 36% of the market share based on total U.S. deposits.

Total Deposits in US$ (31.12.2006 )

Trends

Customer Experience
• Banks are beginning to design products that cross customer silos:
- Customers in the past have had varying experiences and disparities in service quality across channels (branch, phone, internet) and across products (mortgage, etc.)
- Banks are beginning to improve and align processes like product applications and cross-selling
• Interactive products are increasing as customers become more comfortable using the internet:
- Banks expected to offer new products geared towards online self-service interactions
• Branch locations are increasing in number and being renovated:
- Self-service channels (ATM, phone, internet) are not effective for customer acquisition and cross-selling
- Branch locations are to be used as sales platforms by leveraging retail practices such as product displays, merchandising and layouts (demographic targeting)

Marketing / Target Products
• Faced with strong competition, banks are becoming more proactive with their marketing initiatives:
- Customer acquisition strategies being replaced by efforts to cross-sell products and services with marketing campaigns around specific customer interactions
• Continued investment in non-core product offerings:
- In redefining their marketing strategies, banks remain attracted to products traditionally offered by Financial Services companies
• Competition with Financial Services firms for retirement assets:
- Banks are marketing 401K programs to corporations in order to gain access to their employees in expectation of cross-selling other products and services

M&A Overload
• Recent acquisitions have resulted in some large banks having huge asset totals that must be earning returns for investors:
- Heated competition and sophistication in targeting loan offers to consumers

Forex - FX

2009-06-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

What Does Forex - FX Mean?
The market in which currencies are traded. The forex market is the largest, most liquid market in the world with an average traded value that exceeds $1.9 trillion per day and includes all of the currencies in the world.

Investopedia explains Forex - FX
There is no central marketplace for currency exchange; trade is conducted over the counter. The forex market is open 24 hours a day, five days a week and currencies are traded worldwide among the major financial centers of London, New York, Tokyo, Zürich, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Singapore, Paris and Sydney.

The forex is the largest market in the world in terms of the total cash value traded, and any person, firm or country may participate in this market.

Related Terms

Arbitrage
Authorized Forex Dealer
Cross Currency
Currency Option
Currency Pair
Decentralized Market
Exchange Rate
Foreign Currency Effects
One-Touch Option
Over-The-Counter - OTC
More Related Terms

Related Links

Forex Tutorial: The Forex Market - In this online tutorial, beginners and experts alike can learn the ins and outs of the retail forex market.
How did currency trader John Rusnak hide $691 million in losses before being caught for bank fraud?
Forex Leverage: A Double-Edged Sword - Find out how this tool magnifies both gains and losses.
Forex: The Memory Of Price Strategy - Hate getting stopped out right before the price reverses? This forex trading strategy may help.
Currency ETFs Simplify Forex Trades - Reduce your stock portfolio's risk by trading with foreign currencies.
Currency Moves Highlight Equity Opportunities - Understanding the relationship between these markets can help you spot profitable stocks.
Profit From Forex With Currency ETFs - There's always a bull market somewhere - and now you can find it with currency ETFs.
The Forex Three-Session System - Market hours for Tokyo, London and New York determine volatility peaks. Find out how.
Forex Minis Shrink Risk Exposure - Trading less than a standard lot means getting in for less - and having less to lose.
Play Foreign Currencies Against The U.S. Dollar - And Win - A drop in the dollar is no reason to panic. Learn to exploit the greenback's decline and profit from it.
Where is the central location of the forex market?
A Primer On The Forex Market - Moving from equities to currencies requires you to adjust how you interpret quotes, margin, spreads and rollovers.
Getting Started In Forex - Before entering this market, you should define what you need from your broker and from your strategy.
Forex: Wading Into The Currency Market - We go over the ground rules and available resources needed for this undertaking.
Financial Tables: Currency Cross Rate Table - Whether for traveling or investing, learn how to convert your money.
Trading Multiple Time Frames In FX - This is often the first - and most costly - level of analysis to be overlooked.
Trading Through A Market Maker Vs. An ECN - Learn the pros and cons of trading forex through these two types of brokers.
Getting Started In Forex Options - Stocks are not the only securities underlying options--learn how to use FOREX options for profit and hedging.
Devising A Medium-Term Forex Trading System - Here we go over a framework from which to build your own personalized but profitable strategy.
Forex: Venturing Into Non-Dollar Currencies - Learn how investments in foreign currencies can diversify your portfolio.
How is spread calculated when trading in the forex market?
What methods can be used to fund a forex account?
Explosive Gains In Forex – Learn what makes the currency markets move with your exclusive free report!
FXCM - Learn to Trade Currency with Free Demo
Get a risk-free $50,000 practice trading account at FOREX.com – Advanced trading platform with real-time quotes, charts, news, research.
Free Introductory Forex Trading Guide from GFT - Everything a beginner needs to know before entering the exciting & fast-paced forex market – from how to choose a dealer to how to place an order

2009-06-20T19:36:00.000-07:00

Institutional Futures Trading

vCapFutures is an institutional futures broker that offers clients access to global commodity futures and options products such as equity-index futures, currency futures, interest rate futures, energy futures, metal futures agricultural futures and single-stock futures.

Through our high-end institutional futures trading platforms and institutional-class technology, we can assist institutional clients with commodity futures risk management and hedging requirements as well as help your institution use the market to limit the impact of volatility, capture and retain quality and specific-trait advantages, control, streamline and mange corporate revenue streams and cash management systems. Our demand-side clients benefit from the same principles, technology, research and strategies as those on the supply side.

Institutional Futures Platforms

Institutional Futures Broker With Expansive Floor Presence

As your institutional futures broker, buy-side and sell-side clients, alike will have access to expansive floor service in the US and access to many international exchanges (Eurex, Euronext, Xetra, Liffe).

24-Hour Trading Desk

Institutional clients can execute orders on a 24-hour basis in the electronic markets via our institutional futures platforms (X_Trader & X_Trader Pro) or broker assist. Our trading desks are staffed with highly experienced individuals that understand the demanding requirements of the institutional client and are designed to deliver the speed and reliability our clients need when they call to place trades over the phone. The desk will monitor your orders to ensure accurate execution at the best available prices, making sure all price improvements are gained by your institution. Broker assist services include the ability to leave various types of contingency orders with the trading desk 24-hours a day, including stops and limits.

Exceptional Clearing

As a vCapFutures institutional client, you can expect: easy to understand statements; accurate reporting of fills, cancels and rejects; timely fill reports and status on open orders; timely position reports; efficient processing of wires, deposits, withdrawals as well as accurate reporting of account balances, commissions and fees.

Sound Risk Management

vCapFutures views risk management as being of paramount importance - we are always cognizant and mindful of the institutional client’s tolerance for risk. With the combined efforts of vCapFutures and your FCM, we monitor institutional trading activities and overall market trends to effectively measure and manage risk, creating an environment where capital is secure and available for use by our institutional clients.

Research

vCapFutures provides institutional clients with access to highly-regarded proprietary futures research that offers authoritative and timely analysis of the futures markets (interest rate, agricultural, energy, currency, metals, equity, and "softs" markets). Your institution will have immediate access to breaking news, interactive charting and the latest reports directly from the floor of selected exchanges and remote locations across the United States from the convenience of your desktop Internet connection. In addition to breaking news, you will also have access to more than 40 daily broadcasts, including morning and afternoon roundtable discussions that encompass the spectrum of futures market perspectives.

Currency Futures Trading

2009-06-20T19:32:00.001-07:00

Although the FX market, is the largest financial market in the world, a surge in volume and enormous growth has also taken place in the currency futures markets as institutions are accessing different venues of FX liquidity.

By utilizing our high-end institutional trading systems and front-end solutions, we believe exporters, importers, hedge funds, non-banking institutions and speculators alike can take advantage of this alternative venue of FX liquidity and use the currency futures markets to manage foreign exchange risk, gain price improvement on trades, achieve lower trading costs and conduct their cross-border transactions more efficiently and securely.

As world currencies increase or decrease in relation to other currencies, a multitude of economic & political forces affect the international currency markets such as: political stability, economic climate (depressions, recessions and expansions), central bank or government intervention, changes in interest rates, money supply growth and inflation. By using our advanced front-end trading systems, we believe our clients can have a competitive edge against many factors that contribute to foreign exchange risk:

Floating Exchange Rates: In a floating exchange rate environment, the exchange rate responds to the flow of imports and exports, the flow of capital, relative inflation rates and more. Often, limits are placed on exchange rate fluctuations according to government policies.
Merchandise Trade Balance: One factor affecting the exchange rate between currencies is the merchandise trade balance. This is the net difference between the value of merchandise being exported and imported into a particular country. For example, the net difference between the Canadian demand for US dollars to buy American merchandise, and the supply of Canadian dollars affected by the Americans' purchase of Canadian merchandise, is the merchandise trade balance between the two countries.
Flow of funds to pay for stocks and bonds: The flow of funds between countries to pay for stocks and bonds also affects the currency exchange rate between countries. However, in the near term, capital flows are greatly influenced by yield differentials.
Yield differentials and their affect on currency values: Yield differentials is the difference between interest rates in various countries and how it affects currency values. All else being equal it stands to reason that a higher yield on German securities (compared to American securities) would make German securities more attractive. What's more, an increase in German yields would raise the flow of U.S. dollars into German securities, and decrease the outflow of Deutsche marks to American securities. This increased flow of funds into Germany would lower the value of the U.S. dollar and increase the value of the Deutsche mark. Hence, the Deutsche mark to U.S. dollar ratio, as it is represented in the foreign exchange market, would potentially decrease.
Rate of inflation: Consumers try to avoid the eroding effect inflation has on their purchasing power. Consequently, goods from countries with a low inflation rate become more attractive than the goods from countries with higher inflation. In turn, the currency from the lower inflation country rises in value, while the currency from the higher inflation country falls in value. Both the inflation factor and the purchasing power of the currencies directly impact currency exchange rates. For example, if the United States is experiencing lower inflation than its trading partner Germany, the EURO/USD ratio would rise to reflect the growing price level in Germany relative to the United States. This factor is rooted in the concept of purchasing power parity. It holds that, over the long run, a currency exchange rate adjusts to reflect the difference in price levels between countries.

Whether you are an exporter, importer, hedge fund, global fund manager, non-banking institutions, government agency or a speculator, vCap Futures can provide you with access to the world's most important electronic and pit-traded currency futures products:

Euro Dollar
Japanese Yen
British Pound
Australian Dollar
Swiss Franc
Canadian Dollar

South African Rand
Hungarian Forint
Polish Zloty
Czech Koruna
Brazilian Real
Swedish Krona

If you are interested in trading currencies in the inter-bank spot market (cash / forwards), please visit www.vcapfx.com

Advantages

We believe the advantages of trading currency futures to be:

Diversification: Currency futures can provide investors with a well-balanced portfolio through diversification and low systematic risk. Price fluctuations in currency futures have very low correlations with price movements in stock market values and interest rates. This lack of any systematic relationship can lower portfolio risk when the equities and interest rates are in a depressed state.
24-Hour Trading: Currency futures trade nearly 24-hours a day in the CME, Globex market or open out-cry trading pits.
Highly Liquid: Investors can enter the currency futures markets and exit positions efficiently, as they are one of the largest and most liquid markets in the world. Currency futures markets can absorb trading volume and transaction sizes that dwarf the capacity of many of the world’s equities markets.

2009-06-18T18:05:00.000-07:00

Four Key Elements of Futures Trading Success

There are four key elements to achieving success as a futures trader:

Self-confidence
Discipline
Ability to handle loss
Profitable trading system

Self-confidence. If you aren’t confident that you can become a successful futures trader, you might as well pack it in now and save yourself a lot of grief. Successful futures traders are bold, aggressive and self-assured. They do not lose faith in themselves when they lose. They have the courage and self-confidence to keep trading. Futures traders are risk takers. We are the Mario Andrettis of Wall Street.

2009-06-18T18:03:00.000-07:00

Keys to Becoming a Successful Futures Trader

There are a number of qualities that define a successful futures trader — the keys to success.

Discipline. Discipline is the primary key to successful futures trading. You must have the discipline to learn your system, study it daily and tweak it to perfection. You must have the discipline to keep a trading log that records your trades, as well as the market conditions, thought processes and external influences that affected each trade. Without such a log, you are doomed to repeat your mistakes, rather than learning from them. You must have the discipline to do your homework, to study and keep up with the market, to keep your system current.
Patience. You must be patient if your trading system is to be effective. By trading too soon, you negate the value of your trading system. You must exercise patience and give your system time to work.
Loss. Loss is part of the trading game. You must be able to take losses in stride and get right back in the game. When your system dictates that a loss be taken, you must have the discipline to follow your system, take the loss quickly, minimize the damage and move on.
Perseverance. There are no overnight success stories in futures trading. Success is a matter of building experience, working and perfecting your system, minimizing losses, and capitalizing on small gains. Success, particularly at the beginning, is more often a series of small steps than giant leaps.
Confidence. Above all, a futures trader must have confidence in himself. You must have confidence in your system and your ability to work your system — to pull the trigger. Futures trading is a game of risk. You can’t be afraid to act. You must have confidence in your ability to read your system and act. Those who hesitate are doomed to lose in the futures trading game.
Flexibility. The market and market forces are ever-changing. You must have the flexibility to change with the times, to make changes to your system so it remains viable and in tune with current market conditions.

Futures Traders Must Understand Risks

2009-06-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

Futures Traders Must Understand Risks In Commodity Trading

Playing the commodity market is viewed as (and can be) a risky game. Many investors consider commodities the market’s riskiest asset. The truth is that commodities are no riskier than stocks. Certainly there is risk, as there is in any investment. But the risk is no greater in the commodity markets than it is in any other market.

In current years, commodities have out-performed stocks. From 2002 to 2005, the Dow Jones Industrial Average returned a respectable 7%. During the same period, the Dow Jones-AIG Commodity Index increased a whopping 21%!

Risk is a matter of perception and knowledge. People (and investors are just folks) fear what they don’t know or understand. That’s where the commodity market gets its bad rap. Most investors just don’t know enough about commodities or how they work so they avoid them. Futures traders who take the time to learn about commodities and come to understand commodity markets gain an open playing field with plenty of room to maneuver.

What are the real risks in trading commodity futures?

Geopolitical risk. One of the greatest inherent risks in trading commodities is that the world’s natural resources are tied to physical geography which has been parceled out and is controlled by various world governments or sometimes by international companies. In order to access natural resources, companies must deal with and are often at the mercy of various foreign governments. The complexity of taking natural resources out of the ground and turning them into usable products is intense. Each government imposes on the process its own set of laws, way of doing business, cultural customs, tax structures, environmental concerns, employment requirements, technology network, etc.International disagreements over the control of natural resources are commonplace. Foreign developers can be unceremoniously booted out by the host country, losing their entire investment. If a country chooses to nationalize an industry — as Bolivia nationalized the natural gas industry in 2006 — the foreign developer loses everything in the blink of an eye, and has no recourse for reimbursement of his considerable investment.It’s difficult to protect yourself from geopolitical risk, but it pays to remember that in commodities, size matters. The bigger and more experienced the company, the more likely it is to succeed. Futures traders can use this information to determine probable risk.
Next time: Additional risk factors and how to manage risk.

WORLD FOREX:

2009-06-18T17:56:00.000-07:00

WORLD FOREX: Euro Rises On Econ Optimism, Higher Oil Prices

TOKYO (Dow Jones)--The euro continued to rise against the dollar and yen in Asia Thursday as the region's investors became more optimistic toward the European economy after recent data, and more risk tolerant on higher crude oil prices.

"Some players think the euro may keep rising because it looks like the European economy is stronger than they anticipated a few weeks ago," said Shinichi Hayashi, a senior dealer at Shinkin Central Bank.

The euro may strengthen by the end the week to $1.4050 and Y135.00, some dealers said. At 0450 GMT, it was at $1.3952, higher than $1.3945 in New York Wednesday, and at Y133.59, above Y133.33 yesterday.

One indicator boosting bullishness toward the euro-zone was this week's German ZEW data, which measures sentiment among European financial analysts. The headline figure came to 44.8, much better than the consensus forecast of 37.0.

The recent rise in crude oil prices is also lifting the euro by whetting investors' risk appetite, and prompting more purchases of euro-denominated risk assets, traders said. The euro's been considered a higher risk currency than its U.S. and Japanese counterparts recently, and it has benefitted when the market's risk tolerance increased.

Asian traders were also talking Thursday about the currency market effect of the planned Y923 billion share offering by Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc., Japan's third-largest bank by assets.

Some said the yen might rise against the dollar on this factor, as non-Japanese investors buy the Japanese currency to acquire the bank's new shares. Payments for the public offering are due June 22.

"A lot of currency players are talking about this today because it is believed that about half of the new shares will be bought by non-Japanese investors," said Yuji Saito, head of FX at Societe Generale.

Overnight U.S. economic data also capped the dollar's upside, dealers said. The U.S. Labor Department said Wednesday the consumer price index rose 0.1% in May from April, below economist expectations for a 0.3% increase.

"Players have been too optimistic about U.S. economic fundamentals. It is about time to correct these views," said Minoru Shioiri, a senior dealer at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities. "The U.S. economy may have bottomed out, but it's too early to say it has entered a recovering phase."

The dollar was trading around Y95.77 at 0450 GMT in Asia, higher than Y95.63 in New York.

Interbank Foreign Exchange Rates At 00:50 EDT / 0450 GMT
                        Latest     Previous   %Chg   Daily   Daily    %Chg
Dollar Rates                        2150 GMT          High    Low      12/31
USD/JPY Yen              95.73-77   95.65-70   +0.08  95.99   95.64    +5.66
EUR/USD Euro             1.3950-54  1.3942-47  +0.06  1.3973  1.3934   -0.20
GBP/USD Sterling         1.6379-83  1.6398-03  -0.12  1.6428  1.6367  +11.99
USD/CHF Swiss Franc      1.0808-12  1.0790-98  +0.17  1.0813  1.0779   +1.30
USD/CAD Canadian Dlr     1.1321-27  1.1319-24  +0.02  1.1328  1.1295   -6.94
AUD/USD Australian Dlr   0.7946-50  0.7936-40  +0.13  0.7977  0.7925  +12.34
NZD/USD New Zealand Dlr  0.6325-32  0.6335-42  -0.16  0.6350  0.6314   +8.40
EUR/JPY Yen              133.55-60  133.34-39  +0.16  134.12  133.33   +5.46

Introduction to Trading Forex

2009-06-18T12:42:00.000-07:00

Introduction to Trading Forex

Foreign Exchange

As an additional aid for those who are new to Forex, there is also a glossary at the bottom of this text which explains some of the terms used in connection with currency trading.

Overview

Trading Forex

Forward Outrights

Trading on Margin

Why Trade Forex?

24 hour trading
One of the major advantages of trading Forex is the opportunity to trade 24 hours a day from Sunday evening (20:00 GMT) to Friday evening (22:00 GMT). This gives you a unique opportunity to react instantly to breaking news that is affecting the markets.
Superior liquidity
The Forex market is so liquid that there are always buyers and sellers to trade with. The liquidity of this market, especially that of the major currencies, helps ensure price stability and narrow spreads. The liquidity comes mainly from banks that provide liquidity to investors, companies, institutions and other currency market players.
No commissions
The fact that Forex is often traded without commissions makes it very attractive as an investment opportunity for investors who want to deal on a frequent basis.
Trading the “majors” is also cheaper than trading other cross because of the high level of liquidity. For more information on the trading conditions of Saxo Bank, go to the Account Summary on your SaxoTrader and open the section entitled “Trading Conditions” found in the top right-hand corner of the Account Summary.
100:1 Leverage
Leverage (gearing) enables you to hold a position worth up to 100 times more than your margin deposit. For example, a USD 10,000 deposit can command positions of up to USD 1,000,000 through leverage. You can leverage the first USD 25,000 of your investment up to 100 times and additional collateral up to 50 times.
Profit potential in falling markets
Since the market is constantly moving, there are always trading opportunities, whether a currency is strengthening or weakening in relation to another currency. When you trade currencies, they literally work against each other. If the EURUSD declines, for example, it is because the US dollar gets stronger against the euro and vice versa. So, if you think the EURUSD will decline (that is, that the euro will weaken versus the dollar), you would sell EUR now and then later you buy euro back at a lower price. In case that the EURUSD indeed declines, then you can take your profit. The opposite trading scenario would occur if the EURUSD appreciates.

Important Forex Trading Terms

Spread
The spread is the difference between the price that you can sell currency at (Bid) and the price you can buy currency at (Ask). The spread on majors is usually 3 pips under normal market conditions. For more information on the trading conditions at Saxo Bank, go to the Account Summary on your Client Station and open the section entitled “Trading Conditions” found in the top right-hand corner of the Account Summary.
Pips
A pip is the smallest unit by which a cross price quote changes. When trading Forex you will often hear that there is a 3-pip spread when you trade the majors. This spread is revealed when you compare the bid and the ask price, for example EURUSD is quoted at a bid price of 0.9875 and an ask price of 0.9878. The difference is USD 0.0003, which is equal to 3 “pips”.

On a contract or position, the value of a pip can easily be calculated. You know that the EURUSD is quoted with four decimals, so all you have to do is cancel out the four zeros on the amount you trade and you will have the value of one pip. Thus, on a EURUSD 100,000 contract, one pip is USD 10. On a USDJPY 100,000 contract, one pip is equal to 1000 yen, because USDJPY is quoted with only two decimals.

Trading Scenario – Trading Rising Prices

If you believe that the euro will strengthen against the dollar you'll want to buy euro now and sell it back later at a higher price.

• You buy euro

• The market moves in your favor

Later the market turns in favour of the euro and the EURUSD is now quoted at Bid 0.9894 and Ask 0.9896.

• Now you sell your euro and get the profit

You sell euro at a Bid price of 0.9894.

• The profit is calculated as follows

Sell price-buy price x size of trade
(0.9894 minus 0.9878) multiplied by 100.000 = USD 140 Profit
(Note that the profit or loss is always expressed in the secondary currency)

Trading Scenario – Trading Falling Prices

If, on the other hand, you believe that the euro will weaken against the dollar, you'll want to sell EURUSD.

• You sell euro

We quote EURUSD at a Bid price of 0.9875 and Ask price of 0.9880 and you decide to sell euro 100,000 at a Bid price of 0.9875.

• The market moves in your favour

The euro weakens against the dollar and the EURUSD is now quoted at bid 0.9744 and ask 0.9749.

• Now you buy back your euro

You buy EUR at an ask price of 0.9749.

• Your profit/loss is then

Sell price-buy price x size of trade
(0.9875 minus 0.9749) multiplied by 100.000 = USD 1260 Profit

Glossary

• Appreciation

An increase in the value of a currency.

• Ask

The price requested by the trader. This usually indicates the lowest price a seller will accept.

• Base currency

The currency that the investor buys or sells (i.e. EUR in EURUSD).

• Bear

Someone who believes prices are heading down. A bear market is one in which there has been a sustained fall in prices and which does not look like it will recover quickly.

• Bid

The price offered by the trader. This usually indicates the highest price a purchaser will pay.

• Bid/Ask

The Bid rate is the rate at which you can sell. The Ask (or offer) rate is the rate at which you can buy.

• Bull

Someone who is optimistic about the market. A bull market is characterised by enthusiastic and sustained buying.

• cross

When trading with currencies, the investor buys one currency with another. These two currencies form the cross: for example, EURUSD.

• Cross rate

An exchange rate that is calculated from two other exchange rates.

• Depreciation/decline

A fall in the value of a currency.

• Exchange rate

What one currency is worth in terms of another, for example the Australian dollar might be worth 58 US cents or 70 yen.

Currencies traded freely on foreign-exchange markets have a spot rate (applying to trades settled “spot”, i.e., two working days hence) and a forward rate. Countries can determine their exchange rates in a variety of ways.
1. A floating exchange rate system where the currency finds its own level in the market.
2. A crawling or flexible peg system which is a combination of an officially fixed rate and frequent small adjustments which in theory work against a build-up of speculation about a revaluation or devaluation.
3. A fixed exchange-rate system where the value of the currency is set by the government and/or the central bank.

• EURUSD

Means that you trade EUR against dollars. If you buy euro you pay in dollars and if you sell euro you receive dollars.

• FX, Forex, Foreign Exchange

All names for the transaction of one currency for another, e.g. you buy GBP 100.00 with USD 150.25 or sell USD 150.25 for GBP 100.00.

• Interbank

Short-term (often overnight) borrowing and lending between banks, as distinct from a banks business with their corporate clients or other financial institutions.

• Interest rate differential

The yield spread between two otherwise comparable debt instruments denominated in different currencies.

• Leverage (gearing)

The investor only funds part of the amount traded.

• Long

To buy.

• Long position

A position that increases its value if market prices increase.

• Liquid (-ity)

The capacity to be converted easily and with minimum loss into cash. A liquid market is one in which there is enough activity to satisfy both buyers and sellers. Ultra-short-dated treasury notes are an example of a liquid investment.

• Margin

The deposit required when entering into a position as well as to hold an open position. Your margin status can be monitored in the Account Summary.

• NYSE

The New York Stock Exchange.

• Open position

A position in a currency that has not yet been offset. For example, if you have bought 100,000 USDJPY, you have an open position in USDJPY until you offset it by selling 100,000 USDJPY, thus “closing” the position.

• Over the counter

When trading takes place directly between two parties, rather than on an exchange. Over the counter trades can be customised whereas exchange-traded products are often standardised.

• Pips

A pip is the smallest unit by which a Forex cross price quote changes. So if EURUSD bid is now quoted at 0.9767 and it moves up 2 pips, it will be quoted at 0.9769.

• Position

Traders talk of “taking a position” which simply means buying or selling currency cross. “Position” can also refer to a trader's cash/securities/currencies balance, whether he or she is short of cash, has money to lend, is overbought or oversold in a currency, etc.

• Risk

Trying to control outcomes to a known or predictable range of gains or losses. Risk management involves several steps which begin with a sound understanding of one's business and the exposures or risks that have to be covered to protect the value of that business. Then an assessment should be made of the types of variables that can affect the business and how best to protect against unwelcome outcomes. Consideration must also be given to the preferred risk profile – whether one is risk – averse or fairly aggressive in approach. This also involves deciding which instruments to use to manage risk and whether a natural hedge exists that can be used. Once undertaken, a risk-management strategy should be continually assessed for effectiveness and cost.

• Secondary currency (variable currency or counter currency)

The currency that the investor trades the base currency against (i.e. USD in EURUSD).

• Short position

A position that benefits from a decline in market prices.

• Short

To sell.

• Speculative

Buying and selling in the hope of making a profit, rather than doing so for some fundamental business-related need.

• Spot

A Spot rate is the current market price of an asset.

• Spot market

The part of the market calling for spot settlement of transactions. The precise meaning of “spot” will depend on local custom for a commodity, security or currency. In the UK, US and Australian foreign-exchange markets, “spot” means delivery two working days hence.

• Spread

The difference between the bid and the ask rate.

statistics

2009-06-18T12:40:00.000-07:00

Working with statistics

Trade Balance

The trade balance is a major indicator of foreign exchange trends. Seen in isolation, measures of imports and exports are important indicators of overall economic activity in the economy.

Gross Domestic Product

Consumer Price Index

Producer Price Index

The PPI is considered important because it accounts for price changes throughout the manufacturing sector.

Studying the PPI allows consideration of inflationary pressures that may be accumulating or receding, but have not yet filtered through to the finished goods prices.

Payroll Employment

Durable Goods Orders

Retail Sales

Retail Sales are a measure of the total receipts of retail stores. Monthly percentage changes reflect the rate of change of such sales and are widely followed as an indicator of consumer spending.

Retails Sales are a major indicator of consumer spending because they account for nearly one-half of total consumer spending and approximately one-third of aggregate economic activity.

Often, Retail Sales are followed less auto sales because these are generally much more volatile than the rest of the Retail Sales and can therefore obscure the more important underlying trend.

Housing Starts

Trading examples

2009-06-18T12:39:00.000-07:00

Forex trading examples

Example 1

An investor has a margin deposit with Saxo Bank of USD 100,000.

The investor expects the US dollar to rise against the Swiss franc and therefore decides to buy USD 2,000,000 - 2% of his maximum possible exposure at a 1% margin Forex gearing.

The Saxo Bank dealer quotes him 1.5515-20. The investor buys USD at 1.5520.

Day 1: Buy USD 2,000,000 vs. CHF 1.5520 = Sell CHF 3,104,000.

Four days later, the dollar has actually risen to CHF 1.5745 and the investor decides to take his profit.

Upon his request, the Saxo Bank dealer quotes him 1.5745-50. The investor sells at 1.5745.

Day 5: Sell USD 2,000,000 vs. CHF 1.5745 = Buy CHF 3,149,000.

As the dollar side of the transaction involves a credit and a debit of USD 2,000,000, the investor's USD account will show no change. The CHF account will show a debit of CHF 3,104,000 and a credit of CHF 3,149,000. Due to the simplicity of the example and the short time horizon of the trade, we have disregarded the interest rate swap that would marginally alter the profit calculation.

This results in a profit of CHF 45,000 = approx. USD 28,600 = 28.6% profit on the deposit of USD 100,000.

Example 2:

The investor follows the cross rate between the EUR and the Japanese yen. He believes that this market is headed for a fall. As he is not quite confident of this trade, he uses less of the leverage available on his deposit. He chooses to ask the dealer for a quote in EUR 1,000,000. This requires a margin of EUR 1,000,000 x 5% = EUR 10,000 = approx. USD 52,500 (EUR /USD 1.05).

The dealer quotes 112.05-10. The investor sells EUR at 112.05.

Day 1: Sell EUR 1,000,000 vs. JPY 112.05 = Buy JPY 112,050,000.

He protects his position with a stop-loss order to buy back the EUR at 112.60. Two days later, this stop is triggered as the EUR o strengthens short term in spite of the investor's expectations.

Day 3: Buy EUR 1,000,000 vs. JPY 112.60 = Sell JPY 112,600,000.

The EUR side involves a credit and a debit of EUR 1,000,000. Therefore, the EUR account shows no change. The JPY account is credited JPY 112.05m and debited JPY 112.6m for a loss of JPY 0.55m. Due to the simplicity of the example and the short time horizon of the trade, we have disregarded the interest rate swap that would marginally alter the loss calculation.

This results in a loss of JPY 0.55m = approx. USD 5,300 (USD/JPY 105) = 5.3% loss on the original deposit of USD 100,000.

Example 3

The investor believes the Canadian dollar will strengthen against the US dollar. It is a long term view, so he takes a small position to allow for wider swings in the rate:

He asks Saxo Bank for a quote in USD 1,000,000 against the Canadian dollar. The dealer quotes 1.5390-95 and the investor sells USD at 1.5390. Selling USD is the equivalent of buying the Canadian dollar.

Day 1: Sell USD 1,000,000 vs. CAD 1.5390. He swaps the position out for two months receiving a forward rate of CAD 1.5357 = Buy CAD 1,535,700 for Day 61 due to the interest rate differential.

After a month, the desired move has occurred. The investor buys back the US dollars at 1.4880. He has to swap the position forward for a month to match the original sale. The forward rate is agreed at 1.4865.

Day 31: Buy USD 1,000,000 vs. CAD 1.4865 = Sell CAD 1,486,500 for Day 61.

Day 61: The two trades are settled and the trades go off the books. The profit secured on Day 31 can be used for margin purposes before Day 61.

The USD account receives a credit and debit of USD 1,000,000 and shows no change on the account. The CAD account is credited CAD 1,535,700 and debited CAD 1,486,500 for a profit of CAD 49,200 = approx. USD 33,100 = profit of 33.1% on the original deposit of USD 100,000.

Forex Trading Basics

2009-06-18T12:32:00.000-07:00

Forex Trading Basics

The global foreign exchange market is the biggest market in the world. The 3.2 trillion USD daily turnover dwarfs the combined turnover of all the world's stock and bond markets.

There are many reasons for the popularity of foreign exchange trading, but among the most important are the leverage available, the high liquidity 24 hours a day and the very low dealing costs associated with trading.

Of course many commercial organisations participate purely due to the currency exposures created by their import and export activities, but the main part of the turnover is accounted for by financial institutions. Investing in foreign exchange remains predominantly the domain of the big professional players in the market - funds, banks and brokers. Nevertheless, any investor with the necessary knowledge of the market's functions can benefit from the advantages stated above.

In the following article, we would like to introduce you to some of the basic concepts of foreign exchange trading. If you would like any further information, we suggest that you sign up for a FREE Membership on this website, where you will be able to exchange views with other Forex traders and get answers to any questions you might have.

Margin Trading

Foreign exchange is normally traded on margin. A relatively small deposit can control much larger positions in the market. For trading the main currencies, Saxo Bank requires a 1% margin deposit. This means that in order to trade one million dollars, you need to place just USD 10,000 by way of security.

In other words, you will have obtained a gearing of up to 100 times. This means that a change of, say 2%, in the underlying value of your trade will result in a 200% profit or loss on your deposit. See below for specific examples. As you can see, this calls for a very disciplined approach to trading as both profit opportunities and potential risks are very large indeed. Please refer to our page Forex Rates & Conditions for current Spreads, Margins and Conditions.

Base Currency and Variable Currency

When you trade, you will always trade a combination of two currencies. For example, you will buy US dollars and sell euro. Or buy euro and sell Japanese yen, or any other combination of dozens of widely traded currencies. But there is always a long (bought) and a short (sold) side to a trade, which means that you are speculating on the prospect of one of the currencies strengthening in relation to the other.

The trade currency is normally, but not always, the currency with the highest value. When trading US dollars against Singapore dollars, the normal way to trade is buying or selling a fixed amount of US dollars, i.e. USD 1,000,000. When closing the position, the opposite trade is done, again USD 1,000,000. The profit or loss will be apparent in the change of the amount of SGD credited and debited for the two transactions. In other words, your profit or loss will be denominated in SGD, which is known as the price currency. As part of our service, Saxo Bank will automatically exchange your profits and losses into your base currency if you require this.

Dealing Spread, but No Commissions

When trading foreign exchange, you are quoted a dealing spread offering you a buying and a selling level for your trade. Once you accept the offered price and receive confirmation from our dealers, the trade is done. There is no need to call an exchange floor. There are no other time-consuming delays. This is possible due to live streaming prices, which are also a great advantage in times of fast-moving markets: You can see where the market is trading and you know whether your orders are filled or not.

The dealing spread is typically 3-5 points in normal market conditions. This means that you can sell US dollars against the euro at 1.7780 and buy at 1.7785. There are no further costs, commissions or exchange fees.

This ensures that you can get in and out of your trades at very low slippage and many traders are therefore active intra-day traders, given that a typical day in USDEUR presents price swings of 150-200 points.

Spot and forward trading

When you trade foreign exchange you are normally quoted a spot price. This means that if you take no further steps, your trade will be settled after two business days. This ensures that your trades are undertaken subject to supervision by regulatory authorities for your own protection and security. If you are a commercial customer, you may need to convert the currencies for international payments. If you are an investor, you will normally want to swap your trade forward to a later date. This can be undertaken on a daily basis or for a longer period at a time. Often investors will swap their trades forward anywhere from a week or two up to several months depending on the time frame of the investment.

Although a forward trade is for a future date, the position can be closed out at any time - the closing part of the position is then swapped forward to the same future value date.

Interest Rate Differentials

Different currencies pay different interest rates. This is one of the main driving forces behind foreign exchange trends. It is inherently attractive to be a buyer of a currency that pays a high interest rate while being short a currency that has a low interest rate.

Although such interest rate differentials may not appear very large, they are of great significance in a highly leveraged position. For example, the interest rate differential between the US dollar and the Japanese yen has been approximately 5% for several years. In a position that can be supported by a 5% margin deposit, this results in a 100% profit on capital per annum when you buy the US dollar. Of course, an even more important factor normally is the relative value of the currencies, which changed 15% from low to high during 2005 – disregarding the interest rate differential. From a pure interest rate differential viewpoint, you have an advantage of 100% per annum in your favour by being long US dollar and an initial disadvantage of the same size by being short.
Please refer to our page Forex Rates & Conditions for current Spreads, Margins and Conditions!

Such a situation clearly benefits the high interest rate currency and as result, the US dollar was in a strong bull market all through 2005. But it is by no means a certainty that the currency with the higher interest rate will be strongest. If the reason for the high interest rate is runaway inflation, this may undermine confidence in the currency even more than the benefits perceived from the high interest rate.

Stop-loss discipline

As you can see from the description above, there are significant opportunities and risks in foreign exchange markets. Aggressive traders might experience profit/loss swings of 20-30% daily. This calls for strict stop-loss policies in positions that are moving against you.

Fortunately, there are no daily limits on foreign exchange trading and no restrictions on trading hours other than the weekend. This means that there will nearly always be an opportunity to react to moves in the main currency markets and a low risk of getting caught without the opportunity of getting out. Of course, the market can move very fast and a stop-loss order is by no means a guarantee of getting out at the desired level.

But the main risk is really an event over the weekend, where all markets are closed. This happens from time to time as many important political events, such as G7 meetings, are normally scheduled for weekends.

For speculative trading, we always recommend the placement of protective stop-lossorders. With Saxo Bank Internet Trading you can easily place and change such orders while watching market development graphically on your computer screen.

Trading Software

2009-06-18T12:29:00.000-07:00

Trading Softwares

Choosing the right trading platform to suit a particular trader’s needs is crucial. This holds true whether you are the senior trader at a hedge fund, a developer looking to code your trading algorithm and plug it directly into the futures markets, a CTA who needs to have allocation management and access multiple futures accounts, or a retail trader who wants to trade a single futures product. At Velocity, our customers have the ability to choose from among several leading trading platforms, select from a full range of product functionality and connectivity, and manage the cost of the software license with a variety of subscription options. Flexible commission rates are offered for every trading platform, including commission schedules that require NO monthly subscription fees. Velocity is committed to offering its clients access to state-of-the-art trading software, anchoring all of the trading platforms on the most robust, reliable and stable network backbone in the industry, and supporting it with a Live Trade Desk and 24-hour service.

Features & Functionality

Futures markets are truly global, with a wide array of products traded on exchanges worldwide, around the clock. Asset allocation towards commodities and futures is growing rapidly, and these demands have been directed at the trading software to keep up. This means loads of functionality, available at your fingertips, with advanced analytics and strategies just clicks away. This means access to multiple exchanges from the CME and CBOT, to ICE and NYMEX, to Eurex and LIFFE. Futures trading software must be dynamic and able to interface via FIX or API so that quantitative strategies and algorithms can be input with minimal latency. Velocity offers a software solution for every client, trader, and developer, across the globe.

Cost Analysis

Every client of Velocity has an eye on costs, whether they are measured in Pounds sterling, milliseconds, Euros, excess network hops, monthly subscription fees, or pennies per contract. Introducing brokers, retail traders, and hedge funds alike all analyze the costs of doing business. At Velocity, we offer every individual and organization a cost-effective solution to gain access to the futures markets. Our commission schedules are flexible with multiple options including monthly subscription and some of the most competitive in the industry. High volume clients will want to explore solutions with our Professional Services Team, such as CME Memberships and Seat Leases to further drive down per contract costs.

Most of all, at Velocity we are transparent. Velocity posts its commission rates online, for everyone to see. How many other futures FCMs can you say that about? They want you to submit your phone number to their Salesmen, find out what volume you are going to trade, and then pick your commission rate for you. At Velocity, we let you make the choices.

Trading Technologies

In electronic screen based futures trading, there has emerged one clear technology provider that has established the Gold Standard in the industry: Trading Technologies. TT has used its development team to construct one of the most stable price and execution back-ends ever produced in the electronic trading world. This is why Velocity has selected TT as its partner for supplying software platforms to its clients. Trading Technologies has set the bar for performance, and Its X_TRADER and X_TRADER Pro platforms are used by the pro’s. Velocity only offers software that is molded onto the TT backbone, and have full functionality like Ninja Trader and Strategy Runner. If there were other software products out there that offered the same speed and stability, Velocity would offer it.

Direct Connectivity

Velocity employs some of the most advanced network data center and connectivity technology in the futures industry. With data centers in Chicago and Houston, Velocity has the redundant network infrastructure that allows our clients to connect their trading platforms to the futures markets from all over the world. Whether it’s via private gigabit networks, leased T-3 lines, high-speed Internet connections, or a hosted blade server running your Fund’s latest algorithm, Velocity has a connectivity solution for every trading strategy and every client.

Network infrastructure: Fast, Reliable and Stable

The trading software Velocity provides to its clients is state-of-the-art, and our network must be reliable and stable at all times. Velocity has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into building the infrastructure the company relies on to provide the highest standard of service in the industry. And we continue to do so. We settle for nothing less than maximum speed across our entire network. Our clients demand market quotes and trade orders over a network that is optimized for speed, stability, and reliability. And Velocity delivers.

24-Hour Support

We strive to make the customer experience as satisfying as possible. That means fast responses, knowledgeable support staff, and easy to manage account setup. Velocity understands that each client experience is different, and we must be flexible and accommodating to ensure that your needs are met and your questions answered. Velocity has a 24 Hour Trade and Support Desk to expertly handle all of your software inquiries. We can help you choose a platform, download and install the software, help you troubleshoot your system, and answer any questions you might have. Sign up for a live or simulated account and get started.

Top 3 Forex Strategy Trading Tips

2009-06-16T06:36:00.000-07:00

This article will discuss the top 3 Forex strategy trading tips you can use to get an edge on the competition and make some money on a market designed to reward those with tenacity. While the Forex market is one that presents many ways to trade and invest, there may be some ways you can not only trade better, but smarter.

Choose a currency pair that you are familiar and comfortable with. If you look on the Forex market, there is a whole host of currencies and currency pairs that is available for you to start trading in, including some exotics as well. Exotics are currencies that are not traded much and they can include currencies from smaller known countries from the Middle East and Europe. While there is an option to trade in them, you need to know that there is a reason why so little people do trade in these currencies; because the chance for profit is small and the amount of fundamental analysis needed is great as the circumstances around the currency movement can be quite archaic in nature. So choose a currency pair that is traded in heavily, because in essence, in a zero sum market, you are able to make money on popular trends once you find yourself in the right position.

Combine the use of both technical analysis and fundamental analysis. These are the two most important types of information that you need to know about the market and market trends - so you can effectively predict market movement and place your investments in the right sectors. Technical analysis gives you information on where the market is and what is going on within it, showing you past trends and how they have culminated. It is a very current way to look at the market, but you need to combine this with a little market foresight, which can be gained from fundamental analysis. This type of analysis looks at the external and environmental factors that can shape the market in the future; ranging from political, economical and other market factors that could possibly change market movements. Knowing where the market has been, where it is now and where it might be going are crucial information you need to know when trading.

One of the best tips out there is ‘to be greedy when others are wary and be wary when others are greedy’, which means that going against the market could very well be one of the wisest decisions you can make. Many traders out there actually wait patiently for the opportunity to start trading on a market pivot point - when they know the market has the unique potential to turn and prices and rates will almost reverse in nature. Having crucial economic information, like policies and executions of the Central Banks in charge of the currency can be beneficial to you gaining and advantage on your competitor traders and make some money. So there you have it, the top 3 Forex strategy trading tips. have the luck to your's one business world then you will get succed.

Top 10 Forex Trading Tricks: You Won’t Lose

2009-06-16T06:29:00.000-07:00

The foreign exchange market or forex is the largest and most liquid markets in the world. Its growing popularity can be seen by the whooping $2 trillion trades a day. While the forex can be an extremely lucrative market, it can also be somewhat complicated. These ten tricks will help insure trading success in the foreign exchange market.

First, make sure you implement a trading plan. You should develop a foreign exchange trading system that you can stick with. Having a decent strategy is not enough you need a well-developed system to effectively implement your strategies. You should start by creating a schedule of when you will do your Forex trading. Next create on organized budget to keep track of the inflow and outflow of your money. It’s important to understand that Forex trading, like any business venture, will have its peaks and slumps. You should be prepared to stick to your system despite these fluctuations to maximize profits in the long run.

Second, make plans to trade within your means. Quite simply, if you cannot afford to lose, then you really cannot afford to win either. All traders hope that the will be profitable in their investments, but losing at some point is inevitable. For this reason it is important that you invest only money that you could stand to lose. Try setting aside some saving that you can dedicate just to trading.

Another helpful hint is to trade along side the majorities. This means trading mainly on the most common currency pairs. The most common currencies are the United States dollar, USD, the Japanese yen, JPY, the European Euro, EUR, the United Kingdom pound, GBP, the Australian dollar, AUD, the Swiss franc, CHF, and the Canadian dollar, CAD. The most common pairs of currency are referred to as majors and are GBP/USD, EUR/USD, AUD/USD, USD/JPY, USD/CHF, and USD/CAD.

Another way to insure success is to avoid emotional trading. Stick to you trading strategy and do not deviate because of gut feelings or hunches. Learn to exit the market when signals indicate that the market is about to swing in an unfavorable direction.

Learning to trust the trends is another important trick. Although currencies will always fluctuate slightly, they generally move steadily in one direction. If you are not sure on where to position yourself in the forex, following a trend is usually a safe bet.

Next, you should anticipate small losses. Know matter how well you know the market or how long you have been a trader you will probably encounter small losses. You need to expect and accept these losses as small components of a larger plan. Be ready for these small losses and put them aside in anticipation of acquiring greater returns in the future. The key to long-term success in the Forex market is patience.

Another helpful hint for traders is to avoid Forex strategies that you do not understand. You should do your research ahead of time and draw on the information from useful Forex guides and tutorials. It is important to be cautious of Forex scams. There are numerous scams popping up where companies offer to do your trading for you, these are the ones you should avoid. You should develop your Forex methods with an expert and only make trades on your own or through a licensed broker. The bottom line is making sure that you are fully aware of all aspects of your strategy and are comfortable with the risks and benefits.

Next, make sure you have an exit strategy planned out. Though you should expect small losses, you need to be able to recognize when you are in to deep. Before you jump into the Forex market you should set yourself limits on how much you plan to invest. One you determine the amount that you plan devote to your Forex trading do don’t surpass you limit. Be able to cut you losses once you realize the situation will not get better.

Top 4 Things Successful Forex Traders Do

2009-06-16T04:10:00.000-07:00

Trading in the financial markets is surrounded by a certain amount of mystique because there is no single formula for trading successfully. Think of the markets as being like the ocean and the trader as a surfer. Surfing requires talent, balance, patience, proper equipment and astute discrimination. Would you go into the water if there were sharks swimming all around you or dangerous rip tides? Hopefully not. (Benjamin Graham pioneered cutting edge concepts that propelled other top investors to fame.

The attitude to trading in the markets is no different to that required for surfing. By blending good analysis with effective implementation, your success rate will improve dramatically and, like many skill sets, good trading comes from a combination of talent and hard work. Here are the four legs of the stool that you can build into a strategy to serve you well in all markets.

Leg No.1 - Approach
Before you start to trade, recognize the value of proper preparation. The first step is to align your personal goals and temperament with the instruments and markets that you can comfortably relate to. For example, if you know something about retailing, then look to trade retail stocks rather than oil futures, about which you may know nothing. Begin by assessing the following three components.

Time Frame
The time frame indicates the type of trading that is appropriate for your temperament. Trading off of a five-minute chart suggests that you are more comfortable being in a position without the exposure to overnight risk. On the other hand, choosing weekly charts indicates a comfort with overnight risk and a willingness to see some days go contrary to your position.

In addition, decide if you have the willingness and time to sit in front of a screen all day or if you would prefer to do your research quietly over the weekend and then make a trading decision for the coming week based on your analysis. Remember that the opportunity to make substantial money in the markets requires time. Short-term scalping, by definition, means small profits or losses. In this case you will have to trade more frequently. (Find out about the various styles of this trading strategy in Scalping: Small Quick Profits Can Add Up.)
Methodology
Once you choose a time frame, find a consistent methodology. For example, some traders like to buy support and sell resistance. Others prefer buying or selling breakouts. Yet others like to trade using indicators such as MACD, crossovers etc. (Learn more in our Technical Analysis Tutorial.)

Once you choose a system or methodology, test it to see if it works on a consistent basis and provides you with an edge. If your system is reliable more than 50% of the time, you will have an edge, even if it's a small one. If you backtest your system and discover that had you traded every time you were given a signal and your profits were more than your losses, chances are very good that you have a winning strategy. Test a few strategies and when you find one that delivers a consistently positive outcome, stay with it and test it with a variety of instruments and various time frames. (For more, check out our Trading Systems Tutorial.)
Market (Instrument)
You will find that certain instruments trade much more orderly than others. Erratic trading instruments make it difficult to produce a winning system. Therefore, it is necessary to test your system on multiple instruments to determine that your system's "personality" matches with the instrument being traded. For example, if you were trading the USD/JPY currency pair in the forex market, you may find that Fibonacci support and resistance levels are more reliable in this instrument than in some others. You should also test multiple time frames to find those that match your trading system best. (Uncover the history and logic behind this popular trading tool in Taking The Magic Out Of Fibonacci Numbers, and Advanced Fibonacci Applications.)

Leg No.2 - Attitude
Attitude in trading means ensuring that you develop your mindset to reflect the following four attributes:

Patience
Once you know what to expect from your system, then have the patience to wait for the price to reach the levels that your system indicates for either the point of entry or exit. If your system indicates an entry at a certain level but the market never reaches it, then move on to the next opportunity. There will always be another trade. In other words, don't chase the bus after it has left the terminal; wait for the next bus. (Learn more in Patience Is A Trader's Virtue.)
Discipline
Discipline is the ability to be patient – to sit on your hands until your system triggers an action point. Sometimes the price action won't reach your anticipated price point. At this time you must have the discipline to believe in your system and not to second-guess it. Discipline is also the ability to pull the trigger when your system indicates to do so. This is especially true for stop losses.
Objectivity
Objectivity or "emotional detachment" also depends on the reliability of your system or methodology. If you have a system that provides entry and exit levels that you know have a high reliability factor, then you don’t need to become emotional or allow yourself to be influenced by the opinion of pundits who are watching their levels and not yours. Your system should be reliable enough so that you can be confident in acting on its signals. (Find out how your mindset can play a larger role in your success than market influences Trading Psychology And Discipline.)
Realistic Expectations
Even though the market can sometimes make a much bigger move than you anticipate, being realistic means that you cannot expect to invest $250 in your trading account and expect to make $1,000 each trade. Short-term time frames provide less profit opportunities than longer term, but the risk with longer-term time frames is higher. It's a question of risk versus reward.

Leg No.3 - Discrimination
Different instruments trade differently depending on who the major players are and why they are trading that particular instrument. Hedge funds are motivated differently than mutual funds. Large banks that are trading the spot currency market in specific currencies usually have a different objective than currency traders buying or selling futures contracts. If you can determine what motivates the large players then you can often piggy-back them and profit accordingly. (For more on this type of strategy, see Stop Hunting With The Big Players.)

Alignment
Pick a few currencies, stocks or commodities and chart them all in a variety of time frames. Then apply your particular methodology to all of them and see which time frame and which instrument is most responsive to your system. This is how you discover a "personality" match for your system. Repeat this exercise regularly to adapt to changing market conditions.

Leg No.4 - Management (Implementation)
Since there is no such thing as only profitable trades, no system will trigger a 100% sure thing. Even a profitable system, say with a 65% profit to loss ratio, still has 35% losing trades. Therefore, the art of profitability is in the management and execution of the trade. (Learn more in The Myth Of Profit/Loss Ratios.)

Risk Control
In the end, successful trading is all about risk control. Take losses quickly and often if necessary. Try to get your trade in the correct direction right out of the gate. If it backs off, cut out and try again. Often it is on the second or third attempt that your trade will move immediately in the right direction. This practice requires patience and discipline but when you get the direction right you can trail your stops and almost always be profitable at best, or break even at worst.

The Bottom Line
There are as many nuanced methods of trading as there are traders. There is no right or wrong way to trade. There is only a profit-making trade or a loss-making trade. Warren Buffet says there are two rules in trading: Rule 1: Never lose money. Rule 2: Remember Rule 1. Stick a note on your computer that will remind you to take small losses often and quickly - don't wait for the big losses. (Start your own investing adventure with the help of some simple guidelines: Tailoring Your Investment Plan.)

Identifying News Effects on Trades and Prices

2009-06-16T04:09:00.000-07:00

One can think of the information in news as having two components. The first component
is a common-knowledge (or “mean”) part: all agents agree about the appropriate impact of this
first part on the exchange rate. In macro models of news in currency markets, this first part is the
whole story: it fully characterizes the instantaneous adjustment of exchange rates to news. The
second component is the part whose implication for the exchange rate is not common knowledge.
It is this second part that is impounded in exchange rates via induced trading. Suppose, for
example, that all agents do not have access to the same technology for transforming the macro
data into an exchange rate forecast. The resulting inferences drawn are not known by the
marketmakers a priori. How do marketmakers aggregate the information in these inferences? The
answer from microstructure theory is that they learn from the sequence of submitted orders over
time. In this case, price adjusts instantaneously to the marketmaker’s rational expectation of the
market’s interpretation (this is the first of the two components), and then goes through a period of
gradual adjustment caused by the sequence of transacted orders.8
With respect to response time, remember that the announcements that we address here are
scheduled, so participants can plan their responses (conditional on realizations) in advance. This
is likely to lower response lags considerably relative to unscheduled news. In this sense, our tests
for whether market responses to news are protracted are conservative tests. Note, too, that the
model that we present below is capturing average responses (i.e., the total average response,
including the induced order flow effects). This is distinct from second-moment effects, i.e.,
effects on volatility. In fact, in response to news, order flow and price are also (jointly) more
volatile, which adds a dimension to the first-moment analysis that we do here. Addressing
directly these second-moment effects would take us too far afield from our central question, so
we do not take it on within this paper.

Do Currency Markets Absorb News Quickly?

2009-06-16T04:03:00.000-07:00

This paper addresses an important null hypothesis within exchange-rate theory: that
macro news is impounded in exchange rates instantaneously. This is typically understood to mean
a matter of seconds, or perhaps minutes (e.g., 5 to 10), but certainly contained within the day of
news arrival. We test this by examining the effects of news on subsequent currency trades by enduser
participants (such as hedge funds, mutual funds, and non-financial corporations). We find
that news arrivals induce subsequent changes in trading behavior in all of these major end-user
segments. These induced changes in trading remain significant for days. Induced trades also have
persistent effects on prices. These findings provide strong evidence that currency markets are not
responding to news instantaneously.
Our basis for pursuing whether induced trades might prolong the absorption of news
comes from recent empirical work demonstrating a tight link between signed transaction volume
(order flow) and signed exchange rate changes.1 This link is not predicted by macro exchange rate
theory, but it is predicted by an alternative modeling framework from microstructure finance. In
this micro-based framework, transactions play a central, causal role in price determination (see,
e.g., Glosten and Milgrom 1985, Kyle 1985). The causal role arises because transactions convey
information that is not common knowledge. In this paper, we address whether the tight link
between price adjustment and order flow that exists in general might also be playing a role in how
currency markets absorb news.
Most of the existing literature linking exchange rates to news is event-study based, and
does not address how transaction quantities respond to news (i.e., it addresses the link between
news and price in isolation). This literature has two branches. The first addresses the direction of
exchange-rate changes (first moments) and the second, later branch addresses exchange-rate
volatility (second moments). A common finding of the first branch is that, at least at the daily
frequency, directional effects from scheduled macro announcements are difficult to detect
because they are swamped by other factors affecting price. Intraday event studies do find
statistically significant effects, particularly for employment and money-supply announcements

When it comes to trading, one of the most neglected subjects are those dealing with trading psychology. Most traders spend days, months and even years

2009-06-16T01:41:00.000-07:00

It is useful to have a map and be able to see where the price is relative to previous market action. This way we can see how is the sentiment of traders and investors at any given moment, it also gives us a general idea of where the market is heading during the day. This information can help us decide which way to trade. AS the trade business is going to expand a lot as it seems to be possible by means of forex which provides a lot's of business markating n other's mony making markets too with the help of it u can also see the whole trade business in the world which is held by the exchange rate of currency & other's project.

MAIN DRAWbacks of forex traders

2009-06-16T01:29:00.000-07:00

Why is it that very few traders succeed in the Forex trading environment while the grand majority of traders fail to achieve success? There is no hard answer to this question, there are a few things that will put you one step ahead and will definitely put the odds in your favor.

The main purpose of this article is to guide you through some important aspects of Forex trading. But in a different way, instead of telling you what to do or the best way to do it, it will tell you what to avoid. Sometimes it is better to identify the main drawbacks on a discipline and then isolate them so we have the best results at a certain level of development.

The Holy Grail

Many traders spend years and years trying to find the Holy Grail of trading. That magic indicator or set of indicators, only known by a few traders, that will make them rich in a short period of time.

Fact: Well, there is no magic indicator, nor a set of indicators that will make anyone rich in a short period of time. The main reason of this is because market changes, every single moment is unique. Every Forex trading system will fail from time to time. Our work here is to find a Forex trading system that fits our personality as traders, otherwise the trader will find it hard to follow it.

Looking for Easy Money

Unfortunately most traders are attracted to the Forex market for this reason. Mainly because of the publicity showing or rather trying to show how easy is to trade and make money in the Forex market.

Fact: Yes, it is very easy to trade, anyone can do it. It is as hard as one click. But the second part of it isn’t that easy. Making money or achieving consistent profitable results is hard. It requires lots of education, patience, discipline, commitment, and this list could go to infinite. In a few words, it is possible to have consistent profitable results, but definitely it is not easy.

Looking for Excitement

Some other traders are attracted to the Forex market or any other financial market because they think it is exciting to be a trader.

Fact: Yes, it is very exciting to trade the Forex market. But if this is the main reason you are still trading the Forex market, sooner or later you will discover the most expensive adventure you have ever known. Do some thinking on it.

Not Using Money Management
Most traders forget about this important aspect of trading. They think they shouldn’t be using money management until they achieve consistent profitable results. They totally forget about the risk side of trading.

Fact: Money management allows your profits to increase geometrically, but also limits your risk on every single trade. Money management tells you how much to risk on each trade. Using money management is a must if you want to achieve your trading goals. By using money management you make sure you are going to be able to trade tomorrow, the next week, month and the following years.

Not Being Psychology Tuned

This is one of the most underestimated subjects when it comes to trading. One of the main principles of financial markets is that the price of each instrument is based on the perception of each individual participant “the crowd.” In other words the price of each instrument is determined by the fear, greed, ego and hope of all traders.

Fact: Being aware of all psychological issues that affect the decisions made by traders will definitely put the odds in your favor.

Lack of Education

Education is the base of knowledge on every discipline. As lawyers and doctors require several years of college until they get their degree, Forex traders also require long years of study. It is better to have someone experienced to guide you through your trading, since some information could take you in the wrong path.

Fact: The market teaches us invaluable lessons on every single trade made. The process of education for a Forex trader could take for ever. That’s right, we never stop learning. We should be humble about the markets and our knowledge; otherwise the market will prove us wrong.

These are some of the most important barriers every trader faces when trying to trade successfully.

Trading successfully the Forex markets is no easy task, it requires a lot of hard work to do it right, but with the right education, you will put yourself closer to your trading goals. there for achives your's goal today with the forex markets which give you the actual sources for the marketing & the business.

price action: the perfect trading system

2009-06-16T01:24:00.000-07:00

Trading the Forex market has become very popular in the last few years. But how difficult is it to achieve success in the Forex trading arena? Or let me rephrase this question, how many traders achieve consistent profitable results trading the Forex market? Unfortunately very few, only 5% of traders achieve this goal. One of the main reasons of this is because Forex traders focus in the wrong information to make their trading decisions and totally forget about the most important factor: Price behavior.

Most Forex trading systems are made off technical indicators (a moving average (MA) crossover, overbought/oversold conditions in an oscillator, etc.) But what are technical indicators? They are just a series of data points plotted in a chart; these points are derived from a mathematical formula applied to the price of any given currency pair. In other words, it is a chart of price plotted in a different way that helps us see other aspects of price.

There is an important implication on this definition of technical indicators. The fact that the readings obtained from them are based on price action. Take for instance a long MA crossover signal, the price has gone up enough to make the short period MA crossover the long period MA generating a long signal. Most traders see it as “the MA crossover made the price go up,” but it happened the other way around, the MA crossover signal occurred because the price went up. Where I’m trying to get here is that at the end, price behavior dictates how an indicator will act, and this should be taken into consideration on any trading decision made.

Trading decisions based on technical indicators without taking price action into consideration will give us less accurate results. For example, again a long signal generated by a MA crossover as the market approaches an important resistance level. If the price suddenly starts to bounce back off that important level there is no point on taking this signal, price action is telling us the market doesn’t want to go up. Most of the time, under this circumstances, the market will continue to fall down, disregarding the MA crossover.

Don’t get me wrong here, technical indicators are a very important aspect of trading. They help us see certain conditions that are otherwise difficult to see by watching pure price action. But when it comes to pull the trigger, price action incorporation into our Forex trading system will definitely put the odds in our favor, it will generate higher probability trades.

So, how to create a perfect Forex trading system?
First of all, you need to make sure your trading system fits your trading personality; otherwise you will find it hard to follow it. Every trader has different needs and goals, thus there is no system that perfectly fits all traders. You need to make your own research on various trading styles and technical indicators until you find a concept that perfectly works for you. Make sure you know the nature of whatever technical indicator used.

Secondly, incorporate price action into your system. So you only take long signals if the price behavior tells you the market wants to go up, and short signals if the market gives you indication that it will go down.

currency

2009-06-16T01:17:00.001-07:00

Currency Trading: Understanding the Basics of Currency Trading

Investors and traders around the world are looking to the Forex market as a new speculation opportunity. But, how are transactions conducted in the Forex market? Or, what are the basics of Forex Trading? Before adventuring in the Forex market we need to make sure we understand the basics, otherwise we will find ourselves lost where we less expected. This is what this article is aimed to, to understand the basics of currency trading.

What is traded in the Forex market?
The instrument traded by Forex traders and investors are currency pairs. A currency pair is the exchange rate of one currency over another. The most traded currency pairs are:

EUR/USD: Euro
GBP/USD: Pound
USD/CAD: Canadian dollar
USD/JPY: Yen
USD/CHF: Swiss franc
AUD/USD: Aussie

These currency pairs generate up to 85% of the overall volume generated in the Forex market.

So, for instance, if a trader goes long or buys the Euro, she or he is simultaneously buying the EUR and selling the USD. If the same trader goes short or sells the Aussie, she or he is simultaneously selling the AUD and buying the USD.

The first currency of each currency pair is referred as the base currency, while second currency is referred as the counter or quote currency.

Each currency pair is expressed in units of the counter currency needed to get one unit of the base currency.

If the price or quote of the EUR/USD is 1.2545, it means that 1.2545 US dollars are needed to get one EUR.

Bid/Ask Spread
All currency pairs are commonly quoted with a bid and ask price. The bid (always lower than the ask) is the price your broker is willing to buy at, thus the trader should sell at this price. The ask is the price your broker is willing to sell at, thus the trader should buy at this price.

EUR/USD 1.2545/48 or 1.2545/8
The bid price is 1.2545
The ask price is 1.2548

A Pip
A pip is the minimum incremental move a currency pair can make. Pip stands for price interest point. A move in the EUR/USD from 1.2545 to 1.2560 equals 15 pips. And a move in the USD/JPY from 112.05 to 113.10 equals 105 pips.

Margin Trading (leverage)
In contrast with other financial markets where you require the full deposit of the amount traded, in the Forex market you require only a margin deposit. The rest will be granted by your broker.

The leverage provided by some brokers goes up to 400:1. This means that you require only 1/400 or .25% in balance to open a position (plus the floating gains/losses.) Most brokers offer 100:1, where every trader requires 1% in balance to open a position.

The standard lot size in the Forex market is $100,000 USD.

For instance, a trader wants to get long one lot in EUR/USD and he or she is using 100:1 leverage.

To open such position, he or she requires 1% in balance or $1,000 USD.

Of course it is not advisable to open a position with such limited funds in our trading balance. If the trade goes against our trader, the position is to be closed by the broker. This takes us to our next important term.

Margin Call
A margin call occurs when the balance of the trading account falls below the maintenance margin (capital required to open one position, 1% when the leverage used is 100:1, 2% when leverage used is 50:1, and so on.) At this moment, the broker sells off (or buys back in the case of short positions) all your trades, leaving the trader "theoretically" with the maintenance margin.

Most of the time margin calls occur when money management is not properly applied.

How are the mechanics of a Forex trade?
The trader, after an extensive analysis, decides there is a higher probability of the British pound to go up. He or she decides to go long risking 30 pips and having a target (reward) of 60 pips. If the market goes against our trader he/she will lose 30 pips, on the other hand, if the market goes in the intended way, he or she will gain 60 pips. The actual quote for the pound is 1.8524/27, 4 pips spread. Our trader gets long at 1.8530 (ask). By the time the market gets to either our target (called take profit order) or our risk point (called stop loss level) we will have to sell it at the bid price (the price our broker is willing to buy our position back.) In order to make 60 pips, our take profit level should be placed at 1.8590 (bid price.) If our target gets hit, the market ran 64 pips (60 pips plus the 4 pip spread.) If our stop loss level is hit, the market ran 26 (26 pips plus the 4 pip spread equals 30 pips) pips against us.

It's very important to understand every aspect of trading. Start first from the very basic concepts, then move on to more complex issues such as Forex trading systems, trading psychology, trade and risk management, and so on. And make sure you master every single aspect before adventuring in a live trading account.

Investors and traders around the world are looking to the Forex market as a new speculation opportunity.

2009-06-16T01:14:00.000-07:00

In this Forex guide we will review some steps you need to take care before you venture into your trading journey. Most traders venture into the Forex market with little or no experience in the Forex market. This results in painful experiences like loosing most of the risk capital, frustration because it seemed so easy to make money, etc.

The first thing you need to realize is that, it is not easy to make money. As every other endeavor in life, where important rewards are to come after mastering it, you need to work hard. You need to get very well educated and experienced before having the possibility to receive important rewards on it. The key on mastering the Forex market relies on commitment, patience and discipline.

Ok, you have decided you are going to trade the Forex market, you have seen several advertisings featuring how easy is to make money in the Forex market. You might think this is your opportunity to reach your financial freedom, right away, time is money, why waiting any longer if you have the opportunity to make money now. I know, I’ve been there, but you have a chance now, I didn’t, no body told me what I am going to tell you.

We, Forex traders, make transactions based on a set of rules. These sets of rules are what we call a Trading System. Our systems tell us the exact time where we need to get in the market and out the market in order to make a profit (i.e. buy low sell high.)

Creating a system is the first big step you need to take care first. Why is this so important? Because you need to build a system that suits your personality, otherwise you are going to find hard to follow it, thus hard to profit from. A system can be based on technical indicators or what we called a mechanical system or based on experience and intuition or what we call discretionary systems. I highly recommend using and trying first a mechanical system, because discretionary systems are dangerous during the early stages of a Forex trader (can lead to indiscipline.) With experience, on later stages, you will find out which signals work better and which ones to avoid.

The next step in this Forex guide is to try your system on a demo account. Most Forex brokers offer a demo account, an account with virtual money. This is an excellent choice to test your trading system as there is no money at risk. In this step you will figure out if the strategy works for you. If you feel comfortable trading it, then it is most likely to produce good results. How much time should you stay in this step? It varies, but you shouldn’t go one step further until your system gets consistent profitable results over a period of time. It can take many months, but remember, you need to be patient.

You must be honest to yourself; you need to take every single signal generated by your system, not only the signals you thought were going to work, otherwise, you are going to have problems in the next two steps.

Ok, by know you had consistent profitable results on your demo account. You might think its time to go full. Nope, nope, nope. There is a big difference between trading a demo and a real account. The most important difference lies on emotions (fear, greed, anger, etc.) These are psychological barriers that affect every single decision made by traders regardless of what he/she is trading (stocks, bonds, Forex, futures, grains, etc.) These emotional factors, in my opinion, are the most determinant factor that separates profitable traders from the others.

The next step in this Forex guide is specially designed to deal with emotions and to confirm the results obtained in the prior step (consistent results in a demo account.) At this step you need to trade in a real account with limited funds. Some brokers offer fractional lot trading. Meaning you are able to trade any desired amount (even cents.) The important thing here is that these emotions we’ve been talking about are present only when there is real money at risk. At this stage, you are going to see if you are really comfortable trading your system and if you are able to trade with such system, remember different systems produce different emotions. If you are able to produce similar results than those obtained in a demo account, then ready for the next step. If you didn’t, then you might need to create another system, there is chance your system never fit you. If you created consistent profitable results on this stage, you have a chance to produce similar results in the next one, on the other hand, if you didn’t produce good results in this stage, you will not be able to make on the next stage. Remember, you need to do things right, and be honest to yourself.

Deadly Forex Mistakes That Assure Failure

2009-06-16T01:12:00.000-07:00

Before venturing into your trading journey there are some things you need to be aware of, otherwise you could succeed on your trading adventure, and we don't want that to happen, do we? This Forex training guide will help you track the most costly mistakes Forex traders do.

First of all, make sure you don't have a trading system. Having a trading system might increase the odds of your success. If you have a system, you will have an objective way to get in and out the market. When traders create their trading systems they think objectively since there is no position to be taken at the moment. If there is no position to be taken, there is also no money at risk, if there is no money at risk, we do think objectively and are open to every possibility, thus we are able to find low risk trading opportunities. So make sure you don't have a system and trade based on a randomly approach.

If you have already created your system, then don't follow it, be undisciplined. If you follow your system, there is a possibility that you can profit from the Forex market based on the trading opportunities you have found. If you want to fail on your trading, be sure to be undisciplined.

Don't get educated. Most successful traders are very well educated in the market they trade (stocks, Forex, futures, etc.) If you get educated, you might acquire the knowledge and experience you require to master the Forex market. Don't read about the Forex market, don't enroll into Forex training programs and don't even look at historical charts.

Don't use any money management technique. The purpose of money management is to avoid the risk of ruin, but at the same time it helps you boost your profits, allowing them to grow geometrically. For instance, by using no money management techniques, there is a possibility that in loosing 10 trades in a row you could empty your trading account. On the other hand, by applying simple money management techniques you can avoid it. So make sure, if you want to fail, don't even consider money management.

Forget about psychological issues. You need to get every trade to win. Successful traders know that they don't need to win every trade in order to profit from the market. This is one characteristic that is hard to understand and really apply. Why? Because we are taught, since kids, that any number below 70% is a bad number. In the Forex trading environment, this is not true.

2009-06-14T09:04:00.000-07:00

BOC Nervous about Loonie Appreciation, but Not Enough to Take Action

Canada right now seems to typify the contradiction between political posturing and economic reality. GDP dropped by a whopping 5.3% in the first quarter- less than what the Central Bank had predicted but greater than thr 3.7% drop in the previous quarter. “The economy will shrink by 3 percent this year, the central bank predicts. That would be the biggest drop since 1933, according to Statistics Canada. The unemployment rate has also been at a seven-year high of 8 percent the last two months.” The most grim statistic is that “Canadian exports fell an annualized 30.4 percent in the first quarter, led by the automotive industry.” This is particularly problematic for Canada, whose economy is 30% depending on such exports.

Meanwhile, Canada’s Prime Minister, Steven Harper, is bandying the term “green shoots” around, and has declared “The worst is behind us now.” I guess it just depends on which statistics you choose to cite. After all, “April data…showed new jobs were created for the first time in six months and sales of existing homes rose the most in more than five years. Credit markets are also improving, with the Bank of Canada’s composite index of financial market conditions rising to its strongest level last month since September.” Still, a majority of surveyed economists forecast economic contraction for at least another quarter.

At least the Bank of Canada seems to have two feet planted firmly on the ground. It has warned investors not to expect a rate hike (from the current record low of .25%) for about a year, although it admits that could change depending on inflation. The BOC has thus far abstained from unveiling a massive “quantitative easing” plan to match that of the UK and US, which were subtly gibed for not having viable “exit strategies.” In addition, while Canada’s outstanding public debt has surged past $500 Billion, the country’s debt/GDP ratio is still the lowest in the G8 and projected to remain stable (despite projections of deficit for the next five years). In short, inflation inflation is probably not a realistic concern.

What is worrying to the Bank of Canada is the rise in the Loonie, which has surged 14% since March and shows no signs of stopping. In its decision last week to maintain rates at current levels, the BOC referred to “the unprecedentedly rapid rise in the Canadian dollar (which reflects a combination of higher commodity prices and generalized weakness in the U.S. currency).” Given that it can’t cut rates any further and is reluctant to devalue the currency through printing money, the only real option is for the Central Bank to intervene directly in currency markets, last done in 1998. Analysts, though, reckon that this is extremely unlikely.

What would it take for the Loonie to return to a more sustainable level? A decrease in risk appetite, for one thing. If investors got spooked and returned to the Dollar, this would probably crunch the Canadian Dollar. More likely, at least in the short-term, seems to be a retreat in commodity prices. The Loonie has pretty closely tracked the recovery in commodity prices [see chart below], any any pullback in oil and metals would likely be reflected in decreased demand for the currency. A recent report in the NY Times suggested that the surge in Chinese buying activity - which was clearly correlated with rising prices - may soon come to an end. The inevitable fall in commodities prices that would follow will certainly help officials at the BOC to sleep better.

June 11th 2009

Retail FX Trading Continues to Surge

Pretty much every brochure advertising forex trading highlights the fact there is no such a thing as a bear market in forex. Stocks, bonds, and commodities can all lose value simultaneously (as happened when Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy in October 2008) but it’s impossible for all currencies to decline simultaneously. A bear market in the Euro might be offset by a bull market in the Dollar; or Swiss Franc; or Brazilian Real. Regardless, you don’t have to search far to find currencies that are outperforming, whereas a stock picker would certainly have his work cut out for him during an economic recession.

I remind you of this cliche because in the current market environment, it has apparently taken on new significance. Anecdotal reports of investors frustrated with stocks, or having been burned by China, or disappointed by the collapse in oil, are flocking to forex by the thousands. Angry about suspended trading rules on stock markets? This could never happen in forex (at least not under current rules), since currencies are traded on multiple exchanges linked through a decentralized system.

Here are the stats: at Forex.com, “New accounts have increased about 30 percent a month in the last six months from pre-September levels, while the number of trades per day has risen almost 50 percent. GFT Forex said trading volume rose 187 percent from late 2007 to late 2008….By the end of 2006 [the last year apparently for which this type of data is available], average daily trade volume reached over $60 billion, a 500 percent increase from 2001…Trading volume generated by ‘retail aggregators’ — electronic trading platforms that cater to individual retail traders — rose almost 43 percent from 2007 to 2008.” This dwarfs both overall growth in forex, as well as retail growth in the bread-and-butter securities markets.

One trend worth drawing attention to is that new investors are focusing on the most popular currency pairs. [See Chart below, courtesy of Wikipedia]. It has been proposed that this is because of widening spreads (i.e. more PIPs) on less liquid pairs, but it is just as likely being caused by investors applying the stock market logic of “buy what you know” to forex. It is understandable that those new to the game would want to get their feet wet by dabbling in the Euro/Dollar/Yen, rather than diving right in to niche currencies such as the Mexican Peso or even Korean Won, whose movements are both more volatile and more difficult for the average trader to understand.

As always, all investors are advised to be on the lookout for scams. In the last few months, it seems hundreds of low-profile forex ponzi schemes have been discovered, which means there are doubtless hundreds of more still flying below the radar of the authorities. If you are suspicious, check out the National Futures Association registry.

June 10th 2009

Bubble in Emerging Markets FX?

What’s wrong with a little optimism? Well, nothing, in theory. In practice, however, unbridled investor optimism usually spells disaster. Consider that emerging market stocks (based on the MSCI emerging-markets index) now trade for 15x-earnings, the highest level since December 2007. Does anyone remember what happened next? The index plummeted 22% in a matter of months.

Here are some more statistics. The MSCI index is now at an eight-month high, following a record 61% rise since February. $12 Billion have poured into emerging markets in the last four weeks alone. Consider this against the backdrop that “Earnings at companies in the MSCI emerging-markets gauge trailed analysts’ estimates by an average of 41 percent in the first quarter.”

Meanwhile, “The extra yield investors demand to own developing nations’ bonds instead of U.S. Treasuries fell…to 4.19 percentage points, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s EMBI+ Index.” The index has now erased nearly all of its losses from the last year. In some ways, this is even more unbelievable than the rally in stocks, since it indicates that despite the current recession and strained finances, investors are just as willing to lend to companies in developing countries as they were prior to the downturn!

Who cares about stocks- tell me about currencies! “Unsurprisingly stock markets in Asia have been highly correlated with regional currencies over recent months, with almost all currencies in Asia registering a strong directional relationship with their respective equity markets.” The Indonesian Rupiah is up 11% this year and the Indian Rupee is now up 4%, to highlight only a couple. Only a few months ago, these currencies were tracking at double-digit percentage declines!

A culling of analysts’ soundbites reveal the usual lack of consensus. On the one hand, “The pattern signals an ‘imminent’ drop;” “Fund flows at their extremes are contrary indicators;” and “Investors are starting to doubt the sustainability of how much longer this very sharp rally can continue.” But for every bear there’s a bull: “There’s a lot of money looking for decent returns and that’s going to continue driving emerging markets.” In short, you can find literally thousands of analysts and their respective forecasts to support either hypothesis.

I would argue that the sustainability of this rally (both in stocks and in currencies) hinges on a return to GDP growth in emerging markets. [The IMF forecasts 1.6% growth in 2009 and 4% in 2010]. But given the gap between share prices and earnings, I’m frankly not convinced that investors actually care about whether the rally is supported by actual data. Instead, investors have complacently been swept up by the same herd mentality that produced the bubble of 2008, and could potentially lead to a rapid and painful collapse in what looks to be the bubble of 2009.

manage future

2009-06-04T01:11:00.001-07:00

The term managed futures describes an industry made up of professional money managers known as commodity trading advisors (CTAs). Investment management professionals have been using managed futures for more than 20 years. With practically a zero correlation with stocks, one of the most attractive features of managed futures is its ability to add profound diversification to an overall investment portfolio.
Managed Futures - Commodity Trading Advisors - View the different (CTAs) and their performance results.
Request Free Information Kit on any Commodity Trading Advisor - or to have a licensed broker contact you and answer any questions you may have regarding managed accounts.
Modern Portfolio Theory - Dynamic Diversification for Todays InvestorThis 21-page brochure has been described as a "one-book library"on professionally managed futures. An important lesson for stock investors; and much more. After reading this brochure, you'll probably be better informed about professionally managed futures than if you spent $1,000 for aweekend investment seminar!

We have long known that the major brokerage firms on Wall Street have (and want) little to do with investments that do not correlate well with stocks. If the truth about non-correlated investments were to emerge, it would ultimately mean the loss of substantial client business for these firms. Investors should ask why it is that, out of tens of thousands of research reports issued yearly on a wide range of stocks, only a fraction of these reports issued 'sell' recommendations (even though so many of these companies proved to be outright.

future Tradings

2009-06-04T01:03:00.000-07:00

Trade all futures markets, not just the electronic traded futures that some brokerage firms offer. You can trade all pit traded markets (gold, silver, crude oil, grains), as well as electronic markets (e-minis, globex currencies), and some foreign futures markets. If your looking for a no cost platform that can trade all markets, Vision Express is the most popular online trading platform. The trading platforms also provide REAL-TIME quotes on all the markets traded. Some platforms also have REAL-TIME charting and complex order entry such as OCO orders.Ratings and awards are based on: (1) for Stocks & Commodities, in each award category, the company that receives the highest number of votes cast by the magazine’s subscribers over a fixed time period that ends shortly before announcement of the awards; (2) for Barron’s, a hands-on review of each company’s online brokerage products and services by a Barron’s journalist, in several categories, after which numerical scores are assigned per category and aggregated to determine overall numerical score. You may contact TradeStation if you are interested in learning more about these ratings and awards. Barron's is a registered trademark of Dow Jones.SEC Rule 606 Report

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