Forex Glossary 2

S

Settlement - The process by which a trade is entered into the books and records of the counterparts to a transaction. The settlement of currency trades may or may not involve the actual physical exchange of one currency for another.

Short Position - An investment position that benefits from a decline in market price. When the base currency in the pair is sold, the position is said to be short.

Spot Price - The current market price. Settlement of spot transactions usually occurs within two business days.

Spread - The difference between the bid and offer price. Big Figure Quote - Dealer expression referring to the first few digits of an exchange rate. These digits are often omitted in dealer quotes.. For example, a USD/JPY rate might be 117.30/117.35, but would be quoted verbally without the first three digits i.e. "30/35".

Stop Loss Order - Order type whereby an open position is automatically liquidated at a specific price. Often used to minimize exposure to losses if the market moves against an investor's position. As an example, if an investor is long USD at 156.27, they might wish to put in a stop loss order for 155.49, which would limit losses should the dollar depreciate, possibly below 155.49.

Swap - A currency swap is the simultaneous sale and purchase of the same amount of a given currency at a forward exchange rate.

T

Technical Analysis - An effort to forecast prices by analyzing market data, i.e. historical price trends and averages, volumes, open interest, etc.

Tick - A minimum change in price, up or down.

Tomorrow Next (Tom/Next) - Simultaneous buying and selling of a currency for delivery the following day.

Turnover - The total money value of all executed transactions in a given time period; volume.

Two-Way Price - When both a bid and offer rate is quoted for a FX transaction.

U

Unrealized Gain/Loss - The theoretical gain or loss on Open Positions valued at current market rates, as determined by the broker in its sole discretion. Unrealized Gains' Losses become Profits/Losses when position is closed.

Uptick - a new price quote at a price higher than the preceding quote.

V

Value Date - The date on which counterparts to a financial transaction agree to settle their respective obligations, i.e., exchanging payments.

Variation Margin - Funds a broker must request from the client to have the required margin deposited. The term usually refers to additional funds that must be deposited as a result of unfavorable price movements.

Volatility (Vol) - A statistical measure of a market's price movements over time.

W

Whipsaw - slang for a condition of a highly volatile market where a sharp price movement is quickly followed by a sharp reversal. 

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Advantages in Forex currency trading

High Leverage Margin Forex brokers offer trade margin of 50, 100, 150, or even 200 to 1 of trade margin. Forex traders often find themselves controlling a huge sum of money with little cash outlay on the table. For example, a $1,000 in a 150:1 Forex account will gives you the purchase power of $150,000 in the currency market.

While certainly not for everyone, the substantial leverage available from online currency trading firms is a powerful, moneymaking tool. Rather than merely loading up on risk as many people incorrectly assume, leverage is essential in the Forex market. This is because the average daily percentage move of a major currency is less than 1%, whereas a stock can easily have a 10% price move on any given day.

Equal Prospective in Rising or Falling Market Trend There is no structural bias to the market and there are no restrictions on short selling in FX market. Trading in Forex gives you an equal prospective in rising and falling market. As trades are always done in pair of currency pairs, Forex traders can always find chance to make money in anytime, regardless on the fall or rise period of one single country currency.

Trade Forex 24 hours a day Forex market never sleeps. In Forex trading, you do not need to wait the market to open, you can always response to world latest movement and news immediately.

Every Sunday 5.00pm in New York, Forex market starts its week from Sydney, followed by Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong, London, and New York. In Forex tradng, you can always response to the market trend a lot faster than in any other trading market. Also, with the flexibility of Forex market trading time, you can work on your trade in Forex during your free time.

Trade Forex anywhere from the world virtually A computer with Internet connection plus an active Forex account are sufficient for you to execute a trade in Forex market. Professional Forex traders have the privilege to travel around the world but yet still connected to the market anytime, anywhere. The freedom of this is something you could not get else where by being an employee of a cooperation.

High Liquidity Market Turnover value in Forex is $1.9 trillion per day. It is the largest trade market in the world and the liquidity of the market is huge. Traders can easily cash in or cash out their capital in Forex market. 

Posted by dwetto at How are indicators used in Forex fundamentals trading?

A country's economic situation refelects directly onto the currecny trading world. Hence, it is important for a Forex traders to keep an close eye on the financial clalender release by it country itself or private sectors. It is important to keep in mind, however, that the indicators discussed above are not the only things that affect a currency's price. There are third-party reports, technical factors, and many other things that also can drastically affect a currency's valuation.

Also, it is recommended to study the fundamental aspects of several country whenever trading in the forex market. For those countries that have strong political/economical connection, currencies value flux hand-in-hand. Thus researching a few countru in a trade is necessary.

Some useful tips when implementing fundamentals analysis in Forex trading are:*

Economic calendar: When and where. Currency values response sharply to certain release of economy indicators. Keep an close eyes on the currency price trend whenver there is a release on related economy indicators.

Be informed about the economic indicators that are capturing most of the market's attention at any given time. Such indicators are catalysts for the largest price and volume movements. For example, when the U.S. dollar is weak, inflation is often one of the most watched indicators.

Know the market expectations for the data, and then pay attention to whether or not the expectations are met. That is far more important than the data itself. Occasionally, there is a drastic difference between the expectations and actual results and, if there is, be aware of the possible justifications for this difference.

*References from http://www.investopedia.com/articles/trading/04/031704.asp 

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Fundamental analysis in Forex trading

Fundamental analysis, in short, is referring to the dynamic studies of distinct plans, erratic behaviors and unforeseen events that influence the economic of certain entity.

The focus of fundamental analysis mainly lies on the political, social, and economic force that drives the supply/demand trends the currency. Government policies, bank policies, natural disasters, social stability, overall economic trends are some of the major factors that draw a fundamentalist’s attention.

Fundamental analysis comes very handy in making mid-long term invesment decisions. However as the analysis method is mainly focus on the major thing, it will not be a good tool for Forex day traders. It is easy to understand that fundamental skills are useful in forecatsing currency overall trends but in term of detailing job, technical analysis seems to be more appropriate.

Economy Indicators

Fundamental analysis involve a lot of analysis on the macroeconomic situation. Thus, economy indicators of the country such as GDP growth rates, unemployment rates, retail sales, and interest rate are used heavily in when valuating a country's currency. Some of the frequent used economy indicators in Forex trading are as below 

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What is FOREX?

FOREX (FOReign EXchange market) is an international foreign exchange market, where money is sold and bought freely. In its present condition FOREX was launched in the 1970s, when free exchange rates were introduced, and only the participants of the market determine the price of one currency against the other proceeding from supply and demand.

As far as the freedom from any external control and free competition are concerned, FOREX is a perfect market. It is also the biggest liquid financial market. According to various assessments, money masses in the market constitute from 1 to 1.5 trillion US dollars a day. (It is impossible to determine an absolutely exact number because trading is not centralized on an exchange.) Transactions are conducted all over the world via telecommunications 24 hours a day from 00:00 GMT on Monday to 10:00 pm GMT on Friday. Practically in every time zone (that is, in Frankfurt-on-Main, London, New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong, etc.) there are dealers who will quote currencies.

Forex Glossary 1

M

Margin - The required equity that an investor must deposit to collateralize a position.

Margin Call - A request from a broker or dealer for additional funds or other collateral to guarantee performance on a position that has moved against the customer.

Market Maker - A dealer who regularly quotes both bid and ask prices and is ready to make a two-sided market for any financial instrument.

Mark-to-Market - Process of re-evaluating all open positions with the current market prices. These new values then determine margin requirements.

N

Net Position - The amount of currency bought or sold which have not yet been offset by opposite transactions.

O

Offer (ask) - The rate at which a dealer is willing to sell a currency. See Ask (offer) price

Offsetting transaction - A trade with which serves to cancel or offset some or all of the market risk of an open position.

Open order - An order that will be executed when a market moves to its designated price. Normally associated with Good 'til Cancelled Orders.

Open position - An active trade with corresponding unrealized P&L, which has not been offset by an equal and opposite deal.

Over the Counter (OTC) - Used to describe any transaction that is not conducted over an exchange.

P

Pips - The smallest unit of price for any foreign currency. Digits added to or subtracted from the fourth decimal place, i.e. 0.0001. Also called Points.

Political Risk - Exposure to changes in governmental policy which will have an adverse effect on an investor's position.

Position - The netted total holdings of a given currency.

Premium - In the currency markets, describes the amount by which the forward or futures price exceed the spot price.

Profit /Loss or "P/L" or Gain/Loss - The actual "realized" gain or loss resulting fromtrading activities on Closed Positions, plus the theoretical "unrealized" gain or loss on Open Positions that have been Mark-to-Market.

Q

Quote - An indicative market price, normally used for information purposes only.

R

Rally - A recovery in price after a period of decline.

Range - The difference between the highest and lowest price of a future recorded during a given trading session.

Rate - The price of one currency in terms of another, typically used for dealing purposes.

Resistance - A term used in technical analysis indicating a specific price level at which analysis concludes people will sell.

Revaluation - An increase in the exchange rate for a currency as a result of central bank intervention. Opposite of Devaluation.

Risk - Exposure to uncertain change, most often used with a negative connotation of adverse change.

Roll-Over - Process whereby the settlement of a deal is rolled forward to another value date. The cost of this process is based on the interest rate differential of the two currencies.

Round trip - Buying and selling of a specified amount of currency.

Forex Glossary

A

Accrual - The apportionment of premiums and discounts on forward exchange transactions that relate directly to deposit swap (Interest Arbitrage) deals , over the period of each deal.

Adjustment - Official action normally by either change in the internal economic policies to correct a payment imbalance or in the official currency rate or. Adjustment - Official action normally by either change in the internal economic policies to correct a payment imbalance or in the official currency rate or.

Appreciation - A currency is said to 'appreciate' when it strengthens in price in response to market demand.

Ask Price - The price at which the market is prepared to sell a specific Currency in a Foreign Exchange Contract or Cross Currency Contract. At this price, the trader can buy the base currency. In the quotation, it is shown on the right side of the quotation. For example, in the quote USD/CHF 1.4527/32, the ask price is 1.4532; meaning you can buy one US dollar for 1.4532 Swiss francs.

At Best - An instruction given to a dealer to buy or sell at the best rate that can be obtained.

At or Better - An order to deal at a specific rate or better.

B

Balance of Trade - The value of a country's exports minus its imports.

Base Currency - The first currency in a Currency Pair. It shows how much the base currency is worth as measured against the second currency. For example, if the USD/CHF rate equals 1.6215 then one USD is worth CHF 1.6215 In the FX markets, the US Dollar is normally considered the 'base' currency for quotes, meaning that quotes are expressed as a unit of $1 USD per the other currency quoted in the pair. The primary exceptions to this rule are the British Pound, the Euro and the Australian Dollar.

Bear Market - A market distinguished by declining prices.

Bid Price - The bid is the price at which the market is prepared to buy a specific Currency in a Foreign Exchange Contract or Cross Currency Contract. At this price, the trader can sell the base currency. It is shown on the left side of the quotation. For example, in the quote USD/CHF 1.4527/32, the bid price is 1.4527; meaning you can sell one US dollar for 1.4527 Swiss francs.

Broker - An individual or firm that acts as an intermediary, putting together buyers and sellers for a fee or commission. In contrast, a 'dealer' commits capital and takes one side of a position, hoping to earn a spread (profit) by closing out the position in a subsequent trade with another party.

Bull Market - A market distinguished by rising prices.

C

Cable - Trader jargon referring to the Sterling/US Dollar exchange rate.

Candlestick Chart - A chart that indicates the trading range for the day as well as the opening and closing price.

Cash Market - The market in the actual financial instrument on which a futures or options contract is based.

Central Bank - A government or quasi-governmental organization that manages a country's monetary policy. For example, the US central bank is the Federal Reserve, and the German central bank is the Bundesbank.

Chartist - An individual who uses charts and graphs and interprets historical data to find trends and predict future movements. Also referred to as Technical Trader.

Cleared Funds - Funds that are freely available, sent in to settle a trade.

Closed Position - Exposures in Foreign Currencies that no longer exist. The process to close a position is to sell or buy a certain amount of currency to offset an equal amount of the open position. This will 'square' the postion.

Clearing - The process of settling a trade.

Collateral - Something given to secure a loan or as a guarantee of performance.

Counter Currency - The second listed Currency in a Currency Pair.

Counterparty - One of the participants in a financial transaction.

Country Risk - Risk associated with a cross-border transaction, including but not limited to legal and political conditions.

Cross Currency Pairs or Cross Rate - A foreign exchange transaction in which one foreign currency is traded against a second foreign currency. For example; EUR/GBP

Currency - Any form of money issued by a government or central bank and used as legal tender and a basis for trade.

Currency Pair - The two currencies that make up a foreign exchange rate. For Example, EUR/USD

Currency Risk - the probability of an adverse change in exchange rates.

D

Day Trader - Speculators who take positions in commodities which are then liquidated prior to the close of the same trading day.

Dealer - An individual or firm that acts as a principal or counterpart to a transaction. Principals take one side of a position, hoping to earn a spread (profit) by closing out the position in a subsequent trade with another party.

Deficit - A negative balance of trade or payments.

Delivery - An FX trade where both sides make and take actual delivery of the currencies traded.

Depreciation - A fall in the value of a currency due to market forces.

E

Economic Indicator - A government issued statistic that indicates current economic growth and stability.

End Of Day Order (EOD) - An order to buy or sell at a specified price. This order remains open until the end of the trading day which is typically 5PM ET.

EURO - the currency of the European Monetary Union (EMU). A replacement for the European Currency Unit (ECU).

F

First In First Out (FIFO) - Open positions are closed according to the FIFO accounting rule. All positions opened within a particular currency pair are liquidated in the order in which they were originally opened.

Flat/square - Dealer jargon used to describe a position that has been completely reversed, e.g. you bought $500,000 then sold $500,000, thereby creating a neutral (flat) position.

Foreign Exchange - (Forex, FX) - the simultaneous buying of one currency and selling of another.

Forward - The pre-specified exchange rate for a foreign exchange contract settling at some agreed future date, based upon the interest rate differential between the two currencies involved.

Forward Points - The pips added to or subtracted from the current exchange rate to calculate a forward price.

Fundamental Analysis - Analysis of economic and political information with the objective of determining future movements in a financial market.

G

Going Long - The purchase of a stock, commodity, or currency for investment or speculation.

Going Short - The selling of a currency or instrument not owned by the seller.

Gross Domestic Product - Total value of a country's output, income or expenditure produced within the country's physical borders.

Gross National Product - Gross domestic product plus income earned from investment or work abroad.

Good 'Til Cancelled Order (GTC) - An order to buy or sell at a specified price. This order remains open until filled or until the client cancels.

H

Hedge - A position or combination of positions that reduces the risk of your primary position.

I

Inflation - An economic condition whereby prices for consumer goods rise, eroding purchasing power.

Initial Margin - The initial deposit of collateral required to enter into a position as a guarantee on future performance.

Intervention - Action by a central bank to effect the value of its currency by entering the market. Concerted intervention refers to action by a number of central banks to control exchange rates.

K

Kiwi - Slang for the New Zealand dollar.

L

Leading Indicators - Statistics that are considered to predict future economic activity.

Leverage - Also called margin. The ratio of the amount used in a transaction to the required security deposit.

Limit order - An order with restrictions on the maximum price to be paid or the minimum price to be received. As an example, if the current price of USD/YEN is 117.00/05, then a limit order to buy USD would be at a price below 102. (ie 116.50)

Liquidation - The closing of an existing position through the execution of an offsetting transaction.

Liquidity - The ability of a market to accept large transaction with minimal to no impact on price stability.

Long position - A position that appreciates in value if market prices increase. When the base currency in the pair is bought, the position is said to be long.

Forex 3

w do I get started in Forex?

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Do you see the profit potential in trading currencies, but learning to trade just seems too daunting? Have you watched with excitement the recent crashing of the value of the USD, but simply don’t know how to get started trading?

While it is simple to begin trading Forex online, maintaining profitability in the long term is no easy task. You have probably heard that 90% of Forex traders lose their money in the long term. If indeed this is true, it is the result of a couple of different factors.

1. Overtrading: Each trade costs you a couple of pips—Consider your trades well before you make them. Each faulty trade, even if exited quickly, drains equity.

2. Bad money management: One bad trade can wipe out a year of patient, smart trading. Manage your risk using stop loss orders, so that you never risk too high a percentage of your equity on any one single trade.

3. Lack of knowledge: If you have never traded Forex before, educate yourself! Successful traders are not born that way. The difference between success and failure in the Forex market depends in no small part on the knowledge and education of a trader. For the beginning trader, a proper education is essential before investing in the Foreign Exchange. Find a program you are comfortable with, and begin practicing on a demo account

rading on the foreign exchange offers unparalleled opportunities for profit, but it is also extremely risky. Make sure you know what you are getting into before you start trading, and start trading only when you are comfortable in your knowledge and ability.

Carry Trading

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The carry trade is a popular online Forex strategy which takes advantage of the different interest rates between two currencies. If one currency has a relatively low interest rate it can be sold against a currency with a high interest rate and the trader may pocket the interest rate differential. Speculators are guaranteed rollover interest deposits in their account at the end of each trading day. This can provide a significant boost to trader’s profit. If, for instance, an investor buys the NZD against the JPY, which have interest rates of 7.25 and .25 respectively, the trader can make a profit of 7% provided the market doesn’t move.

However, even when exploiting interest rate differentials, there are still significant risks to a trader. Obviously, the market can still move against the trader’s position, though the rollover interest adjustments do help mitigate potential losses. Considering that most carryover traders use exceptionally high leverages to exploit interest rate differentials, even a small move against a position can lead to very high losses

forex Scalping

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Forex scalping is a trading strategy in which the trader makes dozens or even hundreds of trades daily, looking to capture a few pips per trade. Generally, scalpers stay in trades for less than a minute, bolting as soon as their position captures a few pips.

Brokers do not look kindly upon scalpers, as many times scalpers will exit a position before the dealing desk has time to deal your order. This means that the brokerage has to eat the position—a successful scalper will consistently earn money—money that comes directly from the brokerage’s pocket.

To avoid this conflict of interest between scalpers and the brokerages, scalpers often trade with electronic communication network (ECN) brokerages, which circumvent the dealing desk allowing online traders to trade directly with one another. ECN brokerages usually have less liquidity than traditional dealing desk brokerages and charge a per trade commission, but their pip spreads are narrower.

To be a successful online Forex scalper, traders must follow strict risk management rules. Because the scalper grabs only a couple of pips at a time, one big loss can wipe out dozens and dozens of careful, meticulous trading. Traders should be sure to use stop loss orders, ensuring that the profit/loss margin on each trade is very small.

FOrex 2

The Foreign Exchange

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The Foreign Exchange is the largest financial market in the world, with trillions of dollars traded each and every day. Initially utilized just by large banks, multinational corporations and extremely wealthy currency speculators, the influx of online brokerages tailored to the retail market has created a vibrant retail foreign exchange market! Now, with a relatively small initial investment, anyone with an internet connection can take advantage of the online Forex market.

While banks and large multinational corporations generally execute foreign exchange transactions simply as a function of doing international business or to hedge their base currency to protect against devaluation, currency speculators exploit fluctuations in the foreign exchange market exclusively for profit. While trading currencies is a bit riskier than trading other instruments, like stocks and commodities, the potential for profit is unparalleled. For example George Soros, perhaps the most successful Forex trader, made $1 billion in a single day when he sold the pound against the dollar in 1992.

The major currencies traded on the foreign exchange are the US dollar, the Eurodollar, the Japanese Yen, the Swiss Franc, and the British Pound. These different currencies are expressed as pairs. When these pairs are traded, one of the currencies is bought and the other currency is sold concurrently. Today, anyone with an internet connection can trade these pairs under the same conditions once reserved for high value individuals and corporations. Most retail brokerages offer real time currency prices, instant execution, advanced charting features and extensive real time news and analysis feeds.

If you are interested in trying out the foreign exchange, we have assembled a list of quality brokerages that offer free “fake money” accounts where one may trade in real market conditions. Not only is their immense profit potential in the Foreign Exchange market, it is quite exhilarating as well. Why not give it a shot?

Forex One

Strong U.S. consumer price data led to a lower than expected federal reserve interest rate cut, causing the strongest one-day dollar rally against the Euro since May, 2005. By the end of the day Friday the 14th, the Euro fell 1.5 percent to 1.4412, the lowest it has been since October. This is the third week in a row that the dollar has rallied against major currencies.

Strong consumer spending reports have served to partially abate worries that the mortgage crisis would force the US economy into a recession, and widespread inflationary concerns would seem to point to a continued conservative approach to interest rate cuts by the feds, which is more good news for the greenback.

Many analysts are now predicting the dollar rally will continue in the short term, fingering 1.43—or even 1.40—as reasonable support levels. Moreover, there has been a rising chorus of voices saying that the dollar will rebound in 2008, due to shrinking budget and trade deficits. If we are correct in assuming that the Fed will be conservative in cutting interest rates, this will lead to an increased international appetite for investment in the US market, creating greater demand for the dollar.

On the other hand, we are wary that the dollar rally is simply a correction, rather than a trend reversal. Furthermore, we would not be surprised to see another test of the $1.50 level in the short term, even if prospects for the dollar are good in 2008.