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Thursday, November 12, 2009

Forex Brokerage


Every Forex trader like any other professional needs tools to trade. One of these tools, which is vital to be in market, is a Forex broker and specifically for Internet - on-line Forex broker - a company which will provide real-time market information to trader and bring his orders to Forex market. While choosing a right Forex broker things to look for are the following:

  • Being a professional company you can trust
  • Provide you with real-time quotes
  • Execute your orders fast and accurately
  • Don't take a lot of commissions
  • Support the withdraw/deposit methods that you can use

Forex Trading Psychology


While learning a lot about market analysis and money management is an obvious and necessary step to be a successful Forex traders, you also need to master your emotions to keep your trading performance under strict control of mind and intuition. Controlling your emotions in Forex trading is often a balancing between greed and cautiousness. Almost any known psychology practices and techniques can work for Forex traders to help them keep to their trading strategies rather to their spontaneous emotions. Problems you'll have to deal while being a professional Forex trader:

  • Your greed
  • Overtrading
  • Lack of discipline
  • Lack of confidence
  • Blind following others' forecasts

Money Management in Forex


Even if you master every possible method of market analysis and will make very accurate predictions for future Forex market behavior, you won't make any money without a proper money management strategy.
Money management in Forex (as well as in other financial markets) is a complex set of rules which you develop to fit your own trading style and amount of money you have for trading. Money management play very important role in getting profits out of Forex; do not underestimate it.

Forex Technical Analysis


Technical analysis is the process of market analysis that relies only on market data numbers - quotes, charts, simple and complex indicators, volume of supply and demand, past market data, etc.
The main idea behind
Forex technical analysis is the postulate of functional dependence of the future market technical data on the past market technical data. As well as with fundamental analysis, technical analysis is believed to be self-sufficient and you can use only it to successfully trade Forex. In practice, both analysis methods are used.

Forex Fundamental Analysis


Fundamental analysis is the process of market analysis which is done regarding only "real" events and macroeconomic data which is related to the traded currencies. Fundamental analysis is used not only in Forex but can be a part of any financial planning or forecasting.
Concepts that are part of
Forex fundamental analysis: overnight interest rates, central banks meetings and decisions, any macroeconomic news, global industrial, economical, political and weather news. Fundamental analysis is the most natural way of making Forex market forecasts. In theory, it alone should work perfectly, but in practice it is often used in pair with technical analysis.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

How To Read Forex Charts: 5 Things You Must Know

Learning the basic skills in forex, such as how to read forex charts, is really important.

This is because once you have this vital skill under your belt, it will be a lot easier and quicker when the time comes for you to learn and practice an actual forex trading system.

By the time you finish this article, you'll learn how to read forex charts, as well as know the pitfalls that can occur when reading them, especially if you haven't traded forex before.

Firstly, let's revise the basics of a forex trading as this relates directly to how to reade forex charts.

Each currency pair is always quoted in the same way. For example, the EURUSD currency pair is always as EURUSD, with the EUR being the base currency, and the USD being the terms currency, not the other way round with the USD first. Therefore if the chart of the EURUSD shows that the current price is fluctuating around 1.2155, this means that 1 EURO will buy around 1.2155 US dollars.

And your trade size (face value) is the amount of base currency that you're trading. In this example, if you want to buy 100 000 EURUSD, you're buying 100 000 EUROs.

Now let's have a look at the 5 important steps on how to read a forex chart:

1. If you buy the currency pair, that is, you're long the position, realise that you're looking for the chart of that currency pair to go up, to make a profit on the trade. That is, you want the base currency to strengthen against the terms currency.

On the other hand if you sell the currency pair to short the position, then you're looking for the chart of that currency pair to go down, to make a profit. That is, you want the base currency to weaken against the terms currency.

Pretty simple so far.

2. Always check the time frame displayed. Many trading systems will use multiple time frames to determine the entry of a trade. For example, a system may use a 4 hour and a 30 minute chart to determine the overall trend of the currency pair by using indicators such as MACD, momentum, or support and resistance lines, and then a 5 minute chart to look for a rise from a temporary dip to determine the actual entry.

So ensure that the chart you're looking at has the correct time frame for your analysis. The best way to do this is to set up your charts with the correct time frames and indicators on them for the system you're trading, and to save and reuse this layout.

3. On most forex charts, it is the BID price rather than the ask price that's displayed on the chart. Remember that a price is always quoted with a bid and an ask (or offer). For example, the current price of EURUSD may be 1.2055 bid and 1.2058 ask (or offer). When you buy, you buy at the ask, which is the higher of the 2 prices in the spread, and when you sell, you sell at the bid, which is the lower of the two prices.

If you use the chart price to determine an entry or exit, realise that when you place an order to sell when the chart price is say 1.330, then this is the price that you'll sell at assuming no slippage.

If on the other hand, you place an order to buy when the chart price is the same price, then you'll actually buy at 1.3333. A forex system will often determine whether your orders will be placed simply according to the chart price or whether you need to add a buffer when buying or selling.

Also note that on many platforms, when you're placing stop orders (to buy if the price rises above a certain price, or sell when the price falls below a certain price) you can select either "stop if bid" or "stop if offered".

4. Realise that the times shown on the bottom of forex charts are set to the particular time zone that the forex provider's charts are set to, be it GMT, New York time, or other time zones.

It's handy to have a world clock available on your computer desktop in order to convert the different time zones. This is important when you're trading major economic announcements.

You'll need to convert the time of an announcement to your local time, and the chart time, so you'll know when the announcement is going to happen, and therefore when you need to trade.

5. Finally, check whether the times on your forex charts corresponds to when the candle opens or when the candle closes. Your charting software may be different to someone else's in this way.

The reason I mention this, is that if you need to trade major economic announcements, either by entering a trade based on the movements that happen after the announcement, or to exit a trade before the announcement in avoid getting stopped out during it, then you need to be precise (to the minute!) as these trades are performed according to what happens at the 1 minute immediately after the announcement, not the candle afterwards!

So there you have it.

You now have the 5 essential keys to how to properly read forex charts, which will help you to avoid the common mistakes which many forex beginners make when looking at charts, and which will speed up your progress when you're looking at forex charting packages, and forex trading systems that you want to trade!

Choosing Your Forex Broker... Important Facts

The best advice I can give to you is to conduct yourself like a boss interviewing a potential employee. This employee will be making major decision on your financial future (or lack there of) and therefore it is of most importance that you ask the right questions. This decision cannot be taken lightly as must be well thought out. I would interview (more like grill) at least 5 potential Brokers before picking the final two.

When choosing a forex broker there are many factors to take into account.

— Trust

— Experience

— References from past clients

— Level of success

— Amount of advice to be given

— Convenience

— Amount of margin offered

— Speed

All of the above are of course important. In any financial transaction it is important to trust the broker you work with. This trust is garnered by the experience level the broker has. Of course there are some new brokers starting out who are quite trustworthy, but most people would rather work with an experienced broker. For that reason most new brokers attach themselves to a firm where they can be mentored and gain experience.

References from past clients are important. If your broker has helped someone else is successful in the past and that person is willing to speak up for him that says a lot. You can gage the level of success your broker has had by speaking with past clients and seeing how well they did working with this broker. Next, take a look at the amount of advice your broker is willing to give you. Of course, you make your own decisions and will never take another person's word for everything, but it is good to have knowledge to work with, and advice from an experienced broker is key information to factor in. Convenience is also impotent. If you live in California then an Ohio broker might not be the best choice. But in the age of the internet that factor has become less relevant. With fax and email where you and your broker live has become less important.

The amount of margin offered is important. Margin is used to leverage your money. A broker who gives you a 50 to one margin is more valuable than one who gives you 20 to one. And of course speed. Is your broker quick? Does he return phone calls and emails promptly? If so, perhaps you can work with him.

Your broker will b a trusted advisor and someone that you may be working with for years to come so choose the relationship carefully. Ask friends and acquaintances who are active in forex trading what broker they use and how they met. It is quite possible that you can get a referral from a friend or acquaintance you trust and acquire a good forex broker that way.

Another good way to find a forex broker is to go online. There are message forums, chat rooms, and email groups through portals like Yahoo, Google and MSN that contain a wealth of information. Getting onto one of these online communities and asking other people for advice is the way that many people found their broker. If a broker has several clients in an online community who are happy with what he has accomplished for them, then that is a good indication that you might be happy with him as well. Take advantage of the number of people who are on the internet and join some of these online communities. Ask question and you'll probably learn a great deal from the experiences that other people have had. Also find trade journals, magazines and ezines to subscribe to. Read as much as you can about the subject of forex trading before going into it. Become a smart shopper and smarter trader.

Finding a good forex broker is a job in itself. When you visit with a forex broker you are in essence conducting an employment interview to determine if this is the broker you wish to handle your financial affairs, so be thorough. Ask plenty of questions. Ask for references. Don't be shy. Also check with other people in the office of the broker and see if you would trust them to fill in for your broker if he were not available. And, see if the broker is willing to offer you a demo account to use to get in some practice before you actually make an investment. If the broker is able to do so and encourages you then it means that the broker wants educated clients and is not just out for the quick buck. See what kind of training and tutoring the broker is willing to offer. A good broker will offer to answer your questions and help you through the learning process.

by David Mclauchlan

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Gold Trading Forex Brokers

List of some Forex brokers that offer not only currency trading services but also an opportunity of the gold trading, allowing the traders to monetize their gold and other precious metals (silver, platinum) forecasts. Although the spread for gold trading is usually high and leverage — low; it's good to be able to trade it when you have an appropriate trade idea.

Oil Trading Forex Brokers

An assorted list of Some Forex brokers that provide all traders with the opportunity to trade oil and sometimes other types of commodities. Oil price is strongly connected to the currency rates, that's why the oil market often brings a good chance to the Forex traders to increase their usual profit.

Forex Signal Services

What are Forex signals? Forex signals are paid services offered by some brokers and independent Forex annalists. Companies that offer forex signals monitor and analyze the market for you, providing you with their data via desktop alerts, email or even SMS and pager alerts.

Forex signal services analyze several factors when preparing their data. They do a technical analysis of market conditions and use a combination of indicators to identify trends and isolate profitable entry and exit points. They then send you the results via the venue of your choice and you can choose to use the signal in your own trading, or pass on it.

Most forex signal services offer signals for only a handful of the most popular currency pairs, such as EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD, USD/CHF. Occasionally, you can find specialty services that offer signals for other lesser traded pairs. Forex signals can be costly, even upwards of $100 / mth. The benefit of subscribing to such a service is that they analyze and crunch the data for you, saving you time. It should be noted, however that using a signal service is no substitute for a proper education in the Forex markets. Signal services give you data, you still need to know what to do with it.

When shopping for a signal service, make sure that they provide you with historical data so that you can see their track record for yourself. Remember, that like any trader, Forex signal services also have loosing trades. You shouldn't expect a signal service to be a sure ticket to instant Forex wealth, but rather look at them as another tool in your trading toolbox.

by Amber Lowery

Forex Broker Involvement Optional

To trade on the forex market, the largest financial market on the planet, one must use a forex broker. Not unlike a stock broker, a forex broker can also makes suggestions about which moves to make when exchanging foreign currency. Some forex brokers even supply technical analysis to some of their clients and offer tips on research to improve their success as forex traders.

Typically in the forex market a forex broker is a banking institution who may buy up large amounts of a certain currency. For years, banks were the only ones who had access to the forex markets. But today with the Internet, any forex trader, who subscribes with a forex broker, can access the market 24 hours a day.

Today, as with stock brokers, the brick and mortar institutions, such as banks, are less of an option for the individual forex trader who works from home, monitoring the news and gaining insight into certain technical information to help with his or her trading decisions.

Choosing a forex broker may depend on your needs. If you are new to the field, there are houses, or online forex brokers who may cater to your needs, providing in-depth research, ample time to demo their product and so on. Other forex brokers are geared toward the experienced online forex trader. They too offer advice, but may be less likely to offer instructional help with the information, assuming that you may already know how it may or may not benefit you when you read it. It is advisable to read about and even run a demo on several different online forex brokers before going with one.

by Jay Moncliff

Monday, October 26, 2009

Forex Software Packages

If you plan to start trading FOREX online you will of course be using a software system. This system will make it easy for you to get information quickly about market prices and make trades. There are two types of FOREX software available, client based and web based.

As the FOREX market is a fast moving market and you will need up to the minute information to make informed transactions, it is up to you to see you have a high speed internet connection. Dial up internet access will absolutely not work for this. Another consideration could be the location of the servers used by your broker. If your broker's servers are located quite a distance from you, say in another country, this could potentially slow down your transmissions. If you plan to trade online you will need a modern computer and high speed internet connection.

The next consideration would be which type of software, client based or web based? Web based software is housed on your brokers website. You will not have to install any software on your own computer. A web based software program will allow you to log in from any computer that has an internet connection. A client based software program, or one that you download into your own computer will limit you to transactions only on the computer it is downloaded on. Web based software programs are preferred by most brokers who think they are more safe and reliable. Web based software tends to be less vulnerable to attack from viruses and hackers during transmissions than client based software.

Any FOREX software should offer you real-time quotes and offer means to quickly enter and exit the market. These are minimal requirements of any trading software. Upgraded software packages are usually offered at an extra monthly fee by brokers.

Generally brokers will have client information housed on two severs kept in two different locations. This is to guarantee client data is kept as safe as possible. If there is a power failure or a problem with one server the data is sent back and forth from the second secure server and you will not notice an interruption. Regular back ups of these servers is another way that brokers keep financial data safe in case of server failure.

by Ryan Larson

Sending Signals For Trading In FOREX

Forex signals are sent by a forex firm to their subscribers in order to buy and sell currencies. These signals are called entry and exit signals for the forex dealers. The firms, which send this forex signal, do so after tedious and meticulous research and analysis into the currencies that their dealers are trading in. For example a firm may send the entry and exit signals at designated time frames in real time. These will remain valid for a short period only after which they are going to be different.

Let's say that there is a forex trading company say Acme Forex traders who send entry and exit signals to their clients in the following way

The first signal is provided to the trader at 08:30, and this signal is going to remain actual till 12.30

The trader will receive the second signal at 12.30, which would remain actual till 16.30.

The last signal would be sent to the trader at 16.30.

The transactions are given according to GMT. Please adjust for local time changes. The transaction shall be calculated till the signal is actual. The charges would be $300 per month per trader.

Forex dealers and experts provide forex-trading information and data to both institutional clients and individual investors and provide these kind of signals. Investors like to subscribe to credit worthy forex dealers / companies since their information and data would be genuine and more accurate. In fact many forex dealers would kill to get information before the rest of the market gets the same information. As forex dealing is a very competitive business.

These signals or forex indications are given to the forex dealers through the forex trading platform or hub. The signals or forex indicators are the specific entry and exit strategies. Therefore when you enter a currency trade buying currencies at lower price and then selling at higher price, you book a profit. currency pair. For example the forex dealer is trading in GBP/USD. The rate is for GBP/USD is .9800 . If you expect that Euro is likely to go up in the future you would buy the Euros today to sell them off at a later date thereby booking a profit. If you expect the dollars to appreciate, then you would buy the dollars selling them off at a later date to book profits.

Most forex dealers will get the information via email or straight on their computer screens. It is then up to the forex dealers to decide whether they want to sell / buy / hold the currencies till further information is given to them.

Those who contribute in giving the information on currency dealing are hedge managers, foreign exchange dealers located in the major financial markets of the world, professional stock brokers, finance managers and a host of other finance professionals. They make it their business to collect, analyze and disseminate information in such a way, that can be used by forex dealers to buy / sell / hold the forex.

Therefore the companies take extreme care to send the forex signals for the currency dealers.

by Gary Berg

Forex Trading Platform

As the name says, the Forex trading platform is a place where you can sell and buy the forex. This can also be called the forex-trading station. All forex trading financial companies, banks, traders and brokers will provide their own trading hub. These currency trading or forex trading hubs use sophisticated software's, which have, can perform various kinds of analysis such as technical and fundamental analysis. They also generate data, which is both numeric, and well as statistical base such as graphs, pies, regression data etc.

In most cases the trading stations or the platforms have real time streaming ticker line. This ticker line is being constantly updated and gives the buy / sell currency rate of major currencies in pairs. Forex dealers or traders also maintain fixed spreads on major currencies across the world, which are constant irrespective of the changing financial markets. Most of the trading stations will provide the following

Real time streaming of the major currencies in pairs.

Pricing which is competitive

Fixed spreads in 3-5 pips

Certainty of price for the currencies in buy and sell position

Another factor in the forex trade is that the more creditworthiness an institution or a forex trader is, the better access they have to market information and competitive pricing. This is then reflected also in the trading sessions that the subscribers and the investors utilize. They would have better access to interbank prices and therefore the cost of the execution for the trade in currencies would be better. The currency trade software's provide the following in most cases

Real time streaming currency pair rates. One can click the suitable boxes provided to confirm the sale or the purchase of the desired currencies.

They allow the linkage to currency margin account, which means that you can have more purchasing power with less of investment.

Immediate confirmation of the sale / purchase of the currencies. Of course the cost would be debited to your account. This is done almost simultaneously and in real time.

These currency trade software will also show you the real time profit / losses that you have made in the currency transactions.

Investors must make sure that when they subscribe to these currency trade software's, they read the terms and conditions as many trades may be subject to regulations and the agreement that may be drawn between the client and the websites / currency trade companies.

There are options provided whereby one can also limit or stop the open orders. These can also be cancelled or modified at a later stage in these forex trades. Reports on all forex and currency transactions can also be generated. These reports can be in the form of monthly / weekly reports. One can print these records or download them for later. There are many combinations and permutations, which are possible. Depending upon forex trading packages that each forex trader or financial company may provide, the forex trading stations may differ in features provided.

by Gary Berg

How To Choose A FOREX Broker

Most investors who trade Forex stocks use a broker. A broker is an individual or a company, who buys and sells stocks according to the investor's wishes. Brokers earn money by collecting commissions or fees for their services.

You should check that a broker is registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as protection against fraud or abusive trade practices. A Forex broker also needs to be associated with a financial institution, such as a bank in order to provide funds for margin trading. Picking the right Forex broker for you will take some work on your part. There are brokers who charge a flat fee and some that charge commission. It may be a good idea to talk with friends and business associates about their brokers. You may get some good leads, and you're certain to hear who to stay away from. There is nothing like word of mouth advertising.

If you are thinking of investing online, you could choose several online brokers and contact their help desks. Seeing how quickly they respond to your questions could be key in how they will respond to their customers needs. If you don't get a speedy reply and a satisfactory answer to your question you certainly wouldn't want to trust them with your business. Just be aware that as in other types of businesses, pre sales service might be better than after sales service.

Before you choose an online broker get a copy of their online demo account. What features are included? Is the software reliable? Does it offer automatic trading? Are there extra software features that cost more?

Before setting up an account with a Forex broker you will need to do further investigation. How quickly will these brokers execute your buy/sell orders? What is their policy on slippage? What are the transaction fees? What is the spread, fixed or variable? What are the margin requirements and how are they calculated? Does the margin change with currency traded? Is it the same for mini accounts and standard accounts?

Don't forget to ask about minimum account balances and interest payments on account balances. Make sure that your funds will be insured.

by Mark Freeman

Finding Reliable Forex Signals

You guys know how hard it's to find a reliable forex signals and most of the forex signals services are very expensive ranging from $199 to $500 per month. And worse of all, there's no guarantee of this.

To find a good service, you must make sure that you get their free trial before you really subscribe to the service. 1 to 2 weeks is good enought to prove that whether they are reliable or not.

You want to find a forex signals service just because you don't have time or you don't have a good skills in trading forex. I understand your felling and that's why I've created a blog for people who want to get the free forex signals.

by Elisha Gan

Trading Currency Through Online Forex Brokers

Access to foreign exchange (forex), the most extensive market on the planet, is generally through an intermediary known as a forex broker. Similar to a stock broker, these agents can also provide advice on forex trading strategies. This advice to clients often extends to technical analysis and research approaches designed to improve client forex trading performance.

Financial institutions are generally the most influential in the forex market through high-volume, large-value forex currency transactions. Historically, banks enjoyed monopolistic access to the forex markets, but through the Internet, any forex speculator can also enjoy 24 hour access to the market via a forex broker.

Secure web connections today allow many forex traders to work from home, where ready access to news and other technical advice informs decisions on what forex positions to take. Similar moves are being made by stock brokers, who are also moving out of banks and other traditional institutions.

Your needs in the market will influence your choice of forex broker. Online forex brokerage firms, known as houses, provide those new to the forex market with detailed research, advice and simulators to learn how to use their forex trading tools. The experienced online forex trader is catered to by other broking houses, with in-depth advice, but less focus on forex trading instruction based on the assumption that you are familiar with the forex market. To make an informed choice, it is advisable to trial several differing online forex broking houses and their trading tools to find the best fit for your needs.

by Jay Moncliff

Avoiding Forex-Related Frauds and Scams

A lot of people have been 'burnt' from scam operations on the Internet. Their sites may look so perfectly legitimate that you doubt whether they would have gone through all that trouble building a trading platform just to steal your money. Beware.

The first thing I look for is the geographical location of the broker. If I find that they are based in a country where the financial industry is, in my opinion, relatively unregulated and under-developed, I quickly forgo signing up. This is terrible news for honest brokers in those countries, but your job as a trader is to protect your capital. If you lose that, then you cannot trade. The onus is on them to convince you that they will do the right thing by you as an investor.

I started out with an Australian broker. Currently I am using an American one. I have not tried UK-based brokers but the British financial industry is one of the best. Companies that are based in countries such as Japan , Germany and France are probably just as good too, if their website speaks your language.

Notice any license numbers that they may have registered with regulatory bodies that act like government watchdogs who oversee the finance and investments industries. These are organisations that impose strict rules to safeguard your investment. Some of these rules may include the requirement that brokers segregate all customer funds from the operational funds of the business. Your money is required to be put in highly-reputable banks and the funds are only withdrawn from these accounts upon specific withdrawal requests.

Take note that there are some fake regulatory bodies being thrown around in cyber-space as well. Take a look at how long they have been operating for. Try and search out any reviews or comments made about them. See if you can find forums where traders have discussions about their brokers.

Below is a list of things to keep in mind to help you avoid being a victim of a scam:

Stay Away From Opportunities That Sound Too Good To Be True

There are people who may have just acquired a large amount of money just and recently are the same and are shopping around for safe investment vehicles. These may include retirees who have access to their retirement funds. It is understandable why retirees would be drawn to 'high-return, low-risk investments'. This is also what makes them very vulnerable. If you identify yourself to be one of these people, be careful. A lot of deceitful characters are after your money. Furthermore, only allocate a tiny amount of your money to trading until you can start growing it. Not all people can trade successfully, so it is a venture you should take on haphazardly. It is your life savings at risk.

Avoid Individuals Or Organizations Who Claim To Predict Or Guarantee Large Profits

Any form of trading is hard. Trading currencies is no different. Be wary of statements that make it sound easy. Statements like:

"Whether the market moves up or down, in the currency market you will make a profit";

"Make $1000 per week, every week";

"We are out-performing 90% of domestic investments";

"You'll make returns of 70% a year";

"Here is a no-risk strategy".

If they could make such returns, why would they even bother letting you know about it.

Be Wary Of Companies Who Downplay Investment Risks

Hold your wallet tight and zip up your purse when companies say that written risk disclosure agreements are routine formalities imposed by the government. Watch out for statements like:

"With a $10,000 deposit, the maximum you can lose is $200 to $250 per day";

" We promise to recover any losses you have ".

Be Wary Of Companies That Claim To Trade In The 'Interbank Market'

Do not believe it when some people say that they have access to the 'Interbank market' or that they can give you access to trade in that market because that's where bargain prices can be obtained. This is not true. The 'interbank market' is not a place, it is not a physical building. It is simply a loose network of currency transactions that are negotiated between big financial institutions and other large companies.

Ethnic Minorities Are Often Targeted

Ethnic newspapers and television 'infomercials' are sometimes used to attract Russian, Chinese and Indian minorities. Sometimes these ads offer so-called 'job opportunities for account executives to trade foreign currencies', whereby the recruited 'account executive' is expected to use his own money to trade currencies and would often times be encouraged to recruit members like their friends and family to do the same.

Seek Out The Company's Background

Check any information you receive to be sure that the company is who they claim to be. If at all possible, try and get the background of the people operating the company. Do not rely solely on oral statements and promises made by the company's employees.

If You Are In Doubt, It Is Not Worth Risking Your Money

If after trying to solicit information and at the end of it all, you are still in doubt about the credentials of a particular company, my suggestion is to start looking elsewhere.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Overcoming Fear

"A strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger, it implies anxiety and usually the loss of courage." This definition of fear is useful in helping define the issues that traders face when coping with fear. The reality is that all traders feel fear at some level, but the key is how we prepare to address our concerns related to taking on risk as a trader.

Mark Douglas, in his book,
‘Trading in the Zone’, says that most investors believe they know
what is going to happen next. This causes traders to put too much weight on the outcome of the current trade, while not assessing their performance as "a probability game" that they are playing over time. This manifests itself in investors getting too high and too low and causes them to react emotionally, with excessive fear or greed after a series of losses or wins. All traders will encounter fear at some stage, no matter whether you are a professional or a novice trader, this seems inevitable, and to succeed and fight fear, traders will have to work through this positively. Winning traders manage their fear, while losers are controlled by it. Winners take positive action in spite of their fears.

Two of the greatest fears that a trader will encounter can be,
1. Fear of Loss

2. Fear of Letting a profit turn into a loss

Elliot Wave indicators

The three Elliot Wave indicators that often use are;
Elliot Wave Trend (ET) TREND
Elliot Wave Number (EN) WAVE COUNT
Elliot Wave Oscillator (EWO) MOMENTUM

Your most profitable trade
This would simply be the strongest trade indicated by this method; this trade is where there is-

1. A New EN of 3, i.e. moving from 2 to 3. Since wave 3 would be the longest of all cycle this
will produce you the most gain.
2. An ET of 1, since this being a positive
3. A positive EWO – the more positive the better.

LONG POSITION – i.e. when you will be buying the stock, to exit you have to SELL to close your
original position. So you buy when you expect the price to go up, and sell it to close your
position. For Long positions you are expecting EN of 3 or 5 (remember UP waves), ET must be 0
or 1, and EWO must be positive. These 3 things must happen simultaneously. Once these 3
indicators line up you should look for a good opportunity to go long. The price to close your
position is the open price of the first period where EWO first became negative. An EWO decline
to below 0 is enough to tell us that the price may retrace, so you should book your profits!

SHORT POSITION -- Refer to the Manual

Elliot Wave Theory


The Elliot Wave Theory was proposed in the early 1930s by R.N. Elliot, a stock market speculator,
Elliot focused on classifying market activity according to a set of cycles and ratios of movements.
As with the waves on the ocean, market activity ebbs and flows in cycles that repeat and can be
subdivided into smaller cycles.
The theory states that markets move in repetitive patterns; a five-wave advance (impulse waves)
and a three-wave decline (corrective waves, labelled with letters). This cycle of eight waves can be
seen in all time frames from intraday to what Elliot called the "Grand Supercycle" of over 200
years. Each wave in a cycle can be subdivided into smaller cycles.
The diagram below shows how an eight-wave cycle advances in five waves and declines in three.
One of the rising impulse waves has been broken down into five smaller waves.

According to physical law: “Every action creates an equal and opposite reaction”. The same goes for the financial markets. A contrary movement must follow a price movement up or down, as the saying goes: “ What goes up must come down” (and vice versa)
Price actions can be divided into trends on the one hand and corrections or sideways movements
on the other hand. Trends show the main direction of prices, while corrections move against the
trend. In Elliott terminology these are called impulsive waves and Corrective waves.

Designing a Trading System

Here are some of the key factors to keep in mind when designing a trading system in the
FOREX:

1. The liquidity and the volume in the Forex market is huge, therefore making trading
systems more accurate and effective.

2. Most brokers do not charge commissions in this market, only spreads Therefore, it's
much easier to make many transactions without increasing costs. Some brokers offer a
very low pip spread.

3. Compared to the amount of equities or commodities available, the number of
currencies to trade is limited. But because of the availability of 'exotic currency
pairs'--that is, currencies from smaller countries--the range is not limited.

4. The main trading systems used in FOREX are those that follow trends (a popular
saying in the market is "the trend is your friend"), or systems that buy or sell on
breakouts. This is because economic indicators often cause large price movements at one
time.

5. A good quality charting package, I use the eSignal and would highly recommend this
package to any readers.

Designing a Trading System

Here are some of the key factors to keep in mind when designing a trading system in the
FOREX:

1. The liquidity and the volume in the Forex market is huge, therefore making trading
systems more accurate and effective.

2. Most brokers do not charge commissions in this market, only spreads Therefore, it's
much easier to make many transactions without increasing costs. Some brokers offer a
very low pip spread.

3. Compared to the amount of equities or commodities available, the number of
currencies to trade is limited. But because of the availability of 'exotic currency
pairs'--that is, currencies from smaller countries--the range is not limited.

4. The main trading systems used in FOREX are those that follow trends (a popular
saying in the market is "the trend is your friend"), or systems that buy or sell on
breakouts. This is because economic indicators often cause large price movements at one
time.

5. A good quality charting package, I use the eSignal and would highly recommend this
package to any readers.

What Is a Trading System?

A trading system is simply a group of specific rules, or parameters, that determine entry and exit
points for your trade. These points, known as signals, are often marked on a chart in real time
and will prompt you to pull the trigger.
Here are some of the most common tools used to construct a trading system-
1. Chart Patterns
2. Moving Averages
3. Stochastics
4. Oscillators
5. Relative Strength
6. Bollinger Bands
7. Elliott Wave

Often, two or more of these forms of indicators will be combined in the creation of a rule. For
example, the MA crossover system uses two moving average parameters, the long-term and the
short-term, to create a rule.

Advantages
So, why might you want to adopt a trading system?

· It takes all emotion out of trading - Emotion is often cited as one of the biggest flaws of
individual investors. By cutting down on these human inefficiencies, system traders can
increase profits. Apart from going through lot of strategies in this book so that you can
construct your own Trading System, I am also devoting lot of space in psychology of
trading, without which a trader can simply not succeed.

· It can save a lot of time - Once an effective system is developed and optimised, there is
little to no effort necessary on the part of the trader. Computers are often used to
automate the signal generation.
Developing an effective trading system is by no means an easy task. It requires a solid understanding of the many parameters available, the ability to make realistic assumptions, and
the time and dedication to develop the system. However, if developed and deployed properly, a
trading system can yield many advantages. It can increase efficiency, free up-time and, most
importantly, increase your profits.

Characteristics of a Successful Trader

1. Adequate trading knowledge and understanding. You should seek services of good quality
mentors and a trading coach.
2. Adequate capitalisation – Don’t be fooled that you can earn thousands every week from a
starting capital of $500
3. Realistic Goals – don’t expect 100% profit each month, it simply is not possible.
4. Have patience – don’t trade if you don’t have to. You should wait for a set-up according to
your trading plan and system.
5. Have Discipline to follow your rules
6. Understanding and Managing Risk
7. And lastly the most important is having a Trading System and a Trading Plan. Virtually
90% of Traders that I have coached have never had one!
If you look at the advice from the world’s most successful people or traders today, you will notice
that they follow the guidelines as identified above.

“Define first the level of risk you dare assume. Start with a small position, and then build it up if it
works”
– George Soros

“Give me a stock clerk with a goal and I’ll give you a man who will make history. Give me a man
with no goals and I’ll give you a stock clerk”
– J.C. Penny

“ If you go to work on your goals, your goals will go to work on you. If you go to work on your
plan, your plan will go to work on you. Whatever good things we build end up building us.”
– JimRohn

Why Do Forex Traders Fail ??

“Failure is a man who has not learnt from his blunders. If you are able to cash in on that experience you are
on the path to success”
– Jay Lakhani, Forex Trader

It is a sad fact that 90% of traders fail, and many very quickly give up. Why? When I went
through a phase of losing trades I treated it as a temporary setback and went back to the
drawing board. I analysed the reasons of my failure and I sought the guidance of Top Traders,
Mentors and Coaches to put me back on the path of success and profitability.
In my opinion the high rate of failure for a new trader can be related to the six major obstacles
that a trader faces, which are summarised as follows -
1. Poor Skills
1. Lack of adequate capital
1. Setting unrealistic targets and goals
1. Lack of Patience
1. Lack of discipline
1. High risk aversion.
If we look at the list, it becomes apparent that the failure is as a result of trading without having
in place a proper Trading System and a Trading Plan– One that includes mind training, quality
Forex education and strategies and sound money management rules.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

The Exchange Stock Market

The Exchange Market is a place where buyers and sellers come together to trade. The best known and largest exchange is the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The NYSE is a large room with many trading posts where trades take place. Each post has a specialist who handles specific securities. He can act as a broker's broker and make commissions on the trades, or he can buy and sell out of his own account, hence, creating a market in that specific security. The NYSE is not directly involved in the actual transactions (trades) but acts as a police officer enforcing certain rules to ensure fairness.

The New York Stock Exchange sets the policies of rules and regulations and decides which stocks are eligible for listing, and which firms can become members of the exchange. The NYSE approves specialists as well. There are many restrictions on the specialists in order to make a fair marketplace.

The First Stock Exchanges

In 11th century France the courtiers de change were concerned with managing and regulating the debts of agricultural communities on behalf of the banks. As these men also traded in debts, they could be called the first brokers.

Some stories suggest that the origins of the term "bourse" come from the Latin bursa meaning a bag because, in 13th century Bruges, the sign of a purse (or perhaps three purses), hung on the front of the house where merchants met.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Making Profit in the Foreign Exchange Market

The currency fluctuate continuously due to reasons such as political, economical reasons, sometimes the changes could be extremely great, therefore, the Forex traders also can have the opportunity in among which makes a profit. For example, the Japanese Yen daily fluctuation is probably between 0.7% to 1.5%, Forex traders may make profit through buying and selling. All trading could be completed in a short time, the trading strategy could be carry up according to the market conditions, it is extremely flexible, even if the direction looks wrong, the lost could be stop immediately, the lost could reduce but profit potential is still great. Therefore, the Foreign Exchange margin trading is the most flexible and the most reliable investment method.Foreign Exchange Margin Trading elementary knowledge.

Forex Margin Trading

Comparing to other investment, the Foreign Exchange margin trading is one of the fairest and the most attractive investment method.
The Foreign Exchange margin trading meaning the traders borrow loan from bank, finance organization or broker house to carry on the foreign currency trading. Generally, the financing proportion is above 20 times, which means the Forex traders’ fund may enlarge to 20 times to carry on the trading. The bigger the financing proportion, means the Forex traders just need to pay very less fund, for example, the financing proportion provided by the financial organization is 400 times, namely the lowest margin request is 0.25%, the traders just need to pay 25 US dollars, then he or she could trade as high as 10,000 US dollars, fully using the contra method to make big profit by only paying a very less price.
Besides the fund enlargement, another attraction of the Forex margin trading method is that it can be traded in both ways, you can make profit by buying the currency when the currency rise (makes many), or to sell a currency when the currency is dropping to make profit (short-selling), thus does not need to be restricted by the restriction so-called bear market is unable to make money.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Automated Forex Systems

Learning the right strategies in forex market trading does not necessarily spell out a success in this field. One has to know how to implement these strategies before they get converted to cash. However, putting these two into practice entails a lot of time, effort and money and for somebody who wants to venture into trading but does not have the luxury of time, this could be a big obstacle.

Now that technology is present in almost all sectors, it has also found a way to provide a solution to this obstacle, and that is through the automated Forex system. Though a lot of traders had been skeptical about this system, later on, they also came to realize that this system can be their key to success in Forex market trading.

An automated Forex system functions with the use of an artificial intelligence. Patterned according to the strategies of a seasoned trader, this artificial intelligence makes it possible for the system to address trading issues and matters, which simplies the whole process. It also makes it capable to adapt to any type of trading environment that makes it flexible and versatile.

Because of this capacity of an automated Forex machine, it is now possible to for a trader's investment to grow with the use of this innovation. A notable increase of earnings to as much as 400% has been attributed to this machine. Coupled with the theoretical knowledge in Forex market trading, this automated Forex machine will surely be a trader's secret to success.

Forex Trading Software

There has been a growing interest in forex dealing software programs ever since the introduction of automated systems became commonplace and accessible. Formerly, this arena was solely manipulated by any big investors be it financially or not as well as banks but is now starting to rise up the interests of tiny and mid level investors. This is the place to where the dealing of currency from one country to another happens. Trillions of dollars are traded here each day without stopping making it the largest and most active financial marketplaces of the world.

Today dealing with forex is relatively simpler with the advent of the internet and superior connectivity technology anyone with an internet link, forex dealing software and some knowledge of accounts and brokering can actually indulge in this. This marketplace never closes, and to know about what is happening in the marketplace, you have to keep a constant monitoring system in place. Before you trade in any currency the automated system allows you to not just select the currency, but also its asking and selling price. All that’s required is a tiny seed amount and a broker because your buy and sell orders would be executed instantly.

You do not have to have great professional expertise in this market as the forex trading computer software handles all the jobs for you. In the case of supervised accounts utilizing the automatic dealing systems, the program automatically manages all the details for you. This process can actually save you a lot of time since the trading won’t be done by you but the auto systems itself. Over and above, the automated dealing programs are equipped to control more than one account simultaneously - a facility manual dealing does now allow you to do. With these systems you can trade in several market places with several systems working in tandem.

There is this added benefit with forex trading software programs where you can trade anytime you wish, without having to be there in person. Being away from the computer won’t scrap any chance of you creating money since you can still have all the chances that you want. Thus it becomes more handy to work with several systems, and put many of your forex schemes into action. You can broaden your investment and get the utmost profits that you desire with the nominal risk involved since the activation of each system is intended to be carried out by various specified trade factors.

The best part about this forex trading computer software is that it does not take into consideration any human factors which often stand in the way of making rational dealing decisions. This way you have the ability to manage and monitor several currencies at the same time as well as deal them as you like.

Using a forex trading software programs does not spare you from learning the basics of trading, fundamental and technical analysis, study of market indicators, etc. to enjoy sustainable profits. The forex marketplace is still reliant on a number of elements and variables therefore success can’t be guaranteed even if you are using the top rated automatic systems. It is possible to set the program of the forex dealing computer software with ease and you can even customize the settings to suit your own tastes.

Forex Home Business

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.

How to Achieve Financial Freedom with Forex Trading

Learn and Earn

Education is the shortest path to elite forex trading. Regardless of your ultimate goals, you will reach them quicker with a great forex trading education. The good thing is Forex Home Courses nowadays is that they have customer support, Like the Forex Profit Accelerator. Bottom line? they will support you until you succeed.

The more you Learn the more you Earn.


In order to achieve and retain elite forex trading skills, you must constantly searching and learning. one significant point to look for in an elite forex trading course is ongoing education. It is always pleasant and motivating to have an ongoing relationship with the person/people helping you to achieve your goals. The support yet being independent makes an elite trader.

What separates the elite from the not is that some follows only what the people around them tell them to do. the strategies and decisions come only from the points of view of others. An elite does other wise.

An elite forex trader will lead. Their decisions will be calculated and analyzed to near perfection. They will make decisions with no hesitation, and handle the growth of their account in a predetermined, intelligent fashion. Take your trading to their level and you will never look back.

It is not hard even for a beginner to be an elite forex trader. If you are decided to be financially free, it always start with one's character, Constant learning and the right people to support you. Being an independently learning trader can bring you to new heights, and being independent means freedom, financially.

Online Forex Trading - Platform Rating and Trading School

Increase your profitability using ForexFloor.com's currency trading guides and tools. Software reviews, market data, charts, quotes and indicators.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Forex News Trading

Traders on the Foreign Exchange market, Forex market for short, can potentially make thousands of dollars based on the volatility and fluctuations of a country’s currency. To better themselves and have a leading advantage over other traders, some Forex traders and investors participate in a practice known as news trading. The risks are very high, but the potential gains can be worth thousands of dollars and many traders and investors use this technique.

The technique of news trading is quite simple. It is the trading of foreign currency immediately before or after an important economic news announcement. After such announcements, there is a high possibility that market prices will fluctuate, either for the better or worse, depending on the announcement. For example, if the U. S. Federal Reserve announces another increase of the interest rate, many traders might invest in the U.S. dollar as it is expected that its value will appreciate. The main advantage of news trading is the potential for a country’s currency to make huge gains or losses in very little time. Within minutes of an economic announcement, a country’s currency can gain or lose one hundred points almost instantly. The potential of huge profits attracts Foreign Exchange traders and investors, however there are various risks associated with news trading.

Like any investment, there is always a risk, and news trading on the Forex market is no different. Though the potential profits are huge, the losses are also equally as large. The dangers of news trading come from the fact that a trade must be made quickly or else you are going to lose. If you are caught on the bad side of a trade, your money will be gone quicker than you can blink your eye. You will lose money so fast that there won’t even be time for you to manually close your trades, leaving you with nothing. Stop-loss orders are also potentially dangerous as there is a high probability of slippage because of the sudden price fluctuation.

Though some investors and traders might get lucky trading news, there is only a small probability that you will make a profit. Even if you are an expert news trader, you should still be very, very cautious when participating in this practice. Successful news trading depends solely on how you get your news. The most successful news traders are the ones with the fastest news feeds and those that are able to quickly place their trades immediately after an announcement has been made. Even using other forms of news trading, such as placing orders above or below the market price is still a guessing game, and those traders in the market who base their trades on guesses, won’t have much money after a short time.

For many Forex traders and investors, their trades are dictated by technical indicators and price indexes. Hours are spent researching every indicator, taking every risk into account and then making a decision based on everything they have studied. However, for a Forex news trader, none of this matter, and the only thing they take into account is economical news announcements.

News trading is possible because the Forex market is always open, unlike many financial markets. In a financial market, securities trades of certain stocks are suspended when an important company announcement is being made. These announcements are usually made after the market has closed for the day. However, because the Foreign Exchange market is open 24 hours, any economic announcement will have direct affects on the currency of that country, and maybe others as well. In the Forex market, there are eight major currencies that are traded, as well as over seventeen derivatives to be traded as well. This means that on any given day, there will always be economic announcements from any of the major traded currencies. The major trader currencies are as follows:

  1. U.S. Dollar (USD)
  2. Great British Pound (GBP)
  3. Euro (EUR)
  4. Japanese Yen (JPY)
  5. Australian Dollar (AUD)
  6. Swiss Franc (CHF)
  7. Canadian Dollar (CAD)
  8. New Zealand Dollar (NZD)

Because of the availability of each currency, currency pairs, and its derivatives, such as USD/JPY, EUR/USD, AUD/USD, as well as several others, each currency can be traded at any given time because these currencies are globally traded.

Any Forex news trader or news investor will have to have the latest most up to the moment news announcements. Even if the news announcements are only a couple of minutes old, this can have devastating effects for any trader who has risked any sum of money. Most news traders like to keep an eagle eye on any news regarding economical activity, but most importantly news dealing with interest rates changes, FOMC rate decisions, retail sales figures, inflation indicators such as the consumer price index (CPI), producer price index (PPI), unemployment figures, industrial production announcements, boost in business and consumer confidence, as well as business sentiment surveys. Manufacturing sector surveys, trade balance release details, and foreign purchases of U.S. Treasuries may also prove useful for a news trader to better make decisions regarding when or when not to trade.

However, it should be remembered that these news announcements can have ranging impacts on a country’s currency, and after an announcement, the volatility of a currency may greatly fluctuate. It is important to take advantage of news that creates movements in volatility that will last for a few minutes or even hours. Trading on the Forex market based solely on news is a difficult and sometimes dangerous practice. However, there are some indicators that can make a news trader’s job easier, such as breakout indicators (Bollinger bands, breakout of a candlestick bar, or a price bar). Research has proved that news announcements can impact a currency’s value quite severely, in some cases it can gain or lose anywhere from 33 pips to 124 pips, opening up the ideal trading opportunity looked for by news traders. If a news trader is able to act quickly enough, even the smallest news release can be turned into a potential profit of thousands of dollars. However, it is important to remember the volatility of such announcements, and although the profits seem endless, the losses can happen too.