Forex, trading in the currency exchange market, is a lucrative industry. Trading on an international scale, Forex traders can open and close trades around the clock. Forex brokers operate 24 hours a day from 8 am Monday (Sydney, AU time) through 5 pm Friday (NYC time).
Currencies are traded in pairs represented by three-letter symbols. The euro/Japanese yen pair appears as EUR/JPY. Traders using the USD (US dollar) to fund a forex account must first buy the euro with the dollar before exchanging it for one yen. Selling short means the trader expects the value of the second unit to decrease. Buying long is for traders who expect that unit will increase in value. Whether long or short, the trade will be profitable if the speculator is correct.
The actual monetary value moves in tiny increments called pips. A pip is usually the 1000th digit placement after the decimal point in most currencies. Leverage is borrowed money from the broker to trade in lots.
The size of lots available depend upon what sort of accounts and options individual brokers offer. Usually the lot sizes are 1,000 (micro), 10,000 (mini), or 100,000 (standard), but some brokers offer unusual lot sizes.
Borrowed units are known as leverage. Leverage is necessary in order to place trades in lots. Typical 100:1 leverage is the most common term of leverage internationally. 100 to 1 means that the broker will increase every unit of money risked to 100 units.The range of leverage among world brokers is 10:1 through 500:1. In America, investors are regulated by the CFTC. US regulations do not permit leverage above 50:1. Beginners can easily get into trouble with too much leverage since the investor is responsible for any losses. Before trading FX one must learn to manage risks well.
Statistics show 90% of new Forex traders fail, but many people are very successful with the currency exchange market. Forex trading risk is minimized with education. Fortunately, there are many sources of education available for free on the internet. Joining a forum is one of the best ways to find free advice from experienced professionals. Become familiar with Forex and its trends before trading in a live account. Enter with a strategy, and stick to it.
How much are you making in forex at the moment? Is it something you can be proud of? In order to earn the most out of foreign exchange trading, learn from the experts.