Forex or Foreign Currency Exchange Trading has become more and more popular among the investors in the recent years. There are few reasons why many investors choose forex trading over other type of investment opportunities.

Unlimited Earning Potential

Everyday nearly $ 2 trillion in different currencies traded in the forex market. This has made the Forex market by far the biggest and the most liquid financial market in the world. Due to the size of the transaction volume it’s very hard to manipulate the market and your earning potential is unlimited. As such investing in Forex is one of the most stable financial businesses.

Forex Market Never Sleeps

Forex Trading can be done any time of the day, day or night as the Forex market is a 24 hour market place. This is because the banking organizations are always open to customers in the varying time zones all over the world. This is desirable for many people who are looking for an opportunity to do during their spare time since most of them have their day jobs and they only can do their forex trading on part time basis from their home during the evening.

Transparency

The Forex markets are highly transparent where anyone can search for forex information such as real-time news and analysis online with a click. With this real-time information a Forex investor/trader can do their own analysis such as risk management strategy to avoid unexpected “suprises”.

Low Initial Investment

A trader can participate in forex trading with a small account size (as low as $300.00). This is very good for newbie investors as some may want to “test market” with a small amount of capital.

No commission and exchange fees

No commission or transaction fee incurs in forex trading. Most brokers offer commission free trading. The only cost a forex trader has to pay in taking on a position is spread. The spread is the difference between the bid price (the price you sell at) and the ask price (the price you buy at). It’s quoted in pips (1/100 of one percent). In some transaction, it could be as low as 1 pips for some pairs.

Leverage

If you invest in stocks market the amount of stock you can traded is limited by how much the capital fund (ie money) you have. This is not the case in forex trading. In forex trading, traders are permitted to trade foreign currencies on a highly leveraged basis – up to 100 times their investment. For example, you only need about $100 to trade $10,000 of a currency for a margin lending ratio of 100:1.  An average forex trader with a small trading account, says under $10,000 will be profit sufficiently from the movement of the currency exchange rate.

Profit in both rising and falling markets

In share market, an investor can only profit if the stock price goes up. When the stock price fall, the investor can either keep the stock hoping that the price will bounce back again in a later date or sell it off at loss. However in forex trading, traders can profit from both bull (rising) and bear (falling) markets. As forex trading involves selling one currency and buying another currency when you buy a particular currency, you are actually simultaneously selling the other currency in that particular pair. As the market moves, one of the currencies will increase in value versus the other- there is an equal opportunity for profit whether a market is rising or falling

Conclusion

With the above benefits, I believed that you are convinced that Foreign Currency trading is the best investment and income opportunity around. You do not need to be a rocket scientist, nor need a Degree or Diploma to trade in the forex market. Many of the forex traders have no financial knowledge before they involved in the forex trading business. However you need a proper training to guide you to become a success forex trader.

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What have you put off today? Something important you had to do that you ended up not doing? Well i am sorry to say this but Forex doesn’t like you very much, it won’t actually come out and say this, but it will definatley show you by eating all your money.

Why do lazy people flounder in the forex market?

1. They put off getting a broker too long and then often make a bad choice.

2. They don′t do any research or engage in education and therefore end up gambling.

3. They clutter up informative blogs and forums with their incessant whines about how forex is a scam and can anyone lend them $20 because they are good for it.

4. They are often emotional about trades and will either get too excited after a good trade or try to take revenge on the market after a bad loss.

Does this look like a successful traders mindset to you? Of course it isn’t. Are you guilty of any of these things? If you are get it sorted ASAP, not or my sake, but for your own. It isn’t my money you are gambling away. “But i thought forex is investing not gambling?” Thank you! I don’t gamble in forex, i invest, many other traders i know invest as well. Whats the difference? Education my friend, education. We know what we are doing, and make educated decisions about where we want our money, a forex gambler wakes up in the morning and just decides then and there where he is going to flush away some more money. They don’t research, they don’t even know what a chart looks like, they just go with uneducated gut feelings.

But let’s stop talking about forex gamblers before i have a stroke, what about successful traders?

1. They research brokers and then choose one and stick to it until the broker gives them reason not to.

2. They are always learning. What is a better indicator to use? What have i done wrong in the last week? This is the kind of thing that sharpens their trading sword so sharp it could cut space and time.

3. They don’t post often, they might not ever post on a forum or blog. To them forex is about learning and they would rather listen then speak. Humble eh?

4. They keep their cool. They know that a win can turn into a loss and the other way around within the next 5 minutes. They have the experience and they have already set up their trades to accomodate for a turn in fortune. They are in control. Well mostly.

So the main point of all this text is to realize that if you can’t even bother having a shower when you wake up in the morning, how are you ever going to be successful in something as demanding, but equally as rewarding as forex? You aren’t because forex hates you.

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FOREX MARKET HOURSAt 7:00 pm Sunday, New York time, trading begins as markets open in Tokyo, Japan. Next, Singapore and Hong Kong open at 9:00 pm EST, followed by the European markets in Frankfurt (2:00 am), and then London (3:00 am). By 4:00 am, the European markets are in full swing, and Asia has concluded their trading day. The U.S. markets open first in New York around 8:00 am Monday, as Europe winds down. Australia will take over around 5:00 pm, and by 7:00 pm Tokyo is ready to re-open.All times are quoted in Eastern Standard Time (New York).FX or Forex, currency trading is the trading of one currency against another. In terms of trading volume, the currency exchange market is the world’s largest market, with daily trading volumes in excess of $1.5 trillion US dollars. This is orders of magnitude larger than the bond or stock markets. The New York Stock Exchange, for example, has a daily trading volume of approximately $50 billion. Currencies are traded for hedging and speculative purposes. Various market participants such as individuals, corporations, and institutions trade forex for one or both reasons. Corporate treasurers, private individuals and investors have currency exposures during the the regular course of business. The FXTrade Platform is an ideal platform to hedge any such exposure. An investor, who has bought a European stock and expects the EUR exchange rate to decline, can hedge his currency exposure by selling the EUR against the USD. Currency markets are ideally suited for speculative trading. The foreign exchange market has a daily volume in excess of 1.5 trillion USD, which is 50 times the size of the transaction volume of all the equity markets taken together. This makes the foreign exchange market, by far, the most liquid and efficient financial market of the world. Thanks to its efficiency, there is little or no slippage of market price for the execution of even large buy and sell orders. Traders are able to take advantage of intra-day volatility thanks to the low spreads and enter positions for short time periods, such as minutes and hours. Unlike equity trading, where restrictions limit a trader’s ability to profit from a market down turn, there are no such constraints on currency trading. Currency traders can take advantage of both up and down trends thus increasing their profit potential.The most commonly traded currencies are: USD, EUR, JPY, GBP, CHF, CAD and AUD.The most commonly traded currency pair is EUR/USD.Forex Symbol Guide Symbol Currency Pair Trading Terminology GBP/USD British Pound / US Dollar “Cable” EUR/USD Euro / US Dollar “Euro” USD/JPY US Dollar / Japanese Yen “Dollar Yen” USD/CHF US Dollar / Swiss Franc “Dollar Swiss”, or “Swissy″ USD/CAD US Dollar / Canadian Dollar “Dollar Canada″ AUD/USD Australian Dollar / US Dollar “Aussie Dollar” EUR/GBP Euro / British Pound “Euro Sterling” EUR/JPY Euro / Japanese Yen “Euro Yen” EUR/CHF Euro / Swiss Franc “Euro Swiss” GBP/CHF British Pound / Swiss Franc “Sterling Swiss” GBP/JPY British Pound / Japanese Yen “Sterling Yen” CHF/JPY Swiss Franc / Japanese Yen “Swiss Yen” NZD/USD New Zealand Dollar / US Dollar “New Zealand Dollar” or “Kiwi” USD/ZAR US Dollar / South African Rand “Dollar Zar” or “South African Rand” GLD/USD Spot Gold “Gold” SLV/USD Spot Silver “Silver” CURRENCY PAIRSAll currencies are assigned an International Standards Organization (ISO) code abbreviation. In currency trading, these codes are often used to express which specific currencies make up a currency pair. For example, USD/JPY refers to two currencies: the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen. SPOT FOREX Spot foreign exchange is always traded as one currency in relation to another. So a trader who believes that the dollar will rise in relation to the Euro, would sell EUR/USD. That is, sell Euros and buy US dollars. The following is guide for quoting conventions: What does it mean to be “long” or “short″ a currency?Being long means buying a currency. Being short means selling a currency. If a trader goes long USD/JPY, he or she buys US Dollars and sells Japanese Yen. Buying a currency is synonymous with taking a long position in that currency. A trader takes a long position in a currency if he or she believes it will appreciate in value.If a trader goes short USD/JPY, he or she sells US Dollars and buys Japanese Yen. Selling a currency is synonymous with shorting that currency. A trader would short a currency if he or she believes it will depreciate in value.CURRENCY TRADING: BUYING AND SELLING CURRENCIESAll Forex trades result in the buying of one currency and the selling of another (currency trading), simultaneously. Buying (“going long”) the currency pair implies buying the first, base currency and selling an equivalent amount of the second, quote currency (to pay for the base currency). It is not necessary to own the quote currency prior to selling, as it is sold short. A trader buys a currency pair if he/she believes the base currency will go up relative to the quote currency, or equivalently that the corresponding exchange rate will go up. Selling (“going short″) the currency pair implies selling the first, base currency, and buying the second, quote currency. A trader sells a currency pair if he/she believes the base currency will go down relative to the quote currency, or equivalently, that the quote currency will go up relative to the base currency. An open trade or position is one in which a trader has either bought or sold one currency pair and has not sold or bought back an adequate amount of that currency pair to effectively close the trade. When a trader has an open trade or position, he/she stands to profit or lose from fluctuations in the price of that currency pair.Forex is the backbone of all international capital transactions. Compared to the slim profit margins rendered in other areas of commercial banking, huge profits are generally produced in a matter of minutes form minor currency market movements. Some banks generate 60% of their profits from trading currency aggressively.Trading volume has been growing at a rate of 25% per year since the mid-1980s and therefore it is not difficult to accept the notion that the currency market is one of the world fastest growing industries. What used to require days to accomplish in Europe or Asia now oly takes a few minutes. Needless to say, technology has changed everything and millions of Dollars are moved from one currency into another every second of every day by major banks through computers and for the average investor, with the touch of a computer key.Foreign exchange is the backbone of all international capital transactions. Compared to the slim profit margins rendered in other areas of commercial banking, huge profits are generally produced in a matter of minutes from minor currency options market movements. Some banks generate up to 60% of their profits from trading currency aggressively. Transactions in foreign currencies take place when one country’s currency is purchased (exchanged) with another country’s currency. The price agreed upon or negotiated for the currency purchased is referred to as the foreign exchange rate. Major commercial banks in the money market centers throughout the world are responsible for the majority of foreign currencies bought and sold. Trading volume has been growing at a rate of 25% per year since the mid-1980s and therefore it is not difficult to accept the notion that the currency options is the world’s fastest growing industry. What used to require days to accomplish in Europe or Asia now only takes a few minutes. Needless to say, technology has changed everything and millions of Dollars are moved from one currency into another every second of every day by major banks through computers and for the average investor, with the touch of a phone.FOREX BASICS – What’s a PIP A “pip” is the smallest increment in any currency pair. In EUR/USD, a movement from .8951 to .8952 is one pip, so a pip is .0001. In USD/JPY, a movement from 130.45 to 130.46 is one pip, so a pip is .01. CALCULATING THE WORTH OF A PIP How much in dollars is this movement worth, for example, per 10,000 Euros in EUR/USD? How much is one pip worth per 10,000 Dollars in USD/JPY? We will refer to the size, in this case 10,000 units of the base currency, as the “Notional Amount″. The formula for calculating a pip value is therefore: (one pip, with proper decimal placement / currency exchange rate) x (Notional Amount) Using USD/JPY as an example, this yields: (.01/130.46) x USD 10,000 = $0.77 or 77 cents per pip Using EUR/USD as an example, we have: (.0001/.8942) x EUR 10,000 = EUR 1.1183 But we want the pip value in USD, so we then must multiply EUR 1.1183 x (EUR/USD exchange rate): EUR 1.1183 x .8942 = $1.00 This is in fact a phenomenon you will see with any currency in which the currency is quoted first (such as EUR/USD or GBP/USD): the pip value is always $1.00 per 10,000 currency units. This is why pip (or “tick″) values in currency futures, where the currency is quoted first, are always fixed. Approximate pip values for the major currencies are as follows, per 10,000 units of the base currency: USD/JPY: 1 pip = $.77 (i.e. a change from 130.45 to 130.46 is worth about $.77 per $10,000) EUR/USD: 1 pip = $1.00 (.8941 to .8942 is worth $1.00 per 10,000 Euros) GBP/USD: 1 pip = $1.00 (1.4765 to 1.4766 is worth $1.00 per 10,000 Pounds) USD/CHF: 1 pip = $.59 (1.6855 to 1.6866 is worth $.59 per $10,000)SpreadThe spread is the difference between the price that you can sell currency at ( Bid) and the price you can buy currency at ( Ask). The spread on majors is usually 3 pips under normal market conditions. Market HoursThe spot Forex market is unique to any other market in the world; trading 24-hours a day. Somewhere around the world a financial center is open for business and banks and other institutions exchange currencies every hour of the day and night, only stopping briefly on the weekend. Foreign exchange markets follow the sun around the world, giving traders the flexibility of determining their trading day and the ability to take advantage of global economic events.FOREX or The Foreign exchange rate market is an international market where various currency exchange transactions take place; this is in the shape of simultaneously buying one currency and selling another. The most commonly traded currencies are referred to as “Majors”; over 85% of daily transactions on Forex trading involve the Majors. These seven currencies are the US Currency (Dollar, USD), Japanese Yen (JPY), Euro (EUR), British Pound (GBP), Swiss Franc (CHF), Canadian Dollar (CAD) and Australian Dollar (AUD). The Forex system in operation today was established in the 1970s when free currency exchange rates were introduced, this period also saw the US Dollar overtake the British Pound as the benchmark currency. Prior to this and in particular during World War II, exchange rate remained more stable. Forex trading in simplest terms is the buying of one currency and the selling of another. Forex trading, also referred to, as “FX” is open to corporations, small businesses, commercial banks, investment funds and private individuals, it is the largest financial market in the world averaging a daily turnover of over $1 trillion dollars, making it a diverse and exciting market. It is a 24-hour market enabling it to accommodate constant changing world currency exchange rates . According to New York time, trading begins at 2.15pm on Sunday in Sydney and Singapore and progresses through to Tokyo at 7pm, London at 2am and reaches New York at 8am. This leaves investors free to respond to global political, economic and social events when they take place, day or night. Unlike trading on the stock market, the forex market is not conducted by a central exchange, but on the “interbank” market, which is thought of as an OTC (over the counter) market. Trading takes place directly between the two counterparts necessary to make a trade, whether over the telephone or on electronic networks all over the world. The main centres for trading are Sydney, Tokyo, London, Frankfurt and New York. This worldwide distribution of trading centres means that the forex market is a 24-hour market.

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If you want to make big profits from currency trading, you need to lock into and follow the longer-term trends.

“The art of contrary” thinking is one of the most powerful tools a trader can use, and is a trait with which all true great traders are familiar with.

What is the Art of Contrary Thinking?

Humphrey Neill’s book, “the art of contrary thinking,” the best known work on the subject, is based on a simple powerful idea that:

“When everybody thinks alike, everybody is likely to be wrong″

“The art of contrary” thinking consists in training your mind to ruminate in directions opposite to general public opinions; but basing your opinion in the light of current events and human behavior”.

Why Contrary Trading Works

By spotting situations when the consensus of a currency is either extremely bullish or bearish, means that a trend change is imminent, as it is likely the emotions of greed and fear have pushed prices too far away from true value.

If you can step aside from the crowd and take a contrary view at these turning points, you can make big currency trading profits. Contrary thinking can be used in any market and is highly effective in currencies.

Contrary thinking can be used to make really big currency trading profits and if used selectively, when markets are extremely over bought or oversold, you can be in right at the start of the trend for maximum profitability.

In any currency you look at – The Yen, Euro, British Pound Swiss Franc Canadian or Australian dollar and many others, there are always occasions where a currency trend in the news is forecast to continue, due to overwhelming evidence in its favor and it then promptly collapses!

Big profits from currency trading can therefore be made by using the art of contrary thinking when the market is extremely bullish or bearish.

Why? Because everyone who has bought has taken positions and there are no buyers left. Prices have moved away from fair value. When there is no more buying to enter the market, a trend change is imminent.

It is clear that to succeed and make big profits in currency trading you need to think independently of the majority at important market turning points.

You can make big profits in currency trading from trend following, but you can with a little practice spot potential turning points in currencies as well which will help you bank profits, tighten stops or open new trades right on the turn, for maximum profitability.

Contrary trading will not only make you big profits in currency trading but in ANY market and has worked for centuries, as human nature never changes.

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